It does look quite easy, will be interesting to see how fast the AI handles it! Will they expand north or look straight to the rich Byz provences? A race against time really, can they build up a big enough empire to stop The Horde and Tirmuids?

Quote Originally Posted by TB666
If the Turks take a city/castle then that city/castle is a valid target for a crusade so yes the pope might intervene.
The Cities/Castles around the Turks starting position are already Islamic/Orthodox and therefore targets for Crusades anyway. Theres no reason for Crusades to be specifically targeted against them. Byzantium, Egypt and Novgorod are just as valid targets.