Posts from Alternative Rules (Draft)

1. General Provisions

1.1. Online duels are conducted in any version of HoMM3.

1.2. Before the game, the terms of play must be clearly discussed via ICQ, such as:
- whether it is a rated game or "just for fun";
- which rules will govern the game;
- whether there will be exceptions to them and specifically which ones.
In case of own same disputes regarding these issues after the game, the judge's decision may be made only upon presentation of the corresponding ICQ logs.

1.3. In order for games to be entered into the rating table, reports must be written in the appropriate thread. For convenience in maintaining the rating table and statistics, please write reports according to the following scheme:
Winner (color, castle, starting hero, main hero) def Loser (color, castle, starting hero, main hero), template (if fixes, then map name), game time.
vbn (red, Dungeon, Shakti, Shakti) def invisible (blue, Inferno, Pyrrh, Marius) 2sm4d(3) 136.
The template name can be viewed during the game in "scenario information".

Writing such a report is mandatory if these players want these games to be counted in the rating. If desired, parties may be described in more detail. After publishing the report on the forum, the winner is obliged to send a link to it to the opponent via ICQ (it is preferable to save these logs).

It is forbidden to ignore opponents' reports of victory without valid reasons. In case the opponent did not send you a link, this is THEIR violation and you have the right not to confirm such a report (although you may confirm it - that is at your discretion); however, if logs with the link are presented to the judge while you failed to react to it within 7 days, this violation is punished by awarding a double victory over you to said player.
In case of problems with the Internet or in "real life" preventing the confirmation of a lost game, they may be considered valid reasons only if you were absent from the forum during this period.
If you disagree with an opponent's report due to dishonesty, publish a post in the same thread quoting exactly what you disagree with; if you have clear evidence of dishonesty: primarily saves and "asi" logs - you must post them there.
If you have no evidence, only conjectures and assumptions, post them in the "Trash" thread and you may stop playing with this player, BUT YOU ARE OBLIGED TO CONFIRM THIS GAME; otherwise, your opponent is awarded a double victory or you are deprived of the right to write reports about your own victories until such confirmation - your choice.

1.4. These rules imply games on random maps, but games on fixes will also be counted in the rating if a report is written and subsequently confirmed by the opponent.
Any changes to the rules are permitted by mutual consent of the players, except for point 6. That is, it is possible to play by mutually agreed rules or without rules at all (again, point 6 applies under any circumstances), BUT: we recommend discussing all this in advance via ICQ, because in case of disputes, the judge when issuing a verdict will be guided by the following: these rules, provided ICQ logs and (in cases not provided for by these rules) their own personal discretion.
The rating will be reset every season, and therefore there will be a "season winner" based on the table in each season.

2. Map Setting Options.

Humans – 2; computers – 0; teams – 0; map size L+U; template - 2sm4d(3); no water; strong monsters; difficulty 160%; turn time limit – by agreement (from 1 minute to infinity, but 4-6 minutes is recommended).

3. Choice of Color and Castles.

Participants choose castles by the elimination method: players take turns crossing out castles they do not want to play until only 3 castles remain. The player who started crossing first chooses a castle from the remaining three, the second player chooses from the remaining two and the color they wish to play.
Example:
invisible - Conflux
vbn - Necropolis
invisible - Fortress
vbn - Stronghold
invisible - Rampart
vbn - Castle
invisible chooses Inferno, Dungeon or Tower from those remaining – Inferno, and vbn takes the Dungeon and red color.

4. Restarts

Each player has the right to take a restart twice: on the first day of the game and within three days, meaning starting a new game with map regeneration.
Mandatory restarts:
– if the starting hero is above level 1;
– if a player starts with more than one castle;
– if no fort is built in the starting castle;
– restart upon meeting by day 116 inclusive: that is, if players enter direct contact with each other using any of their heroes within the first six game days (simply put, any battle occurs between them or capture of any object belonging to the opponent), then one of them has the right to demand a restart. Furthermore, the attacking player does not have this right - it is the prerogative only of the defending side (this point is introduced to stop shameful speculation using this rule flaw - specifically seeking contact with army remnants if they lost or the layout is not "chocolate"). If both players agree to continue, that is their right.
The presence of water on the map is not a reason for an objective restart without spending one's own restarts if settings are correct, as well as in case these settings were set by the party requesting such a restart.
In case the starting hero is above level 1 but the layout is very good - you may dismiss him at the start of day 111 even without the opponent's permission and continue the game, but it is forbidden to conduct battles with him; therefore, it is better to make corresponding saves (start and immediately after dismissal). The army, tent, ballista, ammunition cart that came with such a hero may be used; if this hero knew higher-level spells and was able to pass them via Literacy, they can be used, but only after building the guild up to the corresponding floor.

5. Prohibitions and Restrictions.

5.1. It is forbidden to take Sir Mullich as a starting hero (in "all random" play - this is a mandatory restart). It is forbidden to choose the Tactician skill for him; if such a skill is obtained, Sir Mullich must be dismissed immediately. It is forbidden for him to attack any heroes or any objects belonging to the opponent and to retreat or pay off when attacked by the opponent. He is forbidden from hitting ГО. At the end of the game, Sir Mullich's experience points must not be the highest among all your heroes. There are no more restrictions on this hero.[/B]

5.2. All 4th-level magic specialist heroes, as well as Tant (Raise Dead), may use their profile spells against an opponent in the following cases:

a) If the corresponding level of the Mage Guild (Mage Guild) is built in any of the controlled castles. If these castles do not have the required Mage Guild level, it is necessary to fully build the Mage Guild of all levels in any two castles that you own. Or capture an opponent's castle with the already built required Mage Guild (it does not matter how long the captured castle remains under control). It is not mandatory for a hero to visit this castle.

b) Find and visit a "shrine of magical thought" with the necessary magic.

c) If any of your heroes are given the corresponding spell in Pandora's box, a pyramid, after visiting a scholar, or in a magic book.
Against neutral monsters, as well as against the computer (if one is present on the map), 4th-level magic specs and Tant may use their profile spells without the above restrictions.

It is permitted to transfer 4th-level spells and Raise Dead from specialists to other heroes and use them under the same rights as the carrier heroes: that is, against neutrals without restrictions, but against an opponent (including in "external dwelling" belonging to him) – only after fulfilling points a), b) or c).

5.3. When playing as Necropolis and Conflux, the starting hero is random; however, any may be chosen by desire, provided that for Necropolis at the end of 117 and 127 exactly half of your skeletons are dismissed (with corresponding saves), and for Conflux in such a case you cannot build levels 6-7 on week 1 or, if level 6 was built, then level 7 can only be built starting from 131.
When playing as Necropolis, the construction of the Necromancer's Guild and improved Manor is permitted only after building ABSOLUTELY ALL other structures in the castle, including all dwellings and their upgrades, 5 floors of the Mage Guild, "smokery", capitol (!), etc. (except for the Grail). After this, upgrading vampires is permitted.

Izra and Vidomina can be leveled as much as desired without restricting their Necromancy skill, but only one at a time – that is, both must not be under the player's command simultaneously; in case a second one appears in the tavern, the first is dismissed before buying the second; in case of releasing either of them from prison immediately (not at the end of the day, but right then!), the one with more experience points is dismissed (even to the detriment of all chains – with mandatory saves). The same applies to Galtran – that is, one player must not simultaneously have Galtran/Vidomina or Galtran/Izra or Izra/Vidomina in their army. At the end of the game, Izra's (Vidomina's) experience points must not be the highest among all your heroes. When playing with a starting or week 1 Galtran, skeleton upgrades are forbidden.

In Conflux, it is permitted to upgrade only one of the following levels by choice (others are upgraded without restrictions): 1st, 6th, 7th. The 1st level either after building the 2nd floor of magic or starting from 121. Level 6 may be upgraded starting from 141. Level 7 may be upgraded starting from 221. [This is all introduced so that the opponent does not "dally" and drag out the game until the end of the 2nd – beginning of the 3rd month, as already happens quite often among us.]

5.4. So-called "red rush" is forbidden: that is, a player playing red has no right to attack blue on the first day of the week with troops bought on that day. But troops arriving with a hero bought on that day may be used.

5.5. Hit-and-run is forbidden: an attacking hero has no right to retreat in the first round of battle if they applied combat magic or any other spell that somehow dealt any damage to the opponent. This prohibition does not apply to the defending hero.

5.6. It is permitted to join monsters no higher than level 4 under two conditions:
- it is forbidden to attack heroes, external dwellings ("external dwelling") and castles belonging to the opponent with joined neutrals;
- at the end of the current day, joined units must be dismissed.
When playing as starting Necropolis or Conflux, joining any troops is FORBIDDEN.

5.7. It is forbidden to use 4th and 5th level magic scrolls against an opponent without building the corresponding level of the Mage Guild (Mage Guild) in any of your castles. If there is no corresponding Mage Guild level in the starting castle, you must proceed according to sub-points a, b, c of point 5.2. Against neutrals, use of any spells from scrolls in the battle window is permitted ("transport" spells only after building!). Moreover, if you have a magic spec of levels 3-4 and find the corresponding scroll – then building the guild is not mandatory for its use against an opponent. [I believe this can bring "life" back to both scrolls and magic specialist heroes; besides, luck favors the strongest – and what is that if not luck: both the hero and the necessary scroll? This practically never happens.]

5.8. Any hero may use the "Dimension Door" spell no more than once per day. The Explosion spell until 211 may be used no more than once per battle with an opponent's hero; starting from 211 – no more than twice (against neutrals – without restrictions).

5.9. The Banishment Sphere may be used only after building 3 floors of magic in any of your cities.

5.10. "Angel Wings" are permitted to be used either only as a "set" with any "sea" artifact: Necklace, Captain's Hat, Boots of Levitation or with the Fly scroll, or after building 5 floors of magic in any of your cities. If these castles do not have the required Mage Guild level, it is necessary to fully build the Mage Guild of all levels in any two castles that you own. Or capture an opponent's castle with the already built required Mage Guild (it does not matter how long the captured castle remains under control). It is not mandatory for a hero to visit this castle.

5.11. The Cartographer may be visited only if at least 2 of your heroes have the Eagle Eye skill trained to Expert level, or 1 such hero and you have collected all artifacts that enhance this skill. After visiting the cartographer, it is strictly forbidden to use any "transport" magic, and any logistics hero (Kyrre, Gunnar, Dessa) must be dismissed by the end of the current day.

5.12. The Fort on the Hill may be visited only after collecting the Legion Statue artifact.

5.13. The Grail may be dug and built without restrictions.

5.14. All composite artifacts are permitted, but the Cloak of the Undead King may be collected no earlier than 231.

5.15. If a castle monster week of any level or a Plague week occurs - load an autosave until there is a neutral week.

5.16. If the passage guard is shifted more than 2 move points from the road – then the passage is considered already breached, except for cases with shifted ГО. On off-road terrain, there are no restrictions on passages, except for cases with shifted ГО.

5.17. Logistics heroes (Kyrre, Gunnar, Dessa) are forbidden from using any "control" (Angel Wings artifact, Fly, Dimension Door, Town Portal spells) until 211.

6. Fair Play.

The most important point: players must play fair and respect each other. It is forbidden to use cheat codes and all kinds of "bugs". Also, it is not allowed to open saves or open the map in the editor before the end of the party. A party is considered finished when one player has completely destroyed the second or one of them surrenders, which must be confirmed via ICQ. Only after this is it permitted to open saves.
And a strong recommendation: make daily saves – if you are too lazy, install a program that does them automatically; this is necessary so that disputed situations are resolved by presentation of facts rather than baseless accusations (besides, reviewing them after the game helps increase your "skill").

7. Miscellaneous.

7.1. If a "stalemate" situation occurs in battle, the attacking player must retreat. For example: during the battle, the attacker is left with 100 dwarves and the defending hero has 1 fly. And 100 dwarves cannot catch the fly. In this case, the attacker with 100 dwarves must retreat (or pay off). If someone is wearing "shackles of war", it is necessary to load the last save and dismiss both heroes (it is permitted to transfer shackles and other artifacts to another hero before this)!

7.2. If a disconnect occurs during the game, the player who was moving at that moment finishes their turn and saves the game. Then they load from this save and continue. Or they load the autosave of the player who was inactive at that moment. If the connection is interrupted during a battle, then after loading all battle moves are repeated as closely as possible to those before the disconnect.

P.S. Specifically for the lazy, I have highlighted differences from the current Rules in bold italics. :)

Sorry for being lazy and not wanting to read – it’s just easier to outline the differences from the standard.

Read it! This is crazy... I liked the part about diplomacy the most. Joining 50 vampire lords to your faction and it being normal :D The teapot and seafarer's necklace part was hilarious, a new assembled artifact :D I didn't really understand the part about disbanding skeletons and some kind of hassle with experience points after the first read... I don't understand why these rules are even needed??? The best rules are the fewest rules!

Level 6 can only be upgraded after building absolutely all buildings in the castle (except the Grail and the improved Campfire), or only starting from day 211.

What nonsense! Calculate how many days it takes to build all the buildings in a Conflux. :)

in general, you're definitely thinking in the right direction :) but your ideas have been implemented in *The Shadow of Death* for a long time, and IMHO, they're much better there ;)

I read it! This is crazy... I liked the part about diplomacy the most. Joining 50 Vampire Lords to your faction is normal :D
The part about the Teapot and Amulet of the Navigator was hilarious, a new composite artifact :D
I didn't understand the part about disbanding skeletons and some kind of hassle with experience after the first read...
I don't understand why these rules are even needed???

The best rules are the fewest rules!

But try them out - join them! To do this, you either need to develop Diplomacy, which is currently quite neglected, or have a HUGE army; I don't think they will join you before the 4th week without Diplomacy... And whoever brought the game to the point where an opponent can join 50 vampires without Diplomacy is to blame, they shouldn't drag it out!
I'll explain about the Teapot and Wings - this is done so that there are no useless artifacts.
About disbanding skeletons - it's necessary to somehow restrain the Necromancers without too much hindering their natural development (for example, on day 117, a good player will have 260 of them - and only 130 will remain, so that they don't rely solely on them, but also develop normally in the castle!). This still needs to be tested, maybe one-third is enough, not half.
About the experience hassle - something needs to be done with these Necromanceresses and Mullich (regarding Mullich, it's quite simple - he can be the "right hand" of the lord, but not the lord himself).

P.S. And in general, this is just a project - that is, criticism and your suggestions are implied. And I think it is necessary to test such "unconventional" rules: maybe organize some kind of tournament based on them:rolleyes: ...

Added after 6 minutes

Calculate how many days it takes to build all the structures in the Conflux. :)

Or better yet, this upgrade should be completely banned, as it is now?:)

Without diplomacy, monsters like Hostile won't join. But that's just a detail...

The rules have a clear point about grade feats. Everything else is easier to learn than to memorize. People will be afraid to play by these rules solely because they don't want to be penalized for not knowing them. Dismissing 120 skeletons instead of 130...

It's better to come up with new tactics/tricks/strategies within the current rules, rather than creating new rules!
If you don't like Necropolis, just don't play it, that's all!

you are definitely thinking in the right direction :) but your ideas have long been implemented in TE and, in my opinion, they are much better ;)

Play your TE and enjoy life. And start here to describe how Heroes 5 is cooler than Heroes 3. IMHO, these are practically different games (SoD and TE). I have absolutely no desire to argue about what is better, but SoD has its fans, and you don't need to jump into every topic with your TE. Regarding the rules, I'll say - it's unclear what's going on with joining - the rest is quite acceptable, although sometimes a little complicated (for example, in the case of the experience of Isra/Vidomina). In general, I'm in favor and agree to play according to these rules.
However, I suggest at least the following amendments - in any case, any spells can only be used if the hero has the corresponding wisdom and a GM of that level is built. This will first simplify the rules, and secondly, it will slightly limit explosions/TP/DD. And in general, it would really be good to simplify these rules somehow. Respect to the author for his efforts. ;)

The rules contain a sensible point about upgrading dwellings. Everything else is easier to just give up on than to learn. People will be afraid to play by these rules solely because they don't want to be penalized for ignorance. Dismissing 120 skeletons instead of 130...

It's better to come up with new tactics/tricks/strategies within the current rules, rather than create new rules!
If you don't like Necromancer, just don't play it, that's all!

Why is the point about upgrading dwellings considered sensible? FORBIDDEN is very sensible:D. You yourself play in the game where, as far as I know, upgrading dwellings is possible after building the Resource Vault. I believe that Fairies should also be given a chance to have a significant impact in important battles in the 3rd week and later.

Regarding tech structures, I don't know - we don't have a Portal here, so why are people being so picky about such minor details? And, in general, they teach division by 2 in elementary school, are there really preschoolers playing here:D?

I partially agree about tactics and tricks, but you have to agree that my version of the rules will still significantly expand their range!

Regarding "if you don't like Necromancer, just don't play it" - no comment...

Regarding the rules, I don't quite understand what's going on with the joining mechanic – the rest is quite acceptable, although sometimes a bit complicated (for example, in the case of Iskra/Vidomina's experience). Overall, I'm in favor and agree to play according to these rules.
However, I suggest at least the following amendments – in any case, any spells can only be used if the hero has the corresponding Wisdom and a Guild Hall of that level is built. This will, firstly, simplify the rules a bit, and secondly, slightly limit the use of explosions, Teleport, and Direct Damage spells. And in general, it would be really good to simplify these rules somehow. Respect to the author for their effort. ;)

What exactly is unclear about the joining mechanic?

Yes, I think I messed something up with Vidomina:smile19: ...

The idea about Wisdom is generally good; I need to think about it – if necessary, we'll include this idea in the rules;) .

Added 1 minute ago

Another thing that surprised me is the inclusion in the rules about allowing "humanitarian" rests for oneself and, in general, attempts to forcibly encourage players to be honest. You can't do that, Kostya, seriously, you can't... It's unpleasant to see in a replay how an opponent gives up or, say, steals a resource without attempting to take it, I'm not arguing. But either you trust when you play, or you don't play, trusting is the better approach, in my opinion.

In my opinion, there's no way to force 100% of players to be honest through rules:smile32: .

What exactly is unclear about joining?

I read and read, and I didn't find any prohibition on joining. And there should definitely be one, IMHO.

Added 9 minutes later

In my opinion, there's no way to force everyone to be 100% honest except by force:smile32:.

This is a debatable issue, but some points that raise suspicion of dishonesty need to be regulated, and I liked how it was done in the rules. Because some smart guys, like Vigo, use the slightest excuse, such as a single opponent's disconnection from the game (and it's important that it's not during his turn, IMHO), to refuse to play and not confirm the result. Such moments should be discussed as much as possible in advance (approximately as it is done in these rules).

Regarding attachments, refer to section 5.6. "It is permissible to attach monsters of level 4 or lower, provided that two conditions are met: - It is forbidden to attack with attached neutral creatures against heroes, external dwellings ("hideouts"), and castles belonging to the opponent. - At the end of the current day, the attached creatures must be dismissed (unless they were killed before that). When playing as the starting Necropolis or Conflux, attaching any troops is PROHIBITED."

I couldn't handle the new rules :) : maybe I drank too much beer, maybe I'm just an idiot)). But I want to comment on a couple of things that immediately caught my eye and I can't help but mention them:

The reason for non-confirmation could even be constant disconnects during an opponent's turn — if your "hot" saves show that they were actually "throwing the game" and giving themselves a "humanitarian restart".

I used to suffer from constant hero disconnects. There was no way I could prove I wasn't a camel, because, first of all, you can't tell that for sure from the saves; and secondly, the disconnect could happen during a fight too. I remember back then I even tried to finish fights as quickly as possible, so that God forbid there would be no disconnect and nobody would say anything to you (though there were characters like that, after which I almost quit Heroes for good!!!) Now I don't have disconnects, but I know people who still struggle with it. In short, IMHO, the clause isn't quite fair!
As for "allowing" to wear a Charmed Ring, total lol. The necklace isn't that easy to find (usually given in Dragon Utopias when it's most needed :D )
The Necropolis thing is just crazy. I racked my brain over Isra/Vidomina but still didn't understand anything about them)). And dismissing skeletons is nonsense: the main strength of Necropolis is vampires and skeletons. To build up a strong stack, you need to construct specific buildings, which means teching up in Necropolis isn't the same as in other towns. Cavalry in the town for Necropolis is half a winning game, but they are built in the town very rarely for Necropolis players. And finally, after gathering some sort of skeleton stack to be able to fight, then bam, you have to dismiss half of them — nonsense!
Anyway, maybe I've become old-fashioned, but most of the rules will make the game itself so complicated that I personally won't play by them, because I simply didn't get half of them)). These rules are the first step towards what I wrote in my previous post — that is, making life harder for players who just want to play, not waste a ton of time memorizing rules that aren't even entirely clear.
Please don't take my criticism to heart: I just say what I think :). Respect for the effort, but you need to be more objective and simpler.

IMHO, it's chaotic. Out of the suggestions I mentioned earlier, I only see 2 here. A random hero for Necropolis and permission for the Grail.

Some of the in-game suggestions are incorrect: building a Guildhall has no effect on the Sphere of Inhibition, especially a level 3 one. And why is Moner being treated this way?

And some are incorrect "in real life." Forcing people to be honest never works.

Here's my suggestion regarding reports: if a person doesn't confirm, they should write the reasons why they aren't doing so. And if they don't write anything, it should be counted as unconfirmed. And in the future, you can avoid playing with such people.

I disagree with your assessment of the balance and the suggestions for changing it. If you want to hear the details, write to me in a private message or on ICQ; I don't want to discuss it here.

As for the pixel art, it's a good idea, although it's already implemented in the test environment.

The idea of using pixels is good, although it is implemented in TE.

Regarding pixels, in my opinion, both the feature itself and its implementation in TE are useless! Upgraded pixels are only good at the beginning of the game. And building their upgrade after 5000 on the first week is unrealistic because that money is needed in another direction, which is one thing, and secondly, it disrupts the construction of the first week and at least delays the production of birds! At the beginning of the second week, it is better to buy a production increase and go to destroy hives/canneries than to spend 2 days and money on upgrading pixels. Besides, when playing as the Conflux, single pixels are used as units for distraction and absorbing attacks, so they disappear quickly. By the third week, they will not be needed at all (even if there are enough of them left after the first 2 weeks). Therefore, whether they are completely banned or upgraded after 5000, it's the same thing, just viewed from a different angle. Maybe I'm wrong, but then ask the TE players (where this feature is directly implemented in the game through scripts) - has anyone of them ever upgraded pixels at all?

Refer to section 5.6 regarding joining creatures.
“It is permissible to join creatures no higher than level 4 under two conditions:
- it is forbidden to attack with joined neutrals against heroes, external dwellings (“hideouts”), and castles belonging to the opponent;
- at the end of the current day, the joined creatures must be dismissed (unless they were killed before that).
When playing as the starting Necropolis or Conflux, joining any troops is PROHIBITED.”

Kostya, my advice to you is – if you want the rules to be accepted, strive to simplify them as much as possible. A ban on joining creatures is much simpler than this whole headache you’ve come up with. And I also have a couple of suggestions, for example, limiting the number of angels obtained from cans, say, no more than 4 angels per week. The same goes for vivas from hives – say, no more than 12 vivas per week. The numbers can be changed, but it’s not interesting to see 7 angels from an opponent who arrived on day 124 when they have good development).