Of Matt "Ariovistus" O'Donnell, the history books (i.e. Caesar's Gallic Wars) inform us:

"[Caesar] then made the same demands which he had commissioned the embassadors to make, that [Ariovistus and his Germans] should not make war either upon [Rome's] allies, that he should restore the hostages; that if he could not send back to their country any part of the Germans, he should at all events suffer none of them any more to cross the Rhine."

Negotiations failed as Ariovistus' cavalry escort provoked a skirmish with Caesar's. Caesar and Ariovistus returned to their camps. After several days of repositioning...

"Thereupon the engagement was renewed, and all the enemy turned their backs, nor did they cease to flee until they arrived at the river Rhine, about fifty miles from that place. There some few, either relying on their strength, endeavored to swim over, or, finding boats, procured their safety. Among the latter was Ariovistus, who meeting with a small vessel tied to the bank, escaped in it."

So, Ariovistus departed the pages of Caesar's histories... and of DC 373... but not so the Germans! Their forces may be depleted, but they remain, and they are well-spoken as always in the arts of Diplomacy:

"[German] embassadors came to him from their state, whose speech was as follows: 'That the Germans neither make war upon the Roman people first, nor do they decline, if they are provoked, to engage with them in arms; for that this was the custom of the Germans handed down to them from their forefathers, - to resist whatsoever people make war upon them and not to avert it by entreaty'."

Enter Alex, better known as Maslow. I have both GM'd and been GM'd by Maslow. He was a participant in the legendary 10-year, entirely NMR-free DC 345. It's good to have you on board. I think you'll recognize a couple of familiar faces.

In case you haven't figure out yet, this is a Julius-Caesar-themed game. You can expect to be tortured with strange, out-of-context Caesar-related commentary.

I am resetting the deadline for Friday at 2:00 p.m. CST (Maslow lives in Alaska, and afternoon deadlines work better for him, if I recall). I can adjudicate sooner if everybody prefers.

Maslow, I'd send you a .dpy, but mine is loaded with everybody's orders, so please download the .dpy if you like from the game site by clicking on the little computer icon to the left and slightly below the game map:
http://diplomaticcorp.com/game_page.php?game_id=dc373

Meanwhile, I am attaching the current map as a GIF.

Here is our updated email roster:
Austria ??? Jack McHugh
England ??? Dirk Knemeyer

France ??? Mark Mizak
Germany ??? Alex Maslow
Russia ??? Stephen Osellame

Gentlemen, the caution flag has been stashed away, you may return to ruling the world.