The pope

[Andrei]

Ok i want your opinions about this...because of the way the pope is chosen...if you eliminate all catholic factions resulting in no cardinals for the seat of cardinals...could the faction Papal States really be destroyed...keeping in mind that if the pope dies and you finish off the only cardinal the papal states has and you don't have any cardinals your self...would the papal states just disappear?

[Old Geezer]

This is arcane knowledge that only the most enlightened and experienced M2TW players have obtained. It should not be discussed in such public places.

[Rhyfelwyr]

I've conquered the map as both the Moors and Turks, and at the end of both games the Papal States was the only faction bar mine that remained in the diplomacy scroll.

If they have no provinces, the new Popes appear in either Rebel provinces or within the Rome region. I think if there is no Pope at present then the Papal States just continue with the units and Generals they have until a new Pope comes along.

If the Pope is killed during a turn, then if you are a Catholic faction you can notice in the Pope scroll that is says something along the lines of "that Papal seat remains vacant, a new Pope will be elected".

So I'm pretty sure the Papal States will always remain, waiting for a Cardinal to spawn himself as the new Pope in some province.

[FactionHeir]

What he said

[Andrei]

But will the game spwan a cardinal just like that??? if there are no pirests to become cardinals...how can he appear???

[FactionHeir]

No it won't, but the papal faction cannot be eliminated under any circumstances. It will just "hope" that a faction lives somewhere and eventually gets a cardinal.

[Ramses II CP]

Having won the game for the rebels I can tell you that even when I eliminated my own faction, with there having been no Pope or Cardinals for at least 40 turns, the Papacy was still on the diplomacy screen, scrolls, and etc. Cardinals and Popes don't spawn out of the blue in the absence of religious structures, but as long as there is a single priest in the game there will be a Pope the next turn.

See my Tyrrany's End AAR for more details.

[Old Geezer]

Aww, shucks. I was gonna try to kill off the Pope and all my priests and cardinals since as the HRE I am the only catholic faction left, just to see what happens: but if ya'll are sure the Pope just remains dormant (which is what I believe) then I don't think I'll waste the hours to see.

Well, I killed him off and all the cardinals and priests. The Papacy and the College of Cardinals remain but are vacant. Everyone is happy except for the native Americans whom are being enslaved and exploited unmercelessly. What a waste of time.

[Old Geezer]

I just recruited a priest who was announce to have become the Pope and then was announced to have become a Cardinal; how typically M2TW wierd.

[Martok]

I just recruited a priest who was announce to have become the Pope and then was announced to have become a Cardinal; how typically M2TW wierd.

That is odd. So did he still become the Pope then, or did he remain a Cardinal?

[Old Geezer]

He first became the Pope; then he became a Cardinal! At least, that was the way the game announced it. This all happened on the first day that the was a priest too - a level 6 piety. So he's the Pope and the College of Cardinals is vacant. It's so sad to see him staring at Rome there all by himself (he doesn't have even one ancillary yet to keep him company and apparently no one missed not having a Pop). Truly tragic.

[Martok]

Huh. Bizarre.

It's so sad to see him staring at Rome there all by himself (he doesn't have even one ancillary yet to keep him company and apparently no one missed not having a Pop). Truly tragic.

[Rhyfelwyr]

Playing as the Papal States, I am worried the Pope is a schizophrenic. First of all he rejected his call for a Crusade, then called his own one later unprompted.

Plus he keeps giving himself missions. He just gave himself 500 Florins for sending an emissary to the Portuguese.

[Old Geezer]

He sounds like he multiple personality disorder. How is his rep with himself? What will you do if he has a mission to make contact with the Pope? Can he excommunicate himself? Can you attack anyone with impunity, i.e. if they attack you back are they automatically excommunicated? Please keep us posted on His Holiness's exploits.