Creating a map for a Challanging game

[LottaGoodLand]

I have played Civ II for about four years now and I have developed a way of making maps that causes the game to be incredible fun and challenging. What I do is create a Huge map and put in Huge land masses that are connected only by single squares. My goal when creating the map is to have so much land to be settled that no matter how fast you grow, there is always more unsettled land. I also try to separate the land masses so that it is hard to just role over one civ after another. It also adds something to exploring. I also make almost every square a grassland. With trees, and hills scattered. Sometimes mountains where there is pass between two large continents. I also like to put in mountain ranges to divide continents. And the thing that makes it even better is the amount of rivers I put in. They are every where. Some people might say that this makes it too easy but it is just the opposite. It makes it so the other civs can grow almost as fast as you, and sometimes even keep up technologically. I play on deity and have never been able to conquer the world before the year 2000. Although I havn’t tried Democracy and bribing. The way this usually ends up is that I have the other countries gang up on me around 1700. My population is growing fast, I am trying to become industrialized and discover tanks. I have each other civ attacking me and stealing my techs. Trying to conquer them is too hard because They are also so big that it would take a ton of cavalries to beat musketeers that are behind walls. I usually wait until I get tanks before I turn into a war machine. I create barracks and start pumping out tanks. I attack here and there where the other countries are weak, but try not to loose too many tanks because I need them later. When I discover robotics is when the real fun starts. I start taking out city after city. Since there are so many it takes time. Time that I do not have because they are researching the BOMB. I go after the cities that are building The Manhattan Project but eventually they get it. This is when having railroads everywhere is absolutely necessary. Now I can hit and run with the Howitzers and avoid being BOMBED.(I have SDI by then) For anyone looking for a change of pace and a challenge I suggest this. I play on Deity/Bloodlust. One drawback is if you get the Great Library it gives you too much of an advantage. Not just because you get techs but because they don’t. It makes it almost impossible for them to keep up. If anyone tries this please tell me, I would like to hear others opinions and ideas.