XL campaign advice

[Geezer57]

,but it's 1180 and England and the Byzantines have wiped out all of the other typical heavy hitters.

they almost single-handedly eliminated the HRE before 1130

Sounds to me like you're always starting in the Early period - in addition to all the other suggestions, you might try starting in High or Late, as the later time periods change the nature of the gameplay considerably. I enjoy playing against a more high-tech AI, I'd bet you you would also. Cheers!