Maybe there should be 2 separate rankings? An all-time, and a map based one that resets on every new map cycle - possibly connected to some sort of prize.
Great idea,a all time best board and a monthy or similar rank with prizes for the best, pizza or chests would always be welcome or something like this: http://forums.cardhunter.com/threads/suggestion-weekly-lotery.4619/
In poker this avoidance practice is referred to as "bumhunting". It's human nature and will not change. There are things that can be done to make the practice less blatant however. Rank decay is the most direct and obvious but from what I have seen I suspect this is viewed by Blue Manchu as too draconian. It's clear they are exploring other options, which can only be a good sign. We should also have a slight reality check and realise that no one* outside of a few people in the top 10 actually care about who is what rank and thus attempting to publicly "name and shame" in this context just makes the claimant look petty, childish and desperate. *When I say no one, I say it from a common sense perspective, not a literal one. As we are inhabiting the realm of the internet were I to, for example, opine that no one likes to smash themselves in the face with a claw-hammer, I would swiftly find someone claiming to love to flagellate their own face with a claw-hammer.
I was already in the kitchen making popcorn but then the thread kind of died down because nobody wanted to really start flaming You guys should work harder to entertain the rest of us.
Personally, I have been playing for three wins each night as often that is all I have time for. Even playing against Mom is more appealing then waiting 15+ minutes for a chance to get someone in my ratings bracket. Until there are many more people in the 1500+ range the top ranked players are either going to be playing the AI a lot, or spending 90% of their time talking in Lobby chat.
To be fair, it is valuable to observe top-tier players talking in lobby chat. Then again, it's valuable to observe top-tier players playing each other. hahaha