So my cardinal is now the pope...now what?

**homefry** · August 30, 2007, 12:00 PM

I have an enemy catholic faction (Milan) that got excommunicated and I can't call a crusade on any of their settlements because the option is not there when I go to call a crusade. The only options are the non-catholic settlements. How do I call one on the excommunicated catholic faction?

My guy is also the pope and I've been attacking other factions and noticed that my pope standing has been dropping. Is this guy not on my team anymore?

My diplomacy standing with the Papal States has been increasing. Is this because my guy is the Pope?

**Ged** · August 30, 2007, 12:11 PM

Just 'cos your guy is pope doesn't make you the big cheese on the matters. You'll be affected by all the things that you would be if the pope was from another faction, like losing rep with him for attacking catholics etc.

And the crusade settlement list has a limited number of slots, I think, so you might not have any of Milan's there because there isn't enough space.

**~~Tony83~~** · August 30, 2007, 01:11 PM

Hehe - your cardinal might have been very well behaved as a vassal, and he would have probably given you a huge pat on the back when you helped elect him.

However, now the chap has become Bishop of Rome (BoR), you'll soon see what an ungrateful cur he is!

You may very well consider yourself God's annointed, as king of your realm, but the BoR thinks he's God's mouthpiece on Earth and the best thing since sliced bread.

**homefry** · August 30, 2007, 01:23 PM

I'm going to move him into the crappiest village on my map.

**~~Tony83~~** · August 30, 2007, 02:16 PM

Unfortunately, as soon as he's elected, you lose all control over him.

One of the delights playing as Byzantium is taking Rome and making him homeless.

**homefry** · August 30, 2007, 02:37 PM

So he goes to ROme?

I can still control the Pope. Rome is a rebel settlement, btw.

**snuggans** · August 30, 2007, 05:50 PM

Originally Posted by homefry

So he goes to ROme?

I can still control the Pope. Rome is a rebel settlement, btw.

some modding going on in hitherrrrrrrr.

**Ged** · August 30, 2007, 03:10 PM

Your campaign seems slightly screwed up, unless you're playing as the Papal States (which I assume you're not.)

**~~Tony83~~** · August 30, 2007, 04:36 PM

Weird! Unless you playing Med 2 with a mod that allows you to play as the Papal States, you shouldn't be able to do anything to the Pope as he acts as the leader of another Faction. :hmmm:

**reddog11** · August 31, 2007, 03:26 AM

he's gone somewhere else. he's either in another city controlled by the Papacy or he's wandering with one of its armies. - once he's pope you standing initially went up but since you've obviously attacked the catholic faction for a while he's getting annoyed. also, you probably cant call a crusade against Milan because when a pope dies all the factions who were excommunicated are able to return to the church. check - but i think its likely they arent excommuncate anymore.

**~~Tony83~~** · August 31, 2007, 04:35 AM

Lol - since the 1.2 patch, the Bishop of Rome has certainly been more mobile in some of my campaigns. Once, playing as Byzantium, he was my staunch ally and suddenly turned up outside Constantinople with a small retinue of about three depleted units! He stayed for a few turns, as if he were stopping for tea with the Patriarch, and then wandered off North towards the Rus - very strange behaviour if you ask me.

**Handbanana** · August 31, 2007, 02:29 PM

I've also seen some strange pope behavior since 1.2. Ran into the pope in all his pope hat glory in North Africa...meanwhile Milan or somebody else had occupied Rome for many turns.

**Turkeys!** · August 31, 2007, 08:29 PM

I've noticed in my games that Milan almost always grabs Rome and leaves the pope on ajaccio [spelling?]

**P014K** · September 01, 2007, 12:56 AM

The only thing that having your cardinal as pope does for you is makes your relations perfect (ie. all crosses filled) and your reputation higher a bit. As you attack non-excommunicated catholic factions, your relations will go down, and as you fight non-catholic nations, your relations will go up. Because your cardinal is pope, you see this up and down more because being pope amplifies the effect.

When your cardinal is pope, you lose control of him and he goes off w/ the papacy.

As for not being able to call a crusade against Milan, my recommendation is to start taking out the other cities on the list without going on a crusade against them. This will eliminate them from the list, and allow a new city to take its place. Eventually, you will be able to call a crusade, provided that the pope or Milan's faction leader doesn't die.

e.g. I was I war with france, they got excom'd. I tried calling a crusade but the list was filled with Moorish cities. I wiped out the Moors completely, and then the list was filled with french cities

So my advice...make more enemies