Is Milan to Strong?

[Quillan]

From a pure trading standpoint, I think Genoa is one of the most valuable cities in the game. It generates income like Athens or Sparta did in RTW, primarily because it has easy trade links with Florence, Rome, Ajaccio, Cagliari, and Palermo. In my Venetian campaign, it made more money per turn than Venice did. The Aegean Sea isn't the gold mine it was in RTW; the reduction in the number of provinces over there reduced the trade value significantly. Venice can trade with Ragusa (castle), Durazzo (tiny) or Naples, of the nearby cities, and Naples is the only one that generates significant value. Bologna is too close to trade, I'm pretty sure.

Combine high money with cheap troops and Milan can produce larger armies than most factions in the early going. Venice is scattered, while Milan is compact. This gives them an edge. Milan usually winds up taking Dijon, in my experience, and almost always winds up with Florence no matter who gets it first.

[Skyline Pete]

Could that be because the others have obtained their scripted target cities?

There are no 'target' cities other than those stated in the objectives. I've modified my short campaigns to include specific city objectives and the AI seems to follow it to a degree.

For example I gave the Byzantines a bunch of specific cities to capture and they went about doing exactly that.

[Bobo]

There are no 'target' cities other than those stated in the objectives. I've modified my short campaigns to include specific city objectives and the AI seems to follow it to a degree.

For example I gave the Byzantines a bunch of specific cities to capture and they went about doing exactly that.

Then why doesn't anyone go after Jerusalem? That is in most faction's long campaign objectives. Nobody ever came close to attacking me except the Mongols. Or is it because I'm on E/E? (Of course, I'm only playing on E/E for research purposes... )

[gardibolt]

In my game, Jerusalem has been held successively by Egypt, HRE, the Mongols, the Pope, the Timurids, the Pope again, and the Timurids again.

I'm playing as the English on M/M---I have more than 45 territories, but I'm enjoying the back and forth over Jerusalem. I'll probably wait till turn 224 (I'm on 208) before taking it.