I've been in a bunch of games with very good players - and I find that
balance is very important for them. I've actually been in non-grudge
games where the two sides had an (effectively) joint dialog with the
neutrals to find the right split for a good game. My preferred twist
on the signups is having a minimum of 2-3 slots (not specific nations)
that go to more experienced folks on each side before a game can start
up.
I would definately support that. If it isn't too much trouble for the GMs.
On the other hand, even without this system, and taking into account the fact that I have only been in one grudge game, I find that there usually ARE a couple of experienced folks in each game (I think because the older players are often in multiple games, and newbies rarely are.) That doesn't mean that the ones who are there are necessarily active in mentoring, or that a team with 3 veterans isn't at a significant disadvantage to a team with 7.
Best would be if games had roughly matching numbers of new/experienced players on each side, but that might be too hard to manage while still filling games in a timely fashion.
Winn
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