How to deal with a ridiculous amount of room?

[Renata]

I've never seen anything like this. I'm on a large map, 11 civs, random settings, and I'm on a sizable, isolated continent with only the Aztecs. (I just found the Japanese on a much smaller island to the north, but they can't reach me.) It's still ancient ages, and I have a local tech lead (huge - I got all the huts ) and military advantage; I've fought one small war so far -- razed one city and extorted another for peace. I'm not even worried about being isolated with regard to tech, since I got the two wonders I wanted (the two GL's).

Here's the thing.

This continent is HUGE for the number of civs that started on it. I started in the north on very good land, but just to my south is miles and miles of jungle. The southern 1/3 to 1/2 of the continent where the Aztecs are is more good land, but it's so far away no cities I found there will be at all productive. (I do have one settler on the way to the continent's second luxury; having just one is crimping my growth.) I can hope to pry a great leader (for a FP) from wars against the Aztec, but that's hardly guaranteed, especially since I'm not a military civ, and they're just too weak to put up much of a fight.

So .. any suggestions on how best to proceed? Do I expand to fill the space at the cost of infrastructure? Do I proceed more or less as normal and wipe up any interlopers after I'm more established in my core? Do my decisions on this depend on whether or not I quickly get a leader for a FP in the south? This continent could fit 60 cities! Easily! Help!

Renata, not used to such a luxury as excessive room to expand, even if it is all jungle close by

 

[Aggie]

Normally I continue to expand. First I conentrate on a number of cities close to my capital, but after that I expand all the way, to get access to all luxuries and resources possible.

Jungle is great in the long run! It start with luxuries (dye, gems!) there, but also these are spots where you will get rubber and coal. Essential in the inustrial and modern age! I would expand if I were you and first take the spots with the luxuries. Don't forget that you can cut the forrest/jungle revealing fertile grounds. Especially industrious civs should not hesitate to build in the jungle...

 

[tao]

If you have a tech lead, select a prime spot (centrally located, high food and high shield tiles) in the South, found a city and build your Forbidden Palace.

Step 1: grow to pop 6, build granary to speed growth, build temple for happiness

Step 2: micromanage for 12 food, wltkd to reduce corruption, as much shields as possible, and build FP; you may have to re-work some tiles

Even if you can't build the FP now, because you don't have enough cities, prepare with step 1 and pre-build for FP.

Once you have the FP, you will have a the south core of cities.

 

[Darkness]

expand anyway, until you reach the aztecs, then build up your miltary and declare war, conquer him and try to get a GL to build the FP in the territory that was formerly his, Tenochtitlan for example. This also greatly reduces the chance of flip-backs...