Every king needs to deal with the relationships with other countries at his best.
Especially the Pope, who is admired by so many faithful people abroad.
In addition to Papal States, in the game there are also the following states:
- Holy Roman Empire
- Kingdom of Spain
- Kingdom of France
- Kingdom of Portugal
- Kingdom of England
- Kingdom of Scotland
- Kingdom of Poland
- Kingdom of Hungary
- Kingdom of Naples
- Duchy of Milan
- Duchy of Savoy
- Republic of Venice
- Republic of Florence
- Republic of Genoa
- Republic of Siena
- Swiss Republic
BISHOPS AND CARDINALS
The jurisdiction over investiture has been a battleground between the Pope and foreign rulers for a long time. In the game you will be called to stand up for the Pope's right to appoint foreign bishops.
On the other hand, it will always be up to the Pope to appoint cardinals. But be careful: every foreign country wants to be equally represented in the College of cardinals. Breaking this tradition could limit the influence of the Roman Church.
NUNCIATURES
The Pope has eyes and ears even in the farthest court. The apostolic nuncio is the direct representative of the Papacy. He takes on two fundamental tasks: managing foreign affairs and persecuting heretics. The outcome of their job will depend on the budget allocated to the nunciature.
PAPAL AUTHORITY
The influence of the Roman Church in a certain foreign country is rappresented by the Papal Authority in that country.
This indicator depends on the number of heretics in the state and the level of corruption of the Church.
The lower the authority, the higher the probability that the king will provoke a schism, reducing the papal influence.
However, the Pope can bribe kings, making a deal with them. When a deal is made, the increment in Papal Authority is fixed, but the amount of money agreed upon is not. The amount the Papacy has to give to the sovereign is decided by the negotiations between the ruler and the nuncio.
So: the Pope starts the negotiations, the nuncio carries them on. The lower the authority of the Pope, the higher will be the sum to be given to the king.
The deal is negotiated in up to three moves per side. If the nuncio's offers are too low, the sovreign could get angry and give the "donation" up.
Vice versa, if the offer is very high, the king can accept immediately, avoiding to use the remaining moves.
Once the negotiation is over, the nuncio has to let the Pope know the amount agreed upon. He doesn't have to report the exact sum of money. Indeed the nuncio can declare an higher one: the difference will accrue to the nuncio, who will be committing the crime of embezzlement.
