Posts from Discussion about Sylvan (Wood Elves). Auto-translated

Now, regarding leveling up a pair of heroes – doesn't it bother you that some Warlock or Barbarian might show up just when the first hero has stopped actively leveling up, and the second hasn't gained enough strength yet? And will be much stronger than them, because all the experience was spent on just one, and not divided between two? And since our army is also split in half according to your method – one has dragons, and the other has everything else – you might end up struggling and not being able to afford it...

No, it’s actually quite interesting. I just meant that clearing neutral creatures is one thing, and encountering the enemy’s main hero, for which our hero should be “prepared,” is a completely different matter.
For example, Orson, with 4 Vampires, can take Utopia in the first 1-2 weeks, so what?
I’ve also seen how Nura takes out 30+ Cyclops with a couple of Gremlins...
That’s why I’m saying that a replay of a battle with neutral creatures doesn’t necessarily indicate that the hero will be stronger than the enemy.

Now, regarding leveling up two heroes – doesn’t it bother you that some Warlock or Orc might show up just when the first hero is no longer actively leveling up, and the second hasn’t gained enough strength yet? And will be much stronger than them because he spent all the experience on himself, instead of splitting it between two? And since our army is also split in half according to your method – one has dragons, and the other has everything else – you might end up in trouble and run out of money...

And, by the way, regarding resistance against casters – they “know” when a spell will be deflected and just attack. Only Pitys and Water Elementals can’t attack, so they still cast. But if there’s an opportunity to attack, they will.

What's the point of that? At least quote the original text.

It's not a good idea to attack powerful spellcasters with weak troops. You can defeat Druids if you have a Ring of Protection from Lightning (which you can often find) and decent resistance. For example, take a couple of Veteran Horned Beasts with you into battle; then the risk won't be so great, and even then, it's only necessary in certain situations (to pass through, for an important artifact).

Yes, of course, spellcasters don't always use magic. It's not that they "know" it, but there's a certain resistance threshold at which they'll stop casting and start shooting. I don't remember the exact number offhand, but it's something around 40-50%.

They will just start shooting, and they won't stop casting spells either, although the losses will indeed be reduced. I just wanted to say something about the mechanics of neutral creatures' behavior against resistance.

No. I specifically tested it in 2.1, and I don't think anything has changed in the mechanics. With 50 or 75 resistance – I don't remember exactly which option I tried – I attacked Druids with a large mana reserve using Battle Unicorns. They didn't stop casting. But not a single spell was deflected until they killed all the Unicorns. They were casting and shooting alternately. Logically, this suggests that the AI is cheating with spell deflection. But the Pit Fiends were casting because they couldn't attack at range. However, in case of deflection, they cast the cheapest spell. But when I approached them within melee range, they did the same as the Druids – they cast and then attacked in melee.

That's strange. In 3.0, the situation was generated, and a threshold was identified. *Went to testing.*

Well, I quickly equipped Ossir with Combat skills, Armor, and Boots.
Total: 15+30+20+10=75% resistance. 7 units of Supreme Druids on the enemy hero's auto-battle. Sometimes they cast spells, sometimes they shoot. Not a single deviation on 10 Horns.
And Mages - yes, they are more dangerous. I remember they either cast Fireball or use Fist.
I mean, the Archmages.

Funny. I tested it. Indeed, sometimes they attack, sometimes they cast spells, but they still occasionally hit the resistance. I saved the replay just in case. Overall, it's very strange; I saw completely different behavior in the test environment. And here, it seems like you absolutely need Marbas with 100% resistance for the spell to even turn gray in their spellbook.

The choice depends on many factors. I usually start building upgrades after all the dwellings are available in my town. In principle, if the main hero or the second hero is Ossir, plus a dwelling on the map nearby, and the map is rich, you can try to upgrade and then run to find wood. :)
On a small map, I wouldn't sacrifice 4 dwellings – you might simply not have enough tanks in a battle.

The choice depends on many factors. I usually start building upgrades after all the dwellings are available in my town. In principle, if the main hero or the second hero is Ossir, plus a dwelling nearby on the map, and the map is rich, it's quite possible to try upgrading and then go look for wood.

Hmm... Here's an example of a small map - Former Friends. You probably know that whoever takes the center first has an 80% chance of winning.
On this map, rushers like Orcs, Mechanists, and Letos are dominant.
And it's almost impossible for an Elf to break through to the center early without upgrading archers. With the upgrade, I buy a Dragon on day 5 or 6. Why should I wait for Ents?

Yes, this is a good example of a map where it’s really tough without upgrades, but even with upgrades, it’s not easy for the Elf. On days 5-6, correct me if I’m wrong, you don’t always manage to expand (you need a bit of luck with the neutrals).

from the red spawn

with noticeable losses after battles on the bridge

at the outpost

for the ranged attack,

unless you have incredibly good luck with the neutrals.

And Kaspar very reliably (from the blue, earth, or spawn) clears the bridge and guards the artifact by the end of day 3 without losses, because in theory, only alternate dogs, archmages, and old druids can cause him losses. Everything else is cleared without losses + gargoyles and, with some risk, gnomes. And if you meet in the center area, the Plague Tent will do its dirty work.