How to best use priests?

Like the title says, what's the best/most effective way to use priests to get a favorable college of cardinals? Spam priests and set them off for Muslim/Orthodox lands? Just have the wander around looking for heretics witches?

That's exactly right. That's all you can do with them.

spammin priests is quite effective i have found, especially having a master theologians guild in 1 of my provinces. its at the point now in my english camp, that when i recruit priests they are pretty much already bishops when they come out (meaning htey already have enough piety to become cardinals, 5 or more) at which point, if there is space they have a chance at getting elected. if u can get a pope elected early, he will favour promoting your priests to cardinals over other factions. but yes all in all, burning heretics and sending priests to heavily muslim lands is main ways to improve them.

Cheers knoddy

I started as Byzantium (Orthodox), but what I've found effective with priests is to move a bunch in as soon as you take a province that's largely another religion. In the immediate aftermath of the conquest, putting 4+ priests into the region will convert the populace pretty quickly, and all those who did that got piety bonuses because they were "getting to see their preaching made a difference" is how the increase was worded in the game.

I've learned to leave them scattered around the empire, too. You do NOT have to have any heresy present in a province for a heretic or a witch to appear. This is, in fact, realistic. All heresy begins with one man, who converts others to his cause. You need to stomp them quickly when they show up.

You can also move a bunch into lands of another religion. This is a royal pain in the behind. I've got the Mobile Catholic Seminary cruising through the empire right now in my Byzantine campaign. Just walking through a province with 2 cardinals and 3 priests (friggen Milanese!) pushes the catholic religion up to 10-20% in the time it takes them to cross it. I've had a half dozen roving priests having to follow them around just to prevent conversion, and more undoing the damage they did before! However, if you do this, beware of assassins. Some rulers are like me. :smash:

If you get the chance try to get a Theologians Guild, they help out with priests.Cathederal + Theologian HQ = Cardinal instantly(assuming there is an open position). Once I did that and the pope died the next turn, since I had majority of the college I voted him in.

A 28 year old pope, hah.

I have found the best way to use them is to scatter a few around your home empire to combat religious unrest and then send groups of 3 or 4 out to the holy land. As someone has already said this converts a region very quickly and gives them nice bonuses. You also get some heretics springing up around 80% catholic conversion which gives another +1 piety boost to the lucky one holding the matches. I have also found that having a cathedral or huge cathedral to recruit from boosts your priests much more than a theologians guild. They start off as 4/5/6 piety instantly. A huge cathedral and a theologians guild in the same city is basically a pope factory.

I normally reserve heretics for my upper echelon cardinals to boost them into the preferati or give a high level priest a boost ready to become a cardinal. That instant plus one bonus really helps.

After I built a Cathedral and then recruited a priest, he was no longer a priest but a Bishop. It's also my the city with the Theologians Guild HQ so all priests get a nice bous there but this guy is a totally different agent, described as 'Bishop' and looks different ... but does the same thing as a priest.

Do they have the same trait as cardinals, where they can't lose a heresy trial and become and heretic?

Bishops are just priests with the "bishop" trait, they arent a completely different agent (although they get their own model).

just like cardinals are just priests with the cardinal trait.

I actually send my priests in before I take the provence, a few priests, spy and assassin.

Spy invades city, and the assassin hits the church first and then any +order buildings, priests move in and convert the populace to christendom.

That usually gets the city fairly "unrestful" and a fair few times has caused a full on riot kicking out the muslim owners, at that point I can move in and "save" the populace from their islamic tyrants. Leave a couple of priests to bring it up to the 90%+ christianity bracket while everyone else moves on.

Do it right and I dont even have to go to war with the faction i'm invading!

I would be very careful to recommend my way as general advice.

My unintentional master plan to get cardinals went as follows:

1. I produced 5 priests because there were heretics nearby.

2. All priests failed to burn the heretics (which personally makes me glad). 3 of my priests became heretics themself.

3. My 2 remaining priests sat down doing nothing.

4. Later I was excommunicated because I had forgotten to obey a papal order for ceasefire (it was just a mistake but I did'nt want to reload because I had won some decisive battles in the meantime)

5. Some turns after excommunication one of my priests was made cardinal.

Working as intended.:yes:

Best way is to send them where your religion is low and to execute heretics.