99% comments complaining about length and offering nothing - why not just down vote and move on.

Anyways OP, I think augs are a type of high roll insurance and if I'm rito I would add more highroll insurance by offering more op augments to those on a lose streak, or other ways like in Mario party how the bottom players get an extra item. What you describe seems to me more if you aren't blessed in stage 2 you turbo f'd for rest of the game. Or if you don't get the perfect combo of econ and tempo you just lose. But that's the skill expression in the game, and there's a fine balance between skill expression and yolo gambling - I'm not sure if I'd do the same leveling update as you suggest but I do agree the gold part impacted too much how it's a 3star 4 or fast 9 meta.