I agree, TW's only real flaw at this point is that more attention is placed on the fighting side, and the strategy map is neglected pretty badly. I have heard a few of the improvements in RTW are quite good, but they are just that, few in number. Features like handinga province over to allies (or enemies) is something I have been begging for since I first picked up STW, but there are still many more that I feel are really important to the improvement of the game as a whole.
But I am also aware that fighting is what really attracts players, not the diplomacy and such, so we cannot afford to neglect the improvements to fighting as well.
As for France, I think it would help to take Lorraine, but that does guarantee conflict with the HRE from the start, which is risky to say the least. The real key to victory in France is skillful use of "economy of force," in which a player's generalship skills allow them to defeat enemies with only a small number of troops. I am talking about player skill, not stars on a general, though that helps. If you have the skill to take a couple of units of archers and militia or something, and defeat larger armies of enemy, then La Gloire des gens de France is certain. If you can take Lorraine, then with just a couple of units, hold off any attack by the HRE and use the majority of your troops to beat the English out of France, that is a good thing.