And no, the tax changes had nothing to do with the IRs. There were a lot of reasons involved, but the IRs weren't any of them.
So I'd be OK if I enlarged all the Warriors estates by 5% the day before taxes, then changed them back after taxes were distributed. That way when that warrior changes to priest, I can just stop enlarging his estate. But if I neglect to change it back after tax day, then changing it later suddenly becomes an IR violation?
Huh?
That's a really bizarre way to try and provide incentives. If someone ever tried doing that, I think the Titans should have a discussion about whether it was an IR violation or not. For now, though, it's just too bloody convoluted for me to wrap my brain around it.
You're taking the whole thing too far. Removing a bonus is NOT the same thing as penalizing, even though we occasionally talk about that when discussing feature requests, and even if some people see it that way. My giving you a bonus does NOT entitle you to keep that bonus for all of eternity, regardless of whether I give you that bonus actively or passively. If I give you a unique item that gives +25% jousting, and tell you that if you ever change class away from cavalier you have to give it back, is it an IR violation for me to demand it back when you switch to hero?
I would say yes, it is.
I think your logic is flawed in that it would permit a realm that didn't want any of a given class (or unit type, or people going to a tournament, or inactive people) to order all estates for people in that group to be made large, and any time someone left that group, they could simply order the estates shrunk to be pointlessly small.
If someone takes a 5% estate in my region, then I specifically tell him "You're a warrior? Great, I'll make your estate 10% for so long as you stay a warrior", then I drop it back to 5% when he changes to priest, I see absolutely no IR violation involved in that. It's the same thing: I have given you something with conditions attached, and I demand it back when you no longer meet those conditions.
Replace the class in that with going to a tournament, commanding a certain unit type, or maintaining a certain level of activity, and tell me if you think it still stays within the IRs.
