The Crusades Campaign
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The Crusades Campaign is one of four campaigns available in the Kingdoms expansion to Medieval II: Total War.
Contents
Overview
The Crusades campaign takes place in the year 1174 AD, right before the Third Crusade, and continues on towards the Fourth Crusade. It provides the player with an opportunity to either expand the Crusader factions land or/and to see if they can defend the Holy land from the revenge seeking Muslim factions. The player also has the opportunity to play with the Islamic factions and to hopefully bring them success in retaking the Holy lands. The Byzantine Empire (M2TW Kingdoms) is also playable, which will allow the player to defend and bring back the former glory the once mighty Byzantine Empire, from the armies of the Turks (M2TW Kingdoms) and even from various European foes.
Guide
Download Frogbeasteggs' Guide to the Crusades Campaign here: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=144150&d=1298718179 Some of the text on this page comes from that guide, it is worth reading the whole thing.
Map
The map extends east from Constantinople to Baghdad, and south from Georgia (country) to Egypt. The starting territories of Egypt (yellow), Turks (green), Antioch (blue) Jerusalem (white) and Byzanitum (Purple) are shown.
Playable Factions
Non-playable factions
The Mongol Hordes
Venetian Crusaders
Faction Information
- Religion- Roman Catholicism (Christian)
- Long Campaign Win Conditions- Hold 25 Regions, Hold Jerusalem (30 Turns), Hold Limassol (10 Turns), Hold Baghdad (10 Turns), Hold Cairo (10 Turns), Hold Tripoli (10 Turns), Eliminate Egypt
- Short Campaign Win Conditions- Hold 15 Regions, Eliminate Egypt
- Finances- Initial Money: 30000 Florins, King's Purse: 5000 Florins
- Faction Leader- King Baldwin (16) - 8 Command, 6 Chivalry, 10 Authority, 7 Piety
- Faction Heir- Prince Guy (24) - 3 Command, 3 Chivalry, 5 Loyalty, 4 Piety
- Favourite Units - Marshal of the Templars, The Constable of Jerusalem, Great Cross of Jerusalem
- Faction Specific Building - Templar Chapter House (increases wealth and knight stats)
- Biography- The Kingdom of Jerusalem starts off in a good position with scope for expanding into the far east of the map. Antioch begin as your allies and effectively guard your northern frontiers. The Turks are not a particularly dangerous adversary but Egypt to your south is a different matter altogether. expect to face waves of attacks. Ascalon must be guarded at all costs because if that falls, Jerusalem will be next. Another difficulty will be the lack of family members & generals. Egypt will send full stacks against you but this has a side benefit in that you can get great experience for your troops. Saladin himself might attack and he is very dangerous. His troops will fight to the last man unless you kill him. Luckily Baldwin your starting king is a very good general as is Richard the Lionheart, who you acquire later in the campaign. Once you take Cairo & Alexandria, the forces of Egypt should be spent and you can concentrate on eliminating the Turks. Antioch will be expanding as well and if you let them expand too much, you may have to conquer lands in Asia Minor to make up your total number of settlements at the end of the campaign. In the long campaign, Cyprus must be taken. It is a feature of this island that you need a fleet to move units from one end of the island to the other. The Emperor (Byzantine Empire) is a somewhat unreliable ally and needs to be watched with care if you sign any alliance with them.
It is important to note that many of your best units cannot be constructed without Jerusalem - defend the capital at all costs.
Guide: http://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?91167-Crusades-Campaign-Jerusalem
- Religion- Roman Catholicism (Christian)
- Long Campaign Win Conditions- hold 25 regions, including Krak de Chavaliers (30 turns), Antioch (10 turns), Constantinople (10 turns), Baghdad (10 turns), Edessa (10 turns). Eliminate faction: the Turks.
- Short Campaign Win Conditions- hold 15 regions, eliminate faction: the Turks
- Faction Leader- Prince Bohemond the Crusader: 6 Command,3 Chivalry , 2 Authority, 6 Piety
- Faction Heir- Regent Reynald: 3 Command, 10 Dread, 2 Loyalty, 3 Piety
- Finances- Initial Money: 30,072 Florins, King's Purse: 5,000 Florins
- Favourite Units - Cannons of the Holy Sepluchre, Great Cross of Antioch, Marshall of the Hospitallars, Knights of Tripoli
- Faction specific building - Hospitallar Chapter House (Improves Knights and can recruit Knights Hospitallar even in a city)
- Biography- Being on the First Crusade's route to Jerusalem, Antioch was conquered and made into the Principality of Antioch in 1098, one year before Jerusalem was captured by the crusaders. Incorporating the County of Edessa, the Principality of Antioch lies along the coast north of Jerusalem. However, due to a more united Seljuk presence, under Nur ad-Din, Antioch has lost much of its inland holdings.
Your main route of expansion is eastwards and northwards. The Turks lie in both directions, and failure to take control of the rebel lands between Antioch’s borders and the Turk’s will allow one or both of those pockets to gain in strength. This should not be permitted. Thus Antioch should wage a war on two fronts and gobble up as many rebel settlements as possible without overextending itself. Push east until you hit the edge of the map, then split your efforts to head north and south. In the west you can keep on going until you hit Byzantium, at which point you can pause for a bit or start a war with a new enemy. Once you’ve tidied up the Turks and Byzantium you can spread across the bottom of the map to get Egypt. Job done. Do note that due to the emphasis on controlling the provinces to the east Antioch is very likely to encounter the Mongols when they first spawn.
- Religion- Islam
- Long Campaign Win Conditions- hold 25 regions, including Cairo (30 turns), Constantinople (10 turns), Jerusalem (10 turns), Krak de Chavaliers (10 turns), Acre (10 turns). Eliminate faction: Kingdom of Jerusalem.
- Short Campaign Win Conditions- hold 15 regions, eliminate faction: Kingdom of Jerusalem
- Faction Leader- Sultan Salah al-Din: 9 Command, 4 Chivalry, 9 Authority, 7 Piety
- Faction Heir- Prince al Adil: 2 Command, 1 Chivalry, 5 Loyalty, 5 Piety
- Finances- Initial Money: 18887 Florins, King's Purse: 4000 Florins
- Favourite Units - Marmalukes, Hashashin, Naffatun
- Faction specific building(s) - Race Track - increases happiness and allows horse breeding, makes horse breeder guild more likely. Bimaristan - increases health and reuduces retraining costs. Assasin's Guild allows you to build Hashashin.
- Biography- Egypt is a rich country with a nice corner position, and the one that historically won this particular war. It is one of the easiest factions to play. It has a really good mixture of units that allow you to choose to fight any way you like.
- Faction Guide- http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=269070#egy
http://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?91164-Crusades-Campaign-Egypt
- Religion- Islam
- Long Campaign Win Conditions- hold 25 regions, including Baghdad (30 turns), Antioch (10 turns), Constantinople (10 turns), Krak de Chavaliers (20 turns), Jerusalem (10 turns). Eliminate faction: Principality of Antioch.
- Short Campaign Win Conditions- hold 15 regions, eliminate faction: Principality of Antioch.
- Finances- Initial Money: 22,285 Florins, King's Purse: 4,000 Florins
- Faction Leader- Sultan Nur ad-Din: 8 Command, 1 Chivalry, 5 Authority, 9 Piety
- Faction Heir- Crown Prince as Salih: 3 Command, 1 Chivalry, 4 Loyalty, 6 Piety
- Favourite Units - Jannisary Heavy Infantry, Hashashin, Sipahi horse archers, Dismounted Hasham, Jannisary Archers, Naffatun
- Faction specific building(s) - Race Track - increases happiness and allows horse breeding, makes horse breeder guild more likely. Bimaristan - increases health and reuduces retraining costs. Assasin's Guild allows you to build Hashashin.
- Biography- The Turks start the war at war with Antioch, which is allied to Jerusalem. They are allied with Egypt and also at war with Byzantium. Their territories are widely separated and surrounded by enemies and lots of neutral territories. The early Turkish army is very light and the Turkish economy is poor. These combine to make the Turks the most difficult faction to play and if you want a real challenge you should choose the Turks. The battle tactics in particular are different, as the Turks have to rely on horse archers not massed cavalry charges to win the battle. When faced by a full stack of Jerusalem knights (both mounted and dismounted) you really need your wits about you to win. Fortunately Spear Militia can stand up to the knights and the horse archers are very fast and have a very long range. Money is a real problem and you may lose many troops to desertion at the beginning of the game if you don't watch your finances closely and call a Jihad as soon as possible. Egypt will also supply a lot of money for agreements to help fight Rebels, Antioch and Jerusalem (you can go back for more money each turn if you fight the target in the meantime, and make the same deal again). The wealth of the other factions is described as "boundless" throughout the game so at VH level you will find yourself fighting full stacks of enemies right down to the last city. Make peace with Byzantium and build up your army in Anatolia/ conquer the neutral regions before going to war again, the Turkish provinces there are quite vulnerable and there are lots of neutral provinces you can take over before taking on Byzantium (unless you can take the capital with a Jihad). If playing with the Turks, be warned that at the start of the game although you have these units in the starting army you can only rebuild Saracen Militia in Baghdad, there is nowhere you can build Hashashin, and there are few places where you can build Turkish Archers or even Horse Archers (Turkish Horse Archers are a middle- high level unit).
- Faction Guide- http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=269070#tt
- Religion- Eastern Orthodoxy (Christian)
- Long Campaign Win Conditions- hold 25 regions, including Constantinople (30 turns), Ankara (10 turns), Baghdad (10 turns), Antioch (10 turns), Alexandria (10 turns). Eliminate faction: the Turks.
- Short Campaign Win Conditions- hold 15 regions, eliminate faction: the Turks
- Finances- Initial Money: 22184 Florins, King's Purse: 4000 Florins
- Faction Leader- Emperor Manuel Komnenos: 8 Command, 0 Chivalry, 7 Authority, 3 Piety
- Faction Heir- Prince Stefanos: 2 Command, 0 Chivalry, 5 Loyalty, 4 Piety
- Favourite Units - Greek Firethrowers, Vardariatoi, Varangian Guard, Kataphractoi
- Faction Specific Building - Aqueduct - increases health and happiness
- Biography- Byzantium is essentially the Greek speaking remnants of the Eastern Roman Empire and the centre of Orthodox Christianity. The Byzantines themselves merely see their Empire as an unbroken continuence of the Roman Empire and its Emperors. The Empire is currently a shadow of former self, having lost a great deal of its territory in Asia Minor to the Seljuk Turks, and in other areas to internal strife and civil war. Current Emperor Manuel is a dynamic leader and a resourceful general determined to build on the progress made by his immediate predecessors in restoring the Empire to its former glory.
- Faction Guide- http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?t=269070#TBE
http://forums.totalwar.org/vb/showthread.php?91162-Crusades-Campaign-Byzantium The Crusades campaign is the only opportunity to play as Byzantium with all of their advantages and none of their drawbacks. Due to the map layout you are not surrounded by numerous hostile in this campaign. Due to the timescale and set up your units do not become outdated and weak in comparison to the gunpowder and gothic plate of every other faction on the map. Byzantium retains its fabulous wealth and powerful early unit roster. Byzantium’s campaign strategy shares the adventure game guide tone of Egypt’s. East, south, west. Turks and rebels (east), Christian kingdoms and rebels (south), Egypt (west). The western and northern borders are as secure as can be, thanks to the edge of the map. The Mongols will arrive far from your heartlands. Your historical hero is present at the start, so there will be no sudden economic shock, and your economy begins as an absolute powerhouse. The only pitfall Byzantium needs to be aware of in the early game is a historically triggered event which dumps some Venetian crusaders near Constantinople.
Special Features
- Generals are able to construct permanent forts that won't disappear even after being abandoned for a long time.Unlike other M2TW campaigns, Forts can be built anywhere (though they are rather expensiv e at 2,300 Florins) and are permanent stone forts. In the Britannia campaign stone forts allow free upkeep for two units, but this is not the case in the Crusades campaign. Building forts in passes on the Mongol invasion route might help slow down the Mongols when they turn up. Forts also help prevent desertion, so building them in remote locations of the map is a good idea.
- When Constantinople is taken, some reinforcements will arrive. This can only happen 5 times.
- Each of the factions controls a "Power Centre." Losing control of a "Power Centre" will take away the ability to train certain types of troops. For the first 3 times a power center is lost, reinforcements will appear nearby to aid in taking it back.
- The Power Centers are:
- Byzantine Empire: Constantinople
- Turks: Baghdad
- Egypt: Cairo
- Kingdom of Jerusalem: Jerusalem
- Antioch:Krak de Chevalies
- The Third Crusade is presented with reinforcements. The Kingdom of Jerusalem gets a 12-units army, led by Richard the Lionheart. The Principality of Antioch gets a 12-units army as well, led by Philip the Chivalrous. The units are elite and are very useful when appeared. Make sure to make use of them
- the Fourth Crusade arrives at Constantinople sometime between turns 15-18. Non-Byzantine players will see it as three full stacks of Venetians armed with artillery, pavise crossbowmen, spearmen, and dismounted/mounted knights. They only have three leaders so can be turned into rebel stacks if you have a really good assasin. They march towards Ankara and won't attack other factions unitl they near that town. They can be frustrated by putting even a single unit on the bridge near Ankara. They will not ally with anyone.
- Islamic factions can call a Jihad about once every ten turns. Find a Grand Iman and click on his "call Jihad" button to do this. All units on Jihad don't pay upkeep and extra mercenaries become available. You need at least 8 units in a stack (including the general) outside a city to join a Jihad, which is almost identical to a Crusade. Be sure to get as many generals and units as possible to join the Jihad the turn before it ends.
Hero Units
(each has a special ability that can be used once per battle in addition to rallying units)
Crusader States
- Principality of Antioch
- Philip II Augustus - Can temporarily increase the attack and stamina of his troops on the battlefield.
- Kingdom of Jerusalem
- Richard the Lionheart - Has the ability to immediately rally any routing units.
The Islamic Factions
- The Turks
- Nur ad-Din - Can temporarily increase the attack speed and morale of his troops on the battlefield.
- Egypt
- Salah al-Din - Has the ability to greatly inspire his troops. Setting their morale to full.
The Christian-Orthodox Faction
- The Byzantine Empire
- Manuel Komnenos - Can cause chaos amongst an enemy unit, removing them from play until order is resolved.
Relics
There are many relics that leaders can pick up for performing famous deeds in addition to the usual ancilliaries. There are muslim relics for the Islamic factions and Christian relics for the Christian factions. Some of these relics are quite powerful.
The Mongols and the Plague
The Mongols will arrive on the eastern edge of the map (south-east of Baghdad) between 1244 and 1260 (turns 78-82) in several waves (of increasing strength but in a maximum of three stacks each) so keep spies and lookout towers out there looking for them. Go here to read more about the Mongol invasions of Syria: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mongol_invasions_of_Syria The plague will also strike around turn 88 and the Muslim factions can build Bimaristans to ameliorate its effects. The plague hits Alexandria first, in 1347. In 1348 it hits Gaza, Lebanon, Syria, and Palestine. In 1349 it hits Antioch, Mecca, Mosul, and Baghdad.
Gunpowder
Your game has to keep going for 60-65 turns before the gunpowder event occurs.
Events
Soon after your troops first visit the desert in the south-east corner of the map, there will be a flood that will drown them. Yes, a flood in the desert.
