The more I go on the more I realize my creature never feeds worshippers or villages or uses any miracles at all really, unless it's to copy me.
How do I beat it into his stubborn little head that my followers need to be taken care of without me doing every bit of it myself?
It's a moulding process. Creatures cannot provide food for worshippers, but to get them to fill the store with wood and food, use the Learning leash and cast the miracle at the store yourself. Assuming he knows the miracles 100%, wait for him to copy, and praise him 10-20%. He should then immediately do it again, without being prompted (this is a good time to drop the Learning leash to encourage his independant action). Praise him a little bit again. Do this a couple more times; do not wait too long before praising, or his thoughts may switch to another subject. Also, don't do it too often. He should get the idea after a few tries. You don't want him to become fixed on the idea of casting this one miracle at this one building. The best time to praise is actually in the middle of his spell, interrupting him, to ensure you nab it.
Now, this won't mean he'll always stick close to home and do his duty. But you can force him to, by attaching him via the Compassion leash to your village store or totem. He will then make sure all their needs are filled. Careful, though, as he'll get tired and hungry pretty fast.
Give slight (10-20%) punishment if your Creature wants to play or "mess around" with your godly hand. Playfulness, whilst cute, occupies his attention and stops him from doing more important things, such as seeing to his needs or that of your villagers. You can play with your Creature, just don't
encourage the behaviour.
Excessive punishment/reward can be detrimental to learning. Several lessons are learned simultaneously; for instance, praising your Creature for eating a cow when he is hungry is teaching him "I should eat when I'm hungry" and also "I should eat animals". With small doses of punishment and reward, you can refine this behaviour, for instance if he starts eating other things, like villagers, or eats when he is not hungry. If you praised him too much, his thoughts would become "I should eat lots of animals, all the time!"
Lastly, beware of excessive punishment for any action. Creatures can become irrationally fearful of almost any object. If he keeps doing something you don't agree with, punish him the first couple of times, but more importantly, find a positive behaviour to replace his desire. It can be frustrating teaching young Creatures who don't know many things yet, but as they learn and encounter more situations, their brains will be filled with far more "I can do this!" actions than "I know nothing else, so I'll do this" ones.
Hope that helps a bit.
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Topic: Black and White: Now with a tutorial isla- err... front page tutorial! (WIP) (Read 35084 times)