Bay of Destiny

I played it a bit (but didn't finish it, to be honest).
Here's what I can say:
1. I liked the design – it's very good for beginners.
2. Balance is definitely needed.
3. The factions are defined because they are tied to territories, but here's how you could approach it: make specific cities available to a specific player (for example, on human territories, you could have Academy, and on Orc territories, you could have Necropolis. That is, allow the player to choose a city, but not any of the eight, only the one that suits the landscape).
4. It's unclear why there are so many cities in a small area, protected by strong defenses (the option of a quick game, where a large number of cities plays a role, doesn't work here). Everyone will have time to build them up, and the cities, due to their location, don't have much strategic value. You could limit it to one or two cities, and if you want larger armies, you could increase the number of dwellings.