Advanced options when creating games

[Negern]

Right now, it's not so advanced.

How about adding a possibility to ban units, decide the amount of starting gold and other useful stuff? Of course not hidden for joining players, but very easy to look up.

Also, I think docks should open if a player clicks on them. Clicking on mine shows info about mine. Clicking on docks shows no info about different boats etc.

[Negern]

Perhaps certain artifacts and heroes could get banned too.

[LPhillips]

The idea of banning units and heroes separate from map creation control is bad. This will fragment the community, similar to the way "no crows" games did. People cannot be allowed to exclude units and heroes simply because they don't want to have to face them. Otherwise I could create games wherein I used Red Dragons and banned Devils because I don't like being countered, to give a mild example.

[Negern]

I agree about heroes. Perhaps that would be taking it too far. But about units, I see no problem. It just open up new ways of gaming. If it had been on already in the last version, perhaps 50% of all FFA games hadn't been about getting as many demons as possible as fast as possible.

[LPhillips]

The map system of restricting units is a pretty big stretch already. Players can dictate what tactics and therefore strategies are available on certain maps by restricting the unit availability.

Surely it is obvious that allowing game starters to restrict unit availability is an excuse to do two things:
1) Abuse a map by removing tactics that are unfavorable to the strategy which the player wishes to employ. Maybe you want to use/abuse leadership/chaos hero stacks with impunity; you would remove archons.
2) Gain an unfair advantage over others by compensating for your own weaknesses by restricting the game against its intended balance. Let's say you suck at scouting; you might remove crows and even scouts to level the playing field.

I don't see any significant upside to what you propose, and the downsides are a fragmented community who are extremely picky about their maps, and players who would abuse the system instead of playing the game as intended. If you want to play the game differently without some units, there is an adequate system in place for that (mapmaking). Otherwise, the only reasons to have this ability are the two listed.

Now I love the community here and the people in it, but experience with this specific scenario and with human nature tell me exactly what will happen. I'm not even big into the restricted units on specific maps, but the reward there is higher than the potential for abuse. Consider the Vale map, which is a treat even though there is a lack of ground units available to adequately cover the missing fliers' support roles. I can't see any prospect of similar pros to the proposal here.