Excommunication

Playing HRE hard/very hard.

Poland invaded me tonight. Fought a couple battles, seiged one of their cities and then, the Pope threatened me with excommunication. Ok, I pulled back and went defensive in my own territory. I expected the Poles to do the same.

So one Pole stack makes a move straight for my capital. My scattered armies chase it but don't catch it before it besieges my capital. On the next turn, my understrength capital is assaulted and captured by the Poles. I started to recapture my capital, but was promptly warned I would be excommunicated if I seiged my own capital. I have to wait x number of turns before I can even attempt to recapture it........

Ok, I thought with the new MTW2 engine, when the Pope warns, he warns both sides. Apparantly not. The Poles are not excommunicated.

It use to drive me crazy in the original MTW when I couldn't attack under threat of excommunication but my enemy just kept on attacking. It looks like it still happens unfortunately............:furious3:

First time, I have been really irritated with the new game.

The Poles probably have a higher Papal standing than you. Easy for them as th HRE has automatic negative every turn.

Playing as HRE, I was wondering what was going on with the Pope. I have not been able to do more than budge my poor relations with the Pope. With Venice, it was very easy.

Actually I am having immense difficulties achieving any sort of decent relationships with anybody as the HRE. I give money and it has little or no impact on my relationships with other countries. I think playing as HRE is going to be a lot tougher than playing as Venice.

In my HRE game the Pope was always fanboying the Poles....I don´t know, maybe b/c the Vatican does not like the HRE too much for it´s strength and so it wants to favour and strenghten the neighbor [Poland].

Sort of a "my enemy´s enemy is my friend"-thing?!?!? :juggle2:

^^ There's a negative modifier applied to the HRE's relations with the papacy each turn, as von nanega said.

The Papacy suspects that the HRE wants Rome for itself (as it truly does if you check Victory conditions in big campaign).

Hence, you will find the Papacy favouring others more often than not if you play as the HRE.

Keep gifting the Map Info, pay regular tribute of 100-300 pr turn, and keep a Diplomat close to the Papacy in order to be ready for some "emergency" gifting of florins.
I have kept to this "asskissing-strategy" throughout my entire HRE campaign (now in year 1360) and I am shifting through -Perfect- and -Outstanding- relations with them.

It also helps to have a small armada of Priests and Bishops roaming through the Muslim lands and finally acheving Cardinal status. Getting your Cardinals elected Pope will blow your standing with the Papacy through the roof.
Unofficially, I guess its sort of a- "Now take revenge, they will loose status faster than you, my Son" - letter from the Pope. Your Pope:laugh4:

I'm playing as HRE right now and one of my cardinals was promoted to Pope. Add to that i have another 4 cardinals, so i'm kind of stacked. And mostly all i did to get these guys elected was to send them straight into the territories with the lowest catholic percentage.
As far as relations go with the other countries, not so good. I began the game on a good note, allied myself with everyone that bordered me and opened up trade routes with everyone. Not sure what turn it was but all at one time i was attacked by Venice, Milan, and Sicily. I took it in stride and proceeded to kick their collective butts. Then out of nowhere the poles attack, which promptly got them excommunicated. And that's where i stand right now. Still at war with those four, but winning on all sides. And since my guy got elected Pope he seems to be going on an excommunication spree. 5 nations are excommunicated right now. I'm playing on H/VH. :smash:

I had a similar experience allthough it was from France, Poland, and Venice.:smash: