Favorites, into battle! - 11.

For many, the choice of their favorite city is inextricably linked to their favorite hero. So, in my opinion, it would be wrong to do that.

But when, for example, a Necromancer faces another Necromancer, that's a real problem. For now, it's difficult for me to say what would be a fair trade for the hero (it might even make sense to agree on starting with Tant-Ghal).

Already strong cities like Necropolis and Rampart are further enhanced by very overpowered heroes. In weaker cities like Swamp, Citadel, and Inferno, I don't think there's a significant difference in who you start with. Not only can Tazar be effective, but there are plenty of other strong warriors (just like in Citadel) that aren't difficult to find on restarts. In other words, the power gap between cities will decrease if, for example, Geon appears for Rampart and some hero appears in Citadel, Swamp, or Inferno, rather than if Shakti or Gunnar were the starting heroes.
And Tanta should have been banned from selection a long time ago.
From a balance perspective, starting with random heroes looks interesting (although not without some randomness). And as Reddy said, this is a tournament of favorite castles, not heroes.