I know exactly where you are coming from Tomi and as a tourney admin (and the best tourney admin out there, mind you) you have to look out for your contestants. We all respect you for your fairness!
I'm sorry, though, I just can't help but be a gadfly, its part of my fundamental nature.

What about boxing? In boxing you have weight classes. Sometimes a guy is at the top of his weight class (almost in the next one) and he's fighting a guy who is at the bottom of the weight class (almost in the lower one). Their height and weight, reach, fitness and training will differ-- which of course makes a difference in the outcome of the sporting event.

Similarly, in the Olympics-- contestants from developed nations have a substantial advantage in training and equipment that athletes from developing nations don't have because they can't afford superior equipment and training. Again those advantages accumulate and make a difference in the result.

I understand it is your goal to minimize those sorts of differences and advantages - but try as we might, they will always be present. Someone who can play Shogun 2 full time 60 hours a week is going to have a massive advantage against me if I'm only playing 10 hours a week.

All of that said, I tend to agree that Avatar does not have the level of transparency neccessary. You can't tell in a replay what retainers the avatars both had. That alone is probably a deal-breaker.

Keep striving for the ideal, Tomi, it makes your tournies a success.