So, the awesomeness that was Tin Soldiers IV has come and gone. It was a fantastic weekend and I thoroughly thank all participants, helpers, sponsors, and the Onehunga RSA for once again being our hosts. I believe the tournament was a screaming success and had a great time popping my TO cherry. Final placings followed by my thoughts on the experimental features of this tournament are below:
Dice Down:I would absolutely recommend all TO's to implement this rule into future tournaments. There were numerous occasions throughout the weekend where 'Dice Down' was called, to both the glee and dismay of various players. While I can sympathise with those players that honestly missed out on many battle points by a fraction of a turn, the viewable time tables, clock in the hall, 15 minute warning and my hovering presence during the last moments should all have been strong indicators to get a move on.
I believe 15 minutes was an adequate amount of time for players to finish off the turn sequence (if they weren't keeping an eye on the clock).
Pros: timeliness, interesting new element/tactics to the game, encourages proactive playing.
Cons: Potential for cheating via time wasting, some players may miss out on potential/deserved battle points.
Masters' Round:The point of this trial was to protect those players that are seeded against other high-ranking opponents in the final round from those who get a cheap win and play leap frog. In this area I believe the Masters' Round was successful. With Masters' Round, Harry and Dan Butler played off for first and second, while Nick and Phil Wu repeated their previous round draw in a battle for third and fourth. The rest of the field played off for the Butcher prize, and fifth place overall.
Without the Masters' Round, Daniel Butler, who put up consistent performances playing in the top tables all weekend, would have slipped to fourth (a place few would say he deserved after such a dominant weekend).
Pros: great showcase for final round, submarine protection.
Cons: players may be forced to play an opponent they have already been paired against.
Anyways, enough rambling... time to post some photos!!!
