[elmokki]

Regarding mage generation. I had one too complex system, current one is less complex in one way but still too complex in another.

Question is, what sort of mage patterns ignoring mages that aren't really part of the official hierarcy (Fortune Teller for LA Ulm or Nahualli for Mictlan as examples, but LA Marignon sailors don't suit) should be possible?

The lingo here would be that:
- School is a collection of mages of about the same available paths.
- Primary mage is the top tier mage of a country. Generally having 4 to 7 picks with the rare exception of 3? linked pattern. Maximum level reachable with 100% randoms is 4, but most of the possible pick patterns only one path can reach 4.
- Secondary mages are well, weaker versions, having 2 to 5 picks or so. Maximum level with randoms is 3, but quite a few patterns won't reach that as opposed to primaries where majority can get that one level 4. Pretty much all nations will probably have at least one secondary of some kind, but it might be gone from nations with enough options already (in base game Mictlan doesn't have a school-relevant secondary mage in my eyes)
- Tertiary mages are rarer. They range from 1 to 3 picks with maximum of 2 in a path. I would imagine they would happen mostly in cases with total mage count being rather low or no secondaries existing.
- Pattern: distribution of paths, for example 3-2-? refers to what MA Marignon's grand master has, 1 path at 3, 1 path at 2, 1 100% random.

In general the goal is to generate about maximum of 5 mages from schools for a nation, with a possible extra non-school mage (mentioned above) or a minor secondary school (LA Marignon sailor mages could be such, or for that matter LA Ulm S/B-mages if they had a major mage there too).

For school mages I see following options mostly.

3 primaries, all cap only, either one secondary or one tertiary or both.
3 primaries, at most one cap only, either one secondary or one tertiary or both.
Both cases have fairly specialized mage patterns with 2, possibly sometimes 3 paths available, probably the exact same pattern for all, except in the non-cap only case if there's one cap only variant, that might be slightly more powerful. Magic paths will vary for primaries like they do in EA Agartha or MA Mictlan - one path varies, rest stay the same. These are pretty mucn EA Agartha and EA Mictlan in terms of ingame versions.

2 primaries, 1-2 secondaries, possibly a tertiary. 0-2 cap only primaries. Either the primaries work pretty much exactly like in the 3 primary cases with same or very similiar pattern and a bit different paths or they can get a very different pattern, either with very different paths or not. Regardless of the case a nation will not get more than 6 paths and even then in those cases patterns with many randoms won't happen so you're going to be left with low path amounts. With one secondary it's a mix of the two path setups if they are different, with two they are both mini versions of the mages.

Of this setup you can find probably less in the game. I guess MA Jotunheim would suit, Gygja has 5 picks and so does Skratti, but patterns and paths are quite different. MA Tien'chi and MA Pangaea have two primary mages too obviously. Pangea and Tien'chi have rather similiar pattens for both of them.

Lastly one primary setups. They can have the "traditional" 1 primary, 1 secondary, 1 tertiary setup with paths just getting weaker and weaker as tier goes down, or they could scrap the tertiary. Primary being cap only or not is fairly arbitary too. With that few mages you are bound to get an unrelated bonus mage with different paths too. As a bonus you could get 2 or 3 secondaries instead of just one, all being variations of a cap only primary. Once again, either by varying the paths or varying the patterns.

Holy picks or not are a different matter handled elsewhere.

Did I miss something?