Muslim civs

No story has proven to be any more compelling than the rise of Islam in the world (or any less tragic): in just the span of two generations, the Arabs, inspired by the One True Faith, catapulted themselves from being the meanest subjects of the Romans and the Sasanid Persians, to eventually supplanting the Persians as lords of western Asia (in no small part thanks to the disaffection of the Persian people with their native rulers, the Sasanians). Since then, the history of the Arabs - and the Saracen peoples - has been one of conquest after glorious conquest as Islam displaced both Rome and China across Africa and Central Asia, and even spreading into the Indian subcontinent itself, thus positioning the Faithful of Allah as being most prominent men in arts, sciences and wealth, thanks to their access to the Silk Road and the Spice Islands.

However, that was almost less than half a millenium ago - now, there are signs that even the Muslim caliphate, or Darul Islam as Arabs call it, is on the verge of collapse. Already, the Arabs no longer rule; rather it is the sons of their Persian and Turkish slaves who now hold the keys to power and to whom the Arabs themselves pay tribute, even if the Caliph al-Mustanjid, being a descendent of the Prophet's uncle Abbas ibn al-Muttalib, must be the last great Arab prince east of the Nile in Masr (notwithstanding al-Mustanjid's own ancestresses being non-Arab princesses and slaves). Even the rich lands of Masr and Sham are no longer in the Caliph's hands; rather, they are now squabbled over by different groups of Kurdish and Turkish warlords and the greedy Frankish crusaders ensconced in holy city of Baitulmuqaddis. The east fares no better, with the Ghorids, the Khwarezmians and the Selçuküler all professing adherence to the One True Faith, yet the allegiance of their princes to the Caliphate (or in the case of the Khwarezmians, their Selçuk masters) questionable at best.

Yet this pales in comparison to the challenge of the Crusades, and what Muslim failure in the Eastern Mediterranean must represent. If this be a harbinger of anything to go by, it would seem that more Muslim lands are fated to fall under the sway of yet more kafir outsiders. One such interloper has been the Khitans, who in recent years have made themselves the easternmost neighbours of the Islamic world. Although they are not religious bigots like the Franks, and have demonstrated a willingness to harbour Muslims and respect their God-given rights, their great khanate of Qara Khitai nevertheless has exhibited an interest in conquering more Muslim lands, especially after having defeated the Selçuküler in battle. Thus it would seem that the Khitans along with the Crusaders may simply be the first of a larger wave of barbarians who may yet spell the end of Islamic civilization ....

Faction highlights

Selçuküler

Being descendents of the great Oghuz horde, the Selçuküler now claim lordship over the Middle East through a grand army and a vibrant and thriving economy. Despite their many setbacks fighting against the Christian Franks in the west, and the idolatrous Qara Khitai to the east, the Selçuküler are still fairly competent and versatile as a faction, capable of many different strategies to achieve victory.

Khwarazamshah

Khwarazmian rulers have always been great patrons of the arts, thus placing Khwarazamshah at the forefront of science and culture in all of Darul Islam. This nation's immense wealth and vast population (and her special military units and agents) allow for adopting hybrid strategies in pursuit of victory, but have also made her many enemies as a result of her rulers' ambitions.

Ayyubids

Masr (Egypt) is the wealthiest realm of Darul Islam but plagued by dissent, heresy, and corruption. Only her young Vizier, Saladdin bin Ayyub (not to mention his Syrian soldiers, and popular support from the local population) stand in the way between all Masr and complete conquest by the Frankish Crusaders of Outremer.

Hindustan

Possibly the most militarised of all the great nations of Islam, these latecomers to the neo-Persian cultural scene amongst all Muslims have a strong focus on warfare and raiding, augmented by their infantry superiority, as well as medium cavalry and war elephants.

Muslim civs tend to be a "middle of path" option, and lean toward hybrid strategies by virtue of their control of both Wonders - the Selçuküler themselves can build up to a maximum of six Wonders, and like everyone else in this civ pool have a force that is cavalry-centric, thus pushing most Muslim civs toward rushing and booming with an eye on victory no later than the mid-game. Their main weakness, however, tends to be the lack of good defensive infantry, with the exception of Hindustan who can recruit the more hardened Spear Sergeants.

In addition, Muslim factions also are exclusive recipients of the 3rd and 4th tiers of Pedagogic upgrades, giving them a chance of teching up faster, vis à vis other nations (with possibly the exception of Nansong). The extra Influence generation from Pedagogics also helps in building Wonders since some of them need considerable amounts of Influence in order to be erected.

Wonder pool

Deirul Hiqmeh

A Wonder that helps with Influence acquisition and teching up, Built by all civs, except Hindustan.

Arg-e Bam

Shared between Hindustan, Khwarazamshah and Selçuküler.

Qubbat as-Sakra

Shared between Ayyubids, Selçuküler, and Outremer.

Royal Observatory

Shared between all Asian and Muslim factions, excluding Khmer, Minyak and Ayyubids.

Standing Stones

Built by all Nomadic civs, but also available for building to Goryeo, Hoysala, Selçuküler, Dai Viet and Minyak.

Necropolis Complex

Built by Goryeo, Selçuküler, Qara Khitai, Minyak, Khwarazamshah.

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