User Guide

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support elsewhere and will be unwilling to be
influenced until your country has a legitimate
ruler once more.
The Holy Roman
Emperor
The other large political body of
this era was the Holy Roman Em-
pire. This title of Emperor, first
held by Charlemagne in the 8
th
Century, had become the pur-
view of the many Germanic states by this time
and the Empire itself was the glue that held the
many member states together in at least some
degree of harmony and mutual self-protection.
This isn’t to suggest that there weren’t squab-
bles between states -- indeed, there were many
wars fought over issues of membership and
rights within the Empire -- but there was also a
unifying force that tended to draw them to-
gether in times where the survival of the Em-
pire was at stake.
The structure and “rules” that governed the
Holy Roman Empire would change over the
350-year time span of the game; however, we
have chosen to represent it in a way that is quite
similar to its organisation in the 15
th
century.
The effects of the Empire are, perhaps, some-
what less than they were in real life, but we felt
this was necessary to preserve a fair game bal-
ance.
Click on the Holy Roman Empire (HRE)
button in the Special Menus tool bar at the
bottom-right of the screen to display the cur-
rent Emperor, electors, and member states. The
large, ornate shield at the top bears the crest of
the current Emperor. Below this are the shields
of the seven important electors, and then a se-
ries of many small shields that identify each of
the nations that are part of the Empire.
The Emperor
The country that is identified as the Holy Ro-
man Emperor enjoys a series of advantages and
will continue to do so until its current ruler
dies.
• The title of Emperor is a sign of greatness,
giving the country a small monthly in-
crease in prestige.