I've always been vaguely unsure as to whether I really like the whole concept of ITS as a player ranking global tournament thing. But then I'm not a big fan of tournaments anyway, really. Not because of the competitiveness, more just because I'm not a huge fan of just playing Infinity all day.
I guess it really only matters if you're one of the top however many qualify for interplanetario, but I can't quite commit to the system myself, not least because I have problems getting opponents other than my brother and neighbour (who is the same guy BTW) and the only semi regular ITS scene I know of is on the other side of the country...
To qualify for the Interplanetario you need a) buy an open ticket (of about 100, or hope to get an open spot if one missed his appointment), b) travel to Galicia (worthy by itself, but I prefer the neighbouring Asturias since one has to defend his homeland), c) play, respecting the gaming times (110 minutes or so per round). Of course, it helps if you either speak spanish or can grab someone who can translate for you, and if you are a good enough player to enjoy the tournament instead of being a "free 3 tournament points" ^^
Take 10 points out of every HI. Meta shaken. For the best? Well, Ariadna will argue that no, not for the best.
See, I could accept that, but DOES this really shake up the meta? You have some profiles that were used in some lists, you have Tarik who is amazing and if I played Haqq I would fit him in every chance, and you have profiles with Guard that no one used at all ever. As meta shakeups go, it was very limited. If CB decided to pair these kinds of 'fluff-bans' to the meta, maybe you'd have a point. If you see one unit being used in 80% of a sectorial's lists, next season that unit is suspected of Shasvastii infiltration, and everyone is forced to come up with new lists. It would be a built-in defense against a stale meta. Likewise, if you ran the numbers and found a profile that almost no one ever took, this sort of narrative event could be a regularly-scheduled correction, where those profiles are pulled and reworked then re-released as something people would actually add to their lists.
Soo: ban Grrls not Kusanagi, Posthumans not Andromeda, Spetnatz not Voronin and Mutts not Tarik. That'll really change up the meta.
I think you are confusing my intent here. I was not talking about the banned characters, but answering to that foolish affirmation that "ANYTHING that changes the meta is good". Tarik is no HI... but a character :p The meta changes would come from Riot Grrrrlll! links costing LESS than Wildcats links, and Brigadas being a little pricier than those. Aleph would get little benefit from this... but people would cry about a Posthuman HI costing 10 points (but 2 SWC). The comes PanO and YJ spamming HI and it hits the fan... Or "All hackers cost 0 SWC", Nomads would be soooo happy... since I think Haqquislam has the biggest number of varied profiles with hacker options. Changes that shake the meta and are not that horrible? Half SWC as an extra, combed with "no more than 15 slots on your private list" (so Limited Insertion and a half).
Was speaking more to @regelridderen and other earlier voices who support change on principle. If we take 'changing the meta' as the desired outcome, what would be the best way to approach it? Temp-banning people's go-to profiles could get pretty awful, as a strategy it fits better to a CCG than a game where people have spent time assembling and painting tiny miniatures. But if regular changes to the meta is a desirable goal, it is certainly one way to make sure things get really shaken.
Not to mention is quite different depending on where do you go and play... and not only in styles, but in rules interpretations :S
The point is, that these changes are temporary, so it allows for rules team to test out various concepts, and then decide upon what to do with them - like ALIVE.
If changing the meta is the goal, then why make soldiers of fortune an optional rule? From the point of view of selling models, 75 points of mercs available to everyone makes several models far more attractive to factions that wouldn't normally have access to the tools they provide: Ariadna get TAGs and hackers, PanO get smoke, YuJing get characters... Give people more options that make the old meta-standards less obvious, make the players think that not using them was their idea instead of telling them they can't. Boost the units that are being overlooked instead of hindering the overused...
PanO has decent internal balance, honestly. Obviously Bolts and Orcs catch plenty of flak. Bolts seem underrated to me. Perhaps I'd agree that ORCs need another look by the balancing team.
I agree, KHDs are broken and need a complete design overhaul. Again, I note with bemusement that your only examples are units which perform poorly rather than things which alter the game so significantly in a positive way that the entire gameplay situation alters around them (and thus they demand inclusion in every list).
