by ranapuer
First, credit to [user=Skyzero][/user] for inspiring this variant. Check out his topic here for a good starting discussion point concerning a similar variant.I've seen a lot of players complaining about 'dipping' or the general idea of entering Tokyo with full intention of leaving at the first opportunity. This is obviously more effective in the larger games where making it around the table is very difficult, and can pose a significant problem in more tentative playgroups where the stagnant strategy is to focus on rolling for points.
To be clear, I don't consider the base rules 'broken' or 'bad.' This is simply a variant to match rewards to the risks of staying in Tokyo and promote interesting decisions instead of the instantaneous reaction of "ok, it's yours" that sometimes becomes common.
The variant
-At the beginning of each turn, the player in Tokyo receives one point
-Players receive no points for taking control of Tokyo (this is just to offset the fact that they'll gain that point at the beginning of the next player's turn. In fact, those staying in Tokyo for a single turn will receive the same amount of points as in the original rules; only those who stay for multiple turns will benefit from this change.
-In a five or six player game, there is no second monster in Tokyo. Play with Tokyo rules for a two through four player game, with Tokyo holding only one monster at a time. If your group loves watching monsters attack from Tokyo, scrap this third bullet point and just play with the first two. However, with the greatly increased rewards for remaining in Tokyo for the entire round, it might be too easy for players in Tokyo to accumulate a ton of points if they can hang out in Tokyo with another player and be immune from one other player's attack each round.
Pros:
-'Dipping' gets a significant (but not devastating) nerf. There is now incentive to stay in Tokyo (or at least think about it) even when you know you won't be able to make it around the table. Balancing the risk of taking damage with the reward of gaining more and more points is now a key element to the game.
-If you find the two-monsters-in-Tokyo rule to be clunky (I personally don't, but I know some who do), this provides a good way to get rid of that while still giving players a good reason to take control of Tokyo and stay in for at least a little while.
Cons:
-In a five-plus player game, you will likely never see anyone attack from inside Tokyo (it's too hard to make it all the way around the table). This can actually be a good thing if you don't like the inherent swinginess, but it's an intense enough moment that I feel it's fairer to list this in the Con section
-Some of the intensity of judging if you'll make it all the way around is lost, in favor of a series of less-intense decisions of whether to stay or yield at any particular time. Some people really enjoy that part of the game, although others dislike the importance placed on making that one decision
Neutral:
-The high-intensity moments where someone has to yield Tokyo right before it would have been their turn are gone. This can be a feel-bad moment for newer players, but it also allows more experienced players to gain an edge in making better long-term risk-management decisions (i.e. one round instead of one turn). Of course, there are more chances for short-term risk-management decisions, which will hopefully reward more skilled players to a greater degree over the long run.
tl;dr version:
These rules help the game scale better regarding Tokyo scoring and open up a greater number of decision points for players to think about staying in Tokyo during larger games.
Feedback and discussion appreciated