[sector24]

Another idea on how this could work, perhaps each pretender would have a permanent sub-goal that would grant them a bonus. For instance the pretender titan based on Athena. Her sub-goal would be for the player to forge her The Aegis, seeing as it is her shield in Greek mythology. The bonus for owning that shield would be up to the discretion of the game host or based on the game. Something like +1 to all magic paths would be sufficiently powerful to warrant the player attempting to complete their sub-goal.

The bad part would be that every pretender choice would have to have a sub-goal and a bonus associated with them. But it might affect the player's nation design as some sub-goals would be obviously easier than others. Therefore you'd occasionally see less than optimal nations because when you factor the sub-goal in they become optimal. Just another layer of strategy to consider.

You would also have the benefit of knowing what a player's sub-goal is as soon as you see their pretender in the game. So if you're fighting Athena you will want to make The Aegis for yourself to deny them their sub-goal.

Probably too much work to implement, but fun to think about.