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The original was posted on /r/eu4 by /u/FantasticIrishFox on 2025-06-30 21:09:34+00:00.
R5: The Papal States can be Empire ranked while in the HRE so long as the have the Tier 3 reform Kingdom of God. Being allied with the HRE Emperor also prevents The Shadow Kingdom debuffs. This, plus a usually strong ally in the emperor, makes being part of the HRE more beneficial than being outside it.
Rather oddly, 3 of the 4 Tier 10 reforms, those being “Clerical Commission”, “Theocratic Democracy”, and “Constitutional Theocracy”, give you the Government Mechanic “Unlocks the ability to change Government Ranks”, which, for some reason, demotes you from an Empire rank to a Duchy, despite the Kingdom of God reform fixing you to an Empire rank. As such, you lose all the Empire rank benefits such as the added Gov. Cap which can result in some serious debuffs (as shown in the pictures). As per HRE mechanics, it is impossible to upgrade your rank, leaving you stuck as a duchy.
The 4th reform in Tier 10, “Divine Guidance” only gives Max. Absolution +15, which is useless pre-Age of Absolutism. The other 3 give a mix of National Unrest, Diplomatic Relations and Years of Separatism buffs, making them more attractive, were it not for the de-Government Ranking.
I highly doubt the dev team intended for this, but I find it odd no one noticed this issue.