Hello, 
A common popular variant that is employed to balance the 2nd position in 3er and 4er games, is the sugar variant.
In brief: 2nd place is clearly the worst in a 3er game; so a sugar plantation is given to 2nd place, instead of the indigo plantation.
Thus, each player (in 3er) has now his own early monopoly. 3rd place retains the easy corn, while 2nd place (worst, even with sugar), has the slightly more expensive sugar.
Details can be viewed here: http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/108030/ ... seat-sugar
Implementation: the 3-player implementation is already described. The 4-player implementation is similar, give indigo to 2nd player. In 5-player games, it's suggested to leave them as it is.
This variant could be added to the "balanced" variant or be given its own entry. I believe it's quite easy to implement. People who have used it claim (see the BGG link) that it actually balances the game.
This variant has also been used in the EuroQuest IV tournament.
A common popular variant that is employed to balance the 2nd position in 3er and 4er games, is the sugar variant.
In brief: 2nd place is clearly the worst in a 3er game; so a sugar plantation is given to 2nd place, instead of the indigo plantation.
Thus, each player (in 3er) has now his own early monopoly. 3rd place retains the easy corn, while 2nd place (worst, even with sugar), has the slightly more expensive sugar.
Details can be viewed here: http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/108030/ ... seat-sugar
Implementation: the 3-player implementation is already described. The 4-player implementation is similar, give indigo to 2nd player. In 5-player games, it's suggested to leave them as it is.
This variant could be added to the "balanced" variant or be given its own entry. I believe it's quite easy to implement. People who have used it claim (see the BGG link) that it actually balances the game.
This variant has also been used in the EuroQuest IV tournament.
