Wiki

effect · retire_character

Definition

  • Supported scope:COUNTRY
  • Supported target:none

Description

Un-assigns a character from a nation and all its corresponding jobs, advisor, unit leader, country leader

Example:
retire_character = GER_Character_Token

Hands-On Notes

Hands-on notes are AI-generated and checked against the vanilla command vocabulary — treat them as a starting point, not authoritative reference. The definition above is the game's own documentation.

Hands-On Usage

retire_character is commonly used in scripted events to forcibly "retire" a character—such as a national leader being overthrown in a coup, a general's death/defection, or the need to remove an old character after a Focus completes to make room for a successor. In mods, it pairs particularly well with commands like create_country_leader / create_corps_commander, allowing you to retire the old character first and then spawn the new one, effectively rotating personnel.

# After a certain nation's focus completes, retire the old advisor/leader
complete_focus_effect = {
    retire_character = GER_old_advisor_token
    add_ideas = GER_new_advisor_idea
}

Synergy

  • [generate_character](/wiki/effect/generate_character) — Use this command to dynamically generate a new character first, then pair it with retire_character to remove the old one, achieving seamless character replacement.
  • [create_country_leader](/wiki/effect/create_country_leader) — After retiring the current national leader, immediately create a successor leader; commonly seen in coup d'état or abdication event chains.
  • [has_character](/wiki/trigger/has_character) — Before executing retire, use this trigger to confirm the target character actually exists in the current nation, avoiding ineffective calls.
  • [deactivate_advisor](/wiki/effect/deactivate_advisor) — If you only want to temporarily dismiss an advisor from duty without completely retiring the character, consider using this command first; comparing the two helps you choose the correct approach.

Common Pitfalls

  1. The character token must belong to the nation in the current scope: retire_character executes under COUNTRY scope. If the character token belongs to another nation (such as when cross-country triggers are accidentally mixed up with ROOT/FROM during event execution), the character will not be retired and no error is raised—the effect silently fails, making it extremely difficult to debug.
  2. Retirement permanently removes all positions: This command simultaneously strips the character of all roles as leader, advisor, general, etc. If you only want to remove a specific position (such as removing only the advisor role), use deactivate_advisor instead of retire_character; otherwise you risk breaking the character's functionality in other positions.