Experience With Crusades

[TigerVX]

I'd like to know all your strange encounters on your Crusades.

Personally, I love taking land roots, because I usually gain troops this way. One especially funny thing, in one Crusade, I had taken Greece, and I inspected my nice 3 left over stacks. A pleasent surprise, I found a Unit of Faris in my Crusade army. Muslims on a Crusade, something you don't see every day Also, I was passing through a Provicne of Rebel's once, it had three stacks in the province. When they let me pass, they donated two stacks What piety those rebels must have .

So what weird things have you found on crusades?

[ichi]

As Hungary, my Spanish allies sent a Crusade toward Novgorod. I took Novgorod and Lithuania from the Russians just after the Crusade was launched. When the Crusade got to Lithuania they asked me for permission to cross so that they could attack Novgorod, which I owned.

So I said "sure, come on through" and they went through and on to Novgorod. The next turn the comp did not give me an option to fight it just took Novgorod and gave it to the Spanish AND my son (in Novgorod at the time) became a damn Spaniard

Gah

ichi

[Ragss]

I have no luck with crusades. Usually by the time I get to the destination my 3000 strong crusade is facing a 5000+ army.

[The Illustrated Man]

I usually try to hit a couple of zealous enemy territories before heading for the nearest port... especially in GA mode because then with a bit of luck I can establish a port province and then reinforce from there.

Nothing unusual happened to me with crusades but I have earned one or two really hard generals from them

Peace and tolerance


J

[Defensor Pacis]

Playing as the Spanish in my first MTW campaign, I own most of the map except for two Mongol provinces, one Italian province, and the Pope in the rest of Italy.

Although I could crush the Papacy easily, I reckon it may be more fun to run a crusade through his lands and then aim it at the Mongols in Khazar, to water down some of the Pope's armies and weaken the Mongols Will let you know how it works out ...

[cutepuppy]

Playing Spanish, I had a top quality army defending Aragon, which had 75% zeal. Now there comes an English crusade asking permission to go through my lands. Because I wanted to avoid excommunication, I let them pass, and guess what: despite the 75% zeal, not a single man left my army. That crusade went back and forth for a couple of times, but always with the same result: al my soldiers remained loyal.
It was the only time that it happened to me though, normally I use at least 30% of my armies when a crusade is passing.
When I later checked the stats of the general in Aragon, I saw he had max loyalty and average piety. Maybe that had something to do with no-one leaving the army.

Normally I launch my crusade over sea, and give them support from troops I want to get rid of (like militia sergeants, FMAA, FS,... when I can produce better units).

[ah_dut]

I crusade over the high seas with a core of highly effective units and as many mercs asa i can find

[Colovion]

The Spanish sent a crusade against one of my Provinces - I won a decisive victory against them and the remaining loyalists to the Crusade kept invading every turn just to retreat each time as well.

[Mablung]

Launched a Crusade from Wessex heading for Malta, checked it before I started the journey (wanted a few more men from own provinces) and went to France. Departed for Malta shortly after. When it arrived in Malta it had a unit of Saxon Huscarles I have no idea how they got there/where the hopped on board the crusade train

[dessa14]

Ile de France to Constantinople.
hmm 6000 men arrive in constantinople, 1000 of them french.
thanks, dessa

[Armchair Athlete]

about those saxon huscarles, yeah I've noticed that if your crusade passes through a region which produces specific units then it will generate those units, even if none are present That means you can get saxon huscarles, beserkers, sherwood foresters and so on for free Also if crusading through a factions lands that can produce faction specific units, the crusade will generate those units, pass through Italy and you wil get Italian infantry (even if none are present) through Hungary and you will get Szekely, through Germany and you will get Teutonic Sergeants and so on. Its great to pick up the best units of other factions that way

[solypsist]

i dislike using crusades because i like full-strength units, or as close as i can get. the 1-man units and such that populate a crusade don't really help much unless I can fortify it with mercs right before entering the target territory, and i usually can't do this.

[spmetla]

That's why I find it key to really stock up on mercenaries for my crusades and it's absolutely imperative that you keep some of your elite units in reserve for later battles so that you don't have to deal with a bunch of elite but depleted units or a bunch of fairly full but crap troops.

[katank]

I personally find that if I bulk up the crusade a bit using vanilla spears and archers etc, I have had less drainage upon my elite units.

maybe I'm just dreaming but this works for me.

also, landing an invasiona force simultaneously and using that to fight allows you to keep the crusade troops intact so you can merge together fragments of elite troops and get full units.

I was able to piece together a teutonis sarge and szek unit in an english crusade once.

[dessa14]

all you need is super pios, reasonable command generals.
and then there is no chance of failing a crusade.
thanks, dessa

also start crusades as far away as you can without having to go into orthodox or muslim terratoiries.
you get the most troops that way. also run spies or emissaries or such to check zeal and run through the biggest zeal terratiories.

[katank]

try and see if you can flip your crusade back and forth between two very high zeal provinces and you can drain the heck out of any enemy province and also bulk up your crusade nicely.

The most I've ever had was 6 streamers but more is possible IMHO.

[Blodrast]

well, this is not necessarily weird, maybe just plain stupid of the AI.
I am playing the French and holding Lorraine, and the HRE have launched a crusade to Tunisia from Franconia. I have rejected them the first time (got excommed, ofc, but the Pope only lived to enjoy it for 2 more years, the bastard), they attacked, I kicked their ass, and they were left with some 300 troops in it, give or take. Now what they've been doing for more than 20 years is that each turn they invade Lorraine, and retreat w/out a fight, since I have a sizeable garrison in there.
I am aware that they can't just choose any path they want, but, come on, how stupid is that ? surely they can go south, to switzerland and then tyrolia, and then continue southwest...or even take it eastwards...

[Armchair Athlete]

lol, actually for the AI it seems they can choose any path they want, Playing as the Italians I had a crusade the French launched to Tripoli go to Milan, then Genoa, Then Tuscany, Then Rome, then back up to Tuscany, then Venice before finally departing for outremer.

[katank]

they can travel any way they please as long as they hit the destination in the max distance route which is usually purely by land.

also, you can switch to a province that is closer by land or closer by sea any time so there are crazy ways to get crusades to places.

[Game Over!!!]

Playing a campaign right now: German/Early/Expert and the Italians who were my allies just launched a crusade against Flanders...which I own. I was excommed a while ago by the pope (the HRE got excommed...NO WAY The Italians attacked Tyrolia which I beat back, so now there heading around me going thru Genoa, Provence, etc.
I've never had an AI do this before. Just always attacked the same province over and over again til there was nothing left in the crusade army. It appears Flanders better get ready cause the crusade army isn't getting smaller in size hitting all those provinces along the way.
I'll be ready for 'em

[NoTalent]

Hi

I'm on the other side of the fence for this one, MedMod 3.14 VI. Early/GA/Noraml/Almo

I'm sitting on Cordoba, neutral Apanish infront of me, a verg aggressive English army in Portugal. IIRC a seven star general, and about 3000 troops and a crusade on top. It's a type of arms race, he comes over every few years, I usually
win with a 2:1 K/D ratio, he retreats and builds up again.
I can't afford to go after him as the Spanish are well represented in Castille, (I have Valencia.)

It will get messy when the Spanish throw in with the Brits.

Still, my army is fairly hard, so bring it on

cheers

NT