Last night I had an experience that is sure to keep me playing this game for months to come. Playing the english campaign on Med/Med, right now I'm at war with France, the pope is probably going to excommunicate me in a few turns because of it and they will not agree to a ceasefire, so we press on. I cannot remember the name of the province in which this took place, it is the castle west of Paris and just south of the Castle England begins with off of the british Isles.

I had just lost my city to the west when the french elite army assaulted it, that was swift defeat, I moved my elite army down to the french citadel and managed to capture it without much trouble (cannons are quite nice). So my elite army is replacing it's losses and here comes the elite french army. They lay siege and assault the castle, they have 4 rams 2 sets of ladders 2 siege towers and 4 catapaults. They decide to attack me during a raging thunderstorm which just sets an amazing mood for this battle, with thunder raging overhead the catapaults start pounding the walls next to my gates, longbowmen trade shots with crossbowmen down below. Now most of my TW experience was based from Rome so I figured they wouldnt care if I moved my cannons outside to return fire on the catapaults. They sent a unit of heavy cavalry and killed one of my two groups of cannons (the 2nd was still inside the gates) I immediately sent out some dismounted knights and levy spearmen to fight off cavalry at the gates as the archers seemed to be having trouble in the raging storm shooting arrows (who would've guessed, I've also noticed that the AI always chooses to assault during a rainstorm or a blizzard ) Now that my reinforcements are out there they send in yet another unit of heavy cavalry which decimate an entire unit of spearmen on arrival. Immediately I start bringing out more infantry it's now a race between their catapaults and my remaining cannons.

The French immediately realize this and drop their siege equipment and press the attack. Outnumbered, tired and undoubtedly soaked by this point (accursed rain) the veterans of the campaign scotland charged the field doing everything they could to defend the cannons. Thunder sounds all about and when it seemed all would be lost an arrow strikes true and kills the french general. Seeing their leader fall the enemy begins to retreat. Regaining their composure the forces again lock into combat amidst the carcasses of broken siege engines on the field. While this goes on a unit of dismounted knights decides to take a ladder up my flank and start climbing my walls Meanwhile I had just abandoned them because the longbowmen had run out of arrows and I was running out of soldiers. So they charged over and assaulted the knights. Apparently this was the breaking point and the French sounded a full retreat. I wish I wouldve saved the recording :(