A Family Business

[danimal]

Hows everyone making sure they keep a big healthy family, especially with a growing empire. I had a nightmire where I had 6 siblings but no kids for 15 yrs!! Luckily they did start to procreate eventually.
Started taking some generals to war on their own and some got promoted to family members. Also comlpetely at random I adopted a 30yr old man. Strangely cool.

[Colovion]

I have half of my family tree dead because I still have yet to realize that Generals are not Jedis anymore.

[ChaosLord]

Most of my family members are just govenors, only a few actually lead armies. So for the most part they stay alive. The year is 146BC in my game and I have 34 family members, over 40 including children.

[dragonchr15]

I don't remember where I read this, but if you click on the family tree button on the faction scroll and change your faction heir to a branch of your family that has not developed too much. You get more heirs this way.

[ChaosLord]

I don't think thats right, the side of my family tree that has been my faction leaders/heirs is the most underdeveloped side, besides for those that died off through war or plague. Active campaigning seems to delay having children which might be why. Of course, it could just be completely random. But the right side of my tree is huge in comparison to my left side(heirs/leaders).

[AssasinsShadow]

My family increases in size sporratically. They won't have any new kids for like 5-10 years, then in one year about 8-12 kids will be born. The procreation frenzy continues for about 3-5 turns. Then about another 15 years for the next generation to age. Then it repeats.

[Quietus]

I'm extra careful with my Family Members. Charge them last, or use them to chase fleeing or or charge/flank "shaken" enemy units.

Also, for example, when archers start running (not routing), they are very vulnerable from the back so give chase.

Spread your general 2 1/2 deep for the best effect.

:charge:

[Tamur]

The best way I've found is lead your armies with captains when you're low on family members. I realised this after playing the first fifteen years of my first vh/h campaign --- you simply don't have any other choice but leading armies with captains on that setting. I ended up with more adoptions than I ever had in my other campaigns.

[Servius]

Do captains eventually gain General stars like family members do?

[andrewt]

I had a family problem in my Julii campaign. My initial family members took their sweet time having children and they started dying of old age. It was a problem for a long time.

[Modus]

I find that I use generals for taking enemy terrain, and Captains for keeping it (as in, fighting rebels and small insurgent armies from abroad). This allows for the Generals to act as governors and lend their might to keeping order in the cities, while I constantly farm up potential "adoptees" into the family by having roving bands of troops to put down rebellions / secure the empire.

[Bob the Insane]

Do captains eventually gain General stars like family members do?

I general find if you do this well with a Captain, you will get to adopt him, or marry him to a daughter...

[barvaz]

Started taking some generals to war on their own and some got promoted to family members.

What do you mean? You have generals that are not family members? Is this possible?

My empire is growing and I have a severe shortage of governors and generals. Anything I can do to address this?

- barvaz

[Bob the Insane]

What do you mean? You have generals that are not family members? Is this possible?

My empire is growing and I have a severe shortage of governors and generals. Anything I can do to address this?

- barvaz

Dude...

1. You have daughter in your family, they will eventually chose someone to marry and that adds a general..

2. Sometimes an indiviual will become available to be adopted. If you accept they are added to the family tree as if they are someone's son and become a general. Personally I believe (have no proof... ~D ) that if a unit leader that is either acting as a Captain and commanding a battle or is acting as a govenor gains a VnV (Good Commander or something that increases management skills) then they are offered up as a candidate for adoption...

3. Final method is to simply bribe another faction's general to join your faction... Does not work for Faction Leaders or Faction Heirs I think, and can be extremely expensive.... These are added to your family tree in the same manner as adoptions above...

[Kaiser of Arabia]

I had a great fricken general die of the plague. I could still have gotten a good 20 years out of him (he was like 32.)

[Bob the Insane]

Just to add an actual event.. Just had the following in my new Egyptian campaign...

Sent a unit of Chariot Archers and some cavalry mercenarys out from a settlement to fight some rebels.. Easy battle, total victory for me killing all enemy troops for only single figure casualties on my side...

The Chariot Archers where in command and definitely got some kills in against both fighting enemies and routing enemies...

I got a new message saying a Commander had risen from the ranks to be considered for adoption... His description was Captain Apries Soter, age 20 with the following:

Confident Commander
Command Talent
Social Drinker

Giving him 3 command stars...

Note he was also described as Garrison Commander, even though he was not in a settlement?!?! He did leave one immediately prior to the battle though..

I accepted him and he appeared in the army stack that just won the battle (chariot archers are still there too)... He appears on the family tree as a son of what appears to be the nearest family member...