Is there any way to play around(geographically) the ottomans other than fucking them so hard at the beginning of the game that they cannot possibly come back? Playing as Georgia right now and even if I defend a river crossing on a mountain fort they still win because they have absurd generals and a giant stack of morale bonuses to the point where their army can win a battle because they seemingly fight to the last man.

The 25% manpower recovery for lucky nations is obscene. You can string 12 pyrrhic victories together and they'll come out unscathed.