A pat on the head from the Pope? Now?!

[General Dazza]

Lats night the Pope gave me 1000 florins! The message I got between turns said something about the pope recognising my services to the catholic faith, and granted me 1000 florins. Which is good () don't get me wrong, but the timing seems kinda weird.

It was about 2 turns after the Pope re-emerged. The reason he re-emerged was that I had wiped him out (for the second time) about 10ish turns earlier. In those 2 turns since re-emergence I'd won my long-running war with the Spanish and reduced their empire to rebels and I'd invaded Polish territory in my long running war with them. In fact, the turn before he recognised my services he'd threatened to excom me!

I haven't had this message before - anyone know what you have to do to get it? Cos I'd given Il Papa just about every reason in the book to hate me!

[Brandy Blue]

I'm not sure, but I think that the Pope is particularly generous toward the Early period English. Perhaps more experienced players could confirm or contradict me on that. Were you playing English?

[General Dazza]

I'm not sure, but I think that the Pope is particularly generous toward the Early period English. Perhaps more experienced players could confirm or contradict me on that. Were you playing English?

Early HRE as the starting point on XL/expert. Having saifd that, I'm well into the high period as this point in the campaign. Not sure if that has a bearing.

After wiping out the first pope, the second one was my ally for quite a while, until he attacked me and I was forced to wipe him out again. So the history between us ain't great (not sure if that history carries over though).

[King of Bavaria]

Maybe it depends on the piety of your leader?
When I played Hungary in early (with their real god-fearing king), I got that 1000 florin gifts quite often.
Maybe it depends on your behavior against other catholic factions, too.

[General Dazza]

Maybe it depends on the piety of your leader?
When I played Hungary in early (with their real god-fearing king), I got that 1000 florin gifts quite often.
Maybe it depends on your behavior against other catholic factions, too.

I was wondering about that, but given that I'd just been warned about excom for invading Poland, I thoguht it wouldn't be. Outside of Poland there aren't many catholic factions left, iirc it's just England (in Sweden), Scots, Irish and the Sicilians. Denmark had just turned into rebels, as had Spain. Basically ,my behavious has been pretty atrocious!

[King of Bavaria]

I'm quite sure, that the gift is independent from the "warning for excom." message, because one time I got the warning, and next turn the 1000 florins gift.

[Lord Cazaric]

In a totally unrelated event, at the beginning of my Spanish and German campaigns, I was given 4000 each year for a few years. It was handy.

[Ciaran]

That occasionally happens when you play a catholic faction, though noone has really figured out why.

[macsen rufus]

Could have been coincidence, but I've had these gifts emerge: after building my first church, after building a monastery, and after training my first priest and inquisitor. But generally they seem pretty random!

[Innocentius]

Like suggested it has much to with the piety of your faction leader. I tend to get these messages quite often, and almost always when I'm fighting pagans or muslims (rebel or factions). I almost never get them while I'm crusading though...

[ULC]

For something truly bizarre, take my HRE campaign. I had managed to excommunicate everyone around me (Eat that you French ). I received the 1000 florins almost every 3rd turn for about 15 turns (at which point the Pope went to God, then was probably denied heaven for being a hypocrite for attacking the Italians). It seems the Piety of your ruler, the number of nonexcommunicated catholic factions, and a random number generator (plus the popes "hidden" bank account) have something to do on whether or not you receive the gift.

[Glyndwr in the Soke]

All I can say is that, in my experience, HRE actually gets the benefits of his holiness' cash stash quite frequently. I was playing a good, god-fearing Emperor, and that meant I was really cash-strapped from not attacking and pillaging my neighbours enough. Just when I was prepared to stop my usual building wave, running out of moolah, the Archbishop of Rome handed over 1k. Thank you kindly, Pope-dood. I could go on to build that castle for my Swabians, an ambition which I had just about scratched.

Two rounds later, he decided to make a habit of it, as I got the wonga again, and then twice again shortly thereafter.

I'll never understand catholics, even if I am married to one.

[Kavhan Isbul]

I have gotten the Pope's gift for a variety of reasons - piety of rulers (English and Hungarians in early), conquering Pagan lands (the Poles), sending around Inquisitors, trying heretics and burning thousands of people (the Venetians in XL and MedMod), crusading and fighting the Muslims (Spanish, Aragonese and Portugese in the various mods). There is no way of ensuring the Papal support, but it can come in very handy at the beginning of a campaign.

[General Dazza]

I played another 4 years or so last night of my HRE campaign and got the 1k florins each and every year. It's coming in quite handy.

I think it must be random to some degree. I am fighting the Eggies, but the pope was paying me before they attacked me. As far as I can see, nobody else is excommed either.........

[Martok]

In the 4 1/2 years I've been playing this game, I've never fully understood what determines Papal handouts. Even assuming there *is* a pattern -- an assumption I do not make -- it's remained something of a mystery to me. I've received gifts as the Spanish, Danes, English, and even as the impious Sicilians. If I'd only received gifts as the Spanish and Danes, I could explain it away that the money was for fighting Muslims and pagans, respectively. I've no idea, though, why I would get them as the Sicilians and English, as I'm usually battling fellow Catholics more often than not.

And I can't be getting the money for training priests/inquisitors or building churches/monastaries, as the Pope is usually giving me cash well before I've got any up and running.

[gunslinger]

I usually get the gifts a few times during the first 20 years or so of an early campaign. I can't really remember getting any of them later on, though.

[General Dazza]

I usually get the gifts a few times during the first 20 years or so of an early campaign. I can't really remember getting any of them later on, though.

I'm a fair way into this campaign so...

And I can't be getting the money for training priests/inquisitors or building churches/monastaries, as the Pope is usually giving me cash well before I've got any up and running.

Maybe it's for building one of the less 'salubrious' establishments?

[Deus ret.]

I'm a fair way into this campaign so...

Usually I also get those grants (if, that is.... ) in the early stages of a campaign, or shortly after pope reemergences. I suppose this is because they are connected to the pope's financial state. Like many AI factions he becomes financially weak in the course of the game, limitiing his ability to bestow presents.

However in XL, things are somewhat different. The papacy is pretty expansionistic in this mod, which probably aids the pope's financial leeway.

[Necrotherion]

I think I got one of his 1k grants on the 2nd or 3rd turn of my HRE campaign (my first campaign ever in MTW which I am close to finishing :D) but I haven't gotten any asides from that initial one. I read somewhere that it's either random or nobody knows what causes it.