Hiring champions is generally too expensive, especially now that it's much harder to get money.

Recruit costs and Wealthy should be balanced. Imho technologies are excessive here.

I think Wealthy is a little OP as is, it should be cut to 800, maybe 500.

I would rather go along these lines, than touch the research, I don't mind the research since it is there to prevent me from finding a level 9 hero on turn 3, and just massacring everything with it.

Sincerely
~ Kongdej

tech IS required because like other said 2 guys would have champions too soon

also its required cause lvl 7 9 champions are verypowerful and having them at start would make sovereign bad and would allow you to steamroll everything

Techs are made-up and not neccesary requirement. Things should be as simple as possible. No need in piling up the game with a lot of unnecessary things. Can we live without techs here? We can. So no need in techs here. Recruit costs of lvl 7-9 champions can be high enough to prevent hiring them in early game, even with Wealthy. Wealthy needs a bit nerf.

I look at the tech requirement as proving to the hero that you are dedicated. You learned somthing that entices that hero to fight for you.

I agree with Trojasmic. It's very easy to specialize your towns to producing wealth. We have these differences to promote alternate styles of play. If you don't like the purchase cost of the higher level heroes then we can talk about it. How about sacrificing a certain level of item to hire the hero, or a quest? The tech cost is there to put brakes on the hero system so that it doesn't get out of control and ruin the game. Don't like, then please have a reasonable alternative to controlling the hiring cost.

It would be nice if one of the technologies could reduce the cost of champion recruitment, though.

FE reminds me somewhat of Age of Kings (Age of Empires 2). In that game, if you played a certain civilization, there were only 1 or 2 main strategies for victory, because each civilization was VERY tailored to a certain play style. However, in later incarnations of the AoE series, they added some additional flexibility and choice when leveling up, which retained the special flavor and feel of that civilization, but also didn't lock you into only one viable strategy for victory.

My point is, while the game can be specialized by civilization, it should also be flexible enough that you could win with a non-specialized strategy. What if you're playing as Porcipinee and you aren't near any mana? Quit? Or what if you're Markin and not near any metal? There should be the ability to adapt your strategy as the game progresses, and using research to do that seems like a reasonable game mechanic.

Champions are not created equal. 

Some are worth their weight in gold, like the spider riding, lightning bow shooting, 25% crit assassin with 3 death and 3 something else.

Some are amazing for their abilities, like the 30% unrest reducing, road building, population increasing governor.

Some have insane potential, like the assassin with the warrior damage perk, Earth magic, who pays his own wages.

And then you have level 5s with 1 trait and crappy gear, or level 9 with no real strength who need hundred of xpt to level.

It only makes sense that some of them will be VERY expensive, and some of them will be cheaper.  But to have Karavox being able to recruit the likes of Thanalia on turn 1 is just silly. And then again, it is a single player game...

I agree with this: techs and gildar needed.

The only change that I really want to see on most of the high level champions is for them to have all the perks that they would have had if I had recruited them as level 1 champions and developed them to level 5-9 for whatever purpose/skillset that they seem to have been worked towards. As has been said, there are a few high-level champions that are great, but most of them feel like a waste of money - great, you're level 9 and have 3 traits and one level 2 magic skill. Why should I pay you 1200 gildar to join me, exactly? (Note: I made that one up, I don't think I've come across one quite that bad yet).

If you're going to put a high-level governor type champion on the map, then at least give him/her enough traits to match his/her level and specialization so that I don't have to carry around a champion who cannot fight well in an army just to try to make it reasonably worthwhile to have that champion. Similarly, if I find a recruitable champion with "Path of the Warrior/Defender/Assassin/Mage" I don't want him/her to have traits like Administrator II (although the Merchant and Loremaster line of traits I am more than happy to have on anyone), I want him/her to have traits that emphasize whatever Path was chosen.