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I've recovered a bit from sleep deprivation and have some time at work, so I'll write up the reports.
Round 1, Antal (blue, Tower, Niels, Millich) +5500 def Evil (Rampart, Kyrre, Kyrre) 123, JC
We chose all restarts, ended up getting a block on the road to GO and the second part of the respawn in the form of a horde of AP lizards (72, I think). 2 external nag dwellings, one just on the other side of the block. Decided not to rush and break through there on day 5.
The respawn turned out poor; on day 7 I took a box with all air magic using Marusya with basic wisdom :)(was still hoping for 15k exp). Neither earth nor even air ever appeared for anyone.
For a long time I couldn't decide who to take as main hero - Marusya with logistics, Müllich, or Niels. In the end, everything converged on Müllich - got tactics, offense, logistics right before GO, +1 speed artifact and his own +2. Took the boots on 117, grabbed the bracers. Collected 2 angels and 4 ducks from the respawn. Actually, there were also only 2 hives in the corners of the respawn and 2 external genie dwellings - nothing special.
Got ready to go on 124 to kill GO from 12 archangels, but the opponent's turn came - he had 2 external horse dwellings, also a blocked respawn, but it didn't work out.
The archangels were killed with the loss of one AP angel out of 14, sacrificing caps and 4 ducks.
Our exits into the center were very close; Roma saw my archangels. He had a choice of green dragons or unupgraded naga.
Added 49 minutes later
Round 2
Antal (blue, Dungeon, Shakhti, Aislin) - 3.600 def Caliban (red, Fortress, Tazar, Tazar) 142, 8mm6a
Andrey immediately chose his restarts; I still had one left.
The respawn looked decent on the surface; immediately saw a lift and the computer was Conflux, a good pair, Shakhti with two stacks + damage controller, Pit Lord with bala, and a Griffin Conservatory in the castle's path.
Decided to play. If not for the Conservatory being non-1, the first week would have been tough tempo-wise. As it turned out, there's no money on the respawn, adjacent zone is swamp, exit to the center through 10-19 Abrog guards protecting a Pandora's Box and an artifact.
In the first three battles, morale triggered for the mobs every time :)
Sent the angels on Asha the Necrotot to the computer, picking up skeletons behind her. With the rest of the army, about 60 Troglodytes and 10 Evil Eyes, I collected what was lying around badly.
Result of the first week - killed the computer, revealed two hives, built lizard houses in the fort, about a hundred skeletons. Found no external dwellings; only the computer had fire elementals, but I didn't spoil the portal yet. The computer's treasure zone - a horde of monks blocking an artifact.
At the start of the second week I gather the hives - 12 Wyverns, take +4 attack/defense knowledge, a scroll of Animate Dead, and on 123 with Pit Lord I break into the center through the Beholders. Turns out there were 19 of them; they almost kill the angel due to blindness - I lose 2 Wyverns, the remnants of Troglodytes, lizards, Evil Eyes, and bala.
On the angel, 10 Wyverns, and 93 skeletons, I'm in the central village. There's a bonus of 35 AP rags from the Pandora's Box; I buy the spell book right there.
Immediately, the opponent's scout appears, kills my scout, and checks my army and Pit Lord. On the next turn, I transfer Aislin to the center and start slowly pushing territory, sending Pit Lord down the second path on the angel to find money and happiness :).
Plan is simple - go for an army trade with meteor in 250+. Along the way, I necro and get another 35 rags from a Pandora's Box, but plain ones this time. After fighting with scout heroes, on 131 I gave my castle to the opponent, who avoided a serious fight.
By that time, Pit Lord on the angel found a turquoise barbarian and took in an epic battle with the angel and bala the boots of speed, and finally found a scroll of Slow (4 castles hadn't given it until then). Not in vain did I burn the timer in that battle. The opponent went through the second central village towards the other computers - Fortress and Tower. He took Fortress, but in the snows, the angel or however many he sent apparently weren't enough - the computer had bought the army from two weeks (10 nagas, 163 caps, 24 mages, 35 golems, etc.), which I then encountered myself when trying to find the opponent.
Overall, the map turned out quite poor in objects and artifacts. In the only minimal Dragon Utopia, I got +3 all stats, and since I already had a morale/luck neck artifact, it was completely useless. The Mage Guild never gave any control magic until the end of the game. The whole struggle was around the swamp village, where it all finally ended. Andrey constantly kept a hero on the move threatening to take it, a couple of times it switched hands; at one point, I brought the army from the opponent's own castle and placed a weak mage with 50 mana inside, and supported him with a second hero on Angel Wings, so that I could remove the threat from the village on the next turn.
Andrey didn't notice I had support and miscalculated his movement, naturally - he portal'd his whole army and attacked with a scout hero - ended up near his own castle with all his power (except skeletons) and artifacts in 1 movement. Then we return the army, defeat the support with expert Slow with doubled mana, and wipe out the entire army (22 Wyverns and 7 angels) with Blind and mass Haste from the Wizards :). By the way, my own treasure zone was tiny, with an external Wizard dwelling, which I eventually portal'd.
Added 35 minutes later
Round 3. Antal (blue, Fortress, Tazar, Tazar) +3000 def Napalm (Conflux, random) 8mm6a, 137 (forfeit)
We chose all restarts.
The respawn was small, but there was a Griffin Conservatory with Grail (for 3 angels). Went straight to the adjacent zone (grass), from there - a one-way portal, entry to the center guarded by 50+ Marksmen, road to the computer, and 2 hives under a horde of Evil Eyes (82) and a crowd of AP Ogres (24). Block to the computer is a horde of elementals guarding a Pandora's Box. Actually, not a single Dungeon castle - the map promised to be lively.
Started raising undead, though there wasn't much to level up on, so Tazar was basically a support for a long time. By the end of the week, found one more hive in the computer's adjacent zone and its treasure zone. And on 117, a turquoise computer also came with a scout through a bugged passage. On 121-122 I shook down the hives (22 Wyverns), took the turquoise hero with a scout with shooting and air elementals from an external dwelling, entered the center on 122 with necromancy - another Pandora's Box guarded by 14 AP magic elementals with 60 Lizardmen; on 123 I took the Conservatory with Taz (offense, earth, and tactics had come by then), killed my computer, and just barely didn't reach the central village - all in one turn using chains. But the road from the center turned out strange (like the whole map) - I reached the turquoise one through one teleporter, a lift to a tiny super-treasure zone - where there was only a Recanter's Cloak and a prison with Gunnar level 10 guarded by 6 gold dragons.
And there was also the road to the orange player, where I sent Gunnar.
Sent a scout into a one-way portal - there was a red village.
Wanted to take it quickly with necromancy and expert logistics; obviously a mistake. Just lost a good support with expert wisdom and necromancy.
Picked a bad moment, it seems - immediately the angry damage controller with Phoenixes returned.
The Mage Guild never gave any control - Mirror Image, Water Elementals; then I rebuilt the 4th level - got Town Portal. On 136 rebuilt the 5th - finally got Dimension Door. On 137, Taz finishes leveling wisdom to expert and learns Dimension Door.
33 Monarches (4 unupgraded), 3 angels, 300 skeletons, 76 Lizardmen... a couple more hives visible. Promising Kyrre with basic wisdom and expert logistics and Archery - level him however you like (air and earth are buyable in Flax).
A pair of necromancy artifacts and an amulet with a cape in the future.
But there's no time left - the shop closes, the game goes to forfeit. In short, things are much worse there in terms of control and army, only KZ and KO in magic against the Recanter. Although it would have been more interesting to finish, of course - these things happen (example being the same Napalm's game against proger).
KobRa_RR
