What determines the traits you're able to teach your wards?

[JPlanas98]

For some reason throughout the last 3 generations of players, my character has only been able to teach their wards 4 specific traits. Gluttonous, Temperate, Shy, Impatient. And it seems like no matter what, the game is trying to force me to teach those traits.

[sbudy]

Traits are grouped into events, happening on ages 9, 11 and 13. Each event enables a ward to choose one of three traits, sometimes costing stress. Trait gaining events are basically random, but a ward has a higher chance of drawing an event with a trait of his guardian.
So if your guardian was either shy, gluttonous or impatient your ward had higher chances of getting the common event for these three traits. If your guardian has two out of three traits belonging to a certain event drawing the event is almost certain.
So you need to avoid choosing guardians with one of these three traits, because all of them are bad (impatient is the least damaging). Alternatively, you may pick such a guardian but switch him for a guardian with good traits during the trait years (ages 9, 11, 13) up to the event.

[Flybox]

Originally posted by sbudy:

Traits are grouped into events, happening on ages 9, 11 and 13. Each event enables a ward to choose one of three traits, sometimes costing stress. Trait gaining events are basically random, but a ward has a higher chance of drawing an event with a trait of his guardian.
So if your guardian was either shy, gluttonous or impatient your ward had higher chances of getting the common event for these three traits. If your guardian has two out of three traits belonging to a certain event drawing the event is almost certain.
So you need to avoid choosing guardians with one of these three traits, because all of them are bad (impatient is the least damaging). Alternatively, you may pick such a guardian but switch him for a guardian with good traits during the trait years (ages 9, 11, 13) up to the event.

Why is impatient considered bad? I love impatient for my 867 created tribal characters because of the prestige gain. Am I overvaluing that?

[luckysyno]

Impatient is not really bad. It is just weak compared to other traits, like temperate or brave. It is a over all a loss of stats and the negative opinion of vassals can make it harder to suvrive succession. And like sbudy stated it makes it more likely that your children (which you educate yourself) will get the gluttonous, shy, impatient choice for traits. If I am stuck with a ruler that has terrible traits like that I will try to get a early succession and with the goal of playing the heir at an age younger that 9. That way you can swap your guardians and make sure you still have the choice, which traits you pick.

[sbudy]

What luckysyno said. Impatient is meh in itself, but its inclusion in the same event with shy and gluttonous is what makes it really awful. I just had my gluttonous heir dying before me and leading my clan empire to ruin via child heir yesterday.

In the middle-late game it's impossible for you to micromanage the education of all possible heirs since it's just too much. The best you can do for them is choose a guardian without one of this three traits, but sometimes even that is not realistic.

[Flybox]

Thanks for the info. I hadn't really paid attention to or learned much about the specific trait events and how the traits are grouped together, but I can agree that anything that brings my heir even within smelling distance of shy is best avoided.