few notes.
if you can't get into, or can't make a major alliance you're done for. there's a mechanic dubbed "farming" where you raid villages for supplies, and if you aren't in the quadrant's major alliance you will get turned into a farm.
track activity here:
http://travian.ws/analyser.pl?s=us4early game this is useful so you don't cross the wrong person. look at their population growth the past few days to see if they've grown at all. if not chances are you can farm them.
I'll update as I think of stuff.