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Don't know if this is more properly a general gameplay issue or something specific to 1.2.18, but since I'm playing the latter, I'll post here.

I decided to start my CoG experience playing Turkey in the 1792 scenario, 23 years highest glory wins. I figured that would give me plenty of time to mess around with the game elements, and Turkey has always been one of my favorite countries in Diplomacy.

I chose to disregard Ralegh's sage advice, and immediately began to lower the feudal dues, basically taking two game years to drop the slider to 0, although the actual % drop is much slower (I'm around 20 now, in the spring of '95). Initially no problem at all: every other month I'd take a 270 point morale hit, but that was offset by luxury consumption, so my NML topped at 1000 and stayed there, even though my "Feudal dues" were dropping 1% per month. Towards the end of 1794, I was only losing about 5 or 6 morale points per turn due to the dropping feudal rate.

Then the Austrians attacked me (the perfidious snakes). Since that time, I'm suddenly taking a 270 point morale hit every turn for changes in the feudal rate, which is of course nigh unsupportable. Since for about six months prior to the attack I was almost stable, I have to wonder what gives. It is especially interesting because in a reloaded save where I don't get into a fight with Austria, the NML continues to cruise at max, with only 5 or 6 points lost per turn for the dropping feudal rate. It is as though the war suddenly made my citizens wake up and realize the feudal rate was falling.

Explanation?

-- Mal

They're probably saying: "The silly Pasha...he messed with what works, and look what he's gotten us into now...nothing works!"...or, it could be your feudal barons fomenting revolution...you have, afterall, reduced their privileges.

The flim-flammeries caused by dropping feudalism take a while to be got rid of. I did it once with Prussia and decided never to do it again. It's easier just to disband what units you don't want, and live with the financial consequences.

I play as Frane with fuedal dues at zero and see no negative effect. I don't check the glory report unless Ive lost a ton. But with Frnace I usually go to the top within two years and stay there. So I'm not sure if the effect you are talking about is universal or unique to Turkey.

Morale loss due to changes in Feudalism is a small loss with a chance of a much larger loss. I believe, therefore, what you're seeing is simply the results of the roll of the dice.

I've had some Feudalism reduction processes turn out quite mild, and I've had some streaks where the major hit came almost every month. I think what you're seeing is just normal variation. I've learned to never lower Feudalism unless I've got a lot of morale banked, and even then I reduce it by steps instead of all the way to zero in one fell swoop.

ORIGINAL: carnifex

I've had some Feudalism reduction processes turn out quite mild, and I've had some streaks where the major hit came almost every month. I think what you're seeing is just normal variation. I've learned to never lower Feudalism unless I've got a lot of morale banked, and even then I reduce it by steps instead of all the way to zero in one fell swoop.

Agreed. I have also seen the wild swings in morale cost mentioned here. Interestingly, it also happened to me the same way it happened as mentioned above. Once I was at war, the morale loss jumped much higher.

Perhaps coincidence...

I figured it was just standard deviation in dice-rolls myself, it was the coincidence of the war and the sudden morale effect that piqued my curiosity.

One point could be cleared up in the manual: it says morale suffers for each "level" of feudalism lowered. It doesn't say explicitly what a "level" is. 1 percentage point? Ten? Apparently, it is per percentage point, so for clarity I think the manual should say so.

-- Mal