When Saladin invades Jerusalem, Philip Augustus and Richard the Lionheart put their rivalry aside to fight for Saint-John of Acre, a highly strategic port in the Holy land. At the head of 25,000 men, the former enemies take on the Sultan in the first battle of the Third Crusade.

Suleiman the Magnificent Sultan of the Ottoman Empire wants total control of the Mediterranean Sea. Only the island of Malta home to the militant order of the Knights Hospitaller stands in his way. In their fortress 1700 Christian knights now face an armada of 300 galleys and 35000 men.