Posts from Walkthroughs for custom maps.

Tried it – didn't work. I must be clumsy.
And what is the full translation of the map name 6424?

Any ideas on how to squeeze out a clone of the low-end computer version of Heroes?

Isn't it time to stop dragging out the "Water Book" content?

In theory, you might be able to avoid giving it away, but then a significant part of the Moon quest will be stalled. It's easier to give it away and get a clone elsewhere.

I tried, but it didn't work... And how is the name of map 6424 fully translated?

This map requires more intermediate steps: I couldn't do it right away (the translator didn't work at all). You need to open the resulting text file in Word and confirm the encoding automatically detected by it (Chinese Simplified). Then, save the resulting text in doc format. And then open it in the translator. The result, since there is a lot of text and it is difficult to read, was saved in pdf format (the Slimjet browser can do this "out of the box").
Map name: 6424 hero biography.
Description: Your hometown is located in the center of several major
borders of the empire, in order to dominate the world, this land
has become a field army. For hundreds of years, in order to
satisfy their own ambitions of world hegemony,
several empires have continued the war in your homeland,
in order to start an aggressive war, how to protect the tribe in this
part of life and death has become your biggest problem.
The biggest difficulty of this map is that the
computer has several 6424 BT heroes, it goes without saying
that they don't win against them.

As for the "Ira the Mage" map, I tried it—Google Translate stubbornly refuses to translate it. I was only able to translate the attached ReadMe.txt file. Since I remember some of you are trying to complete it, here is my translation (I've slightly polished some of the phrasing); it contains important information on how to launch the map correctly!

The map provides two versions: easy (simple version) and normal (normal version). The easy version's difficulty is very low and is only suitable for H3 beginners. For regular H3 players, the normal version is recommended.
The archive contains four image files, which are optional. gamselb0.pcx and gamselb1.pcx are the scene selection backgrounds, hpl000el.pcx and hps000el.pcx are the main heroes' avatars. Players can decide whether to use them. If you wish to use them, they can be placed in the game data folder. The aforementioned files can be deleted directly if they are not needed.
This map is a pure SOD (The Shadow of Death) map. Use the heroic invincible 3D version of the execution (3.1 or higher) to play. The Chinese version or Chinese patch is recommended; otherwise, if you cannot read the plot, it will be difficult to play the game.
Also, the general map is different, before playing, be sure to set the additional parameters. Failure to comply with this requirement may result in the inability to close the door.
1, the difficulty must be extremely hard (200%).
All content of this map is designed for 200% difficulty and is not compatible with other difficulties; if you choose a low difficulty, some battles will not be won, so do not waste time trying. The author is not responsible for any errors that may occur on maps other than 200%.
2, for faction selection, please choose: red - Dungeon, green - Necropolis, orange - Castle, purple - Inferno, blue - Tower.
This selection avoids creature months until chapter 53. The city types on the map are fixed, and the faction choice does not change the map layout, but it may affect creature months. If there is a creature moon in the middle of the previous period, it is quite possible that it will not be cleared.
If you have other questions, please contact Liu Xue with love.
Contact:
www.gamerhome.net/bbs forum [Hero Invincible 3] section

Added after 2 hours 58 minutes
(again "Ira the Mage")
Piece by piece from the doc file via copy/paste, I translated the title, description, and original map instructions:

Magic Girl Ina

Ariul Shosi rumors II - Magic Girl Ina Version: V1.30 Be sure to select extremely hard (200%). If you choose a low difficulty, some battles will not be won. Initial factions, please choose: red - Dungeon, green - Necropolis, orange - Castle, purple - Inferno, blue - Tower. Otherwise, there may be a creature moon that cannot be closed. If you do not choose as indicated above, the author is not responsible for any anomalies in the game.

This map has no tavern and does not require rumors.

Preface
First discovery (important) Main map features and precautions
1) The story is extensive; it is strongly recommended that players pay attention to the text messages. Key information is highlighted in {yellow}.
2) All necessary information is provided during the game; there is no need to rely on map hackers or the map editor.
3) This is not a BT map; there will be no astronomical armies, and you will not be required to fight for long periods. Take it easy and don't get stressed; making a mistake in a few steps, such as taking the wrong path, spending a few minutes on tasks, or hitting the back to find the front key, will not lead to irrecoverable failure.
4) The paths are wide and visible, there are no hidden passages, and necessary items on the main section will not be hidden in hard-to-find places (though small plot items or hidden rewards may be hidden).
5) Combat does not depend on random numbers; no battle requires relying on morale, luck, low-probability creature skills, hero upgrades, or random factors like the SAVE/LOAD Dafa to win a low-probability event. If there are battles that you keep retrying and cannot win, the only possible situations are:
A) Lack of reasonable tactics;
B) It is not yet time to fight (you may need to complete certain tasks to obtain key magic / Treasure / creatures to win).
C) In other previous battles, no major losses should have occurred, or a key creature that should not have been lost was lost.
6) Combat absolutely does not require the use of double cheats.
7) In some places, small puzzles containing regional plots are placed for a bit of fun. Artifacts are also included as spurs. The stories on this map are purely fictional and have no connection to real people, groups, or events. All narratives, poetry, sentences, and illustrations are original; any similarities are purely coincidental. If you have any questions regarding this map, or if you find an error or design flaw, feel free to contact the author. Contact: {www.gamerhome.net/bbs} forum {Heroes 3}

So, is her name Ira or Ina? Thanks for the translation!

For hundreds of years, several empires have continued to wage war on your homeland in order to satisfy their own ambitions for world domination.

A typical war of empires, in which all the computers are allies.

Ira the Mage map

As for the "Ira the Mage" map, I tried it — Google Translate stubbornly refuses to translate. I only managed to translate the attached ReadMe.txt file. Since I remember some of you are trying to complete it, here is my translation (I slightly adjusted some phrasing); it contains important information on how to properly launch the map!

Excellent translation! Thank you. Fragments of this information in English were posted on maps4heroes.com some time ago
According to the author's description, almost everything is true. True, I started playing without the race and Castle placement as written, but apparently I got lucky and completed it all. To the author's tips, one could add that the player should not run back and forth, but strictly adhere to the timing; otherwise, you simply might not complete the map. It is important, yes, to have no losses of key creatures or parts of your army, as there is nowhere to replenish them. This is a key tip. One could also advise conducting key battles only in the original SOD executable, because if HD+ is connected, the map terrain changes, and some battles cannot be won at all! :) or you can change them on purpose to make it easier :) if HD+ is enabled, play only with the SoD_SP utility, which preserves the original terrain, etc. These are tips for the Russian-speaking community.

BUT! There are 1 or 2 places on the map where artifacts are hidden that must be obtained via an event; in my opinion, it is simply impossible to "see these places." For example, at one of the locations there are various pillars, and if you draw conditional lines between them, you can "see" a constellation as in a planetarium, and the artifact is located at its key point (via an event, meaning it's not visible otherwise). Perhaps a hint can be seen in the Chinese text, but in reality, you will ALMOST NEVER find such an artifact, and no one is going to run around empty spots on the map hoping to trigger an event. So I wouldn't take the author's advice "do not look into the editor" literally. 2-3 places on the map simply cannot be passed without the editor, as it's unclear where to search for the required artifact. And the map is strictly "corridor-like"; there are no possible options other than a linear Walkthrough.

The map is strictly "corridor-like," with no possible alternative paths besides linear progression.

This is discouraging on almost all top-tier maps. Take, for example, Metatax or even 6424 – the progression is linear everywhere. First, you eliminate this enemy, then that enemy, and so on.

The day after getting the clone, in 6424 Heroes, I defeated Klancy with a crazy army (180 Azure Dragons, 1k Gold Dragons, 3k Unicorns, 6k Elves, etc.) and almost immediately defeated Rashka with a slightly less impressive, but still substantial, army. The most tedious thing right now is forcing enemy AI into castles. Even if they think they are much stronger, the fact that we can take their castle right under their noses doesn't bother them. They don't even seem to notice us. But overall, it looks like in about two weeks, I can defeat all the purple and blue AI players here (Torgrim and the blue heroes are blocked; they will only come out when I release them).

Added 13 minutes later

This is frustrating on almost all top-tier maps. Whether you take Metatax or 6424, the gameplay is always linear. First, you defeat this one, then that one, and so on.

In 6424, the endgame is non-linear; you can defeat enemies in different sequences.

Added after 13 minutes
[/U]
In 6424 the endgame is non-linear, you can beat enemies in different sequences.

Agreed. The non-linearity also lies in being able to choose the sequence of where to go and who to beat, it's not quite a "corridor" map.

Added after 1 hour 47 minutes
6424 Heroes. The Chinese map has been completed. Below – description and spoilers. If you want to complete it yourself – don't read! :)

1. General Impressions
Having completed Chinese maps like Xiedu and Ira the Mage in my time, I can say that map 6424 is somewhat similar to Xiedu, using the same tricks: a similar map start, leaving your native respawns and returning there later, parallel movement of different heroes on different respawns with different styles of warfare, etc., etc.
The map is clearly not for beginners, it implies a thorough study of the editor during gameplay and, preferably, using the PROSPECTOR program, which I personally used for the first time on this map.
The map is built on several principles:
1) the player's knowledge of micro-battles (1 knight vs a horde of gnolls, 3 cavalry vs hundreds of thieves, etc.), using the terrain for victory,
2) the ability to fight against 6424 level heroes, most battles with whom are very difficult (Orrin with archers or Crag Hack one-shot any of your stacks with their first strike). This is the distinctive feature of the map.
Map rating 9/10, somewhere around there. Overall, I liked everything, a very engaging map, interesting and challenging. I deducted 1 point only because after completing 80% of the map, everything becomes very simple, as your superiority in strength spoils the interest of the playthrough, because you crush the enemy's meager forces.
So, if you played Xiedu and liked it, go ahead and play this map too.
The Chinese text is not important, you can figure out how to complete everything yourself.
You can play with HD+, but especially the first 1-3 months of battles, it's advisable to play with the SoD_SP utility or without HD+, so that battles take place on the original terrain. In general, play around with the terrain as you see fit :)

2. Starting Save
The first time I didn't bother, I took the Eye of the Dragon artifact for starting Mullich for +1 luck and morale (luck gave, it seemed to me, greater damage than just +1 to attack and defense for Mullich). But this doesn't really matter, you can take any of these artifacts, it's not critical.
For Luna, the starting save also doesn't matter, she may only have a different development of attack/defense/sp/knowledge skills, but this isn't critical, because under any circumstances it's possible to complete the starting location.
However, the starting save is extremely important (IMHO) for generating the number of Angels in the Conservatory on Luna's respawn. On the first playthrough, it was 1 Angel, and with that I couldn't break through the Archangels, so I regenerated the start and got 4 of them in the Conservatory (though 3 would have been enough).
Generally, the criterion for a good starting save is the number of Angels in the Conservatories on the starting respawns. The more there are, the better. The rest, IMHO, doesn't matter.

3. Timing.
Very important at the very start of the map. The faster you start and speedrun, the easier it will be later. And the further the game goes, the less important timing becomes. So timing is only important for the start, especially on Mullich's respawn.
By the middle of the map, your forces become comparable to the computer's; by the end of the map, you have a significant advantage.
The map was completed at the mark of 15-3-4. But it could have been finished 2 times faster, but since the map is "unridden", I had to linger, travel back and forth, in particular, when leaving the necro respawn, Luna ran off alone, got all the way to the fire respawn, and then it turned out that only Gunnar could open the guard for her with the Medal of Diplomacy, so I had to go back and lead Gunnar to her (losing 1.5-2 months just on that). And also in some other moments. Therefore, IMHO, the map can be completed in 6-7 months, or even faster.
I can judge at least because I completed the same Wayfarer three times, in 12, 9, and 6 months. The last playthrough in 6 months was a speedrun.

4. Game Start
You have 2 starting respawns:
1) On one, Luna burns through a whole tunnel of creatures to get to the boat and sail to the necro respawn. Ideally, you need to reach the boat as fast as possible in the fewest days. But IMHO, a day or two delay doesn't matter; either way, you'll establish yourself on the necro lands, even with a delay. Important at this stage: it's desirable to get 3-4 Angels in the Conservatory. The number of Fairies isn't very critical. For the battle with the Titans, you need at least 3 Fairies; for the battle with the Archangels, 6. So calculate accordingly for tough battles with Stone Gargoyles and Harpy Hags. By the way, when switching to/from HD+, the Harpies split into either 6 or 7 stacks. This allows you to conduct battles differently! Try it! :)
There are no critical remarks about her playthrough.
2) On the angelic respawn, Sir Mullich and Cuthbert must capture the castle in the 1st week and build Angels and Cavaliers there. You need to carefully plan the movement on the respawn, fully utilize various morale and Flags of Unity, possibly multiple times in one day! :) A fast start is achieved by breaking through to the Cavaliers, buying them, and upgrading them. With the tent, they break everything on the starting respawn.
In the 2nd week, the same should be done with the second castle. It's also desirable to collect all the Conservatories with Angels yourself, rather than letting the computer have them. Upgrading castles isn't mandatory since there's a Fort on the hill between the castles and you can upgrade everything there.
The goal of Mullich and Cuthbert: to gather maximum forces so that when the computer swarms from all sides, they can leave the respawn: Cuthbert leaves first using the "Water Walk" spell, and then Mullich with Boots of Levitation. Holding the starting respawn is impossible. Primarily level up Mullich; he will be our father figure for the whole map, but don't forget Cuthbert either. When leaving the respawn, he should be fully maxed out in experience everywhere.
When you kill the computer's weaklings on other ends of the map, the operators release prisons with huge legion armies, and it's impossible to beat them at the start. So, as an option and conclusion: don't kill ANY weaklings at the start! :) yes, you can take a couple of artifacts from them, but it's usually trivial. But later, when you return after a couple of months, it's better that these weaklings with stats up to 10/10/10/10 are running around, rather than heroes with 20/20/20/20 and legions of creatures.
P.S. You also have a technical hero with legions of various rabble; he will be killed by Gird. You don't need this hero at all, but don't dismiss him. Later, you can take an artifact for gems from Gird. As an option, this hero of yours can sink the boat so Gird doesn't accidentally sail towards Luna.

4. On New Respawns
Luna ends up on the necro respawn. The first battle is very hard, but it's better to lure the computer out of the castle and occupy it yourself; a defensive battle in the castle greatly eases the situation. Here we kill the Necromancers one by one, collect the Cloak of the Undead King and exchange it for Gunnar. Gunnar's goal: to lure the computer, capture its castles at the start of the week to get all the growth, because the computer can't catch Gunnar anyway. Gunnar is a technical hero, since he doesn't have Wisdom; level him up only for movement speed and solving logistical tasks. Luna here is our father figure :) Initially, level up her Knowledge for mana and raise undead. As soon as we kill all the Necromancers, the operator will release new ones here, already with legions of creatures. So don't linger; gather maximum army and leave TOGETHER WITH GUNNAR further, without looking back, all the way to the elemental respawns.
But Cuthbert and Mullich need to split the army and conduct difficult battles with dragons to get to the new respawn. SPOILER, but Cuthbert's forces can be left in the garrison without losing the entire army in the battle with the Azure Dragons. Also, Cuthbert can go further, pick up the Armageddon's Blade there and use it to kill the Azures, reducing losses by 30-40%. Overall, in battles with dragons, Fanatics and Marksmen should not be lost at all; you can lose all Pikemen and Griffins, or even without their losses. Archangels can only be lost in very small numbers; they are our main stack. On the new respawn, we capture a castle and prepare for the campaign against the Barbarians.

5. Luna's Elemental Respawns
After breaking through the Dungeon castles, Luna must sequentially go through the Water, Fire, Air, and Earth respawns. There were a couple of difficult battles; the Hypnosis spell is your help! :) Also, don't forget to use Gunnar to join the necro troops on the Water respawn. The boss battles didn't cause particular difficulties: the Water ones with Hydras don't have healing (Slow + Blind + kiting), for Ignissa I used Hypnosis, Gelare can be broken through using the Book of Fire, and Tunnar also with Hypnosis, though in the battle with him I had to catch the right random about 50 times. Archangels on the Air respawn are killed using the terrain; the battles aren't difficult, just very tedious running around the respawns. At the end, feel free to give away both the Book of Water and the Book of Fire and prepare for the transition to the initial angelic respawn.

6. Mullich vs the Barbarians.
The task on this respawn: without killing anyone, go and free Dessa. It's desirable to also capture castles along the way, but it's not critical. Dessa learns the crucial skills Eagle Eye and Literacy; level up Dessa on neutrals to Expert in all skills, retrain his magic.
Next, Dessa's task is to catch the computer's weaklings and, in battle with them, learn 2 critical spells: Resurrection and Clone. Without them, further progress is almost impossible. As a bonus, you can also learn Prayer with Teleport and Armageddon. Block the Blue player so he can't get out to us; later we'll only let him out to our respawn by ticket :) Be sure to take all creature dwellings. Until the end of the game, alongside Archangels, Behemoths are our main stack. If Archangels are the army's resurrections, "doctors," then Bears (Behemoths) are the tanks; they will break the enemy armies until the end of the game. Cuthbert turns into an operator/blocker/ticket controller :)

7. Operation "Breakthrough" :)
Next, you need to conduct a lightning-fast operation, which I called "Breakthrough" :)
Dessa and Mullich go to the grave of the slain Azures, consume the Pandora's Boxes and fly to the Fortress respawn from start to finish, take the Arcane Warlord artifact at the end of the Fortress respawn, return to the snow and fly to the Inferno lands, run through them completely, then to the Elf lands, where Mullich takes the Medal of Courage from the hidden scholar and gives it for the Town Portal scroll. This is the ultimate goal of the operation. Described in one paragraph, but takes a very long time. Along the way, you can do whatever you want: kill computers, take stat boosters, complete quests, etc.
By that time, Luna should have already popped out on the angelic respawn and captured the castle. With Town Portal, fly there with Dessa, give her Boots of Levitation, and Luna flies further to the snow, where Mullich and Cuthbert initially fled.
Of course, the goal of this stage is to block the Green player, kill Clancy, and open the guard to exit onto the necro respawn. Also, you can get to the necro respawn via a "roundabout" way: from Tunnar's castle (Deepshadow) go in reverse order to the Air/Fire/Water respawn, then through the Dungeons and back to the necro respawn. This is a longer path, but for some reason I took exactly this route. Although you can kill Clancy and go to the Necromancers via the short road. The choice is yours.
Also, it's desirable to free Jelu (needed as a hero for a guard for Luna), and convert Marksmen into Snipers.

8. Getting All the Tents
Next, Mullich, now with Snipers, goes to the necro respawn and kills the Necromancers. If the battle with Lord Haart in the field drags on, then you'll have to sweat over Tanth. He doesn't want to attack the castle, and killing him in the field is very difficult. Nevertheless, we kill the Necromancers, fly to their castle and take the Black Tent.
The Dark Blue Tent will be opened for you by Fafner from the Titan lands; you can catch him and kill him immediately after he opens the tent.
After the Dark Blue one, all the other tents can be taken on the water near the Barbarians, or you can safely fly to the Fortress respawn and visit the tents opened by the Fortress player. You can also, as I did, capture the hero Broghild with his entire army :) I don't know if the map author intended this. I didn't free Gherwulf, as killing him is quest-related; I let the computer free him.
In the end, all tents should be opened.

9. Final Stage
By this time, because I had delays and was on month 12-13-14-15, I had a very large army advantage, and all enemy heroes, including the main generals, were killed very easily.
Orrin's Sharpshooters were one-shot by Archangels/Behemoths etc., the rest were blinded.
Crag Hack was also killed through one-shots and blinding.
Killing Jeditte and Alamar was difficult; very tricky and tough battles with 6424 level heroes who can resurrect legions of an army in 1 cast :)
Tazar, Mephala, and Neela are killed very easily with magic while defending a castle. You need to take stacks that can withstand (Behemoths and Archangels), spread them to the edges of the castle to avoid simultaneous attacks, cast Fire Shield on them (important!), other buffs, tank, resurrect via Archangel Clone, cast Armageddon, and it's an easy win.
By the final battle against the Purple player, I was already tired, so I hired Crag Hack from the tavern and one-shot all the final boss's forces with him. 15-3-4 end of game.

10. Unusual Things and Bugs
Important winning strategies on this map :)
- using old proven Chinese deadly combinations of your troops (Archmage + Silver Pegasus + upgraded Ghosts, or a combination like strike stacks of Vampires + Imps + Pegasus + 4 stacks of Ghosts when attacking a castle),
- catching the needed random, sometimes double random in one battle: Bone Dragons must halve the health of an enemy stack, and the main stack of Dragons and Vampires must hit it so hard that Hypnosis is placed on the stack! We catch the same random in battles with Azure Dragons, to avoid getting Fear due to Force Field for 10-15 rounds,
- double placement of Grails on the map, one of which is strictly tuned only to Force Field, and the second strictly to +2 morale :)
- doing such unusual things FOR THE FIRST TIME as casting Hypnosis on an enemy stack, and if that stack later casts Anti-Magic on itself (since healing is impossible), then Mass Dispel + flying away from that stack and re-casting Hypnosis,
- blocking enemy computers when they try to enter your respawn,
Bug. Enemy heroes sometimes may not visit the required tent and go off on their own business. This was done by Alkin (Fortress player), and Fyur with Kalt. They didn't visit their tents, went to the Water respawn, and from there, not knowing Water Walk, they couldn't leave, i.e., they got stuck and blocked themselves. This blocks opening some guards. If this problem with the Fortress player is solvable — i.e., through the Black Guard, you can directly enter the Fortress player's prisons and open their guards (or even free heroes, as I took Broghild), then in my case, blocking Monere on Flax's respawn made it impossible to open some guards at all. Also, some key computer heroes can not only get stuck somewhere but also be killed by you (also before opening the tents). So, at the very end of the map, I had to use a cheat method to give Melody the Fly spell, and she opened the passage to Monere's prison.
NECROMANCERS IN YOUR ARMY. The map has an option to free Isra and Vidomina, but there are 2 problems: The Cloak of the Undead King can only be collected in one copy, which is exchanged for the hero Gunnar. Further, one part is missing from the Cloak of the Undead King in the form of the Vampire's Cowl. The map is passable without these Necromancers, but purely hypothetical interest: is it possible to not give up the Cloak of the Undead King, stay with Luna on the necro respawn, wait until Mullich comes there a couple of months later, and keep the Cloak of the Undead King for Isra or Vidomina? Obviously, there will be a huge time delay, but you will get the opportunity to stock up on an army of Liches. Who has completed the map, what do you think about this?

P.S. Thanks to everyone who discussed this map during the playthrough, and to those who uploaded it here, since it's not on the popular maps4heroes.com site online.

Added after 52 minutes

Scars of the old wars

Author: Michael (Warsaw)

Download link: http://www.maps4heroes.com/heroes3/maps.php?keywords=Scars+of+the+old+wars&type=&size=&difficulty=&sort=3

On the 7th month, 1st week, 6th day I defeated the last Necromancer, and I was congratulated on victory.
Result: 174 days.

Whoever completes the map with other factions — tell us about it. It will be especially interesting to know who, when, and how can defeat Nameless.
After this map, I simply must try to complete another masterpiece from Michael: «Seven Dark Souls». As the author himself writes, this map is harder, and it's also only in Polish for now (but he promised to translate it soon).

I liked the map; it is completely free: go wherever you want, do whatever you want. I completed this map on 4mo1w6d without using bugs. I started playing as the Elves. They seemed to me to have the fastest start. Traditionally, I made several roughly equal father figures for the game: Mullich, Tazar, Mephala, Dessa, and Kyrre. In support, also Jelu (converts Marksmen to Snipers), Gunnar, and Neela. Unfortunately, only the final save remains, as I can't remember the whole story. The plan was this: from my respawn VERY quickly downwards, I took the Captain's Hat near the Utopias, a little further south I took a couple more Elf castles, after which I went to the Titan lands and captured them literally in the first weeks of the game. The computer didn't even have time to capture a 3rd castle; then I took the Titan main and with the Grail, the entire game map was opened up. From there, things went smoothly with Titans and Snipers. In general, due to the very fast start, by the time I reached the enemies, neither the Titan nor the Archangel respawns had time to develop. I only had to fight properly against the Fortress players for their lands. I don't remember the final boss, meaning he didn't cause any difficulties. IMHO, for Elves/Snipers with Kyrre, it's the fastest start of all possible.

Thank you for the report on the 6,000-unit battles. There are several points I'd like to comment on, but I'll do that after I finish the walkthrough (I'm not sure when that will be).

6424 Heroes. Chinese map completed. Next – description and spoilers. If you want to play it yourself, don't read it! :)

Congratulations on completing it :) I found a few interesting things for myself, for example, I'm hearing for the first time that the fire shield can be very important.
I'm a little confused that a cheat was used because the computer ran away and didn't open its quest marker. This could have been a bug, or some additional puzzle from the author.
The idea is fresh; in Metatasker, you could complete 2/3 of the map to find out that the map is unpassable due to an unkillable enemy hero on level 111. But I don't approve of such sadistic behavior from mapmakers, so I'm a little confused. When I imagine that I wouldn't know about a completely obvious battle in the Rampart, and after a couple of months of real time, I would realize its impassability, I get goosebumps and stable associations with the movie Saw; the final soundtrack from it fits perfectly with such a situation.

It's a fresh take, in the metatasker, you could complete 2/3 of the map only to find out that the map is impossible to complete because of an unkillable enemy hero on turn 111. But I don't approve of such sadistic behavior from mapmakers, because it's embarrassing and a bit annoying. When I imagine that I wouldn't know about a completely obvious battle in the Rampart, and after a couple of months of real time, I would realize its impossibility - I get goosebumps and have strong associations with the movie Saw; the final soundtrack from it is perfectly suited for such a situation.

Are we talking about the battle with Sir Lock? I still don't understand what makes it so important. Sure, we won't get to the Le Strada zone, we won't get a rusty dragon, we won't capture the Nidarock castle and the crystal dragon dwellings. But how does this fundamentally affect anything? If crystal dragons were needed somewhere, then yes. But they are not required anywhere.

In the metatasker, the author seems to be saying that this battle should be won, right? Maybe when the map was first released, that wasn't specified, but I'm not sure.

Regarding Fire Shield, I remember watching a battle on the Aeris map where, to win, you had to cast Blind on the dragon, then summon a bunch of elementals, and apply Fire Shield to them – the dragon hits them, and they die. It's a good idea. Or the battle in Qin the Supreme – a shield with 6424 levels of protection from the hero – that's a scary thing!))\

+ a battle in the metatasker, with Fire Shield on a ballista when killing a creature =).