Imam

Imams lead the prayers during Islamic gatherings. Muslim beliefs states that the Imam is chosen by God to be perfect examples for the faithful and to lead all humanity in all aspects of life.

Overview

Imams appear in Medieval II: Total War as the reigious leaders of the Islam religion. They are the Islamic counterparts of Christian Priests.

Much like priests, Imams spread their faith throughout whatever region they are currently in. This helps ease religion-related unrest and raise happiness and stability within the region.

"Witches have a chance to kill a priest if he fails to denounce her... at least that's what the peasants report happened."

-The Creative Assembly, Official Medieval II: Total War manual

Apart from Assassins, Imams and Priests are the only player-controlled agents which can deal with Heretics and Witches. They do this through Heresy Trials, where the character's piety directly affects his chances of a successful conviction and execution. If he fails, the Heretic may convert the Imam or Priest into manother Heretic, or for witches, the Witch may kill the character in question.

Calling Jihads

For more details on this topic, see Jihad.

Imams have the ability to call Jihads, as opposed to Priests, which can call Crusades. Jihads are Islamic holy wars against the enemies of Islam. They are much like Crusades and the results are similiar, but, unlike Catholicism, since Islam does not have a centtral spiritual leader, Muslim Faction Leaders do not need to seek the approval of the Pope like Catholic Faction Leaders do.