I've often wondered how the concept of Godflesh would affect being a capsuleer Holder in the Empire.
I always thought capsuleers due to being cloned were generally regarded as something to almost be abhorred and reviled in the Empire? How do such people then become Holders and expected to be religious and holy when others think they are impure?
Even Jamyl Sarum had to construct the whole, "Returned from the dead not through cloning but God's miracle" line just to sit on the throne, right?
I was under the impression this only went so far - that is, Emperor/Empress, Heirs, directly below Heirs, directly below the below Heirs, and maybe one more link down.
Once you get to "I am the holder of a Small city and a minor region on this here planet ruling a couple million people" are you really Nobility in the full sense? You are definitely not royalty, but do you have to be a Noble to be a Holder? Are the two the same, Nobles losing nobility when not holders, Holders gaining Nobility when they become Holders, etc.
As an example, Jesmine believed her soul to be lost after being podded in combat (She graduated long before the 'you get popped in the noob-quests' thing came along) and had back-lashes due to this, but she was among the most minor of minor holders around, barely holding anything of any worth. Is the God-flesh doctrine Royalty-only or does it cover the nobility as well, and in that case, is everyone that hold the title of Holder also Nobles by default?
Also, a little of topic, I don't think any player that are not part of the Empire and claim to be Holders will be affected much by this, pro-Empire players would already claim that they are not proper holders or that they were rogue, all this will do is add some weight behind those claims. Said rogue Holders are still perfectly free to ignore their claims and go on with whatever ideas they want to hold to, regardless.