I like it but I would prefer something more complex. I think I mentioned it long time ago but too lazy tosearch so:

At Sovereign creation, you can spend perk points into your coat of arms (the same as you could spend those points into sovereign stats, civilization perks or whatever Stardock allows us to have). You have a selection list of traits that can be added to your coat and that each gives some kind of benefit (+1 gold per turn, +5 morale in times of war, +2 Diplomacy...) with different costs (a la MoM's traits if you prefer). I'd limit it to two initial selections but it's not important.

Once in game, your coat of arms can be changed whenever you achive some kind of special event that unlicks a new achievement (razed 20 cities? A burning city pic can be added to your coat of arms, giving you +10 gold everytime you raze a city, for example). That way, the things you do in game give you new elements for the coat of arms and the benefit they add reflects the tradition behind it.

Other details depends of the tool for such interactive coats. It could be limited to say 5 elements (no need to overcrow it to the point of not seeing what it has) but all depends on technology. And the choices shouldn't be changed (considering it's the sovereign's, it makes no sense it goes losing elements every now and then) but just an idea. If techonology allows, when creating your coat of arms (be it at the beginning or in game), the screen should allow you to move the elements in the screen ("So the eagle in the top right corner and the tower in the bottom left one"), with the possibility of changing backgrounds (those backgrounds use to mean something too). When finished, the game generates a png for the game to use. I suppose that in multiplayer it would need, obviously, to send the file.

We'll have custom and dynamic coats of arms, but it'll be a visual thing for the Dynasty system instead of something to give various bonuses. As familys marry and expand, you can imagine the parts of different logos being combined in various ways (or so we're planning atm).

Perhaps a coat of arms in itself won't give a bonus, but a bonus could grow over time.  If you had an item, the Royal Banner, which you could choose to send with an army into battle, then that banner might accrue benefits over time as it participates in victories.  Depending on the odds of the battle, of course.  So if you take the banner into a tactical battle wiith the odds significantly against you, and yet you prevail, then the banner may in the future give some morale boost to any army in which it resides.

Howver, if the banner is captured, it then can be carried by an enemy army and boost their morale.  If your enemy with that banner later faces one of your armies, you would have a moreale decrease as well as them having a morale increase.....unless you take it back!  Then you will get even greater bonuses.

Speaking of bonuses, how about troops recruited in the same city work slightly better together than those from other cities?  Ditto with troops of the same/different general typs and imbured with the same/different types of magic.?

Yet you could still see everybody picking the same traits for their sovereigns if they aren't balanced properly too. Or units. Or spells.

That's fine, just that those examples aren't good. You rprevious comment about balanced was enough and correct tough.

Good discussion.

Thanks, guys!

Also, thanks for the update Boogie!

I agree with Jeffries. As well as resulting in similar banners in multiplayer (especially since those games tend to be more focused on warmongering, leading to everyone using the same few sword icons, or whatever), it would also be tiring to see the same or similar banners when you go to play the same type of nation multiple times. Odds are you'll acquire a favorite strategy at some point, and that will end up being your banner every time you try that strategy, and you'd really have no choice about it. Similarly, what if I want an eagle, and it fits with my nation's background that I thought up, but the bonus of "+5% to Air Magic" doesn't make sense with their mining-based society? When you are forced to make cosmetic decisions based on arbitrary gameplay elements, that's not good.

However, the idea of banners GAINING bonuses over time is great. I also wouldn't mind overly if the individual banners for heirs had customizations added onto them, besides the mixtures caused by parents, say a lion for winning a battle against incredible odds, which gave bonuses, just so long as the player couldn't directly control them (leading to every general having a lion, every governer having a scroll, etc.) and they didn't become repetitive.

Just a note: I think that the CoA shouldn't give any bonuses. It should be a "cosmetical feature" only.