Using navies to widen a war

[Strategos83]

Im pretty sure most everyone is aware how to draw an uninvolved ally in onto your side in a war by attacking an enemy fleet while an allied fleet is in an adjoining square, BUT a cool thing happened: as Milan I was warned not to continue to attack Venice by my ally the Pope (of course, only after Venice had broken our alliance and attacked me while I was off fighting Moors) or face excommunication. The very next turn I notice a Papal fleet parked right next to a Venetian one and jumped it. I expected that the AI might pull some contradictory BS and have the Pope help me sink the fleet and excommunicate me right after but NO - I got the Venetians excommunicated as enemies of the Pope and had my excommunication warning ("mission") cancelled outright leaving me free to assault Venice and annihilate my maritime rival in as many turns as I needed without having to time my operations to within the brief windows between excommunication warnings ...

Anyway, this lesson is probably posted elsewhere, but I thought it was pretty cool.....now I must watch the seas next time Im at war with a fellow catholic to see if the Pope is parked beside HRE, France, Hungary..........

[Sher Khan]

You know how a Papal States army is usually hiding out in a forest outside Rome? I just park myself as an ally right next to them, and just wait for my enemies to come get me. Much hilarity ensues.

[Strategos83]

Haha I like that, nice! Let a massive enemy army come after one unit of your militia and find itself dealing with the entire Papal Guard, lol