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I recently completed the campaign. I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the author; I am very pleased with the game. I noticed this series of campaigns a long time ago, but only recently did I have the time to start playing through them. I really hope that the respected Ser9K will have the opportunity to complete this series of campaigns.
And now, a little about my playthrough. I decided to challenge myself and started playing on Veteran difficulty (I'm not a very experienced player. But, for example, I completed the previous campaign on Warrior difficulty in one go).
Wastes of the Ancients.
The map had a deceptively easy start, when I, taking a deep breath, escaped from the dungeon. Fire Warriors played the most important role in the entire playthrough (as well as the stupidity of the AI, when archmages, instead of shooting down my units, start frantically casting "Crushing Blow" on each other). I think that if the Phoenix summoning had appeared in the pyramid, there would have been no further problems. But, as they say, not every day is a holiday. So, with the remnants of my army, I got stuck on the elven garrisons (taking into account the band of Nuram I found). Even after breaking through to the city with a couple of surviving assassins, I was severely defeated by its defenses. In the end, I almost despaired and almost gave up. If I hadn't found the strength to try a different tactic, I would have put the map aside for a long time and started on Warrior difficulty. But everything worked out.
Glimmers of Truth.
The enemies didn't really get in the way. I quickly developed the starting city, after which the hired hero easily defended against all the besiegers. At first, I cleared the left half up to the elven city (although I made a small mistake at the start, prematurely venturing onto the mainland). After a short battle, I defeated both the Knight and the Elf. But I couldn't defeat Hazim. This guy easily defeated me with one hit. By that time, I had already visited the mentor, obtained "Spell Lore" (in my opinion, it's impossible to continue without it). In short, I gave up on Hazim and moved on. I completed only one optional quest - the one with the pesky hobbit. By the way, where can I find that ghost ship?
Riddle of the Sphinx.
It was only here that I appreciated the full beauty of mentorship, when a hero jumps from level 1 to 21 or 22. It was such heroes who held Yavet, while Saddir explored the upper part of the map. However, I still didn't understand why the dwarves were needed on this map, but that's the author's vision. The elves were, to put it mildly, unexpected. But that's okay. The Gates of Chaos annoyed me a bit, so I had to bang my head against the wall again. But with "Subjugate" and a Phoenix, there are no problems again.
Wastelands of Despair.
I read a bit about the topic, like everyone else, and I agree about the nastiness of "Greed." No, I'm not demanding any changes) I just agree that it requires a special approach. In addition, I was wondering whether to say it or not, but I decided to say it: in version 3.0, in this mission, "Astral Gate" is available in the spellbook, so those who are struggling with the Demon or Fear (I didn't go through "Pride") can easily do without a fight - with some skill, it's not difficult to determine the location before the script is triggered and after it, to land.
Beacon of Knowledge.
I played it twice. The first time was slow and standard (Earth, Air, Water, Fire elementals, Phoenixes, battles with the Turquoise Wizard...). And the second time... I had to play it again, because I was tired of fighting Runtar and his forces, which were not only superior but also had a counterspell. In short, timing played a big role. I decided to complete the entire mission at a gallop (thankfully, I had skillful logistics). So, I first ran to the Air elementals, then successfully escaped from Nuram to the Phoenixes (Tower - Sanctuary), then visited the islands to their master and the Water elementals (I still haven't had a battle with the Turquoise Wizard), then to the Fire elementals, and finally to the Earth elementals. As I suppose, the author did not expect such a move to the Earth elementals, because their quest did not trigger for me from the entrance from the fire zone (fortunately, the quest huts worked and gave elementals after the battle). In short, with a whole army of elementals, I fought a weaker Runtar than last time and, after many attempts, I defeated him. Still, the enemy's counterspell, with an army three times stronger, is something else. If he had cast it every turn, there would have been no salvation. The Water elementals helped for only three rounds, until they were destroyed. In short, "Divine Intervention" and subjugating the enemy's Phoenix are the key. The most annoying in that battle were the Obsidian Golems, as they are immune to magic (you can't call them holy). But in the end, Runtar fell, and the campaign was completed (not a single Turquoise Wizard player suffered).
That's how it was. Once again, I would like to thank the author of the map for the work done.
