I am not sure exactly how to make this happen...

But some sort of algorythm?
-So people are similarly spread out?
-So the people who start late perhaps have an extra die or two?
-So lower ranked people get to start earlier?
-So people who start late are piled in fewer territories, larger stacks?

Sometimes the starts are so screwed that it is clear even before round one who will succeed, and who will die right away.

Good ideas if they can be kept simple. Starting late because you have a high rank would be infuriating though.

Last player get an additionnal dice would be good

I think reducing the number of players would go a long way towards balancing the game. Going last is much less of an issue to me than having my territories in the four corners of the board, with no hope of connecting them. More spaces per player gives more chance of getting a group.

I like it as is. The beginning is the most fun part.

But if you do this, Ryan, PLEASE don't handicap the low-ranking players. =P

I think this is a good idea but [art of the fun of the game is getting screwed at the start and still trying to make something of it.

It´s just another way to reduce the luck factor. So I´m against it.

It can be terrible when you have been waiting like 20-30 minutes for a table to fill (esp in 1900+) and then have a lousy starting position. This is no part of the fun of the game, on the contrary...

i hate haveing 4 spots and 12 dice and seeing someone else with 5 spots and 15 men, wats the deal? thats not cool..

the best start position is being 3 or 4rd player that can make a move: the previous players most probably already cleared some higher stacks from enemies and become an easy prey themselves.

the starting position is hard because there might be still some high stacks around you and thus chances you lose is higher.

being the last player is for sure the most difficult starting position - if you still live by then, that is. chances are too high that you're almost extinct once its your turn.

its especially annoying when you're last AND you received less dices than the others, as Overmind pointed out above.

maybe when distributing the dices over the board, it would make sense to "reward" players in bad start positions with more dices.