Scholarship Focus studying stars vs. weirdness- do you have a choice?

[eastcoastceo]

The wiki seems to imply you get a choice between the Stellar Movement branch or the Studying Weirdness branch.

I have tried this focus about 7 different times in the last few weeks, and I never get to choose- it gives me only a single button to study Stellar Movement. I never get the option to study the weird and try and get the Necronomicon.

Don't get me wrong, both branches are great, but I wanted to try both out and see for myself which I preferred. Has this been changed in a recent patch- is your Scholarship study branch now pre-determined based on traits or religion?

I have only taken this focus as a European Catholic ruler, so maybe that is part of it. Maybe only pagans or Dharmic religions get the option to pursue the Necronomicon branch?

[gregoryk64]

Are you playing with supernatural events turned off? That might negate the event.

[al_x_ator2411]

As far as I know religion and culture play no part (I got the book as a Byzantine emperor).

The choice is given later in the studies (the wiki mentions a year after starting) and it's very subtle and easy to miss. Look for an event with 2 choices one mentioning start movements (basically continuing what you've been doing so far) and the second choice mentions the space between the stars and if something "weird" is hidden out there.

[al_x_ator2411]

Originally posted by gregoryk64:

Are you playing with supernatural events turned off? That might negate the event.

Ah, yes, that might be contributing.

Although the OP sounds like someone liking supernatural events. But then again he could have disabled them by mistake.

[eastcoastceo]

Originally posted by gregoryk64:

Are you playing with supernatural events turned off? That might negate the event.

Yes, I am playing with supernatural events turned off- my mistake for not mentioning that in my OP.

I didn't think that the Necronomicon was all that supernatural, certainly not compared to chess with death, having your son become a bear, asking Satan to grow back a missing arm, etc. But I could see how it might be considered magic and therefore removed as a choice when I disabled that game rule.

[eastcoastceo]

Originally posted by al_x_ator2411:

Ah, yes, that might be contributing.

Although the OP sounds like someone liking supernatural events. But then again he could have disabled them by mistake.

No, not a mistake. I disable supernatural stuff when I play on Ironman. The game is hard enough without Spawn of Satan kids popping up when you can't just use the console to eliminate them.

I was asking about the Necronomicon event chain purely for getting the Mystic trait and the cultural tech points that come with it. I want to rush Legalism in a 769 start, and this seemed like a quick way to do that.

I have found that the Supernatural game rule doesn't eliminate everything paranormal- the "Gates of Hell" and the "Summon the Divine Being" Hermetic event still fire sometimes. I was hoping the Necronomicon branch was another exception.

Thanks for the quick responses.

[al_x_ator2411]

I think you're unecessarily scared of the sup events. You probably just had bad luck with them and never tried them again (like some people disable Reapers Due because of one bad experience with the Plague).

I have the opposite problem. I have 1320+ hrs with this game (most of them with the DLC triggering those events). I have gotten chess with death once and the devil-spawn child 0 times (and I don't see how they ruin the game unless a girl in an agnatic realm). And some of the rest (like werewolf ruler) again only once or twice.

The only supernatural event I would find annoying is the bear one but I'm sure there are ways for dealing with it (like getting rid of the horse chancelor).

Regarding your final point: the hellgates are just a geological event that the people of the time perceive as supernatural. Same goes for the Hermetic visions; proably just drug-induced helucinations.

On the contrary the Necronomicon is indeed a magical item (albeit fictitious) that leads to madness and more Lovecrathian events.

[The Cure]

Bear people alone has forced me to play with supernatural events turned off, since Jade Dragon.

[galadon3]

Yea pretty sure its the supernatural events, I have them turned off too, too fantasy for the game I want and I always only get the movement-chain with the military points, bit of a pity.

[eastcoastceo]

thanks for all the perspective, everyone. Maybe I will turn the events back on someday so I can fully experience the madness of the Necronomicon. :-)

[Mr.M]

The only problem with supernatural events is the chess with death event.

Whats the big deal with the bear people?

[Zsrai]

Originally posted by MrMonokel2000:

The only problem with supernatural events is the chess with death event.

Whats the big deal with the bear people?

They're stupid? I mean, I like it from a "ha ha that's funny that it happens" thing but if I ever had it happen to me I'd be annoyed because they are just ridiculous. I also dislike the Immortality stuff and a lot of the other supernatural garbage they've put in. I always play with Satanic Cults off too. It just isn't my interest in a game like this, and I really REALLY wish that Monks & Mystics didn't have seemingly half (or more) of it's dev time put into Satanic Cults and their mechanics.

Then again, I do tend to play with Sunset Invasion on... much that also feels mechanically better than "LOL YOUR DAUGHTER IS A BEAR HURRRR" even if it is pretty outlandish. I guess "possible if not plausible" vs just "outright silly" is my line?

[OldMemes.biz]

"How do the stars move?" -> Option to discover planets revolve around the sun, defy the Church and gain a free Brave trait if you do not already have Brave.

"Is there something... else out there?" -> Leads to Necronomicon artefact.

[Mr.M]

For me its the other way round - throwing a random non attrition 100k army into the game is WAY more ridiculous than bending reality in a medieval game.

You forgot to mention that you can cut off your dck to cure the flu.