"only XL-3"

We started without any bargaining; both players liked the random castles, although the description in the lobby was a bit off. So, the choice – play or suffer in poverty, or play as an underling – didn't spoil the mood.
Initially, the distribution was very good: a hidden lair with Vivs, Basilisks, 2 Lizards, Gnolls, and a Hive. I successfully squandered this bonus in a pre-max Nagash castle on day 122 (I forgot to combine my forces). I could have defended with a chain of units, but I decided to show off with a level 5 Tazaar.
Everything else was bad. The only road, after 5 days and 4 zones, led to a small town in zone 18 (+ a Hive). Fortunately, due to a generation bug, I was able to reach the center (33) on day 124, took a Hive there for 56 Monks, and almost lost all my accumulated resources in the process. By day 133, I scouted and crawled along a penalty road to another network of roads, took a village in zone 19, a 4th Hive, and a Companion 7. This is where the network ended. Again, I ran through 2 zones off-road, arrived on day 142 in a village in zone 16, where there was a 5th Hive (at least they weren't all Mini versions... pre-Mini). And a Mega-Utopia with a Castle building on day 144. By this time, I already had a Town Portal from the Guild Master, but Crag didn't have enough Wisdom, and Tazaar didn't have enough Earth, so I somehow managed to develop everything with a slightly experienced Cleric. Then I ran, jumped, and galloped around the previously inaccessible 2 Hives and 3 Utopias, which gave me a Knowledge Skill, +6 to all skills, and a hat. Scouts are collecting an elixir. Along the way, I killed Tazaar with half of his artifacts – I decided to defend against a Companion Mage in his castle under the protection of the Knowledge Skill with archers, but he broke down the wall on the 2nd round with zero Ballistics, and 10 Nags finished them all off. But on day 211, Tazaar found his way home and, with a Town Portal, restored justice. Without DD and TP, it would have been impossible – the roads and villages were located at distances of 4-5 days. Gradually, the forces became equal – I was lucky that my opponent only got a Necromancer on day 13 and didn't use him, and even after taking Inferno on day 115, he didn't start summoning Demons. If there were an additional 3k+ Skeletons and 400 Demons, even Crag with 100 Vivs would have barely been able to defeat that.
Thank you for the game.