1. What does "3 turns have elapsed" mean? If I invoke shuffleboard on turn 100 does that count as one of the 3 turns? So I get to invoke it again on turn 102? Or is turn 1 of shuffleboard cooldown actually Turn 101? If it is turn 101 then clearly turn 103 is the third turn. But do I get a new shuffleboard then? Or do I have to wait until Turn 103 has ended, so really I cant ask for a new shuffleboard until Turn 104?
Understand that this MUST be clearly understood before the rule can be used, because IT WILL come up in the game and obviously everyone will try to interpret it to their own advantage so there will be no resolving it then. So do we wait to start the game while we iron this out or just scrap the shuffleboard rule and start the game?
2. Someone is going to request a turnorder shuffle 1 turn after someone else gets a turnorder shuffle. One side is going to say that the rules only allow 1 shuffleboard every 3 turns by any team in the game. The other side is going to say that the way to interpret the rule is that there is 1 shuffleboard allowed
per team every three turns. So theorhetically, you could have 9 shuffleboard requests in 9 consecutive turns
- Now before you say "Oh that would never happen!" recognize what is also true. A neverending stream of spies with
successful sabotage missions that perpetually denies Oil will also never happen
... So you can't make a rule addressing one impossible hypothetical while you simultaneously try to dismiss the hypotheical problems your rule creates as "impossible."
3. How do you decide who gets "priority" when two players are both in the same position in the turn? Example:
A and B are at War. A has 1st move. B is denying A's Oil.
At the same time, C and D are at War. C has 1st move. D is denying C's Oil.
A is not at War with C, but A and C hate each other, and are denying each other's Oil.
Both wanting to get their Oil back, A and C both ask for shuffleboard on the same turn. Both will suffer catastrophic losses if they don't get Oil immediately.
Who gets to shuffle to last position and thus survives the game?
Another example, same situation, but also:
E is not at War with A or C, but E is at war with F. E moves 2nd. E is also helping B and D against A and C by helping to deny A and C's Oil with spies. A declares war on E, intending to invoke shuffleboard the following turn. However C anticipates this and also declares War on E on the same turn, also intending to invoke shuffleboard. Now E actually anticipated this, and pre-emptively invoked shuffleboard against F before anyone declared war on him, and asks B and D to declare phoney war on F and on each other, to frustrate A and C, which they do. After declaring War on F, B also declares War on D and takes 1st move.
New turn - Now since B and D moved after F to Declare War, F is now in 1st position and must move before B and D. And because E invoked shuffleboard E gets a doublemove and E must move before F. And since A&C declared War on E they move before E. So The order this turn is A&C have first move then E has his own period, then F has his own period, then B has his own period, then D has his own period. 5 different movement periods.
But wait!... E will claim that since he invoked shuffleboard against F last turn, that he is supposed to get a doublemove into First move, as in BEFORE A&C. Is that right? Does E get to move before or After A &C? Confused yet
? There's more...
Now, this turn A and C both want to invoke shuffleboard to get into last position but E is going to say that they can't because they were just shuffled out of First and the rules say you cant shuffle the turn after you were shuffled. A and C will start arguing that that only applies to the person
requesting the shuffle not the "victims" of the shuffle. Game paused, r_rolo1 ruling... drinks all around!
Then, even if we do grant the shuffle to A and C, we need to decide who actually gets to shuffle into last position, because they are both cutting each others Oil and who ever is last will continue to do so... So that's another argument.
Don't forget that B declared War on D, and B is going to say that he is entitled to shuffle into last place too. We will say he loses priority to A&C this turn because they are earlier in the turn than he is, but then he will say, "Fine, then shuffle them both to the end of the turn this turn, and give me shuffle priority to the end of the turn next turn." Of course then whichever of A&C doesent get absolute last move (and thus still has his Oil cut) will complain about that, saying that this effectively denies him absolute last move AGAIN. Game paused... r_rolo1 ruling, drinks all around
...
Now stop here for a moment...
If you are going all and cant figure out who moves when with all the different complex wars and shuffling all around then put yourself in Caledorn and Magno's shoes. They are the ones who will have to be sorting out this nonsense every turn, and r_rolo1 will have to pause the game and make a ruling everytime someone disagrees with someone else's interpretation of how the shuffle is applied. Also remember that everytime we do a shuffle, Magno will have to turn the APT auto ordering off then back on again, and if someone accidentally logs in at the wron time for the purposes of the shuffle, there will be an argument and the game will have to be paused and reloaded
... again
Also don't forget that English is not Magno's first language so unless Caledorn is fluent in Spanish, this is going to be very interesting... and not in a good way
The worst part is this is just
some of the stuff
I can think of. What about all the snafoos that I
can't imagine right now?
4. Team A appeals to the Game Admin that the shuffle order is unfair. The game admin is out of town or can't respond quickly for whatever reason (maybe he needs to review all the evidence/arguments before deciding). The game is paused waiting for a decision while the involved teams flamewar each other over it. Uninvolved teams complain about the pausing and players start quitting
