[Jurri]

I'm in, definitely! And the slot is freed.

How about going one step further with the no alliances thing and go 'gunboat' all the way? That is to say, ban diplomacy of any kind, aside from what your moves can message through. I'm not sure if it would degenerate into bash-the-leader even sooner than normal, though. A wrap-around map would be ideal for this kind of thing.

Also, how about banning blood nations, as low sites and rich world and difficult research all make them relatively more powerful.