[IDEA] Classic Game Play Philippines Map

[KungFuDuet]

Introduction:
This idea of mine is a map of the Philippines. With all these bombs and Dragons flying around, it is always good to fall back onto something classic.

Draft Map Statistics:
- Commands: 17 (including the capital region bonus)
- Regions: 80
Draft layout of the map below:

Draft Bonuses of map below:

Names of Regions/Bonuses below:

Drafted Special Features:
Having a country that contains a lot of islands, being able to control larger islands are an advantage, therefore I am proposing an additional bonus for occupying islands. But this is optional to the map, as without it, the map would still be fine.

All the Region links and borders maybe changed in the future if it brings about a better experience.

Please give your comments about the regions, bonuses and the drafted special feature. And vote on the poll on top whether you would like to see the map live or not.

Attached to the End of the Thread is the blank map that I worked upon for drafting.

Thanks,
KFD

 

[steelrain]

I LIKE it!

 

[KungFuDuet]

I LIKE it!

Are there anythings that you like particularly? (I just added a poll. would you mind voting in it?)

 

[WidowMakers]

Well here are my first thoughts. And please dont that this to mean STOP teh project and that it is a bad idea.
Just going over the logistics in my head to actually make this map.

GRAPHICS
================================
Physical Size Issues
1) It is too tall. It is 1,500 pixels tall. While we could do a map this big it represents issues with scrolling and reviewing the map for players.
2) Aspect Ratio is very screwed. If we shrunk the height of the map down to say 800 it would only be 500ish wide. Lots of wasted screen space.
3) At a smaller scale the regions you have would not be able to hold the region name and the troop container. Plus the highlights would also be hard to see/select.

Possible Physical Size Issue FIXES
1) Rotate the map to a diagonal so it can be made smaller than now but larger than if it was kept vertical.
2) Reduce the number of regions by 1/2. This will allow you to double the area for containers and names.
3) If you don't know what size you need for troop containers, go into a Classic massive game and screen grab a few of those along with the region name. You can then drop them into your map here and see how much space you haev to work with. This will help you decide how to break up the land to make stuff fit.

GAME PLAY
================================
Commands
1) If you take the steps above, the commands will need to get reworked a bit. Either combine them to make fewer or reduce the number of regions per command.
2) If the number of commands is lowered there is a chance that the number of borders/connections you have will also be affected.
3) Bonuses will need to get reworked.

================================

Hope this helps a bit. On all my maps I tend to start out with the actual map size I want to use (X,Y) and mess around with the overall layout. I place conditioners and text to make sure there is room. In North America I had to combine a few states because I did not have enough room to put all teh junk. Maybe review that map (it is the tallest we have here I think) and see what I did to get a few ideas.

Good Luck.

 

[KungFuDuet]

Thanks for your great advice Wids - I might work on it on the coming day or so and post a new draft. Please check back and give me your all

 

[WidowMakers]

Alos on a poll for a map. It is better to not have the question be so theme oriented on every answer.
Here is what I would have asked.

There are actually a lot of ways to do this. First I would do this to see if I had support.
Would you play a basic GP style map of the Philippines?

1) Yes (40ish regions)
2) Yes (60ish regions)
3) No, please post why
​

Then if you had support on any of the first 2 I would make a draft and post that

What do you think of this map? (from results of 1st poll)

1) Too busy
2) Too crowed
3) Hard to follow
4) Just right
5) Too many bonuses
6) etc​

It is hard to have 1 poll question and answer all the aspects of a map.
A more focused pointed question will serve you much more in the development of a map.
Because with your poll right now the I LOVE IT can be interpreted in at least two ways.

One person could say they love it as it is and want to play it right now like this.
Another person might love it but only after it gets worked on so they say they hate it (but only in its current form)

Hope this helps.

 

[KungFuDuet]

Very Well Said too - Would one of the moderators Delete the poll for me please? thanks

 

[WidowMakers]

Also here is a thing I wrote YEARS ago about making maps. maybe it will help you see better how I work on maps.
===========================================================================

Gameplay and Graphics.
Gameplay and Graphics.
Gameplay and Graphics.
Gameplay and Graphics.​

These are the two main things that define a map here at CC. Here are definitions for those two main parts of a map. Now you may disagree with my definitions below, but whatever.
----------------------
Gameplay: The logical controls that define actions players can take or events that take place due to those actions.

• Examples of gameplay here on CC are: attacking, bombarding, auto-deploy, bonuses, override Bonuses, territories in multiple bonus groups, variable armies per territory allocation, and many more.
• Examples of gameplay styles here on CC are: Classic, Conquest, resource-building, complex and simple.

(I am positive there are many more style and categories. There is no way we will all agree on style type or gameplay. But where is the fun in everyone always agreeing?)
----------------------
Graphics: The representation of data in a way that includes images in addition to or instead of text.
(ref http://www.thefreedictionary.com/graphics)

• Examples of graphics here on CC are: All of the maps we have. Duh!
• Examples of graphics STYLEs here on CC are: detailed, realistic, modern, simple, old, and many more.

----------------------
Style: The combination of distinctive visual features that determine the way in which an idea is expressed.
(ref http://www.thefreedictionary.com/style and a bit of my own words too)

(Once again, I am positive there are many more graphical styles. But I can’t name them all because I don’t know them all and even if I did, I still wouldn’t name them).

We all know that both graphics and gameplay are equally important and required for any map to be made here at CC. Each person here has different roles and abilities in both facets. So even though I just said that both are very important and that one cannot live without the other, I am going to direct my attention for the rest of this piece to the discussion of graphics and style. And by “direct my attention” I mean basically explain why and how I do what I do for my maps.

My Motivation
Just a little background history about me, I learned 80% of my Photoshop abilities while at CC. I knew the basics before I got here, but the skills and techniques I have now have been developed while making maps. I find that developing a skill, most of the time, requires a need. And I must credit CC for giving me the reason to learn. For without CC, I would not have made maps; and without maps, I would not have learned much of what I know. But if there is one event that I feel directed and challenged me more than anything else these past 2 years (in the realm of digital design and graphics), it was when someone said I was a one-dimensional artist.

Back when Keyogi was the only C.A., there was a desire to pick up another person to help out. At the time I had only one map quenched (King of the Mountains) and was currently working on the 8 Thoughts map with Coleman. When the list of possible CA candidates was made, my name came up on the list. Then the list was looked over and comments to each person were listed. Along my name the comments went something like this, “One-dimensional, One-Style, Only makes abstract maps”. Well this made me a bit angry and defensive. I am not one-dimensional. I can make more than abstract maps. From that point on I decided to show everyone how wrong those comments were.

My goal from then on (and it is still in effect now) was not to make a map that looked like any other map I had already made. So I always try to approach each map with a clean slate or open mind. I don’t want my past experiences or techniques to limit my future but to enhance it and allow for more technical growth. So in my head, before I start a map, I tell myself that the visual theme of each map will be different. I currently have 12 maps quenched with more on the way. I think I have done a pretty good job of keeping with my goal. Here are a few of my maps (in no particular order): Great Lakes, Canada Revamp, Dungeons of Draknor, Montreal Revamp, Indochina Revamp, Poker Club, Rail USA and Arms Race! If you look at these maps you can see how they, for the most part, look entirely different. Sure the glow of the font or the borders line might share some similarities. But the overall style/theme of each is very different. Well, this did not happen accidentally.

How I Tackle a Project
With each new project I started, I had to decide what I wanted to do. Now pay attention. Did you see what I just said? I had to decide WHAT I wanted to do NOT HOW I would do it. For example, once I knew I wanted to enter the Canada revamp competition, I came up with WHAT I wanted to do. I wanted the map to be on a perspective of the globe with the moon and sun, clouds, water. I wanted a realistic map with a big title that went across the top. Well now that I had that idea in my head, I needed to figure out how to do it.

I looked at Google earth, downloaded images, scanned over tutorials, and made pencil sketches on paper to get things to scale and lay out my idea to get a sense of the project. Then based on those ideas and sketches I started to assemble my initial map and along came the issues. The borders looked bad. The clouds looked fake. The perspective was off. The colors did not work. On and on. Eventually I entered into the contest and won. But here is the thing. Even though I won, TONS of people hated the map.

“Bring back the old map, this one is hideous!” they said. “You should be punished!” shouted others. (Seriously there were some interesting flame wars threads going on about how best to deal with me). And in the end I actually redid the ENTIRE map over to make it better. The point is I did not let my current knowledge determine the level at which I would design. I set a visual goal and set out to do it.

The philosophy of “Decide WHAT you want to do, then figure out HOW to do it” is how I approach all of my maps. Not only does in free your mind to think beyond what you know, it then challenges you to try and get there once you decide to take the trip. For instance, did NASA say, “Well we don’t know how to make anything that can break earth’s gravity and go into space so let’s just forget about it and keep making planes.”? NO! They said, “Hey, we want to go to space. That sounds like a good idea. Great, then it is settled. We want to go to space so let’s figure out how to do it then!” And then they researched and developed rockets and the rest is history.

How to get better
There have been times that people have asked me how to do something or how they can get better. I know there are people out there who think they can’t get better or that they can’t even get started. Maybe they don’t know how to start.

Below is a list of things I did and suggest that everyone else do if they want to increase their skills and techniques. (And this does not just deal with graphics. Most areas of learning deal with these principles in one way or another).

-FIND Tutorials, READ Tutorials, DO tutorials. If someone already did it, learn from them. This is very important if you are just learning the software or starting out your artistic development. It is much easier to learn from others than try to learn everything by yourself.
-Look at the world around you. Watch TV, look at signs, advertisements or bill boards and then try to recreate those images. Or you can just visualize and idea you have or image you want then, try to then create that image. This gets right back to the “Decide WHAT you want to do, then figure out HOW to do it” philosophy.
-Don’t be afraid to try something new. There was a time when everyone was a noob. Some people had parents who taught them, others have 4 year college degrees in Graphic Design and some are just self trained. Either way we all started off knowing nothing. Only by challenging yourself and trying new things will you grow and develop.
-Don’t be afraid to FAIL. There is also nothing wrong with failing. We all learn from mistakes and grow from them. By trying a technique and failing you have learned one way not to do something. And sometimes by trying a technique and failing, you might actually develop a new technique that you never were looking for in the first place.
-LISTEN to others. You don’t know what you don’t know and you don’t know everything. There is always a person that has more knowledge than you about something. The techniques you use might not be bad, but there might also be a better way. Just look at how many versions of a map people go through. Is that because the initial version was bad? Or was it because the map was not as good as it could have been? There is a BIG difference. By listening to others and looking at their direction and opinions, you not only gain their knowledge and understanding, you gain a person who will potentially be there for you later when you have other issues.
-Be patient. An immense amount of time is required to learn and develop skills. You won’t get 3 maps quenched overnight on your first try. And once you get a map done, that does not mean you know all there is to know.
-Have FUN, FUN, FUN!!!!! I think this is self explanatory. There is no point in doing all of this if you don’t like it. Not everyone is the same and not everyone can do all of the same things. Don’t stress out about what you can’t do. Understand what it is you can, work with that and slowly it will become easier. Then after that you can learn more and have fun at the same time.​

Planning the design of a map
Well now you have the skills, the talent, and techniques to create a graphical masterpiece. What are you going to do with them? Well, you say “I am gonna make a cool map!” That is fine but there still is one problem. What style should your map have? We touched on what style is before but the pure definition of style does not really help you pick one. To best decide what style graphics to use, one must understand the purpose of the final piece.
Here are some questions that you can ask yourself before you make a map. They will help you focus you ideas and design.

Who are the characters in the map? (backstory .i.e. why is this map significant or a cool story)
What is your map about?
Where does it take place?
When does it take place?
Why are the events taking place? (again backstory)
How will the events unfold?​

Do you see where I am going here? As the artist you are drawing a visual story. You are the connection between the gameplay and the end user.
Let’s answer these questions for a hypothetical map.

Who=Soldiers
What=Futuristic Space battle
Where=On an alien world
When=year 3,579
Why/How=Humans were attacked by alien 500 years ago and they have sent troops to kill them on their home world.
​

Now based on these answers you would not think to use bubbly font or rainbow colors. The font would most likely be more contemporary, exact and precise. The colors would be colors of war (greens, darker blues and reds, black). The visual stage would be that of war. Space ships would need to be made and there would be two styles (humans & aliens). There would also be an alien world or worlds to create.

Do you see what I am saying now? By thinking through the ideas before jumping in, you can focus on what it is that you need to achieve to convey your idea. We will now look at another map I did, Poker Club.

When yeti_c approached me to do the graphics for Poker Club I excitedly agreed. My mind had already begun to work out WHAT I wanted to do and then HOW I wanted to do it. I knew the map was about poker so the cards would be an important part of the map. I needed good looking cards graphics. So I found some online and made the required tweaks to achieve the desired look. Instead of just placing the cards on a flat background, I wanted to give the feel that the players were sitting at a poker table. I looked up pictures of poker tables on Google and analyzed the texture and colors. I found felt texture for the table. I messed around for a bit until I got the visual feel I wanted for the green table covering. I looked up poker chip designs and then made my own. This went on until I felt I had enough to start building the image. Long story short I went through over 20 revisions, color changes, tons of lighting adjustments, texture tweaks, font style and wording. Most of the time, I just used old knowledge I had developed from my other maps to help me along. But when something just did not look right I sat back and tried new things until I liked the results.

Before you start a map you need to understand why you are doing it (theme, gameplay). Ask yourself the questions I presented. Challenge yourself to explore and investigate ways to improve. Ask for help when you need it and don’t be discouraged if you mess up. I know this is cliché but, your limits are your own imagination, and 630x600 pixels for the small map version. This is a long journey not an overnight trip. Depending on what you wish to learn or on what you hope to achieve, your journey/mileage may vary. But one thing is for sure, that if you truly wish to continue to develop and grow, your journey will have no end. The things you cannot do or understand now will become easy and part of your mental design process in the future. Enjoy the ride and have fun.

 

[Shepherd]

Wow, not a whole lot that i can say that Wid hasn't already said. I agree 100% with his assessment of the size and shape of the map; if you look at a map like North America, which is probably closest in scale to what you're trying to do here with 80 regions, most of the map's surface area is playable land. Probably 90% of the map in this case is water, which means you need to squeeze 80 regions into 1/5 of a map.

I also agree with the comment about the poll - as soon as I figure out how to pull it I will!

There's another possible solution to the too-much-water issue; make the water playable. The battles that were fought on and around the Philippines during the Second World War began, and in some cases were decided, off-shore. If you went with a battle-theme map you could include naval battle groups, off-shore bombardments, carrier-based air squadron bombardments, air to air combat, and landing crafts bring in fresh troops. If you populate the seas with playable regions you reduce the need to squeeze dozens of troop containers onto a landmass that can't contain them.

Granted, it's no longer a straightforward, classic gameplay map any longer, but I think it could be kept fairly simple. Some examples...

 

[KungFuDuet]

2nd Draft

I had stuck with the solution that Wids suggested and generated this 2nd Draft.

2nd Draft Statistics:
- Number of Commands: 12
- Number of Regions: 45
Below are the images.

Map with names and troop containers:

Map with Bonuses:

Map with names only:

Blank Map:

Please give these a look and give comments!

Thanks,
KFD

 

[masterjskye]

I liked the idea from the start but your re-worked edition is a real step up quality-wise. Well done KFD.

 

[mark]

Note: I have no idea what I am talking about when it come to map creation.

That being understood, here are a few comments:

1. I'm not clear on what is going on between Pampanga and Zambales. Is that a partial mountain range and a border? Is there a defensible border between the two or are they isolated?

2. Are the gray islands just cruft that wasn't deleted from this draft or will they be included in the commands?

3. Is is normal to abbreviate names? Negros Occi? Misamis Ori? I don't know what those are.

4. Same as #1 but for Bubdkinon and Lanao.

5. Also Sidangan Bay and Sibugeuy Bay. Although that looks like decoration rather than separation.

Can't wait for the inevitable 24-player game!

 

[cko]

I like that map, it feels so complicated, and yet full of adventure and conflicts, I can't wait to play on it. KUDOS KFD

 

[FLAGG]

Nice job KFD! I am excited to try it. I imagine it has to go thru some play testing on this site before release.........

Flagg

 

[KungFuDuet]

That being understood, here are a few comments:!

Indeed I would love all the comments I can get! Thanks Mark.

1. I'm not clear on what is going on between Pampanga and Zambales. Is that a partial mountain range and a border? Is there a defensible border between the two or are they isolated?
4. Same as #1 but for Bubdkinon and Lanao.
5. Also Sidangan Bay and Sibugeuy Bay. Although that looks like decoration rather than separation.

Between Pampanga and Zambales; Bubdkinon and Lanao; Sidangan Bay and Sibugeuy Bay are mountains which doesn't close off the whole border, meaning that it doesn't really contribute to the game play in anyway apart from the graphics. Have a look in the South America map, and you would see similar mountains that acts as decorations.

2. Are the gray islands just cruft that wasn't deleted from this draft or will they be included in the commands?

Gray Islands was within the original design, and were playable regions. But as I considered what Wids said, some of the regions are non-clickable and meaning they are non playable given their size. So the gray islands may stay or go depending on which is better right now - as they are non-playable regions at this present moment.

3. Is is normal to abbreviate names? Negros Occi? Misamis Ori? I don't know what those are.

At first I didn't intend to abbreviate names like "Negros Occidental", "Negros Oriental" and etc. But given the map size and othher factors... I decided to do it. USA map for example, some of the states are abbreviated into their two letter abbreviation. That being said, when you attack or reinforce or deploy you would still be able to see the proper name in the pop-up box.

Can't wait for the inevitable 24-player game!

Indeed it will be epic! though everyone starts with one region... and there is close to half a board being neutral. Here are the statistics for how many regions each player will get in #players settings.
- 2 players - 22 regions each, 1 neutral
- 3 players - 15 regions each
- 4 players - 11 regions each, 1 neutral
- 5 players - 9 regions each
- 6 players - 7 regions each, 3 neutrals
- 7 players - 6 regions each, 3 neutrals
- 8 players - 5 regions each, 5 neutrals
- 9 players - 5 regions each
- 10 players - 4 regions each, 5 neutrals
- 12 players - 3 regions each, 7 neutrals
- 24 players - 1 region each, 21 neutrals

I liked the idea from the start but your re-worked edition is a real step up quality-wise. Well done KFD.

I like that map, it feels so complicated, and yet full of adventure and conflicts, I can't wait to play on it. KUDOS KFD

Nice job KFD! I am excited to try it. I imagine it has to go thru some play testing on this site before release.........

Flagg

Thanks for your motivational words people (btw… I must confess that this is the first map I have actually worked on). These words really keep me moving!

KFD

 

[WidowMakers]

I would add 3 regions to make it a clean 48 regions so 24 player games are better suited.

 

[Shepherd]

Wow, lots of work there KFD. This is exactly what a map development thread should look like - present a map, take feedback, make changes, repeat. I'll try to keep my comments brief and to the point, and hopefully provide you with some additional food for thought as you progress...

In 2 player games, 20% of the regions start neutral. So a 45 region map will start 18, 18, 9 neutral. An issue with that is that Player 1 will get 6, and only have to knock Player 2 down by one region to reduce his bonus. Wid's suggestion of going up to 48 would resolve that - and make 3p games a much nicer 16 regions to start.

Just for the sake of clarity: I see the mountains as impassables, but are you also including some rivers up North, or are those just widely-drawn borders?

I'm cool with most all of the mountain ranges with the possible exception of Occi. Mindoro and Ori. Mindoro. As the two regions are part of the same command, connecting them wouldn't alter how easily the command is held in terms of borders to defend. In fact, connecting them would in fact make that area of the map more dynamic, because right now it's one big bottleneck.

Speaking of bottlenecks, if you can limit the number of places in which there is a straight line from region to region to region it opens up play. It's a danger on a map like this, but you've done a really nice job of avoiding it. Having a couple of places where it happens is cool, so long as you take into account how much easier it is to take such a command, if you can just march from region to region without having to defend as you go.

We can have an ongoing discussion about command bonuses as you go, but it doesn't hurt to figure out what you basic formula is for determining the value of a command. Simplest method is value a command at (for example) 50% of the # of regions, but you also want to take into account the number of borders you need to defend, and possibly the number of neighboring commands. I would say some of your regions are just right: Soccks at +2, Zam Penin at +1, Cagayan at +2. Some others seem over-valued to me: Bicol and Mimarosa are both +4 for just four regions, one of which isn't a border (while Central West, with seven regions and four borders, is only worth one more).

Looking more closely at your bonuses, I see that you are taking into account region count and borders; the result is that you're a bit generous to the commands with a lot of borders to hold. In the end there are going to be many instances of two commands that don't look identical yet have the same value. Now that you've used numbers to give you a baseline, think about where you'd have an advantage to start the game. When I think about where I'd like to start, if I were to drop three of the four regions in Bicol I'd be one region away from a +4 and ready to kick some ass. There's about a 15% chance of getting such a drop in a 1v1 game, and better than a 9% chance in a 3p game, which means it'll happen pretty routinely.

The "gray" space could be incorporated into other regions - the islands above Palawan could easily be rendered as a part of Palawan, and they'd all highlight together.

Visually it might help if, down the road, we took some liberties with geography. Putting a little more sea between Bicol and Eastern Visayas wouldn't be detectable by the average player, but would help the commands stand apart.

Alright, keep up the good work!

 

[KungFuDuet]

In 2 player games, 20% of the regions start neutral. So a 45 region map will start 18, 18, 9 neutral. An issue with that is that Player 1 will get 6, and only have to knock Player 2 down by one region to reduce his bonus. Wid's suggestion of going up to 48 would resolve that - and make 3p games a much nicer 16 regions to start.

Indeed - I am currently making the changes - it will be in the next edition.

Just for the sake of clarity: I see the mountains as impassables, but are you also including some rivers up North, or are those just widely-drawn borders?

Indeed they are rivers - I will need some graphics bumping - as I am not so sure on how to draw rivers correctly.

I'm cool with most all of the mountain ranges with the possible exception of Occi. Mindoro and Ori. Mindoro. As the two regions are part of the same command, connecting them wouldn't alter how easily the command is held in terms of borders to defend. In fact, connecting them would in fact make that area of the map more dynamic, because right now it's one big bottleneck.

The Mountain will be take out - and replaced by a "partial mountain" - just to make it look good haha

Speaking of bottlenecks, if you can limit the number of places in which there is a straight line from region to region to region it opens up play. It's a danger on a map like this, but you've done a really nice job of avoiding it. Having a couple of places where it happens is cool, so long as you take into account how much easier it is to take such a command, if you can just march from region to region without having to defend as you go.

I will check for that in the coming edit.

We can have an ongoing discussion about command bonuses as you go, but it doesn't hurt to figure out what you basic formula is for determining the value of a command. Simplest method is value a command at (for example) 50% of the # of regions, but you also want to take into account the number of borders you need to defend, and possibly the number of neighboring commands. I would say some of your regions are just right: Soccks at +2, Zam Penin at +1, Cagayan at +2. Some others seem over-valued to me: Bicol and Mimarosa are both +4 for just four regions, one of which isn't a border (while Central West, with seven regions and four borders, is only worth one more).

Looking more closely at your bonuses, I see that you are taking into account region count and borders; the result is that you're a bit generous to the commands with a lot of borders to hold. In the end there are going to be many instances of two commands that don't look identical yet have the same value. Now that you've used numbers to give you a baseline, think about where you'd have an advantage to start the game. When I think about where I'd like to start, if I were to drop three of the four regions in Bicol I'd be one region away from a +4 and ready to kick some ass. There's about a 15% chance of getting such a drop in a 1v1 game, and better than a 9% chance in a 3p game, which means it'll happen pretty routinely.

I will change the value around and see what you think after

The "gray" space could be incorporated into other regions - the islands above Palawan could easily be rendered as a part of Palawan, and they'd all highlight together.

I have already taken that as another region. so it seems all good for now - thanks for that anyway.

Visually it might help if, down the road, we took some liberties with geography. Putting a little more sea between Bicol and Eastern Visayas wouldn't be detectable by the average player, but would help the commands stand apart.

Alright, keep up the good work!

I have already largen one or two islands by one pixel or two outwards. that is a good idea - I might have a go at it in the next edition as well.

Check back soon (like half an hour away)
KFD

Thanks

 

[KungFuDuet]

3rd Edition

Taken most things into account, this still has less changes than the 1st on to the 2nd edition.

3rd Edition Statistics:
# Commands: 12
# Regions: 48

Changes list:
- Calamians added in Mimaropa
- Romblons added in Mimaropa
- Misamis Occidental added in Zam Peninsula
- Link between Mindoro Occidental and Mindoro Oriental added
- Link destroyed between Mindoro Oriental and Palawan
- Link added between Mindoro Occidental and Palawan

Map Sample:

Map Bonus:

Map with Names only:

Map blank:

Thanks
KFD

 

[WidowMakers]

Shep did a nice job summing up my concerns now.
Bonuses and borders.

Once you get to 48 regions and adjust the bonuses, I would make a map that just shows borders, impassable and then each command.
For each command show the name, the number of regions, borders and bonus.
Once we can all agree on that, the map can jump to the next level.

Begin that this is a simple map, there are not too many conflicts as far as GP is concerned.

As far as graphics, is there any specific them otr style you had in mind?