Valex's should do what he does. I think any change is going to have to come from somewhere else anyway. If I was a duke in Arcaea I would be thinking about the possibility of the independent city states of Arcaea or even just going off and starting a war with just my duchy. If I was a ruler of any other land I would be trying very hard to make a lot of friends and asserting regional autonomy; say the right to make war without Arcaean intervention on either side and a willingness to back that up. There are a lot of ways to shake things up but valex the Uniter , valex the katamari of the fei has shown his IC intentions and ambitions and you should expect him to continue and maybe develop some of your own. If things don't go your way try something different, the worst the powerful can do is lose the status of their puppet states or their own stagnant position. If you aren't willing to lose shaking things up then you're just supporting the status quo and making sure to put your full power into keeping things stagnant.
But seriously much love to all the winners and losers and to the rest don't be scared to play.
