The Fall of Voron

I completed it on "Hero" mode quite easily. The AI in all cases acts foolishly, retreating at the start of the battle. Although the danger to my hero is moderate. Kurak (with an "impossible to win" danger level) retreated in the middle of the battle. Which is also unclear – why, as he had at least a 50% chance of winning. I used the classic strategy – Berserkers with the Subdue skill, plus I acquired a set of Dwarven armor. I didn't bother with the third castle. I didn't encounter the Elf or Necromancer (mentioned above in the comments). Through diplomacy, I recruited about 200 Centaurs. So, the price of one Centaur on the slave market is about 14000. Is this a bug or a design choice? In general, the main drawback is that the AI always retreats in every battle.

It's a well-known bug. You see a strong opponent, and if you're playing as the Dark faction, quickly recruit someone with the Subdue skill (not Berserkers). And the AI often retreats. It's as if it adds its subordinate troops to your army and doesn't properly calculate the duration of control and the strength of its troops (sometimes it only lasts for a few turns, and it retreats due to a small number of troops). Sometimes it even retreats when there's nowhere to retreat to, but again, not always (I don't know what it depends on). I often used this trick in Heroes in multiplayer games. In scenarios, it still depends on the author's skills.

P.S. I started the game (I don't remember if I played it before, since it's not in my archive and not in the thread of my messages). So, here's the question... if the author is still alive. A random artifact is, of course, a very nice reward for the castle. I rolled a tunic for myself. But here's the problem. The main character seems to be the only one – I don't see any others, and I chose the artifact bonus at the beginning, but it appears in my inventory only once every three games. Question: where did my initial artifact go? Who is my invisible companion?
P.P.S. Recommendations:
1) And this is not very pleasing: It is not recommended to keep the hero Ossillion in any of the castles (to avoid script errors)... if I have several castles, especially Knight castles, then I prefer to train Cockatrices in the recruitment building. I really hope that Ossillion being located not in the castle, but in the garrison, will not affect the scripts. And yes... the main character's special ability is really a patchwork and the goblins are hidden (screenshot 4) in the highest class.

That's it... the question is resolved. The artifact "Talisman of the Shield" turned out to be with Taren in the tavern. The heroes in the tavern don't have armies, but they do have hints (at least I didn't waste my money).

It's completely broken. The first time I approached the Knight, I had the option to invite him or fight him. I chose to fight, but I didn't like the outcome. I reloaded, and now this Knight just sighs I reloaded even further, and he still sighs. What's going on? Does this mean the quest is bugged? Well, then I feel like the gaming experience will be unforgettable. Author, are you there! What have you done with the scripts here?