The Lawbook, Part II, Section F, Subsection 1, says:
Duke Tosha is obviously very familiar with this particular subsection.1. Alliances
a. All Duchies are allied to each other through the Imperial Government.
b. Barons may not make alliances with any other subdivision that is not the Duchy to which they are subordinate.
c. Duchies may not create any manner of alliance with other subdivisions that are not their subordinate.
d. Subdivisions may make no alliance with powers outside of Shireroth.
Despite this profound knowledge of the law, Duke Tosha has deliberately and knowingly forged an illegal alliance with the Duchy of Goldshire. The two Duchies struck a deal in which Goldshire would support Brookshire culturally, politically, and militarily in exchange for its freedom. I wish to present two pieces of incontrovertible evidence:
On the Hallo logs:
On this thread, Duke Steffke says:[01:01:46] <harvey> Support an independent Goldshire duchy
[01:01:59] <malliki> Haha why would I do that?
[01:02:40] <corey> that sounds like something I would have done
[01:02:55] <harvey> Well, you wanted to know what you could do...
[01:03:14] <harvey> We'd be particularly grateful. You'd have an ally in the Landsraad and only have to give up a tiny fraction of your land.
[01:03:31] <malliki> You mean 2/5ths of my land?
[01:03:59] <malliki> 40% isn't exactly a "tiny fraction".
[01:04:16] <harvey> Given our poor bargaining position, we'd be willing to accept less than the traditional boundary line.
[01:04:27] <malliki> And I won't lose any land to the Elwynnese in this war, so why should I voluntarily give up land?
[01:04:53] <harvey> I'll give you three reasons.
[01:05:22] <harvey> First, you have nothing practical to lose. The land doesn't determine your voting power and you're not really doing anything with it anyway.
[01:05:44] <harvey> Second, as I said, we'd consider Brookshire political and military allies, so you'd essentially double your influence in the Landsraad.
To which Duke Tosha immediately responded:That the Duchy of Goldshire holds no ill-will towards the Duchy of Brookshire, its Duke, and Barons and Counts, and its people. Indeed, we thank them for many years of protection and prosperity. A state of unending friendship shall exist between Goldshire and Brookshire, an alliance dedicated towards cultural growth, legislative agreement, and military aide.
I will not be pressing charges against Duke Steffke, because he has been away from Shireroth for some time and probably lacks familiarity with the associated laws. However, Duke Tosha clearly knows these laws and is even willing to apply them against others when it suits his purposes. Therefore, I ask that he be punished with a penalty appropriate to the crime, preferably the loss of his Duchy.The Duchy of Brookshire aknowledges an independent Goldshire, and vows to support and defend its sovereignty under the Imperial Government and the Kaiser.
Alternately, if Duke Tosha were to admit that maybe the entire spectrum of issues surrounding this matter might be more complex than he has hitherto realized, and maybe no prosecutions are necessary at the moment at all, I might be willing to drop my case.