Okay this map is due for a bump... and review (sorry for the delay Kab)
First, let me say that this map is beautiful as always, epic as always, and the history engrossing as always.
That said, the gameplay may be your most ambitious yet, although it may only seem that way to me because of my problems reading the legend
In fact after reading, re-reading and finally getting some guidance from Kab via PM I'm fairly certain that the gameplay framework itself is solid. The details, such as placements, can be debated later, but primarily I think the bulk of the work for this forum will be organizing the legend.
On that note, here are my concerns about the legend:
(1)
The Text is not easy on my eyes. When there's a big block of text, such as in the lower left section or the upper right about the Emperor, the font becomes a real chore to read. Every single letter in the font is actually quite legible, but when it all comes together- particularly on the small map- it seems like someone shouting in all caps in a long paragraph. I like complex maps, but every time I read this legend I feel a sense of dread similar to searching for abbreviations in Waterloo (luckily I've memorized all of those).
Solution: Reducing the number of words would certainly ease my textaphobia. The font itself, well I'm no font expert as anyone can attest but maybe there's something out there that would work better...
(2)
The Bonuses are written out in long sentences, and refer to places on the map that aren't readily identifiable for me. For instance, when I read that Diocese Capitals one way assault their respective Vicarious in the Roman Government, I honestly didn't see a Vicarious for quite some time. I looked up above and the word 'Vicarious' was lost in the fog of all that was up there. So I looked on the lands, in other corners... no dice. Having to go on safari for the name of a bonus will happen from time to time in any complex map, but usually I'll know at least the general area to look in (such as the land, other parts of the legend, etc.). In this case the words "Roman Government" might have given me a clue, except that I wasn't sure if the phrase referred to an actual part of the map or just flavor text (the Roman Government label I didn't notice until my sixth look at the map).
Solution: Again reducing the text so that the bonuses appear more as a list would help enormously. I think most CC players are used to digesting bonuses that way, and I think there are places where this could be acheived.
Also, since the bonus text will refer to different parts of the map often, I think using the symbols as much as possible will aid tremendously. The Third Crusade map used symbols to good effect for a huge laundry list of bonuses. In this map, the Diocese symbol was very helpful- I immediately identified the two areas of text that talked about Diocese Capitals. But the Emperor, the Praetors, the Vicarus... they get lost without any color or symbol to draw the eye.
(3)
The Roman Government has this cool background which unfortunately just makes the font even harder to read. And the red text in particular starts to blend in.
Well this post was more wordy than I wanted it to be, but it's late so it will have to stand as is. Sorry for all of the words.
Marshal Ney