Adventures in Crusader Kings 2: In which Pope Donus II goes off his meds
In what is, technically speaking, my first ever game of CK2 (due to switching different, Irisher character after the regrettable fate of House Domagojevic in Croatia), things have just gotten a little weird.
I am King Mael-Martain Ua Neill Noigiallaich, King of Eire and Alba. I've played this dynasty up from an Irish minor, at one point being reduced to nothing but Kildare due to a Viking adventurer... but at this point I've solidified my rule over Eire, and most of a disunited Alba has fallen into my demesne. Aileach, in the county of Tyrone, is the heart of my realm, and the home of my ancestors for the past seven centuries.
In Europe, things have gone... althistorically. Roughly 200 years ago, a wildly successful Iberian Muslim dynasty secured control of all land south of the Pyrenees. This affected me little, beyond providing my dynasty with a series of very helpful Basque expatriates who have made residence in my court. However, shortly after securing Iberia, the Muslims launched a massive war of conquest, seizing control of the vast majority of France, excepting Piedmont and Brittany. This conquest then proceeded into Germany. Ultimately, a stupendous Umayyad Empire of Hispania stood triumphant, reigning from Morocco to the Elbe, with the city of Ulm becoming a major Muslim center.
The Catholic world reeled for a time, but ultimately the series of stupendous conquerors fell into decadence and internal conflict. Slowly, but surely, Catholicism has fought back. Crusades have been fought in Aquitaine, Toulouse, and most recently, Lotharingia. I was an early, but minor participant in the reconquest of Lotharingia from the hands of Hispania, and their allies in Muslim Burgundy, but I contributed only 3000 forces. Ultimately, I came to occupy the County of Bar, in Upper Lorraine, before attrition and mounting financial problems forced me to return home, with naught but the 'Crusader' trait and a nice facial scar to show for my troubles (also 2500 dead soldiers, but we don't talk about the peasant blood that oils my conquest machine).
However, several months after my withdrawal, the new Pope, Donus II, extracted a surrender from young Emperor Jibril of Hispania and proclaimed victory. Inexplicably, when he looked to his myriad allies to divvy up the spoils... he decided to give all of the gains to me.
I immediately found myself with several dozen notices, and a lovely 27/5 demesne size warning. I am currently coming to grips with my new situation, as an Elector in the Holy Roman Empire, and the King of Ireland Scotland and Lotharingia. I'm currently rounding up as many Irish Catholic Priests as I can, and handing out Lotharingian counties like candy. With luck, we'll get these Sunni Franks converted back to Catholicism pretty quickly. Who knows, I might actually be able to hold onto this bit of my title, or at least use it for leverage in my long-term goal of becoming Emperor of Britannia.
Meanwhile, things just seem to be going downhill for Muslim Europe at this point. A Swedish pagan adventurer named Dan Ragnarsson has conquered Valencia, and started introducing the Castilians to Odin. Hispania looks like it's going to be a damn interesting place in a few generations.