Best New Map of the Week would be good. There are too many new maps; the two slots on the community page don't promote each new map with equal time.
Coin tournaments aren't the main point. The problem is that since Fizzer changed the tournament structure, only coin games are public tournaments (with open seats based on prereqs).
If mapmakers could make a small (16 seats) public non-coin tournament as a reward for making a new map, it would be helpful. Why? There are too many players and too many inefficiency problems related to the invitation process. The goal of this process is that it should bridge the gap between supply and demand: I "supply" a tournament; who on WL would be willing to play it ("demand"). It is an information problem. As the tournament host, I don't really know who is active, who likes my new map, who wants to increase their game count, who likes the settings, who doesn't want an invitation, etc. So sending invitations to the limited numbers of players I am aware of is an inefficient method of trying to fill the tournament to promote the new map. The best option is a public tournament with a thread on the forum to promote the tournament link. I can invite people I think might play, while the forum thread can allow others to play.
But the number of tournaments on new maps should be kept to a minimum. Your suggestion about voting on new maps is one way to do it: the winner has a public tournament. My suggestion about rewarding good mapmakers (average rating of 3.5 or so, at least 5 maps made before the new one) is another way. Whether the public tournament is a coin game or not doesn't matter. Being public does.
Ultimately, my argument is about increasing the adoption rate of a basic 'implementation curve':
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diffusion_of_innovations.
Mapmakers are innovators. Good mapmakers' projects deserve special attention. Warlight has about 1600 maps. How many are worth playing on a regular basis? How many are made by mapmakers whose maps are played on a regular basis? Does the New Map promotion process efficiently promote new maps? Does the tournament system allow mapmakers to promote new maps in a way that allows all WL players more or less equal access to the tournament that promotes the new map?
Edited 6/4/2016 03:48:22