Qwerty
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"Let's go!"
or
Game Mechanics in the First Week.
So, the priority targets for capture have been determined. It is also clear that regardless of the strategy, we will need several heroes.
Let's begin. Leave 1 pig with the starting hero; send the rest to the castle. Exit the castle, grab the chests (take gold from them, as we need to buy heroes and build troops) and piles of gold. Buy a second hero, have them take the army stationed in the castle, and move forward. It is highly desirable to build at least something, even just a well.
Fight the first battles. We will stop on this aspect in more detail.
So, our hero is a Wizard (0-1-2-2, Stone Skin). Let's say our troops are 5 pigs and 16 halflings. Let's consider possible opponents and determine if we can defeat them, how, and with what approximate losses. To do this, first calculate the maximum ranged damage the halflings can deal (Energizer's method). 16*(1…3)=16…48, multiply by 12 shots, resulting in 192-576 against creatures with defense 2. On average, let's take 380. For this to happen, the pigs must hold out for 12 rounds (for this, we have Stone Skin and the possible sacrifice of 2 pigs).
Now let's deal with possible opponents.
Peasants. Up to 249 – easy. You can actually break through up to 500 peasants – just remember about morale.
Goblins. 20-49 are broken easily. We will take out one squad of goblins per round, so there should be no problems here. 50-99 goblins is already a serious problem. The thing is, goblins can engage the pigs as early as the second round. Let's assume this squad has already been shot by halflings in round 1. Let's try to model the battle slightly. We have 16 halflings-1 pig-1 pig-1 pig-2 pigs, against us are 16 goblins * 5. Halflings take out about 11 goblins per shot. It turns out we just need to push back 1-2 goblin squads by sacrificing 2 pigs. Stone Skin must be used extremely precisely here. 16 goblins deal 14-29 damage to a pig, but if the pig is under Stone Skin, the damage is reduced to 12-24. If we put pigs against squads already shot down to 5 units, it turns out a pig under Stone Skin can withstand 2 attacks, and maybe even 3. Thus, in case of acute necessity, you can attack; you just need to be prepared for losses.
Halflings. It is preferable not to break them. Either break them with the help of gargoyles or fairies from the second hero. If that's impossible, consider the following option. Leave 3 halflings split one by one; move forward with pigs split into two squads. Thus, we will take 3 shots at the pigs: 2 in the first round and 1 in the second (in the best case for us). With an army of 3 halflings and 5 pigs, we can break 10-19 halflings at best, and there may be pig losses.
Centaurs. Same situation as with halflings. Only worse. 16 centaurs have 80 health, and it takes 15 hits from a pig to kill them. Moreover, centaurs have 3 attacks, and one blocked centaur will still deal 1 damage to a pig under Stone Skin. 2 pigs take down 3 centaurs in melee in 3 hits, while the remaining stack of centaurs shoots all this time. Apparently, this battle is only possible with the involvement of most halflings. However, even against halflings with Stone Skin, 16 centaurs will deal 15-30 damage (which kills 5-10 halflings), and they move first. This means a different tactic must be chosen: take all halflings, pigs in 4 squads, then the pigs block while the remaining halflings shoot. Almost the entire army will perish. If there are 3 gargoyles from a Warlock – there's a chance to play without losses or almost without losses.
Fairies. 10-19 without problems. Setup: halfs – 4 squads of pigs. Pigs cover the halfs, then shoot them down. Maximum 1-2 pigs will die. But 20-49 won't be that simple – unopposed fairies in the first round will kill 1-2 pigs depending on the number, and by maximum the third round our shooters will be blocked. Such battles can be conducted "under save," knowing the number of fairies in advance and trying to counter this with, for example, a detachment of 1 halfling on the right flank, or even adopting a setup of 14 halfs-2 pigs–3 pigs–half-half so that in the first round 2 fairy squads hit single halflings. And the top pig was covered by Stone Skin. Fairies have 4 attacks, which is unpleasant, and a strike by 8 fairies deals 8-16 damage to a pig, or 7-14 with Stone Skin. This means from the first two attacks in the first round, the pig will likely die, after which the third squad has a chance to take out another pig. Halfs shoot one squad. We cover the second squad of pigs. Then with two hits they'll take 1 pig and fairies will enter close contact with halfs, which must not be allowed. Thus, with this number of pigs, it is better not to attack 20-49 fairies.
Skeletons. 10-19 are naturally taken out. Just don't be surprised if 6 skeletons take down a pig. But with 20-49 skeletons, the situation is complicated. On one hand, skeletons have no morale, which makes fighting them quite predictable. On the other hand, they have 4 attacks, 3 defense, and 2-3 damage. Our 16 halfs will take 15-30 health from skeletons per round, which corresponds to 4-7 skeletons. But a skeleton squad of 8 will almost certainly take down a pig even under Stone Skin. It's easy to see that by the 4th round there will be no pigs left. And there will still be about 12-15 skeletons. In the sixth round, our halfling squad will fight in melee with 6-9 skeletons. And that means defeat.
Non-upgraded zombies. Non-upgraded zombies have only 2 defense (though upgraded ones do too). Which, combined with very slow speed and lack of morale, is pleasing. Here we use our calculations. We can shoot down 13-38 units. On average, let's take 19-31. This means we can easily attack 10-19 zombies (even if there is an upgraded stack among them), but attacking 20-49 without knowing their exact number is not yet possible. More halflings are needed. By the way, one can calculate how many halflings are needed to attack 20-49 zombies. For this, we calculate the possible amount of zombie health (735 without an upgraded stack, 785 with an upgraded stack of 10 zombies), divide by 12 shots = 65, and divide by average halfling damage – 2. That is, having 33 halflings with at least 4 pigs, we can risk attacking 20-49 non-upgraded zombies. Halflings can be taken from an external dwelling on the terrain – "burrows".
Upgraded zombies. Only 10-19. They also have 2 defense, but 20 health, and average speed (4).
Non-upgraded dwarves. These are serious guys. They have both 20 health and 5 defense. Suppose there are 10-19 of them. Halfs will deal 163-489 damage. This is 8-24 non-upgraded dwarves (and maybe an upgraded stack!). On average 12-20. And they will reach us; no later than the 5th round they'll say "here we are." And there will be about 8 of them in the fifth round. And they might get a morale boost. They have 6 attack and 2-4 damage. If absolutely necessary, you can risk it, but remember: if Stone Skin runs out, a squad of 3 dwarves will deal 9-18 damage to halflings, knocking out 4-5 units with each hit...
Upgraded dwarves. Two problems compared to non-upgraded ones. First is average speed (4), which allows them to make contact no later than the 3rd round (plus they move before halflings shoot) and 6 defense. Against 6 defense, halflings will deal 153-460 damage, which equals 8-23 upgraded dwarves. It's clear that 5-9 upgraded dwarves are killed quite simply, but 10-19 will likely emerge victorious...
Gargoyles. Do not attack. We cannot protect our shooters from a gargoyle attack without Haste magic. If there is a Necromancer hero, then they can actually attack: first move Haste on the second pig stack, the first covers from above, the second from the side. But only 5-9; gargoyles have 7 defense.
Although, honestly, a way to break 5-9 gargoyles with the existing army also exists for a Wizard hero. I will not describe it in this material; I hope readers experiment themselves and find "Qwerty's method".
Pigs. Fairly easy opponents. They don't deal too much damage, and they only have 15 health. For evaluation, calculate how long our 5 pigs can hold out. Cover them with Stone Skin. Then a squad of 3 pigs will deal 5-10 damage to our pigs. That is, in 2-3 rounds they'll take down a pig. But pigs are two-cell creatures and most likely each of our squads will attack only 2 opponent squads. Halfs will take out three pigs with two shots. We should strive for the following setup: squads of 1 pig attack us, while a squad of 3 pigs stands and waits its turn. I believe that if the first squad of enemy pigs doesn't get morale in the first round, we can successfully take out 10-19 pigs.
Non-upgraded shooters and non-upgraded orcs. These battles are quite unpleasant for us. Because untimely morale can lead to a loss, because after this battle we might have no troops left for further conquests. It is highly desirable to involve either gargoyles or fairies, or wait for Rocs. The loss minimization method I mentioned above does not work, as pigs alone cannot handle shooters (given the numbers). Usually, two setup options are used: all halfs – 4 pig squads, or some halfs – 3 pig squads – some halfs. Accordingly, in the first round, Stone Skin on the top stack and everyone forward. The idea is to block all shooters in the second round and then shoot them down. However, morale or the appearance of an upgraded stack could lead to having almost nothing left to shoot with...
Artifact guardians – single units of the sixth level.
Against titans, any dragons, phoenixes there are no chances. Let's consider the remaining options.
Paladin. A paladin has 50 health and 12 defense. Our halflings will deal 8-24 damage per round. This means we just need to hold out for 4 rounds. There are absolutely no problems with this; depending on terrain and morale, losses will be from 1 to 3 pigs.
Crusader. This task is more serious. Here it's 65 health with 12 defense. We need to stand for 5 rounds, while starting from the second round the crusader will move first. Setup: 4 squads of 1 pig, halfs at the bottom. First pig moves (not into attack, of course), crusader moves forward. Second pig goes as far as possible, standing in the top row as far as it can (tactical "luring" technique by Qwerty). Third and fourth pigs make the half inaccessible, trying to stay close to the crusader. Second round. Crusader hits the top squad, pig moves forward (striving for the upper right corner), other pigs provide support. Third round. Crusader kills the pig that was moving toward the upper corner in the previous round. Pigs move out of the crusader's strike zone. Fourth round. Crusader doesn't reach anyone. Here are 2 options for the pigs. The most reliable is to stand with pigs so that in the fifth round the crusader hits one, while another is nearby, and halfs are far away. Fifth round – crusader kills a pig – victory with loss of 3 pigs. The battle is not simple, but with a little practice it's like clockwork.
Cyclops. 80 health with 9 defense, but has a double strike. Our halfs will deal 10-31 damage per round, so we need to hold out for 5 rounds. Act according to the usual algorithm, just remember that we must not place pigs such that the cyclops kills two at once and in the 5th round pigs should not be in front of halflings, otherwise the cyclops might "blow through" them. Since the cyclops' speed is 5 and our pigs' is 6, everything is relatively simple.
Giant. 150 health with 10 defense. Halfs deal 10-29 damage per round, so we will need 8 rounds and endurance. Act according to the usual algorithm; in even rounds, feed a pig to the giant, sending it back. Everything should work out.
Djinn. This is the hardest task. A djinn has only 50 health with 9 defense. Per round halfs will deal 10-31 damage, so in the third round we can celebrate victory. This is achievable with 16 halflings and 5 pigs. I hope readers find "Qwerty's method" themselves.
So, we have considered the main battle options with an army of 16 halflings and 5 pigs for a first-level Wizard hero with 20 mana.
Now let's briefly talk about the main changes that will occur after adding 3 Rocs to the army.
1. Breaking ranged squads.
Halflings in numbers of 20-49 are broken without losses.
Battle with centaurs. Pigs should be given to the second hero, after which a battle with 20-49 centaurs is likely conducted without losses.
Orcs. 10-19 without losses, 20-49 may resist but will be broken (replace the most "wounded" birds with pigs, then rotate birds based on remaining health).
Non-upgraded shooters. Give pigs to the second hero (there is a possibility of an upgraded stack). 10-19 without losses, 20-49 are broken, but losses are possible (Stone Skin must be used clearly and birds rotated based on remaining health).
Upgraded orcs. 10-19 without losses, 20-49 losses are possible; must not lose the birds (3 pigs are acceptable).
Upgraded shooters. Give pigs to the second hero, further as with non-upgraded.
Elves. This is a lottery. If there's no upgraded stack – give pigs to the second hero and break 10-19 without losses. More can be broken, but losses are possible. But if there is an upgraded stack and we know about it... The ideal option is to find a gargoyle somewhere. If there's no gargoyle and breaking elves with an upgraded stack is absolutely necessary, go with the whole army (including pigs), first move Stone Skin on halfs and mourn their losses after the grand-elves' volley (theoretically if morale hits the pigs in the first round – we can block the grands). 10-19 with an upgraded stack are broken with significant halfling losses; I wouldn't want to push for more yet.
Upgraded elves. Leave 3 halfs (split by 1), maximum pigs and birds. Stone Skin on birds immediately. 10-19 upgraded elves can cause unpleasant losses.
Druids and their upgrade. For acceptable losses in a clash with druids, we need gargoyles.
2. Flyers.
20-49 fairies are broken easily, but carefully. It makes sense to think about the setup halflings-pigs-pigs-1halfling-birds (if terrain is known in advance, a more interesting setup can be made by putting 1 half in the second stack instead of the fourth, but that's risky). Don't forget Stone Skin on birds. Birds will take 3 attacks in the first round, 2 in the second, 1 in the third. In total they will be hit by 24-58 fairies. Considering Stone Skin and hero defense, we will have 11 defense. Fairies have 4 attacks, so 24-58 fairies will deal 16..31 – 38..75 damage, however we might have morale during this time, and the hero may have already raised defense by the time birds appear. However, most likely 1 bird will die.
Gargoyles are broken by "Qwerty's method," but they have very high defense and more than 10-19 cannot be broken.
Griffins. These guys retaliate to everyone indiscriminately. They have 6 attack and defense. 3-5 damage and 25 health. Unless absolutely necessary, do not attack 10-19 griffins. Primarily this is because we need 3 birds to break shooters (to block everyone), and after a battle with 10-19 griffins there will be fewer of them. Unfortunately tactical tricks (placing a Roc next to pigs so that pigs take the retaliation while Rocs hit unopposed) also don't work here – griffins retaliate an unlimited number of times. Real loss minimization is in using their two-cell nature, but here we need the monsters not preoccupied with the Roc to not break the pig barrier and reach the halfs.
Rocs. 40 health is no joke. Of course, 5-9 Rocs, considering their two-cell nature, are broken, but losses are quite likely.
Vampires. A very unpleasant option. 3 Rocs don't even take down 1 vampire, and they have no retaliation. Let's consider a battle with 5-9 vampires without an upgraded stack (if there is an upgraded stack – it will be a total disaster). Setup: 15 halfs-half-1 pig-4 pigs-3 Rocs. The setup is very risky; a much more stable option is halfs-pigs-pigs-half-Rocs, but we'll consider the "under save" battle option now. Against us let's say 2-2-2-1-1. Stone Skin on birds. Cover halfs with pigs (1 pig on top). 2 vamps kill a half. Birds fly to this vamp and attack it, dealing 20 damage. Vamp retaliates, takes out 9-10 halflings, then other vamps move, taking another 29 halflings let's say. Halflings shoot, take out 24 own units. In the second round Stone Skin on 4 pigs, they hit the nearest squad (which halflings shot before) and kill 1 vamp. The rest is obvious. In this round after the first strike 1 bird dies (it could have died earlier), in the third round (don't forget to cast Stone Skin on birds during the pig turn) another one. After the third round we will have 1 bird left, and we'll have killed about 4 vamps in that time. If the battle lasts another 3 rounds – our losses will be all three birds, 1-2 pigs and a halfling. This is sad. And if there are 2 upgraded among these vamps - it could even be fatal (1 vamp lord in melee defeats ALL our halflings, so you'll have to shoot him for the first 4 rounds; meanwhile the other 6 will take two birds). Of course, if the hero has leveled up a bit, everything can go much better, but 2 Rocs likely perish.
3. Infantry
Here the presence of 40-health Rocs, who have 11 defense considering the hero and Stone Skin, allows "tanking," i.e., holding 1-2 squads in place by absorbing hits. This allows halfs to make more shots. We will not stop in more detail on fighting infantry today.
4. Village.
Native. Setup: 15 halfs-pig-pigs-Rocs-1half. A village without mages with a reasonable amount of guards is taken with the loss of 1 half (birds fly at him in the first round).
Knightly. Setup: 16 halfs-pigs-bird-bird-bird. Put different birds under attack, shoot down shooters.
Barbarian. Setup: 15 halfs-pig-pigs-birds-1 half. Cover halfs with pigs. Goblins move to our birds. Birds block orcs. Depending on the situation in the first round, shoot either at orcs or goblins or even wolves. In the second round wolves eat 1 half and we all (or almost all) pile onto them.
Sorceress's. Setup: 15 halfs-pig-pigs-birds-1 half. Pigs cover halfs, fairies fly to 1 half, our birds act before elves. After killing the elves, deal with fairies, and shoot the dwarves.
Necromancer's. The problem here is only vampires. If skeletons stand to the left of vampires, you can try a setup of half-half-pig-birds-half, but there must be enough halfs. It is also necessary to remember the quite heavy strike of skeletons.
Warlock's. This is a problem. "Qwerty's method" must be applied here, but it's not simple. Minotaurs have a very strong strike; moreover, we can only have one pig stack so that our bird goes before centaurs.
5. Castle.
With castles, on one hand everything is simpler, on the other – harder. What castle can we storm with first-week troops? Probably those without towers and other super-fortifications. On the other hand, a castle will bring us at least 1000 gold per day and we can specifically buy troops for the same purpose of storming. We can buy them in structures on the terrain, castles, and villages. Now it's necessary to remember the low health of halfs – after all, they are who the central castle tower will shoot at. And you can't block it with birds.
To storm a castle we need:
-) have enough halflings, considering the penalty when shooting through a wall;
-) it would be good to have secondary skills in Archery and Ballistics;
-) it would be good to pump up power parameters;
-) it would be good to slightly expand the magic repertoire.
To start, let's try to figure out which troops could strengthen us for storming castles.
Of course, gargoyles (apparently I just need to write a separate material dedicated to this unit sometime), but not as a strike force, but as one of the tactical elements. Next: any shooters (the main thing is that morale remains at the proper level), for example orcs or knightly shooters themselves. Flyers, for example, fairies. Against castles of sorceresses and warlocks, as well as, in case of having level 4 – wizards and necromancers, dwarves would be suitable (or native golems, though there would be too few of them).
The following difficulties await us compared to a village:
-) in the absence of an artifact or archery skill – penalty when shooting through walls;
-) constant damage to ranged squads from castle structures;
-) hindered participation of pigs in the fight.
However, we also have certain pluses, the main one being the lengthening of the path of strong enemy infantry to our shooters and possible "dosing" of collisions (for example, on a bridge).
In general, storming castles will be similar to taking villages, only in the first round we cannot afford Stone Skin on birds, as we will need to cast it on shooters.
"Here and Now"
or
Playing from Day One.
So, we have considered the main tactical techniques when playing for a Wizard's castle in the first week.
The main thing is to start playing not from the moment titans appear, but from the beginning of the game. A lot can already be done with existing troops, and due to earlier breaking of key objects, opportunities for faster development, map exploration, building, and ultimately a more convincing game result will open up. Solving difficult tasks will bring great pleasure, and I wish you joy from the magnificent strategy – Heroes of Might and Magic 2.
Qwerty, 21.02.2011.
or
Game Mechanics in the First Week.
So, the priority targets for capture have been determined. It is also clear that regardless of the strategy, we will need several heroes.
Let's begin. Leave 1 pig with the starting hero; send the rest to the castle. Exit the castle, grab the chests (take gold from them, as we need to buy heroes and build troops) and piles of gold. Buy a second hero, have them take the army stationed in the castle, and move forward. It is highly desirable to build at least something, even just a well.
Fight the first battles. We will stop on this aspect in more detail.
So, our hero is a Wizard (0-1-2-2, Stone Skin). Let's say our troops are 5 pigs and 16 halflings. Let's consider possible opponents and determine if we can defeat them, how, and with what approximate losses. To do this, first calculate the maximum ranged damage the halflings can deal (Energizer's method). 16*(1…3)=16…48, multiply by 12 shots, resulting in 192-576 against creatures with defense 2. On average, let's take 380. For this to happen, the pigs must hold out for 12 rounds (for this, we have Stone Skin and the possible sacrifice of 2 pigs).
Now let's deal with possible opponents.
Peasants. Up to 249 – easy. You can actually break through up to 500 peasants – just remember about morale.
Goblins. 20-49 are broken easily. We will take out one squad of goblins per round, so there should be no problems here. 50-99 goblins is already a serious problem. The thing is, goblins can engage the pigs as early as the second round. Let's assume this squad has already been shot by halflings in round 1. Let's try to model the battle slightly. We have 16 halflings-1 pig-1 pig-1 pig-2 pigs, against us are 16 goblins * 5. Halflings take out about 11 goblins per shot. It turns out we just need to push back 1-2 goblin squads by sacrificing 2 pigs. Stone Skin must be used extremely precisely here. 16 goblins deal 14-29 damage to a pig, but if the pig is under Stone Skin, the damage is reduced to 12-24. If we put pigs against squads already shot down to 5 units, it turns out a pig under Stone Skin can withstand 2 attacks, and maybe even 3. Thus, in case of acute necessity, you can attack; you just need to be prepared for losses.
Halflings. It is preferable not to break them. Either break them with the help of gargoyles or fairies from the second hero. If that's impossible, consider the following option. Leave 3 halflings split one by one; move forward with pigs split into two squads. Thus, we will take 3 shots at the pigs: 2 in the first round and 1 in the second (in the best case for us). With an army of 3 halflings and 5 pigs, we can break 10-19 halflings at best, and there may be pig losses.
Centaurs. Same situation as with halflings. Only worse. 16 centaurs have 80 health, and it takes 15 hits from a pig to kill them. Moreover, centaurs have 3 attacks, and one blocked centaur will still deal 1 damage to a pig under Stone Skin. 2 pigs take down 3 centaurs in melee in 3 hits, while the remaining stack of centaurs shoots all this time. Apparently, this battle is only possible with the involvement of most halflings. However, even against halflings with Stone Skin, 16 centaurs will deal 15-30 damage (which kills 5-10 halflings), and they move first. This means a different tactic must be chosen: take all halflings, pigs in 4 squads, then the pigs block while the remaining halflings shoot. Almost the entire army will perish. If there are 3 gargoyles from a Warlock – there's a chance to play without losses or almost without losses.
Fairies. 10-19 without problems. Setup: halfs – 4 squads of pigs. Pigs cover the halfs, then shoot them down. Maximum 1-2 pigs will die. But 20-49 won't be that simple – unopposed fairies in the first round will kill 1-2 pigs depending on the number, and by maximum the third round our shooters will be blocked. Such battles can be conducted "under save," knowing the number of fairies in advance and trying to counter this with, for example, a detachment of 1 halfling on the right flank, or even adopting a setup of 14 halfs-2 pigs–3 pigs–half-half so that in the first round 2 fairy squads hit single halflings. And the top pig was covered by Stone Skin. Fairies have 4 attacks, which is unpleasant, and a strike by 8 fairies deals 8-16 damage to a pig, or 7-14 with Stone Skin. This means from the first two attacks in the first round, the pig will likely die, after which the third squad has a chance to take out another pig. Halfs shoot one squad. We cover the second squad of pigs. Then with two hits they'll take 1 pig and fairies will enter close contact with halfs, which must not be allowed. Thus, with this number of pigs, it is better not to attack 20-49 fairies.
Skeletons. 10-19 are naturally taken out. Just don't be surprised if 6 skeletons take down a pig. But with 20-49 skeletons, the situation is complicated. On one hand, skeletons have no morale, which makes fighting them quite predictable. On the other hand, they have 4 attacks, 3 defense, and 2-3 damage. Our 16 halfs will take 15-30 health from skeletons per round, which corresponds to 4-7 skeletons. But a skeleton squad of 8 will almost certainly take down a pig even under Stone Skin. It's easy to see that by the 4th round there will be no pigs left. And there will still be about 12-15 skeletons. In the sixth round, our halfling squad will fight in melee with 6-9 skeletons. And that means defeat.
Non-upgraded zombies. Non-upgraded zombies have only 2 defense (though upgraded ones do too). Which, combined with very slow speed and lack of morale, is pleasing. Here we use our calculations. We can shoot down 13-38 units. On average, let's take 19-31. This means we can easily attack 10-19 zombies (even if there is an upgraded stack among them), but attacking 20-49 without knowing their exact number is not yet possible. More halflings are needed. By the way, one can calculate how many halflings are needed to attack 20-49 zombies. For this, we calculate the possible amount of zombie health (735 without an upgraded stack, 785 with an upgraded stack of 10 zombies), divide by 12 shots = 65, and divide by average halfling damage – 2. That is, having 33 halflings with at least 4 pigs, we can risk attacking 20-49 non-upgraded zombies. Halflings can be taken from an external dwelling on the terrain – "burrows".
Upgraded zombies. Only 10-19. They also have 2 defense, but 20 health, and average speed (4).
Non-upgraded dwarves. These are serious guys. They have both 20 health and 5 defense. Suppose there are 10-19 of them. Halfs will deal 163-489 damage. This is 8-24 non-upgraded dwarves (and maybe an upgraded stack!). On average 12-20. And they will reach us; no later than the 5th round they'll say "here we are." And there will be about 8 of them in the fifth round. And they might get a morale boost. They have 6 attack and 2-4 damage. If absolutely necessary, you can risk it, but remember: if Stone Skin runs out, a squad of 3 dwarves will deal 9-18 damage to halflings, knocking out 4-5 units with each hit...
Upgraded dwarves. Two problems compared to non-upgraded ones. First is average speed (4), which allows them to make contact no later than the 3rd round (plus they move before halflings shoot) and 6 defense. Against 6 defense, halflings will deal 153-460 damage, which equals 8-23 upgraded dwarves. It's clear that 5-9 upgraded dwarves are killed quite simply, but 10-19 will likely emerge victorious...
Gargoyles. Do not attack. We cannot protect our shooters from a gargoyle attack without Haste magic. If there is a Necromancer hero, then they can actually attack: first move Haste on the second pig stack, the first covers from above, the second from the side. But only 5-9; gargoyles have 7 defense.
Although, honestly, a way to break 5-9 gargoyles with the existing army also exists for a Wizard hero. I will not describe it in this material; I hope readers experiment themselves and find "Qwerty's method".
Pigs. Fairly easy opponents. They don't deal too much damage, and they only have 15 health. For evaluation, calculate how long our 5 pigs can hold out. Cover them with Stone Skin. Then a squad of 3 pigs will deal 5-10 damage to our pigs. That is, in 2-3 rounds they'll take down a pig. But pigs are two-cell creatures and most likely each of our squads will attack only 2 opponent squads. Halfs will take out three pigs with two shots. We should strive for the following setup: squads of 1 pig attack us, while a squad of 3 pigs stands and waits its turn. I believe that if the first squad of enemy pigs doesn't get morale in the first round, we can successfully take out 10-19 pigs.
Non-upgraded shooters and non-upgraded orcs. These battles are quite unpleasant for us. Because untimely morale can lead to a loss, because after this battle we might have no troops left for further conquests. It is highly desirable to involve either gargoyles or fairies, or wait for Rocs. The loss minimization method I mentioned above does not work, as pigs alone cannot handle shooters (given the numbers). Usually, two setup options are used: all halfs – 4 pig squads, or some halfs – 3 pig squads – some halfs. Accordingly, in the first round, Stone Skin on the top stack and everyone forward. The idea is to block all shooters in the second round and then shoot them down. However, morale or the appearance of an upgraded stack could lead to having almost nothing left to shoot with...
Artifact guardians – single units of the sixth level.
Against titans, any dragons, phoenixes there are no chances. Let's consider the remaining options.
Paladin. A paladin has 50 health and 12 defense. Our halflings will deal 8-24 damage per round. This means we just need to hold out for 4 rounds. There are absolutely no problems with this; depending on terrain and morale, losses will be from 1 to 3 pigs.
Crusader. This task is more serious. Here it's 65 health with 12 defense. We need to stand for 5 rounds, while starting from the second round the crusader will move first. Setup: 4 squads of 1 pig, halfs at the bottom. First pig moves (not into attack, of course), crusader moves forward. Second pig goes as far as possible, standing in the top row as far as it can (tactical "luring" technique by Qwerty). Third and fourth pigs make the half inaccessible, trying to stay close to the crusader. Second round. Crusader hits the top squad, pig moves forward (striving for the upper right corner), other pigs provide support. Third round. Crusader kills the pig that was moving toward the upper corner in the previous round. Pigs move out of the crusader's strike zone. Fourth round. Crusader doesn't reach anyone. Here are 2 options for the pigs. The most reliable is to stand with pigs so that in the fifth round the crusader hits one, while another is nearby, and halfs are far away. Fifth round – crusader kills a pig – victory with loss of 3 pigs. The battle is not simple, but with a little practice it's like clockwork.
Cyclops. 80 health with 9 defense, but has a double strike. Our halfs will deal 10-31 damage per round, so we need to hold out for 5 rounds. Act according to the usual algorithm, just remember that we must not place pigs such that the cyclops kills two at once and in the 5th round pigs should not be in front of halflings, otherwise the cyclops might "blow through" them. Since the cyclops' speed is 5 and our pigs' is 6, everything is relatively simple.
Giant. 150 health with 10 defense. Halfs deal 10-29 damage per round, so we will need 8 rounds and endurance. Act according to the usual algorithm; in even rounds, feed a pig to the giant, sending it back. Everything should work out.
Djinn. This is the hardest task. A djinn has only 50 health with 9 defense. Per round halfs will deal 10-31 damage, so in the third round we can celebrate victory. This is achievable with 16 halflings and 5 pigs. I hope readers find "Qwerty's method" themselves.
So, we have considered the main battle options with an army of 16 halflings and 5 pigs for a first-level Wizard hero with 20 mana.
Now let's briefly talk about the main changes that will occur after adding 3 Rocs to the army.
1. Breaking ranged squads.
Halflings in numbers of 20-49 are broken without losses.
Battle with centaurs. Pigs should be given to the second hero, after which a battle with 20-49 centaurs is likely conducted without losses.
Orcs. 10-19 without losses, 20-49 may resist but will be broken (replace the most "wounded" birds with pigs, then rotate birds based on remaining health).
Non-upgraded shooters. Give pigs to the second hero (there is a possibility of an upgraded stack). 10-19 without losses, 20-49 are broken, but losses are possible (Stone Skin must be used clearly and birds rotated based on remaining health).
Upgraded orcs. 10-19 without losses, 20-49 losses are possible; must not lose the birds (3 pigs are acceptable).
Upgraded shooters. Give pigs to the second hero, further as with non-upgraded.
Elves. This is a lottery. If there's no upgraded stack – give pigs to the second hero and break 10-19 without losses. More can be broken, but losses are possible. But if there is an upgraded stack and we know about it... The ideal option is to find a gargoyle somewhere. If there's no gargoyle and breaking elves with an upgraded stack is absolutely necessary, go with the whole army (including pigs), first move Stone Skin on halfs and mourn their losses after the grand-elves' volley (theoretically if morale hits the pigs in the first round – we can block the grands). 10-19 with an upgraded stack are broken with significant halfling losses; I wouldn't want to push for more yet.
Upgraded elves. Leave 3 halfs (split by 1), maximum pigs and birds. Stone Skin on birds immediately. 10-19 upgraded elves can cause unpleasant losses.
Druids and their upgrade. For acceptable losses in a clash with druids, we need gargoyles.
2. Flyers.
20-49 fairies are broken easily, but carefully. It makes sense to think about the setup halflings-pigs-pigs-1halfling-birds (if terrain is known in advance, a more interesting setup can be made by putting 1 half in the second stack instead of the fourth, but that's risky). Don't forget Stone Skin on birds. Birds will take 3 attacks in the first round, 2 in the second, 1 in the third. In total they will be hit by 24-58 fairies. Considering Stone Skin and hero defense, we will have 11 defense. Fairies have 4 attacks, so 24-58 fairies will deal 16..31 – 38..75 damage, however we might have morale during this time, and the hero may have already raised defense by the time birds appear. However, most likely 1 bird will die.
Gargoyles are broken by "Qwerty's method," but they have very high defense and more than 10-19 cannot be broken.
Griffins. These guys retaliate to everyone indiscriminately. They have 6 attack and defense. 3-5 damage and 25 health. Unless absolutely necessary, do not attack 10-19 griffins. Primarily this is because we need 3 birds to break shooters (to block everyone), and after a battle with 10-19 griffins there will be fewer of them. Unfortunately tactical tricks (placing a Roc next to pigs so that pigs take the retaliation while Rocs hit unopposed) also don't work here – griffins retaliate an unlimited number of times. Real loss minimization is in using their two-cell nature, but here we need the monsters not preoccupied with the Roc to not break the pig barrier and reach the halfs.
Rocs. 40 health is no joke. Of course, 5-9 Rocs, considering their two-cell nature, are broken, but losses are quite likely.
Vampires. A very unpleasant option. 3 Rocs don't even take down 1 vampire, and they have no retaliation. Let's consider a battle with 5-9 vampires without an upgraded stack (if there is an upgraded stack – it will be a total disaster). Setup: 15 halfs-half-1 pig-4 pigs-3 Rocs. The setup is very risky; a much more stable option is halfs-pigs-pigs-half-Rocs, but we'll consider the "under save" battle option now. Against us let's say 2-2-2-1-1. Stone Skin on birds. Cover halfs with pigs (1 pig on top). 2 vamps kill a half. Birds fly to this vamp and attack it, dealing 20 damage. Vamp retaliates, takes out 9-10 halflings, then other vamps move, taking another 29 halflings let's say. Halflings shoot, take out 24 own units. In the second round Stone Skin on 4 pigs, they hit the nearest squad (which halflings shot before) and kill 1 vamp. The rest is obvious. In this round after the first strike 1 bird dies (it could have died earlier), in the third round (don't forget to cast Stone Skin on birds during the pig turn) another one. After the third round we will have 1 bird left, and we'll have killed about 4 vamps in that time. If the battle lasts another 3 rounds – our losses will be all three birds, 1-2 pigs and a halfling. This is sad. And if there are 2 upgraded among these vamps - it could even be fatal (1 vamp lord in melee defeats ALL our halflings, so you'll have to shoot him for the first 4 rounds; meanwhile the other 6 will take two birds). Of course, if the hero has leveled up a bit, everything can go much better, but 2 Rocs likely perish.
3. Infantry
Here the presence of 40-health Rocs, who have 11 defense considering the hero and Stone Skin, allows "tanking," i.e., holding 1-2 squads in place by absorbing hits. This allows halfs to make more shots. We will not stop in more detail on fighting infantry today.
4. Village.
Native. Setup: 15 halfs-pig-pigs-Rocs-1half. A village without mages with a reasonable amount of guards is taken with the loss of 1 half (birds fly at him in the first round).
Knightly. Setup: 16 halfs-pigs-bird-bird-bird. Put different birds under attack, shoot down shooters.
Barbarian. Setup: 15 halfs-pig-pigs-birds-1 half. Cover halfs with pigs. Goblins move to our birds. Birds block orcs. Depending on the situation in the first round, shoot either at orcs or goblins or even wolves. In the second round wolves eat 1 half and we all (or almost all) pile onto them.
Sorceress's. Setup: 15 halfs-pig-pigs-birds-1 half. Pigs cover halfs, fairies fly to 1 half, our birds act before elves. After killing the elves, deal with fairies, and shoot the dwarves.
Necromancer's. The problem here is only vampires. If skeletons stand to the left of vampires, you can try a setup of half-half-pig-birds-half, but there must be enough halfs. It is also necessary to remember the quite heavy strike of skeletons.
Warlock's. This is a problem. "Qwerty's method" must be applied here, but it's not simple. Minotaurs have a very strong strike; moreover, we can only have one pig stack so that our bird goes before centaurs.
5. Castle.
With castles, on one hand everything is simpler, on the other – harder. What castle can we storm with first-week troops? Probably those without towers and other super-fortifications. On the other hand, a castle will bring us at least 1000 gold per day and we can specifically buy troops for the same purpose of storming. We can buy them in structures on the terrain, castles, and villages. Now it's necessary to remember the low health of halfs – after all, they are who the central castle tower will shoot at. And you can't block it with birds.
To storm a castle we need:
-) have enough halflings, considering the penalty when shooting through a wall;
-) it would be good to have secondary skills in Archery and Ballistics;
-) it would be good to pump up power parameters;
-) it would be good to slightly expand the magic repertoire.
To start, let's try to figure out which troops could strengthen us for storming castles.
Of course, gargoyles (apparently I just need to write a separate material dedicated to this unit sometime), but not as a strike force, but as one of the tactical elements. Next: any shooters (the main thing is that morale remains at the proper level), for example orcs or knightly shooters themselves. Flyers, for example, fairies. Against castles of sorceresses and warlocks, as well as, in case of having level 4 – wizards and necromancers, dwarves would be suitable (or native golems, though there would be too few of them).
The following difficulties await us compared to a village:
-) in the absence of an artifact or archery skill – penalty when shooting through walls;
-) constant damage to ranged squads from castle structures;
-) hindered participation of pigs in the fight.
However, we also have certain pluses, the main one being the lengthening of the path of strong enemy infantry to our shooters and possible "dosing" of collisions (for example, on a bridge).
In general, storming castles will be similar to taking villages, only in the first round we cannot afford Stone Skin on birds, as we will need to cast it on shooters.
"Here and Now"
or
Playing from Day One.
So, we have considered the main tactical techniques when playing for a Wizard's castle in the first week.
The main thing is to start playing not from the moment titans appear, but from the beginning of the game. A lot can already be done with existing troops, and due to earlier breaking of key objects, opportunities for faster development, map exploration, building, and ultimately a more convincing game result will open up. Solving difficult tasks will bring great pleasure, and I wish you joy from the magnificent strategy – Heroes of Might and Magic 2.
Qwerty, 21.02.2011.
Орден Феникса – харизматический :) лидер