I have ultimately found more "dud" companions after this change than before. I don't think this is the goal of the change.
What the changes does most noticeably is to give companions high attributes corresponding to their highest skills. This makes some sense, but results in many companions having very extreme attributes(more 1s and 10s, less in between). Companions aren't easy to level up and often getting perks you actually want means using "generalist" companions over high attribute ones.
I think first and foremost, the player should be able to pick a companion's perks. It is not interesting or fun, nor does it add any substantial challenge, to pick up a companion and find they took perks you don't want for the role you were hoping they would fill. It makes companions a chore to hire, dismiss, hire, dismiss until you find worthwhile ones. You can already pick your sibling's perks like this, and it's just a better experience.
Second, I think there should be more low level companions with more even spreads, to offer more flexible companion builds.
Third, some companion builds don't make a whole lot of sense the way their attributes and skills are organized in the first place. Having companions with focus points spent in Bow / Crossbow / Throwing for example is just a waste of potential, as you're not going to outfit them with more than one of these, let's get real here. And some companions with non-combat skills would be much better off with moderate attributes/focus points in a ranged skill than melee skills, as it's quite foolish to send your medic and trader in as melee or cavalry to die.
Fourth, if companions are to be as RNG as they are, maybe just add way more companions period. But we should be able to check their stats before hiring! This could be in addition to addressing the above, or just a way to just circumvent all of the hassle - if there were wanderers growing on trees it'd be less of an issue to have so many duds.
What the changes does most noticeably is to give companions high attributes corresponding to their highest skills. This makes some sense, but results in many companions having very extreme attributes(more 1s and 10s, less in between). Companions aren't easy to level up and often getting perks you actually want means using "generalist" companions over high attribute ones.
I think first and foremost, the player should be able to pick a companion's perks. It is not interesting or fun, nor does it add any substantial challenge, to pick up a companion and find they took perks you don't want for the role you were hoping they would fill. It makes companions a chore to hire, dismiss, hire, dismiss until you find worthwhile ones. You can already pick your sibling's perks like this, and it's just a better experience.
Second, I think there should be more low level companions with more even spreads, to offer more flexible companion builds.
Third, some companion builds don't make a whole lot of sense the way their attributes and skills are organized in the first place. Having companions with focus points spent in Bow / Crossbow / Throwing for example is just a waste of potential, as you're not going to outfit them with more than one of these, let's get real here. And some companions with non-combat skills would be much better off with moderate attributes/focus points in a ranged skill than melee skills, as it's quite foolish to send your medic and trader in as melee or cavalry to die.
Fourth, if companions are to be as RNG as they are, maybe just add way more companions period. But we should be able to check their stats before hiring! This could be in addition to addressing the above, or just a way to just circumvent all of the hassle - if there were wanderers growing on trees it'd be less of an issue to have so many duds.