I have never won a sp game...

[sushiboat]

BigJMoney said:
Reading this thread, I decided to play on that downloadable "Talis" map. As a side note -- THAT MAP ROCKS FOR NEWBIES!

I always use Talis when I play a new land nation or try out a Pretender very different from ones I have played before. I often don't finish the game. I play long enough to see where I have made major mistakes and then start over. (See Ten Turn Challenge! for ideas about playing a strong early game.) When I have mastered a particular setup on Talis, I move on to Aran with three opponents -- which is fewer than recommended, but it works well in terms of how much time you have to develop before your first war. Also, Inland is a great wraparound map that is smaller than Orania. The problem with big maps for playtesting is that you can play a lot of bad turns before getting feedback.