Bart J. wrote: > In a game with more than two players, your success depends quite > a bit on what the player who goes immediately before you does - > and what state they leave the board in. [...] > Is this a problem with Volcano itself? I find myself wondering > if it would help to have a mechanic to reverse, or randomize, > the turn order. It's hardly the only game where turn order has > such an effect, but it seems more prominent in Volcano. If it seems more prominent, it's only because Volcano often has more than two players. I mean, in a two player game, your opponent can only make it easier for *you* to win. =^> Let's take another example: Chess. If two players of widely separated skill levels play, it's not much fun either, and it's only educational if the less-skilled player is interested in learning. if two players of equal skill levels play, the game can be frustratingly difficult. Most people take this into account before suggesting a nice game of Chess. It's really cool of your friend to play Volcano with the full knowledge of nearly certain defeat, but it's always going to be a bit frustrating for serious players to share a game with less serious players, even if you vary the rules to even out the playing field. -- Elliott C. "Eeyore" Evans eeyore@xxxxxxxx PS: > others will just aim to collect more pieces for themselves, and > not care what moves they're leaving open. This is my play level. I do *care* =^>, but I don't have enough experience to visualize the board after my move and analyze it for possibilities, and have a difficult enough time finding moves for myself to spare energy for the effort.