Magic. Felt really random especially if you wanted to play a full magic oriented Sovereign. You might get more random spells as a level up perk, or you might not. No choice which path to research. Some spells come as level up perks, but you have a random selection of books in research as well. I just didn't get into it. In MoM it's so much fun choosing what spell to research next and magic is the center of the game.. that should be the goal here as well. Magic was one third of research, and spells were bundled up in that tree along with some pre-generated magic trinkets and buildings. Spell research should be vastly more important and exciting. There's a very engineer style approach to the whole magic aspect that doesn't feel magical.
Magic. I hear lots of people saying it feels too random and not enough characterized. I beg devs not to rush this game and get the Magic right. This game seems a good one already, but with undeveloped potentials for being great. Take some more time in design before you balance it, please, and make it a great game.
Use some love with Magic schools:
Fire: burning-damage (with some DoT), best AoE damage, attack buffs, defence-reduction debuffs, hot emotions buffs (burning rage, lust...).
Water: freezing-damage, mind control (charme..), slow, magic resistance buff and debuff, abundance(food), dispels, regeneration(*).
Earth: stun-damage, physical defence, production, terrain mutation, strength, weapon/armor forging, roots, quakes.
Air: lightning-bouncing-damage, armor-piercing damage, evade, grace, flight, whispers.
Life: holy damage, stamina, heal, happyness, resurrect, pacify, protection.
Death: life-drain-damage, debuffs, poison DoTs, diseases, plague, sacrifices, fear, undead-related stuff.
(*) I would have liked regeneration to be Water, so that Life, Death and Water were the only schools able to heal, but each in a different fashion.
