Gnomishness

I don't remember the original idea. If they don't have guards, they might just be there for decoration.
Thank you for playtesting the map.

You probably placed them there for experience, but you thought that killing the guards of the mercury mine would open a passage... The Hero start is very risky (I've tried it many times), and the interactive objects are quite well-guarded (or I just had bad luck), because the orange player immediately rushes the nearest Castle. That's why you tried to help by placing a Witch Hut with machines (and that's why there are unguarded chests scattered around the map). You tried to balance the game (and you almost succeeded ).
I didn't take your machines (and you can win without them). I really liked the idea with the customs posts – it's perfect without saving. But it happened twice, not three times (autobattle). One of the customs posts wasn't quite finished (the autobattle won), so you need to rearrange the guard post.
And most importantly, if there's even one yellow Castle left, the red player won't attack (you can exploit this feature by accumulating a lot of units). Maybe they attack for a different reason, based on a timer, but that's how it happened for me over three weeks (then I reverted the changes – it wasn't as interesting). You were just a little bit off.
P.S. You can also win without summoning (Light/Chaos).
P.P.S. The console is all red

Added 58 minutes ago
1 Latest updates (1.05):
2 The troops attacking the guard posts have been slightly weakened.
3 On the "Hero" difficulty level, the levels of enemy heroes have been reduced.
4 A Witch Hut has appeared on the surface near the city of Icewall, providing machines.
5 The quest for the guard posts can now be completed, not just failed. Completing the quest will reward you with gold equal to 8100/difficulty level.
6 After capturing the guard posts, enemy heroes gain the ability to move independently (another reason to complete the quest).

P.S. Suggestions: the red player is clearly weak (his troops can be safely multiplied by three), and the strongest troops on the ruined bridge without a Hero are useless! A Hero is needed. Fix one of the customs posts and open the passage to the chests.
I would like you to refine the map, taking into account the suggestions.
But I really liked it!!! Thank you for the game.