WhisperzQ: That's the thing about having it as just two teams. Almost all games that involve more than two people or teams have this conspiracy problem. Poker is notorious for this problem when played with strangers. The game Risk is too. It just seems to me that those games that have the players work towards a positive goal are prone to conspiracy if all the players don't play for themselves. Two handed games are fair as far if I make a bad move, you win. In three or more handed games, this isn't always true. I make a bad move and you might lose because of it and the other guy wins. Just try and devise a game that gets around this. If you know of one, please post it on this site, maybe we can get Fencer to add it.

Any deviousness in a Team Pond game will be more than acceptable and fair. If it doesn't work, your team loses. If it works, your team wins, the other teams loses and no one is cheated or hurt. Say we started with two teams of eight players each. All sixteen players bid. Before the game starts, the eight players of each team might want to talk about playing certain bids or something else but they don't have to. As the game gets down to say 5 players, it would either be 3 against 2 or 4 against 1. I really don't know how it would go. I'm thinking the the remaining team members would be sending ideas back and forth. Could 1 person make the next round against 4? I'm sure it could be won 8 to 0 too.

If this way of playing Ponds has is flawed too, then there's not much more I can suggest. You have me thinking about conspiracies. I suppose one big problem would be team members that don't follow the team's plans, or worse reveal them to the other team. Traitors! It'd still be fair. The team loses and that's how it goes. Nothing like your example when two or more people purposely bid crazy to gain advantage and hurt uninvolved players.

Ponds is still on the site because people like to play it no matter how flawed and conspiracy prone that it is. You can do as I have done and stop playing the game, or just bite the bullet and play knowing that can happen. Your view of fairness in this game is different than other people. Some of whom veiw what bothers you as part of their fun in playing the game, though from what was written earlier I'd say most people don't like conspiracies. Besides your veiw of the fairness of it, others might not like it because they aren't in on it. I doubt much if your list idea would work as sooner or later something of this nature will come about. Just typing the wrong button can happen too. That happened to me in that Very First Pond. It wasn't until a few rounds into the game that Fencer made it possible to change your bid.

What do you think Fencer, Team Ponds? I'm sure some of the fellowships would have fun challenging each other, plus you could have round robin tournaments like we have for the other games too. There could be independent teams too. Just sign up at the tournament page. And of course invitationals. I get a number of people to join my team and we challenge someone else to get a team together.

Walter Montego: Points all well made and essentially I agree. But like you, I will play the individual game no more.

But with regard to team tournaments where "anything goes", after some contemplation today I have to report that I struggle to condone a game which encourages traitorship ... trust is something which is hard to earn and I would certainly never encourage anyone to break it, or participate in an activity which might lead to such. It probably has to do with my funny fundamental immutable moral values. I see this attitude (only displayed by I a few I admit) as a microcosm of why of we have some of the problems we do in our society.

Some other pond suggestions:

Invite only ponds

Ratings limit on ponds

Fellowship only ponds

WhisperzQ: I happen to click on the pond you had in a message,it's my pond........I always go for the bonus my question is"Is there cheating going on in that Pond? I'd like to know really.

Foxy Lady: I was curious as to why you always bid so high.. haha.. okay.. so you like the bonus..

BIG BAD WOLF: And don't forget all the ideas for changing the starting points or the bonus.

Foxy Lady: I don't think so, most of that conversation and feelings came about because of another pond

Foxy Lady: Move 17 was the one which seemed a bit odd to me (there was another too) ... but my reference was to a particular person who, so far as I am concerned, cheats because they "don't play cricket", and have openly admitted so.

Hmmmm

*I must tell noone!!*

ScarletRose: i really have NO idea about that game but i like to play it.

WhisperzQ: If anyone is cheating in my pond you can bet they won't play in another one.

ScarletRose: I play pool.

Foxy Lady: Ha! When I play pool, I manage to sink the ball into the NEXT table over!!!!

Foxy Lady: errrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrack em'! LOL

Eriisa: LOL i do that when i bowl wammo next alley.

ScarletRose: I can't say here what i'm thinking.HaHa.......

Sorry Vikings you know how women love to yak.

Foxy Lady: I can bowl a mean gutter ball....

uh, let see, how about if I say, I'll bid my bowling score in the next pond. Will that make this on topic?

lol

Eriisa: so lets see, if I bid 131 I will be safe?

Vikings: WAY safe! lol

Pond: a pond a day keeps the boredom away #186

The pond is finished. Your final position is 4 out of 17 players.

Your BKR change: old BKR = 2374, new BKR = 2365 (-9)
I would have thought finishing 5th place or higher you would gain and not lose points?

alexlee: It happens, I've lost points for 3rd place. The higher your BKR gets, the harder it is to maintain it. In the pond you played in there was no one with a higher rating than yours ,so yes you beat 13 other players but many had ratings of 1500 or 1800 and you got beat by 3 players all with at least 100 BKR points lower you.

Vikings: And since the ratings change it will happen more often.

grenv: yes, I believe that lower rated players affect you more now. I nead more 1st and 2nd place finishes to maintain my rating

Eriisa:

BIG BAD WOLF:What if several people joined an unlimited pond,then they were divided into brackets of 16 with the the top 4 advancing to the next round or last round.
Would make for an interesting finish,especially if there was 3-4 left in the final round.
It would only take 4 brackets (64 people)to fill a complete final round of 16,with all brackets going at the same time or,alternating every day.
.

Good luck to all that joined (FIRST POND PRIZE)T SHIRT TOURNAMENT.
TOP TEN AFTER @ ROUNDS
Universal Eyes
drgnrdr
Honey Lo
blizz
Kiwiyeti
Whikki
Zockerdotcom
Scoote
r
Bobes
Hannelore.

Your friend Mike.
:o)