I still need work on my Diplo victory skills, just as I said. Close, but no cigar.
Here's my cheese strategy if you want to give a go.
First, enable huts because on Warlord and Settler, it is overpowered to get workers and settler. All games where I got less than two development units (develoment unit means to me a unit that allows the empire grows horizontally and vertically) are doomed to garbage. In addition, I did not start with worker as first build, but warriors at the fastest rate possible. Indeed, I have to invade some capital...and on warlord, often you will see pop 1 cities, which means autoraze. Then check "No City Razing" option in custom game.
Will I try to get a city asap? Nope. Because, at T20 (mostly), the AI will train its first worker. Look at the idea; I capture a city at odds as low as 3% around turn five to see a worker out at T20, same as the AI. But waiting means more warriors, so bigger chance to get a game with the free development units and an early city (along the worker).
Then, try to get AH asap to get horses. If connected enough early, train chariots...even whip them so you can get those two remaining civs on continent. Best to capture workers from those far away civs and make ceasefire then, they start a worker intantly afterwards, slowing them down in their development.
After capturing the whole contient, try to found cities along stone and marble...if possible.
Meanwhile, you can oracle either CS or better I did Education. Bulb Paper if you are concern to lose the wonder.
Go to the Lib path and a little detour to Music as NE and TGL are must wonders. And the Great Artist is either good for partially bulbing Mass Media or for a GA. I opted GA with MoM wonder.
All GEngineer point providing wonders must be built in the same city. Ideally, try to get the GEngineer second GPeople or third. My second GPeople has ~25% to pop a Gengineer and my third 91%. Once you get the GEngineer, you can go haywire with GScientists.
Once one turn away from Lib, go to Mass Media route ignoring all superfluous techs. But I made a little detour for Taj Mahal as I wanted to get the U.N. wonder up near in 1 turn. Indeed, a GEngineer does not give all hammers for the wonder, but the output increases with along city population that welcomes the wonder. Try to keep 4-5 forests for the wonder, pre-chopped ofc. The capital may welcome the wonder as bureaucracy is an additional 50% multiplier to get.
As for opponents, for you continent, try to get starting with a warrior civs (for maximizing huts reaping) and non-creative and non-agressive civs. Yes, if you attempt a little study between the succession of leaders in the custom games, you'll see some positions are civs likely to be your neighbour on your continent.
For other continents, try civs with nice early civic sharing bonuses.
I chose Wang Kon, Hammy and Freddy for the other continent.
Wang Kon for Caste System and low wonder odd.
Hammy because of Bureaucracy. His choice was dubious though. I may have lost the oracle to him.
And Freddy because giving techs to him can lead up to +4 plusmods.
Share asap most resources with most leaders. My best leader needed 6 turns to get +1 plusmod for resource sharing.
Keep in mind one resource takes 50 turns to get the plusmod. One more resource halved the times...and so on.
Little trick if lucky (I didn't got it though): if a late hut is found and not really accessible without boat, then keep it to gamble Astro free tech.
And at last, play without barbs.