Oh my. The story sets up a sense of foreboding which is realized when the game is started. A surprise awaits, but I won't ruin it by saying what it is! You'll just have to download this creative map to find out!
Pirate Roberts has become a master of exquisite map-making, everything in the landscape fine-tuned just so. It's always fun to open up a new map of his to see what new (diabolical) idea he's come up with! This is a terrific map - the 4s for playability, balance and map design could almost be 5s, except for this: there's no way to get iron or stone (except for demolishing existing structures), so I wasn't able to build as much as I could have wanted to. Figuring into that (but fitting with the storyline) is the useless marketplace - nothing can be traded. And you have to be very choosy about what to place on the limited valley floor. So for the limiting of choices and therefore gameplay:
Playability, Balance & Map Design: 4
Creativity: 5