User Guide

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date that he died historically, because the game
uses a degree of randomization to determine
exactly when the next succession will occur.
The Court screen displays the date that
your current ruler began his or her reign. Most
monarchs, dictators and despots will have
reigns that can last for many years, but there
is a chance that there will be a disruptive pe-
riod of domestic instability that accompanies
the succession. Republics, theocracies and fed-
erations tend to have reigns that last for much
shorter periods, but have stable transitions of
power. When a king, queen, dictator, or despot
dies, one of the following will occur:
• A new ruler will ascend to the country's
throne immediately, with no issues of suc-
cession whatsoever. This is by far the most
likely outcome and is the only form of suc-
cession that can occur for republics, theoc-
racies, and federations.
• There is a chance that a regency council
may temporarily govern the nation for sev-
eral years, during which time there will
be limitations on the country's actions. A
country that is governed by a regency coun-
cil does not have the authority to declare
war, and cannot become the senior partner
of a personal union, nor can it inherit an-
other country. If the current Holy Roman
Emperor dies, a country that is ruled by a
regency council is ineligible to become the
next emperor. It is also not possible to con-
vert a regency council into a general to lead
your armies.
• The country may be inherited by another
realm with which it has a royal marriage;
however, it is not possible for a player's
country to be inherited as this would result
in the premature (and annoying!) end of
the game. A player's country can inherit an
AI-controlled country, providing a means
of expanding your realm without the need
for bloodshed. Before you decide to use
this as an exploit and form as many royal
marriages as possible, you should consider
the other possible outcomes (see below).
• If a country has a royal marriage with an
-
other country, there is a chance that the
two realms may temporarily unite to form
a "personal union" with one another. The
country whose ruler has died will become
the "lesser partner" of the union; the other
country will be the "senior partner". The
same ruler will then be listed as the head
of state for both nations, though control
of each country will remain independent
(thus a player can become the junior mem-
ber of a personal union). The only restric-
tion placed on the senior member of a per-
sonal union is to prohibit it from declaring
war on the junior partner. The junior part-
ner may not enter into any royal marriages
or form any alliances. It is also ineligible to
inherit another country, become the next
Holy Roman Emperor, or convert its ruler
into a general; however, it is able to declare
war. The personal union continues until
the joint ruler dies, at which time each
country will receive a new (and different)
monarch and the union is dissolved.
• If a realm has a royal marriage with two
or more other countries, there is also a
small possibility of a succession war erupt-
ing when the ruler dies. This is a situation
where the two most powerful countries
will go to war to contest the succession.
The country whose ruler has died must
immediately decide which of the two
countries to support, and becomes the jun-
ior member of a personal union with that
realm. The united countries will be at war
with the other claimant, and will remain at
war until the issue of succession has been
resolved. The conflict will only end when
one of the claimants agrees to a peace term
that recognises the other's right of succes-
sion.
Republics, theocracies and federations are
immune from inheritance or succession cri-
ses; however, those forms of government are
restricted from entering into royal marriages
with other countries, thus somewhat limiting