I don't know what this is supposed to be, but it feels totally wrong. It's a gamey solution for a gamey problem, instead of something that makes IC sense. And I still don't see what the generic problem is, because all of this started due to one very particular issue. One where I personally would be comfortable to say: "Sorry you can't. Why not give someone else a shot at being duke?"
Because he was the previous lord and duke of the region, and only lost it because the region starved when you cut Dwilight's food supply?
A ruler can make himself duke of an existing duchy. A ruler can create a new duchy. Why can a ruler not combine these two?
