NOTE: this is paired with another suggestion, improving competition in lower ranks, and another for a "played you too many times" list (viewtopic.php?f=4&t=194022)
Concise description:
The upper ranks would not be able to foe people at the same rank or one rank above/below UNLESS there were a specific administration-approved reason.
Specifics/Details:
This would only apply to Brigadiers, Generals and Field Marshals. They would not be able to foe people in the next higher/lower rank, unless there were extraordinary administration-approved reason. ( I actually cannot think of a circumstance, but hold it out as a possibility)
EDIT: A "play once and then don't have to play that person for time" rule might be better, but I am not sure how that would work out technically. That is, if I don't want to play player x, I could put them on my foe list, but it would be overridden if our ranks come close, until I play at least one game (note.. just means that person could join one of my games, not that you HAVE to play them). After playing one game, I could foe them again until I have completed, say, 50-100 games with other people. I think that would be hard to program, and probably harder to manage.
How this will benefit the site and/or other comments:
One problem constantly brought up is that people use the foe list to keep from playing people who might beat them, rather than just people who are absolute jerks. In a few cases, someone may just be tired of playing the same person constantly, which is understandable (I offer another suggestion to deal with that specific situation here: viewtopic.php?f=4&t=194022 ). More often, the accusation is that people use the foe list to limit who they play to people they know they can beat. At lower ranks, this is not such a big deal because there are so many active players "out there". At the highest ranks, however, it can make finding opponents more difficult for some people. In cases where the foeing might be considered "legitimate", Admin can opt in and offer an exception. However, I would see those cases as few and far between. Most things that would make foeing "legitimate" would also mean the person is close to being banned anyway. (though perhaps not always).
Other suggestions to limit use of foe list, etc have been rejected, but I think this very specific and limited suggestion will work.
As noted above, this is paired with another suggestion regarding lower ranks. If anyone wonders why a low rank would make this suggestion, note that I have been here a while, (even though my playing has diminished a good deal) and have therefore heard a lot of complaining! Also, this does tend to "trickle down" to lower rank issues. When higher rank people have a harder time finding games, they are more tempted to play much lower ranked individuals, even if the game won't be much challenge (and then we hear complaining about "random wins that 'should not have happened' ".
Also some use foe for medalhunting. And I don't want the site limiting functionality so no.
