As it is now, the game will spawn random courtiers always when certain conditions are met, such as creating an unmarried lowborn female, if there aren't any potential wives in court. Often the random courtiers you get are completely useless, and spend their time doing nothing. It's also immersion-breaking to have random people show up for no apparent reason. And worst of all, they lower performance, just like any other living character, since they get those event ticks. So here are my thoughts about how to make the game a bit better.
1. On game start, spawn 5 councillors, one lowborn woman and a spare councillor/commander in every court. For ranks higher than count, generate a few more commanders and ladies, but I'd say no more than 10 in total.
2. Don't spawn any random people after that. Instead, the AI should use the recruiting decisions if it has an empty councillor spot and no potential councillors. Expand those decisions, so you can recruit diplomats and spymasters.
3. Every courtier that comes in your court should be one of the following
a) From an existing noble family
b) Spawned by event, so they have a backstory
c) Generated by an employment decision
d) One of your vassals
This would be more immersive, as every character would have a bit of a backstory, instead of just appearing without explanation. And it would help with performance, since less people would be spawned, and the vast majority would have a purpose to exist. And nobles would be more likely to marry noble women, since there would be less lowborn women roaming the courts.
I also have a few ideas for events that generate courtiers. These events shouldn't happen too often, and they should be less likely to happen when a court is big, like, significantly less likely in courts over 20 than in courts of 10, unless the courtiers would be useful and needed.
For creating lowborn women:
1. A courtier asks if he can bring a pretty peasant girl to court. You can refuse this, and the girl won't spawn at all. The girl would become the courtiers lover.
2. You can find a pretty young woman yourself, like in that hunting event, when you have seduction focus. You could choose to take her as a lover or just keep her around, or refuse her access to court.
3. Events to take random peasants as concubines when raiding. Like, while burning the village to the ground you have found a beautiful peasant girl, will you take her as concubine or leave her there. Would only fire if you don't have the max amount of concubines already.
Other:
1. Events for travelling knights/priests/bards etc. to ask permission to join your court. Like with all other events, you could refuse.
Of course, to keep the AI from exploding their courts, they would be often likely to refuse, and would always refuse when their court gets large enough. And these events would happen rarely.
Then there's also seduction, which is a problem, and I think this problem can be addressed simply by three things:
1. An option for the seduction target to say no, which will end seduction and prevent future seduction attempts by the same person.
2. A ruler can always imprison and execute a cheating wife and the seducer.
3. Characters who aren't lustful or hedonist should be very unlikely to choose seduction, and characters who aren't lustful or hedonist should be more likely to refuse, especially when married.
And one final thing about performance and immersion, most characters should die around their 50's and more women should die in childbirth. This is the middle ages after all. And not everyone should remarry when their wife/husband dies.
1. On game start, spawn 5 councillors, one lowborn woman and a spare councillor/commander in every court. For ranks higher than count, generate a few more commanders and ladies, but I'd say no more than 10 in total.
2. Don't spawn any random people after that. Instead, the AI should use the recruiting decisions if it has an empty councillor spot and no potential councillors. Expand those decisions, so you can recruit diplomats and spymasters.
3. Every courtier that comes in your court should be one of the following
a) From an existing noble family
b) Spawned by event, so they have a backstory
c) Generated by an employment decision
d) One of your vassals
This would be more immersive, as every character would have a bit of a backstory, instead of just appearing without explanation. And it would help with performance, since less people would be spawned, and the vast majority would have a purpose to exist. And nobles would be more likely to marry noble women, since there would be less lowborn women roaming the courts.
I also have a few ideas for events that generate courtiers. These events shouldn't happen too often, and they should be less likely to happen when a court is big, like, significantly less likely in courts over 20 than in courts of 10, unless the courtiers would be useful and needed.
For creating lowborn women:
1. A courtier asks if he can bring a pretty peasant girl to court. You can refuse this, and the girl won't spawn at all. The girl would become the courtiers lover.
2. You can find a pretty young woman yourself, like in that hunting event, when you have seduction focus. You could choose to take her as a lover or just keep her around, or refuse her access to court.
3. Events to take random peasants as concubines when raiding. Like, while burning the village to the ground you have found a beautiful peasant girl, will you take her as concubine or leave her there. Would only fire if you don't have the max amount of concubines already.
Other:
1. Events for travelling knights/priests/bards etc. to ask permission to join your court. Like with all other events, you could refuse.
Of course, to keep the AI from exploding their courts, they would be often likely to refuse, and would always refuse when their court gets large enough. And these events would happen rarely.
Then there's also seduction, which is a problem, and I think this problem can be addressed simply by three things:
1. An option for the seduction target to say no, which will end seduction and prevent future seduction attempts by the same person.
2. A ruler can always imprison and execute a cheating wife and the seducer.
3. Characters who aren't lustful or hedonist should be very unlikely to choose seduction, and characters who aren't lustful or hedonist should be more likely to refuse, especially when married.
And one final thing about performance and immersion, most characters should die around their 50's and more women should die in childbirth. This is the middle ages after all. And not everyone should remarry when their wife/husband dies.
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