Crusader Kings II Thread V: Umayyad Bro?

[Wardog]

I started a new game recently, after a long hiatus, with a particular goal/playstyle in mind: being the Pope's champion warlord.

Viking Age start, playing as the Count of Capua. (Custom character, moderately optimised: Brilliant Strategist, Quick, Wounded, Kinslayer. That last one turned out to be more significant than I anticipated).

The reign of Count Andrew:

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My first act was to make myself a vassel of the Pope. My second was to declare a holy war for Salerno (taking advantage of the ongoing holywar for Apulia), which got me Taranto (but not Salerno itself, because that was already under Christian control). I then plotted, schemed, and fabricated claims to pick up various counties in southern Italy and expand me, er, I mean the Pope's domain. (Unfortunately, the Kingdom of Italy managed to grab a big chunk of SE Italy before I could, and the Burhanaddins holy warred Calabria and I wasn't powerful enough to take them on yet). But still, I was doing pretty well, and managed to get all the Duchy of Salerno, plus several other counties. I also married an Irish princess and had seven children. (Primus, Secundus, Tertia, Alarico, Quartus, Sexta, and Septimus. You can tell which one was born when I wasn't paying attention to the popups). The pope at one point started plotting to kill my firstborn, but I managed to persuade him to stop.

All I needed was some cash to create the duchy.

So I borrowed money from the Jews.

That was when the Pope flipped out.

It seems that he was just about willing to tolerate a kinslayer as a vassel. But a kinslayer who was also in debt to the Jews? Unacceptable!

So first, he started plotting to kill me, and I couldn't persuade him to stop, even when I got his opinion of me about 50%. Then he offered be a job as a commander, which I accepted (while wondering if this was part of a scheme to make it easier to kill me off). Then he excommunicated me (and demanded >250 gold as repentance for my sins before he recommunicated me, which was about twice what I had at the time). Then he made me his martial. Because obviously just because I am an excommunicated kinslayer that knows he is trying to have murdered doesn't mean I can't command his armies

Then he died, and the next pope was a bit more reasonable, only wanting 150g to recommunicate me.

Eventually I died (at 49, of natural causes), and Septimus inherited everything (I had switched to ultimogeniture) as a minor.

Here ends the reign of Count Duke Andrea* "the Black".

* because I converted from Lombard to Italian.

The reign of Duke Septimus "the Tenacious":

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Despite being a minor, I successfully retained the loyalty of my vassels, and continued to expand the realm (including at one point invading Ireland to install my mother as queen on Munster).

Now, some time earlier, the Umayyads had captured Provence, so when the year 900 rolled round, the Pope called for a crusade to get it back. I pledged my support, and started beefing up my army in preparation. Although as it happened, by the time the crusade launched, the target had been changed to the Kingdom of Sicily. I threw my armies into the fray, and managed to defeat several enemy armies and capture a few holdings (while also having to put down a "we want gavelkind" revolt lead by my eldest brother, followed by a "make my eldest brother duke" revolt lead by one of my other brothers). I also

The crusade was victorious, my nominated beneficiary (Alarico) was granted the county of Kantantheros, and I got given over 4000 gold (nicely fulfilling my "become wealthy" ambition).

The Kingdom of Sicily was granted to "Anterio the Pilgrim", a grandson of the King of Italy. Who immediately declared a de-jure war for Solerno on the Pope. I hired two mercenary companies, and together the Pope and I were able to defeat the crusader king. Taking advantage of his depleted armies (and my 8000+ mercenaries), I then immediately declared a claim war to install one of my courtiers as the count of Cosenza. I then noticed that this claimand was a muslim, so I then immediately declared a holy war and took it back for myself the honour of the Pope.

Shortly after that, King Ettore "the Sword of the Lord" of Italy declared war on the Pope (getting himelf excommunicated in the process), seized some of the Pope's land and made himelf the king of Romagna. I wasn't strong enough to do anything about it then (so concentrated on trying to grab a few more isolated counties), but after he had had to deal with a major rebellion, I declared an excommunication war on him, which I eventually won, forcing him to abdicate, and causing his kingdom to split in three, because he was still using gavelkind.

As of now (933), Italy has annoyingly recaptued most of Romagna, as well as taking Kabylia in a holy war, which will make my plans to take them on harder. Also, my mother died, and due to lack of thought when distributing holdings, my brother the count of Benevento became king of Munster, taking his county with him.

On the plus side, the Burhanaddins took Sicily in a holy war, and I immediately took it off them, and that combined with a few claim wars and inheritances reduced the King of Sicily to a single county (Kantantheros, which my brother now has a claim on, so as soon as the truce is over, I can take it too). I also managed to take Tripolitania.

short summary: the Pope really shouldn't try to kill his most powerful vassel, because he might need him when the most powerful crusaders turn on him and try to carve up his lands.


PS: question:
The Papal States is a kingdom, and the Papacy is a king-tier titular title, so I would have thought that any "foreign" duchies I controlled would de-jure drift into it, but they don't. Do the Papal States / Papacy have special rules that prevent this, or am I missing some necessay trigger?



Edited for spelling and formatting