I think this would be a nice feature to have in the game. The basic idea is that whether or not a country has an heir at present, they can sign an inheritance treaty so that, if the inheritee ruler ever dies without an heir, the inheritor would either get it under a PU or inherit it outright. Some historical examples are the Habsburgs inheriting Gorizia or Brandenburg inheriting Prussia.
Other than being historically accurate, it would also deepen the diplomatic game and improve gameplay for minor countries. How I envision it working is as a mixture between vassalage and a guarantee, the two big differences being that the inheritee can offer the treaty to the inheritor, and that the countries don't necessarily need to have good relations.
Using the County of Gorizia as a historical example: it's situation was that it was a small county trapped between Venice and Austria, both hostile to it, since Venice desired Gorizia, and Austria desired Lienz since it split their holdings in two. Having no heir, the Count signed an inheritance treaty with the Habsburgs to prevent them from annexing it earlier and to ensure that Austria would come to its defense if Venice attacked. (Source)
It could be limited to only being available if the inheritee has no heir, but to make it more useful, I think it would be a better option to allow it regardless, but make an AI inheritor less likely to accept or offer the treaty if the inheritee does have an heir, and an AI inheritor more likely to accept (since it's basically a free guarantee that a hostile power won't annex you outright).
Other than being historically accurate, it would also deepen the diplomatic game and improve gameplay for minor countries. How I envision it working is as a mixture between vassalage and a guarantee, the two big differences being that the inheritee can offer the treaty to the inheritor, and that the countries don't necessarily need to have good relations.
Using the County of Gorizia as a historical example: it's situation was that it was a small county trapped between Venice and Austria, both hostile to it, since Venice desired Gorizia, and Austria desired Lienz since it split their holdings in two. Having no heir, the Count signed an inheritance treaty with the Habsburgs to prevent them from annexing it earlier and to ensure that Austria would come to its defense if Venice attacked. (Source)
It could be limited to only being available if the inheritee has no heir, but to make it more useful, I think it would be a better option to allow it regardless, but make an AI inheritor less likely to accept or offer the treaty if the inheritee does have an heir, and an AI inheritor more likely to accept (since it's basically a free guarantee that a hostile power won't annex you outright).
- 1
Upvote
0
