I agree on almost all of your points although 400 recruits seems a little on the small side (unless it's a territory that has been fought over a ton. I think population regain should be slower). I don't think it should be on every territory though. Maybe tie it to gold income to represent larger areas so that we have a larger variance. Maybe make the average territory have 2000, low income backwater territories have 1000, high income territories might have 3000-4000 to represent a larger population around the financial centers and finally have 6000-8000 in capitols for a very epic fight. This would keep most maps small and quick while allowing for big drag out fights in the important areas to give them a more epic feel. Maybe adjust autocalc a bit to allow for higher attrition on both sides in high population provinces so you aren't penalized for playing it yourself. That's just campaign though. I like where skirmish is at in terms of population.
