Well... I got baited. And the answer to the title of the thread is:
huge/epic/deity/NTT/novassals (+no fail gold) T115
Save attached, it's BUFFY.
Spoiler :
HOLKAN
huge/epic/deity/NTT/novassals (+no fail gold) T115
Spoiler :
Chose Pacal, because I think FIN is boosted under these settings and Pacal has a decent early game. Of course so do several others and I'm not saying Pacal is the easiest anyway.
First game I rolled. A decent start for sure, 2
-cc tile to settle on without losing a turn and nomnom gems, but that's where the good news end. Unconnected 2nd city, no
in 3rd and 4th city... At least there is nice river and lots of chops. Just got the academy, which I think is pretty good under these settings, even if it is antisynergistic with cat attacks and suffers from no fail gold. There is pillage/conquest gold, at least! Purple beast to the east is still cautious (and I'm a land target!), but should go up to pleased very quickly. Zara declared T108 on Liz, Monty has been plotting on her (I think) for 40T, so my war target seems clear. Oh and the war will be started with cats+holkans, maybe adding elephants later (Isabella has them for trade). Also Naps to the south is super weak. Things look dandy to me, but of course it can go wrong.
First game I rolled. A decent start for sure, 2


Save attached, it's BUFFY.