BTS 3.17 has introduced a couple of new official map types. Tectonics has already gotten a lot of press. Less hostile to human life, but also unusual -- I hesitate to say "equally unusual" since I've never had the courage for Tectonics yet -- is the new Planet Generator script. I used to think this was an official implementation of RandomScriptMap. Now I'm not so sure: with default settings (everything below will assume default settings), it gives different behavior than I always expected from default-settings RandomScriptMap. Maybe I just had an outdated version.
IME Planet Generator behaves unlike most other default script behaviors in several ways. ("Most other" in that e.g. Lakes is obviously similar in the lakes department.) They are:
* Massively more forests, at the expense of unforested grass/plains and somewhat at the expense of jungles. They seem especially rampant as I near the tundra.
* Bigger lakes (ISTR the RandomScriptMap author hating 1-tile lakes, so maybe...) and more lakes.
* Fewer and shorter rivers.
* (A bit iffy on this) Slightly more hills and mountains.
* (A bit iffy on this too) Slightly fewer and less clustered resources.
* More cowbell.
* More fractal.
All of these affect strategy, and that's the thing I'd really like to discuss. So far I've decided that:
* Warriors gain in value relative to scouts what with the increase of 2-MP and 3-MP squares and of defensive terrain.
* Fishing and Sailing gain in value, to work, then milk, the lakes and the greater percentage of water tiles in BFCs (fractalness), and because I find myself going out of the way to harness fish just to get certain spots any bonus food at all.
* While Bronze Working couldn't become any more important than it already is, Mathematics becomes more important so as to start getting the bigger chops ASAP.
* Seemingly less jungle and less easy iron -- seemingly less priority for Iron Working.
* Fewer resources, more fractal --> AIs expand a bit slower at first, helping the barbs a bit.
* The player does too, but the rocket-fuel injection at Mathematics meanwhile helps the player most of all (as the AIs don't "see" it).
* With barbs a bit more rampant and copper seemingly a bit harder to grab, early Archery becomes more attractive even on Monarch. (With barb archers getting 4.5 defensive strength from the forests and chariots being mired down at the borders and devoid of the forest bonus, a chariot defense strategy is less attractive.)
Other thoughts? Screams of "that's not true at all"? Corruptions of LOL?
IME Planet Generator behaves unlike most other default script behaviors in several ways. ("Most other" in that e.g. Lakes is obviously similar in the lakes department.) They are:
* Massively more forests, at the expense of unforested grass/plains and somewhat at the expense of jungles. They seem especially rampant as I near the tundra.
* Bigger lakes (ISTR the RandomScriptMap author hating 1-tile lakes, so maybe...) and more lakes.
* Fewer and shorter rivers.
* (A bit iffy on this) Slightly more hills and mountains.
* (A bit iffy on this too) Slightly fewer and less clustered resources.
* More cowbell.
* More fractal.
All of these affect strategy, and that's the thing I'd really like to discuss. So far I've decided that:
* Warriors gain in value relative to scouts what with the increase of 2-MP and 3-MP squares and of defensive terrain.
* Fishing and Sailing gain in value, to work, then milk, the lakes and the greater percentage of water tiles in BFCs (fractalness), and because I find myself going out of the way to harness fish just to get certain spots any bonus food at all.
* While Bronze Working couldn't become any more important than it already is, Mathematics becomes more important so as to start getting the bigger chops ASAP.
* Seemingly less jungle and less easy iron -- seemingly less priority for Iron Working.
* Fewer resources, more fractal --> AIs expand a bit slower at first, helping the barbs a bit.
* The player does too, but the rocket-fuel injection at Mathematics meanwhile helps the player most of all (as the AIs don't "see" it).
* With barbs a bit more rampant and copper seemingly a bit harder to grab, early Archery becomes more attractive even on Monarch. (With barb archers getting 4.5 defensive strength from the forests and chariots being mired down at the borders and devoid of the forest bonus, a chariot defense strategy is less attractive.)
Other thoughts? Screams of "that's not true at all"? Corruptions of LOL?