Posts from Labyrinth ($$$)

Regarding the overall game tactics. It's important to understand that the hero needs to reach the destination within 5 days. To do this, on the first day, you need to maximize the hero's Logistics skill, visit the stables, equip boots, and give them a creature with 11+ speed. On the second day, equip gloves and upgrade Logistics to Expert. On the third day, after the battle with the Black Dragons, you'll need to move at a speed of 9. On the fourth day, you need to upgrade to level 8 on the treasure chest; otherwise, you won't have enough movement points. That's basically it. The main thing is to get this done, and then you need to combine turn management, economy, and battles into one puzzle. This requires effort, but the problem must be solved; otherwise, you won't be able to complete it in 5 days :D. The following tasks arise on the path to victory:
1. Collect enough gold for a second hero, doing so in a way that Tamara can reach the tent on the 2nd day, while also collecting sulfur and leaving the army in the castle. I also wanted to buy a Fly for faster movement, but it didn't work out.
2. Recruit the Lizardmen. You need to buy a Fly and 2 Gnolls.
3. Obtain boots with fast heroes.
4. Find 2 Mercury and 2 Sulfur to upgrade the Serpents, without losing momentum.
5. To upgrade Gunnarr's Logistics, you shouldn't take the middle treasure chest under the castle; otherwise, he won't make it in time.
6. Don't take the Earth book, as there isn't enough time.
7. Collect money to upgrade the Sharpshooters; this is an expensive endeavor.
8. Gather skeletons for the battle with the Black Dragons, as there is no other "meat" available.
9. Develop Diplomats to recruit the Air Elementals.
10. Plan key battles:

Battle with the Red Dragons

Initially, 6 Lizardmen are separated so that after a wait, they can be sacrificed, thereby forcing 5 Dragons under the attack of 2 Inferno creatures. In the second round, the Black Dragon flies away and attacks the Lizardmen, taking damage from the Sharpshooters. GG. The main thing is to save the Skeletons and Sharpshooters.

Battles with the first Minotaurs and Gray Bears

There's nothing complicated here. Luna simply burns them. You don't need to conserve mana for the Minotaurs, as there will be a fountain afterward. The Bears can be defeated with 2 walls, as usual. Within 5 days, Luna should be able to visit the red tent.

Battle with the Black Dragons

It's simple here. Just position your units as shown in the screenshot. Simply hold off the single Dragons with Air Elementals and eliminate the double Dragons with Sharpshooters. You need to avoid morale penalties and ideally get lucky to save Sharpshooters, although you can do without it. After the battle, everyone except the Sharpshooters is dismissed.

The battle with the Ghost Dragons and the second Minotaurs is not difficult, as you no longer need to conserve the Sharpshooters. Somewhere in parallel, you need to prepare 2 Expert Logistics heroes with stables, but these are minor details. The main thing is to play well on days 1 and 2 and believe in your abilities :)

Tolikandro
Can you upload your daily saves?

Here are my daily saves: http://zalil.ru/33944738

I wrote the walkthrough. If you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer them. :)

I wrote a walkthrough. If you have any questions, I'll be happy to answer them. :)

A VERY strong game! It's clear that everyone was scared of you))) that's why they couldn't gather a quorum)))

When I started analyzing the map, I didn't even imagine that it was possible to finish it in 5 days)))
Too many things didn't add up! There wasn't enough money to build a chain of heroes and give boots to Gunar on the first day, plus build harpies!
There weren't enough troops to break through the red dragons.
And you managed to do it! Super level) we'll learn from you! :smile16:

I didn't quite understand what Bryssa's function was. Or is Air not relevant here? Was it just a random horse?:)

I needed a fast hero for the battle with the lizards. Ciel had 1630 movement points, and Bryssa had 1760, while the others had less or the same. Bryssa has the "Haste" specialty, which was very helpful in the battle with the lizards, because the skeletons rushed in during the second round and finished them all off. And take a look at the saves. There's a lot to learn there too. With a loss of 1 day, everything happens with maximum reliability and without any stress at all.

What does Eagle Eye give? Is it possible to use it to learn 5th level spells from the enemy? Can you learn Dimension Door and Town Portal this way?

Eagle Eye allows you to learn only combat spells. DD and TP are spatial spells, so Eagle Eye does not apply to them.

How exactly do you determine how many rounds the enemy will be stuck under Blind? I looked at the formula, but I don't understand it. Say the Hero's Spell Power is 5 or 10, how long will he be idle?

if you cast the spell, it depends on the amount of Spell Power + artifacts that increase spell duration; if Unicorns or Basilisks cast it, it's 3 rounds. So if your Spell Power is 2 and you have no artifacts that increase spell duration, then Blind or Haste, Slow, etc. will last 2 rounds, and if your Spell Power is 99, then accordingly 99 rounds.

Questions and thoughts:

1. Did 12 Gnolls defeat 14 Archer Medusas with the help of Inferno?
Yes, there are 2 shots, and 1 archer.

5. Did Luna defeat a wall of Gnomes and Knights? :) I didn't know. And Giants and Nagas too :). Well, she's powerful :).
Yes, Luna is such a beast... Dirty made it even better.

6. Why did Brissa enter the Medusa warehouses?
To escape with the artifact, deliver it that day, and visit the Seer as Tamara.

7. Does logistics level 1, and even 2 and 3, immediately increase for Iona, Rashka, Gundula, Yanov, and a couple of others? Is this common?
It's common; you need logistics to reach certain things.

8. How did Pyra reach the Red City? I tried everything. She doesn't have enough movement points.
You level up Expert Logistics, remove it, buy it... run and take another +400 movement points flag or something. It's enough.

9. Why did Saira pick up the artifact on Eagle Eye? What did it give her? Or was it for the Altar of Sacrifice? Tamara exchanged artifacts for 100,000 experience points there.
Impressive :).
The more artifacts, the more experience.
10. By the way, how did you defeat approximately 100 Minotaurs with approximately 35 Minotaurs (I don't remember the exact numbers)?
Wait for your turn, attack - morale, retreat, cover... it's a tactic.

It's still not clear about Pyre. What does it mean to remove her?

Dismissing a hero at the end of the day so that you can hire them again in the desired city the next day with a full stock of movement points.

2. Then, in one battle against Pyra, she always escapes, even though 1 or 2 of her stacks are affected by Blind. What could be the reason? Inferno has great initiative. But how can she escape while under Blind? It's unclear.

Pyra has the Artillery specialization. If she's advanced or expert, she can escape during the ballista turn, even if her troops are under Blind. Destroy the ballista, and she won't be able to escape.
The same thing happens if she has the Healing skill and a healing tent (I don't remember the correct name).

3. Which mage is best to play with if you have the Titan's Cuirass? K'sIron, Aislinn, Deemer, or someone else?

It all depends on your preferences; play with the one you like the most, as each of them is stronger than the others in different situations.

When I started analyzing the map, I didn't even think it was possible to complete it in 5 days.
Too many things didn't add up! There wasn't enough money to build a chain of heroes and give boots to Gunnar on the first day, plus build dragonflies!
There weren't enough troops to break through the red dragons.

There are 2 fundamentally different approaches to completing official maps.

1. Consider any goal impossible until it is discovered to be possible.
2. Play with the conviction that any, even the most unthinkable goal, is achievable and possible, until you personally receive 100% proof of its impossibility.

Most players use the first approach, and only a few use the second. Because playing with mindset #2 requires a complete overhaul of your thinking.
It seems that one would have to be an idiot to spend day after day trying to solve an obviously absurd problem. However, it is these "abnormal" people who become Gods of offline play.

What is the strength of mindset #2?
The point is that many years of experience in the Heroes universe proves that, with 100 or 1000 attempts, but in most cases, it is still possible to find a solution to the most hopeless tasks, at first glance. However, such a solution is possible only when playing according to scheme #2.
And all other players, it turns out, are on a different train that simply doesn't pass through this station.

There are two fundamentally different approaches to completing an official map.

1. Consider a goal impossible until you discover that it is, in fact, possible.
2. Play with the conviction that any, even the most unimaginable goal, is achievable and possible, until you personally obtain 100% proof of its impossibility.

Most players follow the first approach, while only a few follow the second. Because playing with mindset #2 requires a complete overhaul of your thinking.
It seems that one would have to be an idiot to spend day after day trying to solve an obviously absurd problem. However, it is precisely these "unconventional" players who become the Gods of offline play.

What is the power of mindset #2?
The point is that years of experience in the world of Heroes prove that, with 100 or 1000 attempts, but in most cases, it is still possible to find a solution to the most hopeless tasks at first glance. However, such a solution is possible only when playing according to scheme #2.
And all other players, it turns out, are on a different train that simply doesn't stop at this station.

I forgot to mention option #3.
Not enough brainpower!
I really didn't have enough brainpower. When I was testing, I was able to complete the cheat playthrough in 6 days, and even then, I had to clear the path a bit. I didn't take into account the factors that speed things up on the first day. - so, to create a plan, I need some input

I forgot to mention option #3.
Not enough brainpower!

I wasn't talking about options, but about general (psychological) attitudes.
I was considering not the "processor power," but its settings. Properly configured settings are sometimes much more important than power.

when I checked, I was able to complete the cheat passage in 6 days, and even then, after clearing the path a bit.

"I don't see how to get there in 5 days, so it's impossible. Why should I waste time studying impossible options? That's stupid."
This is exactly the kind of logic that is normal. This is the kind of "mental" setting that most people play with, including you.
And this is exactly what "Setting #1" is, as a result of which you boarded the train that is guaranteed not to pass through the "5 days" station.

But there are eccentrics whose settings are different. And they don't think "stronger," they just think differently.
"I don't see how to get through it in 5 days. So what? It's still possible, I just don't see it. So, we'll look, maybe I'll see it later?"
And so, all the "normal" people start developing a "realistic" 6-day plan, while one "abnormal" person engages in nonsense and starts collecting evidence that 5 days is indeed impossible.
And if iceTiTaN suddenly also engaged in nonsense and spent 2 weeks studying the absurd problem of 5 days, it is quite possible that he would make several small discoveries for himself and on the 16th day suddenly realize:
"Holy crap! You can actually do it in 5 days!"

I wasn't writing about options, but about general (psychological) attitudes.
I was considering not the "processor power," but its settings. Properly configured settings are sometimes much more important than power...

Regarding the second option, I would like to add that, in addition to the Can/Cannot settings, there is also the Must setting. Something like an army order: "Complete the mission at any cost," and whether you survive or not is no one's concern. In such a situation, additional mental resources are activated, which find a solution to both eat the fish and... survive. Most people, however, prefer not to strain themselves in their work.

"I don't see how it's possible to reach the destination in 5 days, so it's impossible. Why should I waste time exploring impossible options? That's silly."

I spent about 2 hours examining the map, paying special attention to the "direct route," meaning I drew a straight line showing the path from one castle to the opponent's castle. I didn't have enough turns, and I didn't have the time to check other options because "I just wanted to play." ))) Therefore, whoever thinks better wins – that's undeniable.

Here's how I reasoned. During my first attempt with cheats enabled, Dessa was running, and on day 6 after capturing the castle, she had around 1200 mana points left. I thought that wasn't challenging enough and started planning. After several attempts, I was just a few squares short on day 5. At that moment, I considered that I might have to fight the dragons without the Earth book, but that didn't scare me because I knew I could solve this task. After the hero finally reached the castle (this happened probably on day 3 of scouting!), I moved on to solving other tasks. Even after I knew the hero would reach the castle, I still had thoughts that 5 days were impossible due to a lack of money/heroes/monsters, etc. But later, everything worked out beautifully. I'll also add that this was probably one of my most successful tournaments.