I would like to suggest 2 modifications to previous suggestions. First, though I did not like suggestion that people be allowed to specify rank in general, I can see why some people might want to exclude newbies ONLY. Seven of the last eight newbies I have played quit. This is not enough to turn me off, in general. However, I have read a lot of irate comments. Just avoiding them only works if you are the last person to sign up. Granted, this might limit newbie games. However, those with real interest can and do quickly advance. Even if you lose 5 games, you still drop the "newbie" rank. Rather than a seperate button entirely, I would just add a "no newcomer" or " experienced only" button to the Public/Private/ etc. line.
Second, after losing 3 Doodle games largely because someone missed a turn on a "no card" game, I really think the system needs to change. Yes, you have stated that someone can protect themselves, but this is not really true -- especialy in the very small boards such as Doodle or the "trickier" ones such as Merchant. First, it is extremely rare for someone to lose NO armies in a turn. As for reinforcing, either you spread yourself out trying to protect just about everything or you risk mis-judging where the returnee will deploy their armies. Also, it is extremely rare for In one speed Doodle game, I had three turns of fantastic rolls, but was 1 country shy of conquering. I played one minute, wasted 10, was consolling myself that at least I would get points, when the other player swooped in and conquered me in 2 turns. In normal play, it is extremely rare for someone to lose NO armies. This is somewhat offset by the cards in the fixed rate option, but is a big problem in small" no card games and larger "escalating" card games. In Escalating, someone can play a few turns and then quit, only to re-emerge just in time to cash in their cards. Again, the first is more of a problem in small and no-card games. The second is more of a problem in large board/multi-player games with escalating cards.
I suggest 2 solutions. First, rather than giving a straight multiplier, there should be some penalty. Say, change the multiplier to 1.5 (or whatever number folks feel works best), but with a minimum loss of 1 card per turn. The multiplier would be most effective in larger games, the 1 card loss minimum would penalize most in the smaller games.
Second, I would like to see some way that folks can give up their turn to folks they don't know. This last would work mostly for experienced folks and when they know they are going to leave, but it would be a way to preserve games when people really have to go. I myself would have used this option a couple of times. Because this is a pretty involved issue, with its own problems, I address it separately, with a separate poll. However, I mention it here because it would work together with the above options. I think folks would feel much better about penalizing missed turns more if there were a more viable option for those emergencies that do come up.
