Board Game Arena

So recently I almost started to get paranoid. I like to play 3-player elimination tourneys in Break the Code. I finished 1st or tied 1st on literally every single table i played in 2026 in these tourneys, yet in the case of a 3-way tie - and these happen very frequently in BtC - it was always me who got eliminated. This "unlucky" streak actually goes back to when i started playing tourneys, so I start to ask myself: Is there a conspiracy against me, nobody can be that unlucky? And shockingly the answer is yes! It is called Seniority Rule, meaning that in case of a multi-player tie the older accounts advance and the newest account gets eliminated!!!!

A few questions:

Can anyone explain to me the rationale behind this bizarre rule?

Is it even possible to come up with a rule that is more unfair?

Is it really so hard to find a fairer solution, or at least randomize the process?

Why does BGA hate newer players?

Do I get a discount on my premium fee since I am basically shut out of some of the content? (no point in playing BtC elimination tourneys any more)

I'm pretty sure that only booted ties for multi-player elimination use the seniority rule - as in, if a tournament is setup with 4p games where top 2 advance, and 1 player is booted from a game, the other three "tie" for first. The booted player is eliminated, along with the user with the newest account among those who "tied".

In the case of true ties, I thought it was a coin flip that determined who gets eliminated.

nik592 wrote: ↑04 April 2026, 11:41 I'm pretty sure that only booted ties for multi-player elimination use the seniority rule - as in, if a tournament is setup with 4p games where top 2 advance, and 1 player is booted from a game, the other three "tie" for first. The booted player is eliminated, along with the user with the newest account among those who "tied".

In the case of true ties, I thought it was a coin flip that determined who gets eliminated.

I don't agree. I've never seen evidence for a different rule as between a "booted tie" and a "true tie" in a tournament game. I believe that in a multiplayer elimination tournament, a game that ends in a tie (for whatever reason, including a player being booted) is resolved by the seniority rule: viewtopic.php?t=47591

Curious as to why, when these situations occur. That they dont just do a colored rock draw. However many left after player is booted or time has run out. Pick rocks, 1 colored. The rest white. One who chooses colored rock wins. Can be used to decide any amount of players left. That way, there is no seniority rule that would be tempt the senior player to boot or run time out. knowing he will win.. for me. To me, that may not be optimal. But eliminates the very unfair seniority rule.

Mathew5000 wrote: ↑04 April 2026, 19:25

nik592 wrote: ↑04 April 2026, 11:41 I'm pretty sure that only booted ties for multi-player elimination use the seniority rule - as in, if a tournament is setup with 4p games where top 2 advance, and 1 player is booted from a game, the other three "tie" for first. The booted player is eliminated, along with the user with the newest account among those who "tied".

In the case of true ties, I thought it was a coin flip that determined who gets eliminated.

I don't agree. I've never seen evidence for a different rule as between a "booted tie" and a "true tie" in a tournament game. I believe that in a multiplayer elimination tournament, a game that ends in a tie (for whatever reason, including a player being booted) is resolved by the seniority rule: viewtopic.php?t=47591

Ah ok, according to that single-elimination ties are on a coin flip. Which is curious that they would use random ranking there and non-random ranking in multi-elimination.

See https://boardgamearena.com/bug?id=152830

I've never heard it referred to as "the colored rock rule".

Mathew5000 wrote: ↑05 April 2026, 03:51 See https://boardgamearena.com/bug?id=152830

I've never heard it referred to as "the colored rock rule".

I was curious as to what "the colored rock rule" was and clicked on your link to th bug report. But it was not there (anymore)?
Maybe it was there but someone edited their comment.

As expected now I am only even more curious as to what "the colored rock rule" is

Colored rock. Random choice it is how to do a random pick out of more than 2 players. Not sure how bga coud implement , but sure it can be done easily. X amount of players to pick from. Means X amount of rocks in a bag. Always 1 colored. Rest white. Pick. Colored rock wins. Moves on. A lot fairer than senior rule. Of course. Bga could do that themselves. And just say X player moved on, like single elimination coin flips. And of course , I realize that some will claimed the rock is rigged. You cant win over those players no matter which method you choose.

yodamus wrote: ↑05 April 2026, 10:51 Colored rock. Random choice it is how to do a random pick out of more than 2 players. Not sure how bga coud implement , but sure it can be done easily. X amount of players to pick from. Means X amount of rocks in a bag. Always 1 colored. Rest white. Pick. Colored rock wins. Moves on. A lot fairer than senior rule. Of course. Bga could do that themselves. And just say X player moved on, like single elimination coin flips. And of course , I realize that some will claimed the rock is rigged. You cant win over those players no matter which method you choose.

Thanks for clarifying

So it's the same as drawing a short straw, or any other random drawing, including a dice roll essentially (though you need the correct number of sides to make it properly fair). Essentially, you can just assign the players a number, then ask RNG for a number up to the number of players (likely similar to what happens for dice rolls). Not hard to do.