Just a quick update. I am just coming out of a week long bout with the flu, so I have not made much progress. Currently playing a game on a modified random map and enjoying it very much.
One thing that I see that needs some attention is how to handle starts. I would like to add an option for the program to add start positions. It already marks any predefined start positions as off limits for modification, but when the game assigns starting positions, it could be right next door to a particularly tough special province. So if anybody could point me to a simple, efficient algorithm for placing start positions appropriately on an existing map using only information available within the .map file (not the image x,y coords), it would save this mathematically challenged hack from trying to reinvent the wheel. Currently looking at different path finding algorithms for inspiration.
Regardless, I will try to upload the latest version some time this weekend for anyone interested.