Let's not overthink this thing.
Overthink how? The more I think about it, the more I prefer my latter proposal.
People would have to *earn* it, AND we'd have the best of the best as the starting posts. You go with the vote, people earn it, best/most original posts, no hurt feelings, and if Person Z starts Game C by choice or by my idea, chances are my idea yields a better or more original design.
Maybe I am alone on this one, but to me the best part and the most important aspect of being a GDT starter is doing a kickass starting post, not hooplah and superstition. These games are us putting everything out there since this forum will explode with thousands come Sunday who have never been here before. The ultimate goal should be us presenting our best face.
And for the regulars, the main problem is we will have forty people wanting to start, and could have anywhere from three to, at most, 14 or 15 games. There is no way to avoid pissed off people if the determining factor is three or four people agreeing out of fifty different ideas for who should start what.
This idea, convoluted it may be, is the only way to avoid those hurt feelings and have the greatest possible starting posts.
Start a thread, have people post designs. Chief gets game one. Close submissions Saturday midnight or Sunday midnight, then do the vote. Plenty of time left.
Edit to add: Do it on a series by series basis, so we know our opponent, day and time, and SP/players. If we face the O's in the WS, threads would be way different than the As. That way what is submitted is tailored for the games and will be, basically, what is posted.