Highland Union is designed for 2 vs 6 .On the right up corner,the 6 should all be lions,which would work well with each other.However,6 wolves will fail for their super-sized castle.
You would want to choose lionheart,wolf or saladin as you only ally, so that you can survive the first wave of assult.Anyway,the choice is yours.As the lions would always be well fed and you remains poor for the lack of resource,so build your defense line very quickly.Good luck and have fun : )
Playability: 4.5
This was a very fun map to play. I followed your directions but took it a step further. I didn't choose an ally, and I put the computer at 4000 gold advantage to make it extra hard. This map doesn't fail to challenge even an advanced player. In typical fashion, all the Lion Hearts poured siege after siege of troops and engines at you. Survival depends on strategic defense, in particular how well you can use the terrain and choke points - my kind of map! The enemies attempt to attacked from all sides, often with heavy surprise barrages from catapults. Lions would constantly attack your territories and even attack you while you battle King Richard on the plateau. The best strategy I found was to wall off the land south of your keep and the northeast shoals with moat protected by tower, which directs most troops around the river to the northwest shoals, in which a group of fire ballistas could be placed near the stone/iron to pick them off. Replacement of stockpile near the iron/stone is good idea to bring in trade revenue quickly.
Balance: 3
Unfortunately the balance wasn't the best here. Some Lion Hearts were pushovers (especially the Northwestern most one), others much better. This probably had to do with the fact they were so close together, which caused failure of some AI's to function at full capacity. In particular, they didn't utilize the stone/iron north of their oasis grass.
Creativity: 4
Good creativity and effort at making complex gameplay.
Map Design: 3
If it weren't for two glaring things that affected the way the map works, this would be rated a 4. There was resources available to the AI's, but they chose not to use them, likely because they were cramped together so close. I would extend the plateau farther northeast, while reducing the excessive oasis and pulling the Lionhearts' iron/stone southwest a little. This will allow you to spread the keeps out a little bit more so their AI works properly and they utilize their resources. Also, the narrow northwestern path up the plateau would sometimes let my troops through, sometimes not. Sometimes paths one unit wide will glitch like this. I would increase the path's width, or close it off altogether if you want to make the map even tougher. The map's level of detail was good, but could be even better with a little more work.
Story/Instructions: 4
Not much of a story, but you gave us clear instructions of how to set this map up. A good story will get a 5 though!
Additional Comments:
Great map with a lot of potential. All it needs is a few tweeks. Remember to test play your maps before uploading them to ensure they work as well as they can.