Since Avalon released their reference design does that mean it could be used to make 10 chip boards instead? Would that be easier / more reliable than the Klondike design?
Yes, it could be done, however, it would require a dedicated FPGA, as well as a lot of other hardware that is really kind of overkill and adds to the overall cost. There are people making/offering Avalon clones (including hosting options), if that's what you're interested in doing, but it doesn't seem to be all that cost-effective; especially at a lower scale, which is where a lot of people are starting out.
I see, makes sense.