Actually I think, being your lands income-poor anyway, you should have just given up (or almost) the recruiting and just blood hunt like crazy (best provinces to bh = the ones with slightly more 5000 pop) in order to build army of demons, Arch devils SCs, and some Fire summons, as all of those wouldn't have costed you upkeep (gold reserved for fortresses and mages)! Yummy!
Also, remember that the swamps are among the best terrain for sites, (and you have some very nice places nearby...) so site researching should have brought you a load of gems
