This map is somewhat similar to Black Forest except that players are connected with water. Allies are connected with shallows to make trade easier. Use of the water is essential as traveling along the shores is problematic at best (most of the land is blocked with trees). It is important to scout the rivers before building a huge navy since not all of them lead to other players... Siege onagers are a good idea too because cutting through the trees can eliminate the need for a navy.
Resources are fairly standard (maybe a bit high) at player start points and there are a lot of additional resources scattered around the map in clearings (i.e., you will have to chop through to find them) and on islands. The map has 5 relics. There are literally tons of fish.
In addition to the normal starting objects of a town center, villagers and a scout, players start with a light cavalry and a hussar (and a knight, cavalier and paladin in regicide). Players also get 1 or 2 transports and a trade cog but they may not be placed in a useful position (though they usually are). There is a 69% chance that there will be 1 wolf on the map and if there is it will be in one player's town...
I originally had 1 hero on the map but upon request I increased it to 3 heroes (in some cases the "heroes" are a couple elite units). I'm not sure if I like having the heroes but I've left them in for now. The heroes are different depending on the tileset used -- there are 5 different tilesets. There is also a small land that contains a gaia castle hidden in the trees.
Computer players: I'm not sure how they work on this map. They seem to start to build a navy then change to a land attack. As stated earlier, land attacks are problematic. The units tend to get stuck trying to walk along the shore (which is only 1 tile wide and easily blocked by things like deer, boar and sheep). If anyone knows how to get the cpu to use the water to its advantage please let me know.