great work, Matt!
i've been trying to contemplate what start "pace" has to do with L5+ "pace" ever since i started getting the cool .png files from Jry, and the starting points for pace at the beginning of L5 don't seem consistent at all (?over time?), as shown in those .png files. yet, i don't blame ya, cuz it seems quite subjective, doesn't it.
There is no real "pace" after the Start. However it
does give an indication of what kind of pace/final score the player is aiming for. The Start itself is sort of a mini-game and the Start score is the base score used in calculating pace (basically, Start + (Level Average*17) + Death Points). But for those interested, here is some data regarding Start scores and final KS scores for 251 games:
Start Score (excluding deaths) vs. Final Score (at killscreen)Start Score 5k Range (excluding deaths) vs. Final Score Range