I have a question about the beginning of the Dungeon. How can I defeat Helmar, who has the same stats as Varens and an army that far surpasses Varens' army? Is it him who meets me at the entrance to the Dungeon?
Option 1 - only with good magic, which Varens has no way to obtain. I didn't offer him random magic, by the way...
Option 2 - if you take the first town and meet the Dwarf in it. But this requires luck.
Option 3 - cheat.
I played on Recruit difficulty and didn't drag out the time: Varens started his journey into the Dungeon before the month allotted for the siege was over. Logistics and boots were present.
I can agree that I am a weak player, but I don't believe in miracles...
By the way, judging by the forum, the number of people who have completed the map and those who haven't is approximately the same...

My Varens didn't have much magic either. But certain knowledge helped him get out of battles without losses. Empathy + Prayer + Regeneration actively affected all units. Fortunately, Varens had extremely high Leadership, and he moved faster than any mage, with developed Spellcasting. Storm Wind prevented flying creatures from getting too close. The tactic of the first turns of ranged combat worked well. Archers + Adepts + the joined Monks silenced the enemy archers and strong units. Then, the Knights and Seraphs attacked the stunned enemies. And the Adepts (sometimes the Seraphs) cast Punishing Strike on them. With a shortage of troops and spells, each battle was fought with a well-thought-out tactic, taking into account all the features of his troops and the enemy's troops. And this is no longer an ordinary "meat grinder". If at least one warrior died in battle, the battle was replayed. It could have been avoided, but there was no confidence that more troops could be hired. Therefore, reaching the transformable dwellings, I was incredibly happy. Yes, and the studied dark magic came in handy. "Fallen Knight" + "Light and Darkness" turned Varens into a decent spellcaster. By a miracle, I received Slow and Weakness from random spells before reaching the Dungeon. And in the first town, I also got Haste. And when I found the Tome of Darkness, life seemed like paradise :) but not until I met the Guardian. There, after the first three replayed battles, I needed corvalol and valerian :) And cheats, cheats don't give you complete satisfaction from the game in the end. The map is designed for a game with full use of the brain, all the skills and knowledge in this game.
Perhaps the author should make two versions: Hard and Light:rolleyes: Then the game will be comfortable for players of all levels. Good luck to everyone!)