I've had not much luck with the Mongols on open ground playing as England, except when I outnumbered them 3:1 and I was able to get my archers onto a cliff where they could shoot down on the horde.

But I haven't tried putting down stakes; I need to give that a shot.

Factions that don't get xbows at all (like England) aren't going to do well with the strategy, seems to me.