Childern - Natural Channelers or not?

I just want a clear answer.   Pre-betas almost every one of my children where natural channelers and could cast spells, even if the stat randomization meant that some of them started with only 1 or 2 mana points.

But every beta version, every game I have played so far, not one single natural channeler! NONE!

I have taken probably 6 games to the point where all my children grew up and with 4 per game, that is zero for 20+.  The complete opposite of what I saw before.

I am playing a custom sovereign, so I don't know if that makes any difference, but I am getting annoyed with this.

So simply, are children supposed to have a natural channeling ability? Or do I need to treat them like any other champion and imbue them? Or is there some trick to getting the channeling ability to show up that I have just not found yet?

Or is there a bug with this that needs to be addressed and I just cannot find any mention of it?

14,110 views 18 replies
Reply #1 Top

Children and grandkids should be natural channelers.

Reply #2 Top

None of the kids in my game have been natural channelers, but the girl my son married WAS a channeler.  All the children did produce one or two points of mana a turn at least.

Reply #3 Top

Odd, I've had the opposite occur : Not a single child has been unable to cast spells. Perhaps it is because I always imbue the spouse I marry and leave imbue on for the duration of the game. Mabye both of them simply have to be magically active for you to have a good chance. I mean seriously how many children are we talking? At 3 or even 4 it would still not be considered a statistical annomoly to have 1 child magically active at a 50% chance.

Reply #4 Top

Ditto here CdrRogdan.. I ALWAYS imbue the spouse (hell, i always imbue the first 2-5 champions I hire-on). And I've never had a kid/grandkid/great-grandkid/etc ever NOT be a channeler. They have that ability (plus the +1 or +2 health/mana recovery, and usually another perk too.

Reply #5 Top

Ditto, I actually tried testing this out in a couple games. If you and your spouse channel then children will channel 100%. If spouse doesn't channel then no children channelers. Need to go back and test to see if the decision point is on birth or on maturity, but right now this is the basic problem. 

Reply #6 Top

I always imbue my wife and it doesn't matter my kids never are channlers. Now I have imbue them too and waste 1 mana per turn that what a waste. This is another thing that should be fixed.

Reply #7 Top

I had seen other people mention about imbueing your spouse, so I had tried that with the latest game I played. Four children and none of them channelers. Only one male child and the wife I set him up with was a channeler, so other factions seem to have success.

I think my next test around will be with one of the default sovereigns instead of a custom, but still ought to try with a male custom sovereign since I had been using a female in the last several rounds.

Reply #8 Top

I imbue my sov's spouse just after marriage, but I have never had a child or grandchild able to channel, even though many other faction's children do channel.  I too am using a custom sov, male, so maybe that has something to do with it.

Reply #9 Top

I'm sorry, I just can't leave this one alone.

"Imbue"?  Is that what you kids are calling it now?

Reply #10 Top

Quoting Winnihym, reply 9
I'm sorry, I just can't leave this one alone.

"Imbue"?  Is that what you kids are calling it now?
End of Winnihym's quote

I can't leave this one alone? If you're trying to joke, my humour systems are offline again. If you're serious, I want to know what you think is being mistaken for imbuing champions.

My current obsession with the demise of essence makes me want to think you're objecting to that dev decision, but I still mostly feel like the only beta tester left who passionately hates that change from a positive integer to a yes/no flag. It's hard to see a joke in things if you feel like your 'in crowd' is down to just yourself.

Reply #11 Top

Quoting GW, reply 10

Quoting Winnihym, reply 9I'm sorry, I just can't leave this one alone.

"Imbue"?  Is that what you kids are calling it now?

I can't leave this one alone? If you're trying to joke, my humour systems are offline again. If you're serious, I want to know what you think is being mistaken for imbuing champions.

My current obsession with the demise of essence makes me want to think you're objecting to that dev decision, but I still mostly feel like the only beta tester left who passionately hates that change from a positive integer to a yes/no flag. It's hard to see a joke in things if you feel like your 'in crowd' is down to just yourself.
End of GW's quote



I believe he was making a joke.  About, you know, what two people do when they love each other very much...   And such. 

 

So, chill out a bit.

 

 

But on the note of children and essence, I've noticed as of 1.09t that while your children never seem to be able to cast spells, other sovereign's children seem to, when married over to your side, be able to.  It's very weird.

Reply #12 Top

Quoting Tempestwrath, reply 11
... I believe he was making a joke.  About, you know, what two people do when they love each other very much...   And such. 

So, chill out a bit.
End of Tempestwrath's quote

Ah, well, I did confess knowing that my humour systems were failing. I'm second generation counterculture, so I tend to think of sex as a wholesome and ordinary thing unless some drama crap is obviously at work.

Plus, I've got all those other 'issues' with the game and all...

Reply #13 Top

*snickers*

I always imbue my spouse...

I imbue my *sic* spouse just after marraige...

and the oh-so-randy AlexFury, who not only imbues his spouse, but the first 2-5 champions he hires on.  Alex, there are...ah..rules of conduct between an employer and employees these days...

It just struck me as really, really, funny.  Sorry, been sniffing sawdust all day.

Winni

Reply #14 Top

Quoting Winnihym, reply 13
*snickers*

I always imbue my spouse...

I imbue my *sic* spouse just after marraige...

and the oh-so-randy AlexFury, who not only imbues his spouse, but the first 2-5 champions he hires on.  Alex, there are...ah..rules of conduct between an employer and employees these days...

It just struck me as really, really, funny.  Sorry, been sniffing sawdust all day.

Winni
End of Winnihym's quote

I imbue myself. Is that wrong?

Reply #15 Top

the reason that the other faction leaders children sometimes can cast spells - is because the soverieng had cast imbue on them - and when they transferr they dont get the spell cancelled - so one free channeller point there

Reply #16 Top

Looks like they've taken out the natural ability for children to be able to cast in recent patches (i.e. patch s, t).  And yes the ability for the in laws to cast is because the other sovereign cast imbuie on them...  Personally I think that's a mistake because this means the children are merely just like any other champions; nothing special about them any more.  Would be much better to have them as natural casters,,,

Reply #17 Top

I agree.  As long as you can't get a ton of children, and children aren't OP, then I think it would make sense to make children a little "special" (ie. no upkeep costs). =)

Best regards,
Steven.

Reply #18 Top

now that mana is global, the advantage of having multiple channelers is very slight; more logistical than an increase in total power (so long as the mana gen is balanced of course). so to my mind they should all be natural channelers.

personally i don't like the idea of charging a mana maint for imbuing at all. it has to be dismissable in order to not break the game, but so long as it remains so, it will be open to exploitation. more than anything, it just doesn't feel right lore-wise. the overabundance of mana maint at the moment makes enchanting and summoning in the early game very unwise, as this is the time when you should be stockpiling for the mid game.

i preferred essense as a means of limitting imbuing because it makes imbuing a personal sacrifice for the sovereign rather than a global one; giving the player the choice of being sauron (and hoarding power for himself) or galadriel (sharing power for logistical benefits). i also think this would make the game more balanced. having one stat govern all magic vs 3 stats to govern combat is not a good idea. if intelligence is currently a dump stat, it's only because the damage formulas at the moment don't scale enough, there are no good high level damage spells and the sovereign isn't being limited by intelligence as he should.

if it was me i'd do it like this

INT: required for casting spells based on their level, increases spell power, admin bonus to city income (giving stay at home sovs more options)

ESS: reduces mana costs of spells, determines spell resistance, sacrificed for imbuing, enchanting and creating fertile land.

i'd also add a spell that turns the sovereign into a Lich; preventing them (and their decendents) from having children, making them unkillable permanently without taking their capital and giving them large stat boosts. that would cmplete the game for me.