Warning from the Pope

[Martok]

First off, welcome to the Org, rockoutloud1213! Good to see you here

I am playing France in the early period. I've played VI before but this is my first time playing the normal game. I have forced England off the European mainland and was surprised the Pope hadn't warned me yet. However, when I followed them back and took Wessex, I got a warning to "recall my troops" in two years.

If you have twice as many provinces as the Catholic faction you're at war with, the Pope will warn you to back off -- this applies even to large factions that are attacked by small ones. That's why the HRE get excommed so often, as even launching counterattacks to regain lost territory still counts as "offensive" action in the Pope's mind.

Does this mean I just need to stop fighting England (fine with me, I need to focus on the Germans) or that I need to leave Wessex?

You'll also need to withdraw your troops from Wessex. Alternatively, you could assault London instead -- if you take the castle immediately, you can often avoid the excommunication (but not always!).

Also, what happens if I try to ceasefire with England as the Pope requested, but William doesn't want to?

Thanks.

Then you'll remain in a state of war with the English until either they offer you a ceasefire, or you're able to finish them off at a later time. I know it sucks, but them's the breaks. On the other hand, the Pope can only warn you against one faction at a time, so you're now free to attack other Catholic factions with impunity (at least for the next 10 years, until the current Papal interdiction expires).

[rockoutloud1213]

How can I avoid excomm by taking London? isn't that offensive? and london is in which province?

[Martok]

How can I avoid excomm by taking London? isn't that offensive? and london is in which province?

London is the castle in Wessex. (Sorry, I should've clarified that! )

If you take the actual castle in a province within the Pope's 2-year limit, then the province is no longer considered to be "disputed". In the end, this is what the Pope really wants -- he dislikes it when Catholic factions both have men in the same territory. So by conquering and occupying London castle, you'll have gained complete control over Wessex, which *should* placate the Pope.

I will warn you, however, that this tactic doesn't always work in my experience -- it's entirely possible you could be excommunicated anyway. The odds are still in your favor that you won't, but there is a definite risk.

[rockoutloud1213]

I think I already hold London... hm, well I'll save a lot and see where this goes... I really don't want to be excommed, the HRE is on the verge of killing me already...

[Martok]

Ah. I misread your OP then -- I was under the impression you controlled only the province but not the castle itself yet. If you do hold the castle (London) as well, then you don't have to worry about excommunication. You *will* still have to deal with possible English counterattacks (at least until/unless they sign a ceasefire with you), but that's it.

So if you do control all of Wessex, then you've got nothing to worry about as far as His Holiness is concerned. Also, as I stated in my previous post, you've got 10 years from the time of the Pope's initial warning to war with as many Catholic factions as you wish (aside from the English). Given that, this may be a good time to grab some extra lands elsewhere.

[rockoutloud1213]

Well, England came back, instead of fighting I figured I'd just go back to Flanders, and now the HRE decided to stop by for some tea and left with toulouse. So, I'm pretty occupied as is.

[therussian91]

Well, I now that you're off the island, I suggest a ship or two in the English Channel and North Sea, just to fend off the threat of naval invasion (which probably won't happen anyway), and just turn your attention to Germany

Try getting a ceasefire with England though