Heroic stories.

Following in the wake of the Kyiv impressions, I'm publishing my interview with Forrest (because it's long overdue!). And reaching the CIS finals is an excellent achievement, further underlining the relevance of such an interview!

Forrest:
Hi Kostya
congrats on the diploma!
the scout heroes passed you on successfully))

KostyaN‎:
Hey, Tol!
Thanks!
well, I calculated it all 5 moves ahead)

Forrest:
nice one
try to play more boldly
found a Griffin Conservatory, so always think about how to take it
and not in 10 days, but in 2-3)
found a Dragon Utopia, so think about how to take it

KostyaN‎:
yeah, I'm trying... but not doing so well yet

Forrest‎:
well, you've got talent
play more with analysis afterwards
you should turn out to be a good player

KostyaN:
thanks, I'll try)

Forrest:
and you write very beautifully - it's pleasant to read

KostyaN:
listen, since you're already here and I'm not playing yet, can't wait for the tournament players - maybe you could give me something like an interview for the "Heroic Stories" topic? Because it already has everyone, but not you
I've been wanting to catch you for a long time)

Forrest:
well, I've got about 30 minutes, let's do it
just write modestly about me) I'm just an ordinary Heroes player

KostyaN:
I've always been curious, where do you get that bookmaker's instinct, calculating all sorts of odds and so on?

Forrest:
that's been my main job for 11 years

KostyaN:
ah, I see then, back in my day I placed bets from time to time - mostly on football, but never won more than 300 UAH, and now they've bloody banned it altogether...

How did you come to Heroes? through parts 1 and 2? or did you start playing "Three" right away? and who got you hooked?))

Forrest:
I studied at the Physics and Mathematics Faculty. Didn't play games. But in my second year I saw Heroes 2. First I said, "This is a stupid game"
But I tried it right away, played for about 15 hours straight. But common sense won out in the end and I didn't play until the end of university.
Then when Heroes 3 came out, I remembered how fun it was to play Heroes 2 and installed Armageddon's Blade. Started playing a lot)

KostyaN:
single-player or with people already?

Forrest:
We started playing hot seat right away. (hardly played campaigns or fixed maps) Then over LAN for stakes. That was 2002-2004

KostyaN:
yeah, I didn't even have a computer back then...

Forrest:
We played without XL KI rules. Then on the Arma portal they created an online movement and I signed up right away, while simultaneously playing on TuHa
That was around 2005 I think, maybe 2004)
When I came online I thought I'd be a total bot, played very diligently and was very nervous)
But apparently 3 years of binge-playing in clubs weren't wasted and I started playing above average

KostyaN:
"TuHa" - what's that?

Forrest:
tuheroes.com
a foreign site
the one that banned Antala) for not understanding his play)
I played there a few times - won, which I was incredibly happy about. Including against a guy from the Portal with the title - King (nickname Miron)
When the Armageddon "Seasons" appeared, I gave up on tuh

KostyaN:
so that's the same Miron who was King even before Vitalik, it turns out?..

Forrest:
yep. Miron was a cool Heroes player, he had his own site about Heroes with a lot of info on the game mechanics
he was about 40-45 years old back then I think
But after the first Arma tournament he stepped away from online, showing a poor (in his opinion) result
I'd like to add about binge-playing) I played from work. Saved the game there until 21:00, brought the save home and continued from there
We played without the internet, via modem
when one person calls another via modem, the modem picks up the phone - you get a LAN)
so I played like that for about 2 years, almost every day)
With breaks for fishing
That's my main hobby by the way. More than Heroes)
I see Heroes as something to fill the pause between fishing trips)

KostyaN:
what can you boast about regarding fishing, by the way?

Forrest:
I participate in competitions. I've won)
My main hobby is carp fishing. I also like float fishing, spinning, and feeder fishing
The biggest carp I caught was 9 kg.

KostyaN:
Wow!
too bad I didn't get to try the fish you brought to Kyiv, it all got distributed past Krega's place somehow...

let's get back to our muttons, i.e. Heroes))
so it turns out you only learned online? there wasn't really a specific Heroes scene in Kakhovka (like in our Nikopol) was there?

Forrest:
there was, and a good one.
There was a group of about 5-7 people.
Roughly equal in skill
But online I took a step forward

I played a lot with Ansient (from Khabarovsk) with subsequent analysis

KostyaN:
I see, and what's the secret, if there is one, to your achievements?

Forrest:
Then with Armagedda

KostyaN:
you're anticipating my questions)))

Forrest:
And what do you consider my achievements?)

KostyaN:
well, the fact that everyone fears you, like Fischer in chess back in the day - that's already a serious achievement, and you have plenty of wins over the old guards!
according to many, you're in the top three to five strongest Heroes players currently playing, after all!

Forrest:
After university my brain was, so to speak, overclocked) Heroes helped keep it toned further.
I always try to set clear tasks in the game. Simplify them if possible (to make it more reliable and manageable)

KostyaN:
what do you prefer more, regular Heroes or Tactics Corner 3?

Forrest:
I always played with an eye on FB. That is, I knew how to win it, if this plus that happened. And I looked for those components.
I believe that in Heroes, FB decides the game; you can compensate for a lot through smart FB.

Of course I love Heroes more. TC3 is only a small part of it. But what attracts me to it is the complete balance. There, you won't be faced with angels on day 1-1-6 while you have 20 imps)
In the last two years I played mostly only tc3. (there are a few players I play with for money) But just before the qualifiers I signed up for HeroesWorld tournaments and trained in random.

KostyaN:
well, balance or not, Cove-Conflux still get vetoed right away (that's about TC3)...

Forrest:
well yeah) but you don't play Inferno against red Necropolis in random either)
same there, some Castle is better, some is worse. But with a draft it's, in my opinion, completely balanced. That is, everything is in your hands. Play and show what you can do, there's no generator. There's you and your skill) The opponent and their skill
Well, and the Boots of Resistance too)

KostyaN:
yeah, which so inappropriately like to appear in Dragon Utopias instead of some useful artifact

Forrest:
well, you remember your Dragon Utopia against Syoma

KostyaN:
and in TE, the balance is better than in SoD overall, isn't it? I wonder why there's now this trend where many TE players are returning to SoD, at least you and Stinger, who I remembered...

Forrest:
TE is undoubtedly a better game
But I love SoD because it's like real life) not without its flaws)
And TE is a fairy tale)
TE is more pleasant to play. In SoD you need to show more spirit when you're dealt 10 gnolls

KostyaN:
well said!
(about life and fairy tale)

Forrest:
They switch for a simple reason: In TE they constantly add something, not everyone can keep up and understand the software. But SoD remains the same) So they play that.
I started playing SoD because on HeroesWorld a lot of people play SoD among those who play during the day (for example Skorp)
In TE, by the way, I play without experience (with experience it's no longer Heroes 3 but a different game)
If I played SoD for 7 years, I don't see a reason not to play it even if TE exists)

KostyaN:
well, and in conclusion, so as not to bother you completely), what would you wish for wannabe Heroes players like me?

Forrest:
You have clear progress. So if you continue to think more, you'll become a strong player.
I wish you to not play as much as people usually do) but to devote more time to analyzing your own games (2-3 hours for each game)
And don't get upset about losses. You can't learn to play Heroes quickly
Like, try not going there, but if you had gone, what would it have been like - check it)
there, you lost someone, but how could you have not lost them
didn't go there, but what would have happened if you had gone
and all battles with full effort
I also recommend the method of progress
you play with someone
then you send each other saves and online via Skype analyze each day of the game for both players. Advising and criticizing each other.
I do this sometimes
That's what Volodymyr - my friend and a good player - and I do. We invented this method
We also analyze other people's saves the same way

KostyaN:
Volodymyr - is that the one called Medved?

Forrest:
I call all my friends Medvedi. A habit)

KostyaN:
well, good luck to you, Tolyan, in Heroes, especially in the CIS Finals, and in life!

Forrest:
Thank you, Kostya. You are a wonderful person!