Originally Posted by
Michael Westen
So I redownloaded SSHIP and replaced the files - no luck.
Then I moved the DLCs out of the mods folder to a different location and went into the AMD control center to switch off every function, that claimed to be optimizing the game (like Anti-Lag and Surface Format Optimization). In addition to that, I used the Windows XP compatibility setting for the medieval2.exe. With this, I had less crashes but it still wasn't perfect.
During my struggle to get it to work and trying different compatibility settings, the game would sometimes hang itself up, with the only remaining option to sign out or log off from the current Windows account via Ctrl+Alt+Delete. So I signed out and cancelled it immediately. This left Windows still running, but only with the most essential processes.
This seems to be ideal for running M2TW, at least on my system. When I do this (in addition to the other measures mentioned above) I can play without crashes. I've been playing for a few days now and hope it continues like that. And yes, it even works for battles with 3rd party reinforcements.
TLDR
I sign out of my Windows account and cancel the process immediately, which gives me a bare windows with no unnecessary processes and M2TW running flawlessly. For me, the option to cancel appears consistently when I have Steam open and at least one file explorer window. Depending on how fast your system is, it might otherwise go straight to the login window.