Love Dat Pope!

[Malkut]

My current Pope, Villainus the Merciless, is the best Pope I've ever had. I swear to God that is his name. What, was "Darth Hitler bin Laden IX" taken?

After getting a hard time from the previous pope, I managed to assassinate him, allowing one of my own guys in. My God, has it ever paid off in full.

He has basically given Europe to me. He's promoted six English cardinals (the rest are from my ally Poland), started a war with Sicily and burned Venice, sent assassins after my enemies, and (best of all) excommunicated everyone I've ever been at war with and everyone who could possibly threaten me, which is more than half of Europe. He sat on the sidelines and cheered me on as I walked all over France, and actively participated in my campaign against Milan, both of which were crusades and were incredibly profitable for me on several levels. I have no less than three Knights Hospitillar houses.

In exchange for the occasional placation, he basically lets me wantonly slaughter other Catholics, even when there is nothing to gain (aside from the amusement of slaughtering other Catholics). I’m expanding rapidly in all directions before he dies.

Has anyone else ever had a pope just sell out all of Christendom to them?

[Derfasciti]

Pshh I wish. On a past english campaign I got my pope elected and he excommunicated me fairly quickly after I finished a crusade on Toulouse for him.

[Malkut]

I know! I've had popes in the past who, frankly, were no better off than popes from other countries.

Then, Pope Satan McEvil comes in, and immediately excommunicates France, the HRE, Portugal, Milan, Venice, Sicily, and Denmark. For seemingly no reason, other than because they personally annoy me. I threw some swordsmen and trebs in a stack, called a crusade against the south of France, and sacked every single one of their cities on the way down. Right now, I think only myself, Hungary, and Poland have any credibility with the Church at all. It's great.

[Derfasciti]

Awww. Man, I envy you. Right now on my current English campaign I haven't had good standing with the Pope at all and was only recently reconciled. I don't have a single cardinal in the college, either. I guess it's just the luck of the draw.

[Need_more_ammo]

I'm playing Spain, most of the Popes were Spanish, but the all of them keep sending spies into my settlement, stirring up unrest, Inquisitors burning my generals, or take over my merchants asset

[manbaps]

Awww. Man, I envy you. Right now on my current English campaign I haven't had good standing with the Pope at all and was only recently reconciled. I don't have a single cardinal in the college, either. I guess it's just the luck of the draw.

well getting cardinals isnt luck of the draw, just make sure you have as many priests as possible. Also make sure they get some piety (by heretics and conversion) and its quite easy to have every single posistion filled by someone from your faction. Its all about spamming priests :)

[katank]

In my English game, I succeeded in a crusade to Antioch and soon priest spammed there. In addition, I stole a Polish general with a princess as well as walking into the emptied fortress of Thorn early on which allowed for priest spam into Russia. I dominated the college of cardinals.

When the previous pope excommed me for warring on the HRE, I simply marched to Rome and took it, killing the Pope. My pope got in and there was immediate peace and I got reconciled. Truly beautiful. Rome is also a well developed large city which is pretty nice.

[knoddy]

well getting cardinals isnt luck of the draw, just make sure you have as many priests as possible. Also make sure they get some piety (by heretics and conversion) and its quite easy to have every single posistion filled by someone from your faction. Its all about spamming priests :)

not quite, if u have ur own pope on the throne, he will be more likely to promote priests from ur faction and that of ur allies nad his friends than factions he is not friendly with. Ive seen it before, with my 6 piety priests getting promoted over 10 piety priests from other factions.

Cheers Knoddy

[Snoil The Mighty]

Have got the pope in my pocket basically as much as the OP a few times. The most blatant was my first Spanish campaign. Pope Rubberstamp the I through VII basically gave papal approval and sometimes even financing to anything that popped into my cabeza. I think it's possible we even managed to get masses switched from Latin to Spanish but I don't recall that for certain We went to to war mutually against at least 3 factions and when the dust settled, I had WE including the Brit Isles and N Africa, the Med islands and some of the Holy Lands, while the line of Pope Rubberstamps I through VII got Italy, the Balkans including Constantinople, and most of Central and East Europe, and couple territories in the Levant I had sent their way. The leftovers were a few Timurids left in the East. The Rus, which we both allied with early and never broke with had their lil corner of the world. The Danes had their Hamburg and Norse territories (also allied with me and the Pope). I don't have the savegame left anymore, but I think the only other remaining faction was Poland with Iasi and Halych as it's lone holdings.

Twas a very very fun campaign to not only have an active ally, but one with some pull!

[Von Nanega]

I had a Pope Pius the Warmonger promoted from my faction. He filled up the preferanti with my guys. He then Excommed the French. I attacked them!!!!

[antisocialmunky]

Great experience, this would be a great AAR. I remember the AARs of the pope beserking and taking over most of Europe during the black death in MTW... crazy popes are fun.

[Malkut]

It was wonderful having control of the Catholic Church, until he died, and an earthquake took out FIVE of my cardinals in a single turn!

Oh, why do I always have either extremely good luck, or extremely bad luck?

On the other hand, the next pope was named “Zappa”.