OFB-9

After my 2 restarts at 111, things started rolling. From the start, 5 elves on Kyrre, scouted 2 Griffin Conservatories, then another one — we're playing. In one direction along the road there were several unpleasant blocks of 50-99 archers, 20-49 gremlins, 20-49 orcs, so I decided not to go there for now. Took a couple of crypts, broke through the metro. Then on 112 the blue player appears — I'm shocked... Where did blue come from on a naturals map??? Oh well, I started fighting him — he chased Kyrre into the tavern once, but I wiped out his heroes cleanly. Eventually on around 115 I captured the Citadel, having taken a dungeon village in the cellar on 113 beforehand. It turns out my 2 mines broke the respawn and gave me passages into the starting zones of blue and green. I put horses in the Citadel, almost no money left for buying troops, but the first 2 Griffin Conservatories are minimums, which is both sad (since I wanted more griffins) and acceptable (since with my available finances and subsequent buying on 121 I wouldn't have taken more anyway, and Kyrre would have just stood idle). So I started 121 at the Griffin Conservatory, took both. On 122 another one, and along the chain I capture green. Then I give one angel to Ivor and collect towns like seeds. On 126 Gunya comes running to my place, takes my blue Citadel and spends the night in the metro from my native respawn. Kyrre was at that moment far far away, but managed to break home. Blue has 17+1 gr. gargoyles, 4 cats, 4+4 Evil Eyes, 12 dragons, 1 angel, stats 15 6 2 5(32). I had 16 grand elves, 3 angels, 5 horses, 19 dwarves, 6 wood elves, 32 archer centaurs, 5 pegasi, stats 10 6 3 5(40), oil, shield, blind. The starting tactic doesn't let blue set up under rush, I immediately cast oil and close in. The battle was quite interesting — the opponent hasted the angel, gargoyles, dragons, immediately receiving oil. Then he blinded the gargoyles to test if there's a counter. There was cure. But since I had pegasi, his mana ran out pretty quickly — Gunya conserves the last 11 mana, presumably for haste on the gargoyles. My ballista shoots well. In the end, after about an hour of battle, I leave blue with 4 gargoyles and 4 dragons against my 3 angels, 3 horses, and 3 grand elves. A surrender follows. Since there was no mana left, almost no moves to sit in the castle or otherwise replenish mana, I don't finish them off — there's a dungeon-double with stacked gargoyles. While I'm running, it's exactly 131 and a bunch of gargoyles. I take a stack of Evil Eyes from the former green's dungeon and set up 3 portals. By 131 there were already 60+ Evil Eyes. I go into the treasure zone. I gather nearly 40 dragons, take 2 red stacks from a Pandora's, +2 to speed, collect AotD, missing the ring for the elixir and the Vishnu's Bow for the LB. I take 2 Dragon Utopias with KZ and a few stats. Then we run around. On 4 weeks I put reds in the dungeon, the bot kindly pre-fortified the rampart village which I also start raising. On 211 — plague... A shame, there should already have been over 10 reds. Along the way I build the Mage Guild — no Dimension Door and fly yet. Along the way I level Tamika and make bones, scout heroes captured all the mines they saw in 1.5-2 weeks, but resources are still scarce. I run to another treasure zone towards a revealed Dragon Utopia. Maxi, I take it — finally, almost everything I need: horde, +3 wall, hat 4/4 and hat 5x = full control. The only sadness — somehow Kyrre's skills filled up unnoticed and there was one last empty slot which I guarded like a maiden guards her virginity. But the Dragon Utopia both ruined me and gave a level-up. They give water instead of air, and the training is so-so — there's defense and tactics, also ballistics and water... I hang around in this treasure zone: a couple of Dragon Fly Hives, 2 libraries, a box of 25 Evil Eyes, another Dragon Utopia. There are 2 books: water and air. Almost no stat boosts. I can't assemble my sets — the merchants, both in town and on the road, have nothing I need. I built up economy to the maximum — by the end of the first month the income was 25k, plus another couple of Dragon Utopias and by 21++ a balance of over 100k. I take another Dragon Utopia in another treasure zone — nothing good. I bought Shackles in the merchants on 3 weeks. Scout heroes try to scout the dungeon to occupy it and put reds there on 217. A fierce war rages for the purple Castle, first with purple himself, then with green. In the end I finish off both. On 216 Gunya beats me to capturing castles. Again he first takes the same blue Citadel. From there Gunya occupies 2 more of my towns, in the last seconds takes the money from a scout hero, Town Portals to the Citadel and spends the night at the arena. Well, he got caught. Even though Kyrre had only 19 mana, it was enough to Town Portal home, visit the well, collect the money, place angels and upgrade the drakes. I attack in classic fashion — with AotD under horde and Shackles. Stats are roughly equal: attack around 20, defense around 15. Blue has 41 gr. Evil Eyes, 47 gr. gargoyles, 3 angels, 31 dragons. Kyrre — 51 dragons, 4 angels, 6 blackies, 11 gr. horses, 27 grand elves, 131 gr. Evil Eyes, 15 gr. gargoyles. After casting AotD, Dave admits defeat.

Thanks for the game!