Chivalry

[Optional]

I skip chivalry 75% of times in my games, I prefer 1 MI's and treb or 2 MI's (10 shields more) instead of knights, Sure they are slow, but en'masse can kill anything aswell as knights.

I can understand the maths, but always when I've strengthened one front I will get attacked on my weaker front; then I need to quickly juggle units around, and I will appreciate speed.
And horse units can turn back to safety after an attack, while slow units remain exposed to a counter attack.
Longbows or medieval infantry in combo with trebuchets will go a long way, but if you can get some knights in the mix things will go a lot smoother.
I do like to play from central positions where I have multiple fronts, I have to say.

 

[Northen Wolf]

Most of my games are on Pangea format and most of 'em are in "central" start position. My "comfort level" is monarch-emperor.

I never find it hard to repel attacks coming from 'behind', that's due I have atleast one defender in every border city, usually a wall too(10 shields or 1 shield+gold!), and I keep "static defense" (means 2-4 fast units or slow attack units), these units cover atleast 4 towns as I use CxxC style placement. Anything that comes towards me might capture one town, but town is taken back by "combined static defense force". I do not need "Fast units", to defend myself.

I do keep building few horsemen, so I could upgrade them to cavalry or use them to wipe out "weakened" enemy units(either by battle or cats, I'm not big fan of indirect units tho).

 

[Optional]

The good thing about those attacks from behind is that they give you war happiness, but that's gone immediately if you lose a town - losing a town is 16 war weariness points.
If you manage to prevent that, and the civ attacking you isn't managing to get decent alliances, then there are only advantages.

 

[Boss Tweed]

I often try to trade for it if I can, unless I'm trying to grab the Knights Templar, then I spring for it myself

 

[eldar]

If I'm going to win the game with Knights, I research it. Otherwise I wait to trade for it.