The Riches of Scotland...

[Mek Simmur al Ragaski]

The riches of Scotland do not actually lie in Scotland, but far to the south in Egypt. On my Scottish campaign, i was desperately low on money, and a crusade popped up so i though i might have a city and some days of no pay, so i went to Jerusalem, but instead of going to Jerusalem i went to Acre, thinking the longer these soldiers dont get wages the better. I took Acre with minimal losses, but then Venice took Jerusalem so my soldiers wanted pay again. Then i decided to kill Egypt as they were already my enemy, and crushed each city, sacking them all and letting them revolt. I managed to make around 50,000 gold, aswell as lose a few soldiers and watch the mighty Edmund Canmore become the great hero of Scotland. As i finished these series of sackings, another crusade popped up, this time in Tunis, and im on my way there

My question is, is this the way crusades are supposed to be done, or am i getting the wrong idea???

[ReiseReise]

You'll have to askthepizzaguy about that one, he conquers the whole map in a few turns by abusing crusades

[Andrei]

Well you should go for the target city...but really is there one amogst us that hasn't attacked a different city? (I prefer to rampage excommunicated countries when i get the chance:P)

[Gaius Terentius Varro]

I have never done it. I do a clinical strike and get out. And the only time i attack another christian city is when i can get the pope to declare crusade on it or if it is rebel (no i don't span spy/priest on it). Call me turtle/papal lap dog but in my games i expand slowly.

[Yoyoma1910]

It's actually more historically accurate if you wander off the track a bit.

[Eikon the Magistrate]

Its a good way to make money on route to the crusade city,or just to make money.Usually cities have a higher florin gain from sacking. Sell all buildings and move on.Crusades rarely made it to the destination w/o a 'lil looting on the way.

[Mek Simmur al Ragaski]

As i continued to play on last night, Scotlands condition got even worse, i had deployed all my soldiers in africa, and england those traitarous gits attacked york with two large and powerful armies, distraught, with no way of defending the British isles, i moved to calgiri, and island west of Rome, i had been building this town up especially, i had placed four watchtowers, converted it fully to christianity, build it to be a powerful trading country, and that is where i am now...

p.s, i signed everything away to the english, york, calgiri, eventually Edinburgh, another island, and then attacked my two favourite islands next to italy, i think i am playing the campaign wrong, but i was bored of scotland anyway

[Old Geezer]

Bored of Scotland? Ach! (You must not have removed the pike's secondary weapons, because if you do you are in for a world of fun.)

Why not give some of those conquered settlements (after selling all improvements) to England and becoming allies? (It probably is not wise to leave Home even if you have an alliance with England if you hold York, because the English always want it.) These places will run at a net loss and cause all kinds of fun for the English, or for whomever else gets such a "hate gift". (It is even move effective if you are playing LTC because of the greater corruption from distance to capital.)

[Mek Simmur al Ragaski]

I was so low on money, i havent even taken inverness or dublin, i still havent ported the crown price or king to caligiri yet either, they all have adultresses and wont give me any damn children. I would have given england sacked settlements, but i might raid them again later on , and i just found at that Egypt have settled in Constantinople, so im gonna go kill them :)

[Askthepizzaguy]

You'll have to askthepizzaguy about that one, he conquers the whole map in a few turns by abusing crusades

Yes, yes I do... click on my signature links and you'll find the HRE one where I roll the map in 28 turns.

THAT is crusade abuse, my friends.

[Mek Simmur al Ragaski]

I started a new campaign as the scots, merged the two starting armies and took york, then made another army and sieged inverness, when this was done i took dublin, and then moved on to kill the english, after a number of unfair battles my forces were spread thin, but i managed to capture london and nottingham. Then i had to strengthen my armies, again merging them, but keeping them in london. Nottingham was sieged but i destroyed the siege force, but then london was sieged so i let them have it, for the moment. i took it back several turns later, destroying the largest army england had deployed. Then i ported some soldiers over from dublin, merged them with my current army, and took caernervorn, and thus kicking england out of england :)
English diplomats finally decided on the gifts for the ceasefire, they let me trade gave me map info, and gave me angers with a decent garrison. Angers was sieged a few turns later, but i was expecting this and had built a large army to secure my hold of europe. I beat back the siege force, which was twice my size, capturing 500 soldiers and kill over 700 more, only losing 200 of my elite dismounted feudal knights. Then i joined the crusade, exterminated acre, and jerusalem, and then realised that the mongols had just taken antioch, so i left and went back to scotland :(