Re: Scorched earth
I don't consider the analogy to a tournament sports player valid at all. A tournament is by definition NOT a multiplayer game, and almost all non-duel, non-team Dominions games are. The point of a multiplayer game is to do the best you can, and maybe be the one on top when it ends; it is not a series of matches. There are alliances, 2-on-1's and 3-on-1's, and so on.
Besides, if a player wants to have fun and keep playing, there's no reason he should give up at any point just so the dominant player can have an easier time beating others. If you aren't having fun losing or see a point to it (roleplaying, "honor", or otherwise), find a replacement or simply go AI. Under ridiculously overbalanced circumstances such as 4-man pile-ons, I've gone AI when reduced to a few provinces, but I also think it's fun to give a dominant opponent as much hell as I can in the off chance that he'll leave me alone for a minute out of frustration. Otherwise I feel like it's throwing the game for no particular reason.
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