A clan circle from Ride Like the Wind. The decoration over Ayvtu's portrait marks her as clan chief.
The Clan Circle are the group of advisers who lead the clan. They number seven, including a clan chieftain, and are selected by the player.
In Six Ages 2: Lights Going Out, the circle is renamed the ring, but works similarly.
Choosing a Circle[]
| “ | The composition of the clan circle is important, but aim for “good” not “best” because perfectly balancing skills, families, and religions may be impossible. | ” |
— sixages.com | ||
There are many important considerations in choosing a circle, and it may not be possible to cover all bases.
No Vacancies[]
A full circle grants one point of magic each year. An empty spot also hurts clan mood, "and a dozen other factors." When a clan member dies or must be removed, replace them as soon as you can—especially if they're your chief!
Skills[]
Most challenges in Six Ages use the highest skill of a member of the circle. The higher the skill, the better the chances of success—and the better the advice the leader will give. (If two circle members have conflicting opinions about, say, which of your neighbors is the weakest, check their skills before taking either at their word!)
No one circle member needs to be good at everything, but it's good to have at least one circle member who's good at each skill.
The seven skills used in Six Ages are:
Bargaining: Skill at trading and evaluating goods.
Combat: Fighting ability.
Diplomacy: Skill at negotiating and dealing with people.- Food: Knowledge of plants and animals.
- Leadership: Ability to inspire others and command loyalty and obedience.
- Lore: Knowledge of history and law.
- Magic: Ability to work spells, bargain with spirits, and reach the gods.
A variety of combinations of skills maybe tested as well.
From best to worst, nobles may be Heroic, Renowned, Excellent, Very Good, Good, or Fair at a given skill. Any skill weaker than Fair isn't worth mentioning, and won't show up on a noble's description at all.
Sometimes, there's simply no one in the clan who's strong in a particular skill. In this situation, you should try to avoid relying on that skill. For example, maybe none of your nobles is a particularly good fighter, so your ring doesn't have a competent warleader. In this situation, you want to avoid combat when you can.
Religion[]
If possible, try to represent seven different gods/religions on the circle. "For mythic reasons, clans work better if all the circle members worship different gods." Sacrificing to a god (either on the Magic Screen or during events) is easier if you have a worshipper of that god on the circle. Likewise, having a shaman on the circle makes spirit rites far more reliable. And sometimes having a particular religion on the circle can open up useful options during events.
The religious composition of your circle also controls what areas you can allocate Clan Magic to during Sacred Time, as follows:
| Name | Associated God(s) in RLTW | Associated God(s) in LGO | Effects |
|---|---|---|---|
| Crafts | Tepekos (Clan Creation) | Ancestors (Trade) | Improves the yield of our crafters, supports trade, and helps evaluate goods |
| Diplomacy | Ekarna, Hyalor, Narva (Clan Creation) |
Issaries, Redalda |
Helps us negotiate, and maintain overall clan relations |
| Exploring | Zarlen | Ancestors (Action) | Helps our explorers return safely |
| Fields | Nyalda | Ernalda | Produces more food, and helps us appeal to the earth goddesses in a crisis |
| Harmony | Hyalor | Ancestors (Feasting), Orlanth |
Helps the clan mood and exerts a calming influence on disputes within the clan |
| Health | Erissa | Chalana Arroy | Keeps our people healthy and helps us appeal to Erissa in a crisis |
| Pastures | Busenari, Gamari, Uryarda |
Redalda, Uralda, Voriof |
Helps our horses, cows and goats produce more offspring, and helps us deal with livestock crises |
| Ritual | Relandar, Shaman, 7 different gods on circle |
Ancestors (Truth), Lhankor Mhy, Shaman, 7 different gods on ring |
Improves our ability to sacrifice to the gods and perform various rituals in crisis situations |
| War | Elmal, Osara |
Ancestors (Ferocity), Elmal, Humakt, Osara, Urox |
Aids us when we fight, makes our warriors more fearsome, and helps us appeal to the war gods in a crisis |
| Wilds | Dostal, Inilla |
Dostal, Inilla |
Produces more food, and helps us call on Dostal and Inilla in a crisis |
Family[]
As Riders, your clan is composed of the Seven Families. Traditionally, a member of each family serves on the circle, and each circle member represents their family's interests as well as those of the clan as a whole. While you don't have to do this, a circle with one member of each family grants one extra point of magic each year. Additionally, the clan's mood will suffer if not all families are represented, and you will see events in which members of unrepresented families complain that they have no voice in the running of their clan.
This is not a factor in choosing a Lights Going Out ring.
Gender[]
It's a good idea to have both men and women on the council. Unisex circles (either all-male or all-female) will produce a point less of clan magic each year. They can also hurt clan mood a bit, as the unrepresented gender feels disrespected.
Age[]
Nobles grow more skilled throughout their lives, so elders are often the most skilled. The only exception is Combat skill, which may decrease slightly due to old age (though it can be increased again in the usual ways). However, nobles are also at risk of dying of old age, which occurs immediately before Sacred Time and results in an incomplete circle for the year. (Nobles become vulnerable to dying of old age in their sixties, though a rare few can live as long as 97 years.) Meanwhile, young nobles can sometimes grow into the job, especially with the help of Relandar's Instruction blessing or the right ritual to increase their skills. A few, rare events or ritual choices may result in your noble magically becoming older or younger.
Personality[]
If one of your advisors is obsessed with goats, loathes the Rams, or is unable to make up their mind, that will influence their actions as well as their advice, and may trigger unique events. Personalities can also help or hinder certain actions: a merciful circle member won't be very good at intimidating people, for example.
Your Chief[]
Leadership is, naturally, important for your chieftain; you may want to a point the best leader on your circle the clan chief. But this isn't the only consideration!
While Elmali nobles may argue that "This clan needs a worshipper of Elmal to lead it," you don't actually have to appoint an Elmal worshipper to the position. A shaman or a worshipper of any of your gods can be a fine chief. Your chief's religion can affect a variety of aspects of the game, but generally in subtle ways: it may be easier to convince neighbors to aid a ritual honoring your chief's god, for example.
The one exception is that you should avoid giving the job to a Raven or Eurmal trickster. While such people can be worthwhile council members, they make terrible chieftains—flighty, capricious, and prone to bizarre, sometimes cruel acts in service of their patron. Both your mood and your reputation will suffer terribly under a Raven or Eurmal chief, though appointing one will unlock an Achievement.
In Lights Going Out, members of the royalist faction will advocate for your king, variously Iverlantho, Venef, or Erenlanth, to also be made chieftain. Conversely, those of the realist faction will advocate for someone not-royal to hold the position. Them being, or not being, chieftain will sometimes be commented on by certain characters, make certain options more or less likely to succeed, and can trigger various events.
Popularity[]
Your circle members also have a hidden popularity rating, which can rise or fall according to events and your reactions to them as well as your clan's general disposition and sentiments. This can have certain effects as, for example, clan members will tend to side with popular characters whenever there's a dispute, or they may be upset if you don't follow the character's advice. This primarily affects clan mood (e.g. your clan will often be unhappy if you rule against a popular noble), but can also trigger some events; for example, your clan may demand that you remove an unpopular circle member and replace them with someone they consider more deserving of the position.