Tournament Idea

I got this idea while discussing the new tournament today.

Bear with me, this is pretty much a novel idea.

Essentially, a lot of players' issues with the tournament system revolve around the fact that each country has a counter, and 1v1s are decided more by who picks second than by legitimate skill. Hugosch has tried to introduce a change by making it a two country start, but many players feel that playing with two countries is out of their comfort zone. They don't want to have to go through a whole rigorous process to determine which country pairs are the best.

Why can't we find a solution that will satisfy both those who want to play within their comfort zone but also want to eliminate the determinism of counters?

Here's where my idea comes into play.

Let's get a tournament where there won't be any advantages based on who picks second and still retains a standard 1v1 format.
This is how it works:
Instead of picking countries at the time of the match, players submit country selections (a primary and alternative pick, in case of conflicting choices) to a neutral party (probably the tournament host -Hugosch, for example). Before every round of the tournament begins, the host posts a topic listing all the matchups and countries for each person. If there is a conflict, the involved players can play rock-paper-scissors or some other quick, luck-based game. In order to keep things interesting and to prevent players from getting screwed over by unlucky picks, the strategies can be chosen by the players at the time of the games.

Certainly, this would provide a new dynamic for tournaments. Players might try to predict what another will take, or simply go with what they're best with. Instead of a totally different game type, this new idea keeps the traditional method but makes it more skill-based.

Thoughts?

When i started the last 2v2 tournament, i also introduced new settings, 3mins, 10k, Europe+. I also got a lot of complains then from players that wanted 5k, europe and 2mins again (like the touranment before). But after they got used to these settings, everybody liked it. Today, the 10k, europe+ has become a standard in both public games and CWs. The reason why players complain, is because they are good in a default way of playing. They always pick the same countries, and always make the same first 5moves, and win most of their games with it. In the new situation, they have to think again, and search for new tactics and strategies. This is what this game should be. Not repeating your 'default' moves, but play a game with unexpected situations. Go out and find new ways to win a battle, and also find out new strategies.

Általa írva Hugosch, 31.03.2012 at 19:25

search for new tactics and strategies. This is what this game should be. Not repeating your 'default' moves, but play a game with unexpected situations. Go out and find new ways to win a battle, and also find out new strategies.

I've been doing this for quite a while. Thing is I'm only about 50% done with it. 2 countries is out of my comfort zone yes, but it won't mess me up that bad.