The point is not so much what an established player gets but what new
players *cannot* get. The 1 peasant, PCT4G, etc. are all things that
new players need but which never get down to them because they are
being consumed, in safety, by existing players. As for PCT4G
becomming lottery, I think that is preferential in "safe havens" to
it being a risk-free sure-thing to a single noble or alliance sitting
on top of the city with no incentive to leave.
And, remember, that is the other part of the equation. To provide
incentive for existing players to move along...
John Morrow