SpielByWeb

[Payton3434]

The semifinals are going very quickly!

These results are through 11 games with 9 left

Code:

name                      games   1st    2nd   3rd freduk                    2       2       0       0    kxw                       3       2       1       0    worcesterarlo             3       2       0       1    Jernau25                  1       1       0       0    tlc                       2       1       0       1    lindalait                 3       1       1       1    smlait                    4       1       2       1    skk7878                   4       1       2       1    tphon                     4       0       3       1    Dobinator                 4       0       2       2    bugink                    1       0       0       1    greg_w                    2       0       0       2

[Payton3434]

Semifinal results through 17 games, with 3 games to go

Congrats to Freduk for going 4/4 in the semifinals and has clinched a spot in the finals, worcesterarlo and kxw can take the other 2 spots with wins in their last games

[Payton3434]

final semifinal standings and final draw

[freduk]

What would be neat is if we could all take a turn at being player 1, rather than leaving it to random chance. Sadly, I don't think it can be done on this site. (I haven't joined yet - maybe it'll just happen)
There's definately an advantage depending on where you sit...

Play well and have fun

[hagin]

Some sort of tournament functionality would be nice for sure. Probably a lot of work though.

Do you think its an advantage of disadvantage going first? I'm urious.

[freduk]

In 2-player, big disadvantage going first. Or maybe I'm just bad in that position
I'd much rather have the extra tiles. With a 2-p game, and the random boards, it's not unusual to have no good first turn play. The only other player in the game has 50% more tiles than you.

It's less of a problem as you add more players. For a start, there are more boards to choose from, so more likelihood that your few tiles will have somewhere to go. Also, more opponents means deflected aggression, giving p1 more time to make up the tile count.

I'd prefer to see a 2-tile handicap in 2-player. Or how about all 4 boards are placed out, but only the first 2 used are in the game.

That's my analysis, other views may vary.

[hagin]

I've thought about the 9 tiles thing. I don't play 2 player but it seems to me that a 6/9 split sorta makes sense.

If the first player doesn't play anything and just puts a shrimp down and then picks up a cube with 3 tiles they've got 9 tiles. Plus when choosing cubes and which tile to put in your parrotfish you can factor in exactly from what's available to pick up. Sometimes that helps a lot. Sometimes it doesn't.

The disadvantage is that those extra 3 tiles aren't in your hand until after your turn. Also the colours you have might not suit the two boards in play. Starting with all four boards and only using the first 2 used (or 3 in 3 player) is IMHO an excellent variant suggestion (or even a proposed rule change).

I think more about the tiles thing in 3 and 4 player (which I play). In 4 player it just kinda makes sense: 6, 7, 8 and 9. That being said, I don't like going 2nd because you only have 1 extra tile but don't have the first choice of placement (sometimes it matters, sometimes it doesn't) and you can't deterministically looik at what tiles are face up and factor that into your hand. You can usually narrow it down to what'll probably be taken but sometimes that's only of limited value.

In 3 player, I really hate 2nd. 6, 7 and 9. Not much difference between 2nd and 3rd placement IMHO but 2 extra tiles, which make it that much more likely that you'll have 3 of something.

Anyway, I perhaps digress...