Successor game rules, draft one.

[TinCow]

Cecil, I think independent was understood to mean not in a House and so would not apply to a Duke.

On the wider issues of wills, I'd like to advocate the half-way house on wills that Ignoramus suggested: allow nobles to bequeath their land to their sons (natural or adopted). I think that is characterful but not so open that it might undermine the House structure. The idea of nobles losing all their land on death to the Duke does seem a bit extreme, but also I can't imagine many nobles actually leaving land to random others who were not their sons.

Something like:

(d) - Wills & Inheritance: When a King dies, all land in his demesne is passed to the new King. A noble can pass on his rank to his eldest son and bequeath his land to his son in a valid will. Dukes may pass on their rank and personal demense to any noble in their House in a valid will. Wills must be PMed to Zim before the Avatar’s death to be considered valid. If a Duke dies without naming a successor, the King picks the successor from among the highest ranked Nobles in their House. If a lower ranked noble dies without a will, his land passes to the Duke or to the King if he is not in a House.

I agree with this. It will cause problems RPing a feudal system if there is no hereditary system for inheritance. If there is no son (natural or adopted) or son-in-law, the Noble could certainly leave a will indicating his preference, but the King could choose to ignore it and give it to someone else (for more IC entertainment). This would also be a further encouragement for RBGs to get themselves onto the family tree, as they cannot establish any kind of legacy of their own without doing so.

One note on the above wording, however: I very much recommend that the word demesne not be used in any way except to refer to the King's lands. In the entire rest of the rule set, that's the only thing it refers to. Adding in that reference in relation to someone who is not the King is likely to result in confusion down the road.