Wow. 33 teams is a lot
29 at AZ. I don't think I'll like this year's new system because it means you're going to have a really really hard choice to make if you're the alliance captain and are thinking of dropping your broken all-star teammate and going with an alternate. Granted, a working robot is better than no robot, but if it's before the final match it's a rough call.
We were allied in the finals with 330 last year at AZ and they broke down, but then entered the arena at a dramatic moment after the time limit. They got to play thanks to the generousity of the other teams (80, 498, and 696). I believe it's one of the reasons they wanted to change the rules this year.
If the current rule was in place last year we would have had the option to pick up another team and drop 330. It was in the final round, so maybe picking up another team wouldn't have been too bad, but if it occurred in the quarter or semi finals, man, I can't say what we would have done. 330 certainly wouldn't have been given the leniency of returning to play since we had an alternative.
This year if we're fortunate and get into the finals with good alliance members, I hope we aren't put into that spot. Besides, with only 29 teams at AZ and 6 teams/match, after the elimination rounds, the finals will be a nice change of pace for the pit crew to fix the robot between matches.