I seriously do not understand the problem people have. Sure, sometimes a PAK or a Flak early on can appear and destroy you, but it barely ever happens. All you need is a reasonable strategy.
Cartographer award is broken... I explored the whole first two levels, but i did not get it. i suspect it has something to do with Exit Floor counting as a tile.
Cartographer award is broken... because Floor Exit counts as a tile, as soon as you go to the next level it clears all the "Explored rooms" data and starts it again, making it impossible to earn.