Posts from In which city is the alt upgrade more balanced?

I don't entirely agree. With level 2, yes, the choice is almost obvious. Regarding level 1, in my opinion, stunning and pushing them to the end of the turn order is very useful, because anyway, they deal little damage, especially at higher levels. With Zealots, yes, they went too far; if their stats were reduced to the level of Latniks, there would be balance. But in general, if we are so afraid of archers, we can make level 1 Latniks on the creep, which will protect their own, and the rest will be Zealots. But against Stronghold, Latniks are a must-have, in my opinion. Griffons, in my opinion, is one of the most interesting upgrades in the game... I already wrote this in this topic :). I don't agree with level 5. There is balance, sometimes, divine power plays a very important role, just like stone skin. And removing enchantments may not work, so the turn and mana are wasted. Level 7 is also well-balanced, but there are problems with level 6, there is an imbalance in favor of the Knights of Isabel.

Are the Knights of Isabel stronger than Paladins? Come on... What is it? They are actually on par.

Stunning strike for peasants? It works once in ten years...

With Inquisitors... It’s sometimes more useful than Divine Might, but the hero (most likely a general one) will cast it on someone who doesn’t have time to remove the spell (unless it’s a general spell).

Lancers against Stronghold are a must-have... But against the rest (well, except for Barbarians), 6 races are taken with Zealot, and that’s an imbalance...

Demons in Inferno. The old ones were useless... until you get to them.
But a jump is a different story. An explosion can't compete with a jump.
Also, the new Cerberuses have a significant advantage: they are the same as the old ones, but even better thanks to the fire damage.

Playing mainly as the Tower faction after the last expansion, I can highlight 2 of the most dangerous units from the alternative upgrade path: Stalkers and Matrons. On day 2, if you manage to get a squad of 30-40 Stalkers (depending on luck with heroes in the tavern) and a hero with Chaos magic (e.g., Synithar), you can defend any wood and ore mine. Thanks to their high initiative, they can turn invisible and be positioned so that they deliver an unexpected and unreturned blow on the last turn. If there are also wells on the map, you can capture all the mines in the first week. Artifacts that boost Knowledge and the Hall of Revelation in the castle are particularly important.
I almost always found the Meteor Shower spell on level 4 – it's incredibly effective. For Synithar, the enhanced Meteor Shower costs 14-18 mana (due to abilities).

I take Stalkers, Matrons, Blood Maidens, and Red Dragons into my army. I deploy the last two in battle only when things are really bad and the opponent has many immunities. But in 90% of cases, this wasn't necessary against neutral creatures. It's a bit more difficult against a real enemy; the main thing is to use magic to eliminate archers, mages, and the fastest and most initiative-driven units, but in principle, the alternative tier 2 units allow you to quickly win on medium and large maps.

I've looked at alternative upgrades for other factions – it's debatable. But the fact remains that you can find tactical combinations to defeat a specific opponent.

The new mounts of the Fortress are quite good!

The Dwarves have a fairly balanced roster. It might even be the most balanced. The choice often depends on the player's chosen tactics, rather than one upgrade being inherently stronger than another.