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Deus Vult! - Holy Roman Empire Rules

The Holy Roman Empire evolved over time into a limited elective monarchy, and at the same time a state composed of many states. At its head stood an elected Emperor, who was the sole sovereign and monarch of Germany. The exercise of his power was considerably limited, however, by a body representing the member states, the Imperial Diet. Although the various princes and lords of the Empire were all his vassals and subjects, they possessed a number of privileges that brought them close to de facto sovereignty; in particular, the emperor could not intervene in their particular affairs as long as they ruled according to the law.

In Deus Vult! this limited election is represented by certain regions containing Electors - represented by the symbol on the maps. Each Elector counts as a single vote for the nation that controls it.

At game start there are seven electors split up amongst seven different positions. Each turn after the Emperor dies (And at game start) each player must vote for an eligible candidate to be crowned Emperor and King of the Germans. If a player controls more than one Elector, they need not use them for the same candidate. Uncontrolled and unissued Electors vote for the Candidate with the highest Charisma and Diplomacy totals.

Elections are handled on a special yahoogroup dedicated to the Holy Roman Empire. All nations which control an Elector or an Imperial Candidate gain access to the list. During the downtime of the turn, players may discuss, debate and give speeches on the list. Players with Electors then issue' votes on their next set of orders. The new Emperor is then crowned. In the case of a tie, the actual winner is determined by the following factors:
1) The oldest existing son of the previous Emperor trumps all.
2) Permanent Candidates trump others.
3) The Leader with the highest successful Charisma Check.

Papal Electors

Two Electors, the Archbishops of Mainz and Cologne, are controlled by the Vatican. Any Roman Catholic Nation may try and gain control of one of these Electors for a turn by bidding Papal Influence.

Imperial Candidates

At game start there are five permanent Ducal candidates for Emperor, the King of Bohemia and Margrave of Tuscany controlling Electors but not being eligible for the crown. The King leaders of each of these five nations are the only eligible candidates for the first vote. These positions will always be eligible for Candidacy as long as the nation remains in the game.

In addition, the oldest male child of the current Emperor or produced as a result of each special Imperial Eligibility royal marriage is eligible as a candidate. None exist at game start. New candidates will be posted as the game progresses.

Holy Roman Emperors

Benefits of the Emperor

Being crowned Emperor in Deus Vult! comes with three distinct game benefits:

1) The nation may use the Imperial Eligibility royal marriage for any of the Emperor's female offspring.
2) The Emperor may propose, revoke or modify one Imperial Law per turn on the special Holy Roman Empire yahoogroup.
3) The Emperor's oldest son is automatically eligible for election after his father's death.

When proposing a Law, the Emperor issues his proposal on the Holy Roman yahoogroup. Players on the list may then debate and discuss as usual. On the next set of orders, they must include how each of their Electors vote on the current Edict. If there are more 'yea' than 'nay' votes, the Law is passed and goes into effect the following turn. Electors which are not issued votes (Either because they are uncontrolled, or because the player did not include a vote in his orders) will vote determined by a Charisma check made by the Emperor. If he passes the check, the Elector votes 'yea,' if the Emperor fails, the Elector votes 'nay.' Separate tests are done for each Elector.

When revoking or modifying an existing Law, the Emperor again issues his Edict on the yahoogroup for discussion and debate. This time, if there is a two-thirds majority of 'yea' votes for the revocation or modification, the Law is repealed or changed. Non-voting Electors are handled the same way as above with a Charisma Check made by the Emperor.

Imperial Laws

Laws come with two areas, the Target of the Law - who the Law affects, and the Effect - what the Law actually stipulates.

Targets are chosen from the following list:

There is one exception to the above: If the Effect of the Law grants a nation Permanent Candidacy in Imperial Elections, a single nation must be declared as the Target.

Effects are much more freeform. In general, they come in the form of some sort of right or restriction. For example, perhaps the Emperor argues for the Elector States to owe a tithe to the Emperor or the Catholic Papacy. Perhaps he issues a Law that requires all Permanent Imperial Candidates to be Roman Catholic. Maybe after returning from Crusading, he declares that all further Emperors should spend the season after their election campaigning in the Holy Land. The only real limit is that the Law has to be something the Player(s) of the Target can reasonably adhere to.

When a Law is publicly broken or not adhered to by a Target they accrue Casus Points in all nations of the three Target types. Note that some Laws will not really be enforceable without directed Reveal Fact actions on someone's part. A Law with the Effect that all Elector States must invest 10 GP in Siege QR every turn, for example, will not trigger Casus Points as QR investments aren't reported publicly.

Following are the current laws which have been successfully proposed and enacted by the Diet. Defunct and failed laws are not listed.

Conditional voting on Laws is absolutely allowed. Electors are encouraged to sell and rent their votes to the Emperor or his opponents, voting a certain way only if the desired payment is received.

Holy Roman Empire Grouplist

The grouplist is publicly viewable, but only members may post. To be a member, you must either:

1) Control the Holy Roman Emperor
2) Control an Imperial Elector (Either Regional or Papal)
3) Have permanent Imperial Candidacy for your Nation

The group can be found here: http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/HolyRoman_DV/