Is it possible to "take the protestant side" and then convert to protestant before you lose emperorship, or do both converting to protestant and taking the protestant side immediately lose you emperorship?
Protestant Austria?
- Thread starter bradles0
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You can go proddie if you've at least reformed till erbkaisertum. Otherwise you will be inellligible for emperorship
no you cant 
You need to retake control of empire after losing emperorship after protestant victory
You need to retake control of empire after losing emperorship after protestant victory
You can also remove all the electors (annex them, try to feed some of their land to other HRE members so you don't get all the aggressive expansion). This has the same effects as the Erbkaisertum reform, except it gets reset if a new elector appears (which you have control over as you are the emperor).
But that's a strategy I wouldn't recommend for Austria because it is a country that definitely profits more from an intact HRE than from an intentionally messed up HRE. Also, if religious leagues have already formed, then it's probably a bit late for this strategy.
But that's a strategy I wouldn't recommend for Austria because it is a country that definitely profits more from an intact HRE than from an intentionally messed up HRE. Also, if religious leagues have already formed, then it's probably a bit late for this strategy.
The Emperor *has* to lead the Catholic League, and until the Peace of Westphalia or a Protestant Victory, has to be Catholic.
Even when people start to pick sides, the Protestant electors won't vote for anyone who isn't Catholic, and should you join the Protestant League as a Catholic to get their votes, victory immediately makes you leader of the Catholic League.
So if you want Protestant Austria Emperor, best thing would be to try to fight the League War to a draw, and then convert after the Peace. This does depend on enough nations joining the Protestant side for them to feel brave enough to attack though. Depending on how large your actually holdings are, you might have to temporarily give up Emperor to become Protestant, and then hopefully tip the balance/get the chance to start the League War on the Protestant side.
Even when people start to pick sides, the Protestant electors won't vote for anyone who isn't Catholic, and should you join the Protestant League as a Catholic to get their votes, victory immediately makes you leader of the Catholic League.
So if you want Protestant Austria Emperor, best thing would be to try to fight the League War to a draw, and then convert after the Peace. This does depend on enough nations joining the Protestant side for them to feel brave enough to attack though. Depending on how large your actually holdings are, you might have to temporarily give up Emperor to become Protestant, and then hopefully tip the balance/get the chance to start the League War on the Protestant side.