Many players have expressed frustration with the heir selection mechanics in the latest Total War releases, particularly the perceived lack of control over who becomes the faction heir. It’s not as simple as seniority or authority; the AI uses a more nuanced system. Understanding this system, especially the dynamics of your bloodline family tree, is crucial for long-term success. This guide will explore the intricacies of family management and heir selection in Total War, offering insights and strategies to ensure your chosen successors inherit your legacy.
Understanding Family Dynamics and Adoption
One of the most critical aspects of managing your bloodline is being highly selective about adoptions and princess suitors. The game AI constantly offers candidates, especially when your settlements outnumber your family members. While the need for governors might tempt you to accept every offer, patience is key. Resist the urge to fill every family slot with just anyone. Treat these slots – limited to four children per family member – as precious resources to cultivate your desired bloodline.
Strategic Marriages and Royal Blood
Adopted family members, whether they are random candidates, “men of the hour,” or distinguished generals from outside your direct lineage, present unique marriage opportunities. While an adopted member cannot marry a princess from the same branch of the family tree that adopted him (preventing direct inbreeding within that branch), they can marry a princess from a different family leg. This strategic move ensures that the royal bloodline continues through the adopted member’s descendants. When such a marriage occurs, the princess becomes the wife of the adopted family member, effectively freeing up a family slot in her original branch for future births or adoptions. Conversely, if a princess marries a non-family member general, she remains in her family tree position, and the general joins the family structure alongside her.
Managing Births and Royal Lineage
The birth of children within your family is a somewhat random event, but save-scumming techniques can be employed to influence the outcome, though direct cheating of births is generally not possible. By saving before the end of each turn, you can reload and potentially alter the gender of the child or the characteristics of adoption candidates offered. If reloading repeatedly yields the same results, try making a minor change before ending the previous turn, such as moving a character or initiating a construction project. Typically, only a couple of different outcomes exist before more significant changes are made to your turn actions. A complete game restart can also sometimes refresh the random outcomes. Crucially, remember that only princesses born to the current ruling king and the current faction heir will be controllable characters. Utilize princesses strategically, whether for diplomatic alliances or to propagate your bloodline through marriages into adopted family branches.
Wise Wife Selection for Bloodline Strength
Exercise discretion when selecting wives for your king, heir, and family members. Not every family member needs to be heir material. Allow those less likely to ascend to marry commoners and expand the family, while reserving strategic, high-bloodline marriages for your key figures. Don’t underestimate the reproductive potential of older characters; a 45-year-old family member can still father several children before reaching the end of their lifespan around 60.
The Influence of Royal Blood on Heir Selection
The proportion of royal blood, both from your own lineage and potentially from intermarriages with other factions, appears to play a significant role in the AI’s heir selection process. Anecdotal evidence suggests that even a young, less experienced general with a stronger perceived royal bloodline might be favored over an older, more capable family member with less prestigious lineage. A practical experiment to test this theory involves saving your game and then intentionally assassinating your king within a few turns. Observe who the AI designates as the new faction heir. If the choice is undesirable, you can reload and manipulate character traits – reducing authority and command for the unwanted heir and enhancing these attributes for your preferred candidate. Alternatively, more drastically, you could even assassinate the AI’s chosen heir directly.
Distinguishing Family Members from Faction Generals
It’s important to differentiate between family members and ordinary faction generals. Newer players might overlook the distinction and the possibility of recruiting non-family generals. These generals can be valuable assets as governors or battle commanders without consuming precious family tree slots. Some factions even start with non-family generals (like Portugal and Sicily). The AI may eventually offer these generals for adoption if you have open family slots and if the generals prove to be competent. Furthermore, bribery remains a viable, albeit more challenging, method to recruit non-family generals, expanding your military and administrative capacity without diluting your bloodline.
Leveraging Bribery and Diplomacy
While bribery was more easily exploitable in earlier versions of Total War, it remains a strategic option, especially with cunning diplomats. Cheating or modding to enhance a diplomat’s “SmoothTalker” trait (level 3 being highly effective) significantly boosts bribery success rates against foreign generals, whether rebels or from other factions. Rebel generals are generally easier targets than faction members, but individual character traits are the primary determining factor. Successfully bribing a foreign general only adds the “ExRebel 1” trait, which merely reduces loyalty by 1, a minor penalty easily removed with cheats if desired. The “Secretive 3” diplomat trait also improves bribery success, though to a lesser extent than “SmoothTalker,” while also enhancing general diplomatic skills. Using these “cheats” can restore a gameplay element reminiscent of earlier Total War titles without necessarily making the game unrealistic, as substantial sums of money (10,000-30,000 denarii) are still typically required to bribe a valuable foreign character. In campaigns where mods allow for the recruitment of legendary figures like El Cid, bribery can also be used to acquire additional non-family generals. These non-family generals do not appear to impact the settlement-to-family-member ratio, as the AI continues to offer adoption candidates even with numerous non-family generals in service.
The Risks and Rewards of Bribing Settlements
Bribing a character within a settlement is more complex as the bribe often includes the settlement itself. While settlements without a general garrison are generally easier to bribe with a highly skilled diplomat, holding onto a newly bribed settlement can be challenging. Successfully bribing any general, whether rebel or from another faction, can strain diplomatic relations or trigger immediate war, as seizing a settlement is inherently an act of aggression, and even simply moving a newly bribed general out of the territory where they were recruited can be considered trespassing. To mitigate diplomatic fallout, plan an escape route in advance and move your newly acquired character discreetly through hidden paths out of hostile lands. Avoid unrealistic “teleportation” cheats, which detract from the game’s immersive experience.
Princesses and Seduction through Marriage
Marrying a princess to a foreign character, whether a general or family member, is a potent method of recruitment. This “seduction by marriage” brings the foreign character into your family tree, occupying a valuable family slot. Interestingly, if the foreign family member was a potential heir in their original faction, they might not appear directly in your family tree display, though you will still have full control over them. However, bribing a foreign faction character, regardless of whether they are a family member or a simple general, will only result in a non-family general joining your faction, not a new family member within your bloodline.
Expanding the Family Tree Experience
The family tree aspect of Total War adds a compelling RPG-like layer to the grand strategy gameplay. While the current system offers depth, expanding upon it, perhaps by allowing players to view the family trees of other factions (possibly through a game patch, update, or expansion), would further enrich the experience and strategic considerations.
Ultimately, mastering The Bloodline Family Tree in Total War is about strategic planning, careful selection, and understanding the nuances of AI behavior. By implementing these strategies, you can exert greater control over your dynasty’s future and ensure a worthy heir inherits your hard-won empire.
