Map Script affects tech pace?

[ConanKND]

Here's a thing I noticed in my current game.

I'm playing the Celts with Brennus in Warlords 2.08 (Haven't got BTS yet, that's due in about 2 months). Anyway, I played him in his most suitable map, Highlands.

In my game I'v done fairly well, and even with quite a northern start, (Northern starts in highlands are quite cold and dry, filled with plains, hills and tundra forests. The AIs like Mehmed and Hatshepsut gets flood plains starts and grasslands. Invaded Mehmed and partitioned his Empire into two though, to reduce his tech lead, gotta love Charismatic.). The question is, it's 1750 or so, and none of the AIs, including me, have got rifling, and some haven't even got gunpowder! Longbowmen are still common. So, I'm wondering, does the map affect the tech pace?

I still have more to ask about this map script, but can't think of any now. Thanks!

 

[xanadux]

Map size does affect tech costs ... bigger maps = more cities, so more expensive.

But as for map type, I'm pretty sure there is nothing coded in to affect tech pace, but the map does affect tech rates. Lots of hills and plains slow down tech because there is less food, therefore cities are smaller and can support fewer cottages and specialists. Even at high levels the AI can tech suprisingly slow given poor land. Maps with predominately poor land is one way to buffer the AI advantages at high levels. Health and Happy caps don't hurt so much if the AI doesn't have the food to grow big productive cities.

On maps like this, the key strategic resource is food. Just 1 or 2 well fed cities can win the game for you.