In many games the players are given a certain amount of points to distribute among several characteristics (stamina, hit point, etc.) of their "hero".
So I suggest we do the same with our map. In stead of some server randomly generating our maps I think it would be better if we specify the amount of resources that will be present on our map. The amount of points to be distributed can be fixed for all players. A suitable number would be anything from 40 to 45 points.
The price for each resource could be the following:
- 1 point for 1 raw material field if the number of the fields is <= 10
- 2 points for 1 raw material field if between 11 and 15
- 3 points for 1 field if >= 16.
For example that 10 ore mines will cost 10 points, 12 ore mines will cost 14 points and 16 iron ore fields will cost 23 points.
Of course the amount of points and the levels (below 10/11 - 15/above 15) can be different. This is just as an example.
ps. This will save a huge amount of clicks, server load and traffic for map generation.