Sounds like a good Christmas present, I wouldn't let the "green pad warning" bum you out.
If (and that's a pretty big "if" in my book) the green pads are too aggressive you still have a few options. You could just use the white Cyclo "finishing" pads for a follow-up. You could get some 4" white CMA/Lake pads. Or you could cut up some larger pads that you like (Anthony O. has done this lots of times and it worked OK when I tried it) and use them.
But I dunno about the green pads being so coarse as to cause micromarring anyhow, I suspect it's just a "CYA" disclaimer. Yeah, such problems show up more on dark colors, but it's all gonna depend on how hard your paint is (and what polish you're using). Plenty of pros have been using Cyclos (with those green pads) on dark cars for a very long time. Don't assume/expect the worst, just remember to try a small test area so you don't have to fix a whole panel if you *do* run into problems.
I don't remember having any problems on dark cars with those pads, and they are *not* too coarse for my Jag's *very* soft lacquer (they don't leave any marring on it with mild products).
For removal by Cyclo, I like to use MF bonnets over the yellow cutting pads.
