Which faction do you like the most in Heroes of Might and Magic IV?

1. I live in the USA, and the time difference is a major hindrance!

That's not a valid argument. I have free time on weekends, so it's definitely possible to plan.

You still haven't answered.

What should I answer?
For the final battle, I take 4-6 heroes + phoenixes, sometimes praying mantises. Among the heroes, I use a tactician, a nature mage, 2 life mages + a bard (scouting is the main skill).
For the undead, I use devils and vampires (and only if there are enough of them, at least 3), then a tactician, a death mage (1 or 2), a chaos mage (1 or 2), and a ninja.

This is a fairly standard set that can be changed (by 1-3 positions) depending on the specific game. For example, instead of chaos mages, I might take order mages.