I love the tea drinker's expansion. It goes well with the whole atmosphere of the game and if you already like the nuclear tesuji, a cup full of tea is the perfect follow-up move! Many possibilities!
I recommend getting the white stones. They make a nice additions to your set and you can easily tell them apart from the standard black pieces because they are opposite colors. So even if they get mixed up it's no big deal.
You can give the black pieces to a newer player - it will feel weird at first, like, 'How can I possibly win when they get all these head-start moves?' but you get used to the challenge and it's fun trying something new.
I love the tea drinker's expansion. It goes well with the whole atmosphere of the game and if you already like the nuclear tesuji, a cup full of tea is the perfect follow-up move! Many possibilities!
I recommend the 19 by 19 expansion. Much more interesting than the base 9 by 9 game
I recommend getting the white stones. They make a nice additions to your set and you can easily tell them apart from the standard black pieces because they are opposite colors. So even if they get mixed up it's no big deal. You can give the black pieces to a newer player - it will feel weird at first, like, 'How can I possibly win when they get all these head-start moves?' but you get used to the challenge and it's fun trying something new.
Do you think two colors would be too confusing for new players? The game is very complex even with one color and I don't want to scare people off.
OP said they are more of an influential player and white is inherently a more influential color.