I like the term season. I hated referring to turns - it's too gamey.

I think that a beefed up AI is necessary. In LotR, we slaughtered the AI, although that was partly due to HA's which we won't be able to get as the French. Ideally, it should be moderately difficult to conquer a province if there's spirit of cooperation between houses. Gaining that support, however, is another thing.