I was sure we agreed on WoG in previous thread
There are many garrisons and special territories [plains are hard to keep] so it doesn't feel like a huge map. And we play teams and focus on VP so no one will have to conquer all provinces, you can even keep that 20-30 provinces and have chances to win.
But of course that is just my opinion and I am not hosting the game. I think we should stick with WoG if we have 12 players and change to something smaller if we are not able to find 12 newbie people let's say till the end week.