Religion (M2TW)

Religions

Religions in Medieval II include, Catholic, Islam, Orthodox Christianity, Pagan and Heretic.

Christianity

Christian Factions can be either Catholic or Orthodox Christians. Catholic factions receive missions from the Pope.

Pope

The Pope is the head of the Catholic Church. At the start of the game the Pope is the head of the Papal States Faction. The Pope can excommunicate a faction if their relations with him drop too low. Excommunication causes unrest within the affected faction and also means a Crusade can be called against a Catholic faction.

College of Cardinals

The College of Cardinals is an organization of catholic priests that is centered in Rome. It is formed of the most pious priests in Christendom, and any sufficiently religious priest can be selected for it, if one of the thirteen seats is open. Contrawise, if there are no priests of high enough Piety(5) then no more seats in the College of Cardinals will be filled until this criterion is met. Cardinals usually remain under their faction's control, simply gaining an extra piety point from the "Cardinal" trait. However, whenever the Pope dies, an election is held among the College to determine the next pope.

Crusades

To start a crusade you must go to the pope overview scroll, which is a tab within the faction information menu (Press your faction shield in the campaign map UI, at the bottom right(ish) of the screen). From the pope overview scroll request the pope to call a crusade via the "request crusade" button, depending on the pope's relationship level with your faction, you may or may not have to pay an amount of money. Once the crusade has been called you must then join the crusade (see below).

Once the Pope has called for a crusade, whether it was requested by your faction or another faction, you are able to join it. To join the crusade you must have an army with more than 8 units in it. Once you do, select that army and press the "Join Crusade" button. You can have more than one crusading army That army will now become a crusading army, which has free upkeep for all units and is able to move twice as far as normal (even when being transported by ships), and you are now able to recruit crusader mercenaries such as crusader sargents, turkupole horse archers, and grand crosses to inspire your men and swell it's ranks. But units can only leave the crusading army if it captures a settlement and if the crusade doesn't move fast enough men will begin to seek a new lord who will finish the crusade.

Crusades give bonus' in terms of experience for all units involved, chivalrous traits for any generals who lead crusading armies, even if their army doesn't take the crusade objective (except if they abandon the crusade of course), and allow guilds of crusading orders of knights to be build.

Islam

The Islamic factions that start the game are the Moors, Turks and Egyptians. Islamic factions can call jihads.

Jihads

To request a Jihad click on an Imam and look for the Call Jihad button. The Imam must have 4 Piety or above to request a Jihad however, and Jihads cannot be called in quick succession. Jihads have the same problems and benefits of a crusade.

Pagan

The Aztec Empire are the only genuinely Pagan faction in the vanilla version. However, several rebel regions, such as Stettin, start out pagan and must be converted.

Heretic

The rebel faction is the only faction to belong to the Heretic religion.

Religious Agents

Agents that appear on the campaign map and have a primarily religious affect:

Priests and Imams

Priests and Imams are essentially the same type of agent, priest being the Christian version and Imam the Islamic version. They are recruited from settlements, and when left in a region, they will convert the people of that region to their religion.

Heretics

Heretics are campaign map characters that increase the level of Heresy in the regions they pass through. They are effectively Priests for the Rebels faction.

They may be denounced (killed, to you and I) by a Priest or Imam

Witches

Witches are similar to Heretics in that they spread Heresy, there are some minor differences in what they can do.

They may be denounced (killed) by a Priest or Imam.

Inquisitors

Inquisitors are rather troublesome little campaign map characters who are sent by the Pope to 'deal with Heresy' in your region.

Beware that 'dealing with Heresy' can involve assassinating some of your best generals!