I thought I’d start a thread that focussed on changes, people's concerns and current issues pertaining to pantheon to keep them all in one place.  I’m not aware of another thread that is dedicated to this purpose, so my apologies if one exists.  As issues are resolved, I’ll update the thread.  If you discover any issues or have concerns, please post them here. 

Pantheon Changes: 

• Alter the time between pantheon matches so that there is less downtime between tournaments (this was done after skimirsh mode was removed on or around Sept 22nd, 2009 - anyone have more details on the time between tournaments now?  I couldn't find...)
• Remove AI from pantheon matches (removed on 11/13/2009 as discussed here:  http://forums.demigodthegame.com/369096)
• Modified some database values in an attempt to reduce the number of 1v1 matchups after removing AI (changed on 11/15/09 by T-Man as discussed here:  http://forums.demigodthegame.com/369096/page/2/#2444595)

  • These changes have been implemented and we need to provide feedback.  Is it taking a long time for a 1v1 match to kick off?  Keep in mind the original problem – if there are 3 on light side waiting around for 5 minutes and 1 person joins on dark, a 1v1 is almost immediately launched.  If 1v1’s are still launching, but not immediately, then these new settings are working as expected
•  Added missing dark side valor flag to zikurat.  Included in patch 1.2 (11/19/2009)

 Issues:

• As identified by Kanneibaal on 9/26/2009 in thread http://forums.demigodthegame.com/365200, there is no valor flag for the dark side on Zikurat when playing in fortress mode.
  • This issue was acknowledged by Rosco_p from SD on 10/20/2009.  Rosco indicated that he’d let the appropriate people know about the issue http://forums.demigodthegame.com/365200/page/1/#2413842
  • This issue was acknowledged by Nakor from SD on 10/20/2009 as well.  Nakor requested a zip of the replay so he could view the missing flag.  It’s unknown if a replay was ever sent.  http://forums.demigodthegame.com/365200/page/1/#2414238
  • Rosco_p from SD replied to the thread on 10/23/2009 indicating that “there are actually supposed to be less flags in fortress mode.  With the exception of the [valor flag] mentioned above, of course” http://forums.demigodthegame.com/365200/page/1/#2417415
  • The issue still exists as of 11/17/2009 and fortress mode is still in the rotation for pantheon.  
    • I requested a status update regarding whether or not we’d see a map fix when v1.2 goes live (http://forums.demigodthegame.com/369252) on 11/16/2009
    • I requested that fortresss mode on zikurat be disabled as a temporary fix until the map can be updated here (SD listens, no more ai in pantheon) on 11/16/2009 http://forums.demigodthegame.com/369096/page/2/#2444859
    • Issue is resolved in patch 1.2 released on 11/29/2009.

 Concerns:

• The overlay, while highly useful for custom games, can still be considered problematic in pantheon as it can still be used as a tool for people to just quit while the game is loading if they see someone they don’t want to play with.  That’s a plus in some instances, but also wrecks the experience for everyone else in the game.  I’d prefer that the overlay be disabled entirely in pantheon to prevent this sort of behavior, but I don’t speak for everyone.
• Pantheon is a great game mode, but it doesn’t offer true automatching due to the light/dark distinction.  As long as there is a distinction, it will be possible for 2 highly ranked individuals to be on the same team vs 2 lowly ranked players.  This same distinction makes it possible for premade teams to enter the pantheon on the same side further reducing the possibility of a random matchup.
  • Is it possible for a player to repick their side in pantheon during tournaments?  This would help alot when players are only queued up on light or dark to get a game going. 
    
• It’s still possible for games to launch with AI in them.  This can occur if someone quits or crashes at the load screen and the game still successfully launches.
  • People who alt+tab in demigod while waiting for a pantheon match to start may have the game crash when trying to return to the game.  This can also result in an AI taking their place.  Is there anyway to make Demigod more alt+tab friendly?
• As 1v1 matchups occur more often, there are not many 1v1 maps that are offered in pantheon.  Can prison be added as another 1v1 map?
• Should we be having 4v4 matchups attempted in pantheon?  With many players not having sufficient bandwidth to handle 4v4 games, changing the max to 3v3 might be a good improvement for pantheon. 

FYI – the concerns section does not necessarily contain anything I expect to see action on, but I’d like to get everything down in one place re:pantheon.

Thanks again for dropping AI from panth, SD.  That took care of one my major concerns (beating down AI for exp) pretty quickly.