Outside of that it can project power, in Eastern Asia at least, build up subject and allied states. Anything over the Atlantic is a waste of time, except a minor island or two for prestige. Eastern Africa is well worth setting up trading stations.
Personally, I still believe RITE is the best way that a post-Tourmarches Rhomania can acquire territory and resources with Vijayanagar's terminal decline and Bengal being completely decimated in the War of Wrath (so basically a power vacuum ripe for the taking). Europe is increasingly starting to become untenable for Rhomania to deal with diplomatically or militarily when their own Despotates are either struggling to get by or are chafing under their rule so they must look elsewhere for expansion.
Justinian's empire is the limit, but they can reach it if they play their cards right. And that means striking now while the Latins are bloodied and weak.
Yeah, the Triunes with Henri still in charge (who still remembers Odysseus obliterating Triune Bengal), Arles/Spain going strong, and a recovering Wittelsbach HRE (who will relish an opportunity to avenge Ulm for some legitimacy and nationalistic zeal) against a weakened Rhomania. Those aren't good odds for Constantinople despite what happened in the HRE.
The Tourmarches may have far greater experience against the dumb Latins but they're smart enough to know that fighting the Latins right now, even the HRE, would've been more disastrous than if they invaded some weak state like Mesopotamia, which they are
losing right now. The precarious situation in Sicily probably makes that proposal even more untenable since no doubt that would've caused further tensions between the Orthodox and the Catholics at Naples/Barion, risking the security of the Empire itself.
They've been through a torrent of shit ever since Andreas Niketas died. They deserve an actual victory - the Tourmarches are right when they speak of "mutilated victory"
The Romans might have been under the gutter during the Time of Troubles and the War of Roman Succession but they were just at the cusp of clawing themselves out of that rut post-War of Wrath militarily, diplomatically, and economically. Given a few decades or so and Rhomania would've been in a far greater position to assert itself against the Latin West. However, the Tourmarches set that back by committing so much resources into a crippling war with very little tangible benefit aside from the ones they promised to their supporters, which is looking like that will not be a reality if the Romans lose this entire thing.
There's no good targets for the Toumarches, and the Ottomans are the best of the lot at the moment. North Africa won't be easily to hold until industrialization (and even then, it's difficult), any campaign in Italy will invite retribution from Spain and Arles, and any campaign in the Balkans may alienate the Vlachs and Hungary even more so. A war against the Ottomans had the potential to give tons of prestige to the Tourmarches, but as has been shown it was a terrible idea through and through. I'm hoping the Tourmarches get what's coming for them.
Exactly. For the sake of Roman survival and prosperity, the Tourmarches have to lose.
