Part of the reason for delaying NC 76 (Charlemagne) is trying to figure out which map type to use. The current policy is to have some reasonable mix of "normal" with "unusual" map types. The two most recent suggestions for "unusual" map types are Fantasy Realm and Creation.
I think the main feature of FR is random placement of resource types: that is, similar
amounts of resources but
placed in unusual terrain, e.g. bananas on tundra.
To get an impression of what Creation is like, I generated seven maps and ran them through my "count useful land tiles" scripts. For the Standard option maps are 52x52 and mostly land. There's no map wrap. There are usually 2-3 continents, sometimes navigable pre-astronomy and sometimes not. On one of the maps, an AI was isolated on a small continent. However, lots of land is unusable: there are a heck of a lot of mountains. This means three things:
- There are a lot of defensive choke points. It should be easier than on many maps to protect yourself from invasions and block off barbarians.
- Lots of otherwise nice sites will have mountains in their BFC.
- You're pretty much required to go to war to get the amounts of land you're used to.
It seems to me that means PRO might actually be a reasonable trait for this map type -- maybe even IMP too, to claim land a bit faster and get GGs faster if you're playing defensively. So maybe Charly is a good leader for this map type -- but I'm not convinced I've analysed the situation correctly.
Any opinions on which type to use for Charlemagne? I'm currently somewhat inclined towards Creation, being rather unhappy about the recent Fantasy Realm BOTM. I'd especially like to hear from those who have used Creation often enough to be able to guide us on what it's really like to play. I'd also appreciate comments from anybody who likes maps where you have limited land to expand into peacefully; I get the impression a lot of people
don't like such maps. But maybe Nobles need a chance to try out such situations once in a while?