Battle map generation

This has kept me thinking recently. How exactly are the battle maps generated in imperial campaign. Obviously they're not completely random because i've fought multiple battles on the same map with all entities placed in the same way, but the devs couldn't possibly have created each of the hundreds of maps representing each tile individually. So how are the maps generated? Maybe they are generated through color maps? Or by the properties of each tile? The mind boggles.

Also, should my next campaing be Carthage or the Seleucs?

I believe that they're generated by what is on the tile the battle is to be thought on and what is in the vicinity, which is why if you're fighting a battle for Rhodes, and the ship that dropped you off is still parked there, you'll see the ship out on the water and the Colossus of Rhodes and the port in the distance.

Not too sure on the exact mechanics of it, but basically I've seen screenshots of the same exact battlefield I was on. So it's definately not random. So that little red square you see highlighted before you leave the campaign map will be an exact replica on the battlefield but ~ 1000 times bigger.

The campaing map is in 3d even though you can only scroll vertically or horizonatally. A lot of the features of the land are invisible to the human eye on the campaign map but reveal themselves on the battlemap.

Heres what Railroad Tycoon 3 did. They took some to scale maps and generated it into the engine. But they did not come out realistic. What they did was amplify the moutains by 2-300 percent or more and reduced non mountanous regions by about 50 percent. This makes the mountains more noticable and gives better scenery (eyecandy). I have no idea how many maps actually used this but the potential was there in the game.

RTW could have done the same thing using a topographical map and converting it along with amplifying heigts and possibly even amplifying the lowlands to give a more dramatic look and maybe flattening out land so there is passable terrain through the alps and else where.

What I am almost completely sure that they`ve done is to reconstruct the entire campaign map close-up in 3D. The only thing that is different from time to time you play is ports and roads.

I`ve fought against relief forces outside Tarentum 3 times, and all times the battlefield looked exactly the same. Also when I fought a siege battle at Tarentum I could recognise the relief battlefield not far from the settlement, wich was a cool experience since I had got so used to fight battles down there and knew the place very good.

If you guys haven´t noticed - the battlefields are exactly the same as the place you´re standing in the strategic map. The same place locks the same always, except for roads and farming etc.