Well, it doesn't give a huge advantage going first, some people say that if you go first in a sequential game you shouldn't attack becuase you are always attack countries with 3 armies on them. Whereas afterwards someone may have attacked and left themselves open somewhere, making it easier for the people going afterwards to gain cards in the first round (I think anyway

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Making the starting person random would make it interesting, I'm not really sure, I tend to play freestyle games after my first sequential game still hasnt finished.