Posts from Heroes 6 - Discussion Auto-translated

Lord De Sat, I absolutely disagree with you. The aesthetic aspect is just as important.

I wonder what the spells will be like?

Yeah, that's right. The main thing is that the names should correspond to the mythology, otherwise, God forbid, the fans will be offended.

With colors. You can find out the details from the game's lead designers.

By the way, does anyone understand what the warrior/mage hero system is? Does that mean a warrior hero won't be able to cast spells at all? And a mage won't be able to attack? That's definitely a drawback!

The announcement of Might & Magic: Heroes VI (the official name of the game) took place on August 17, 2010, in a Ubisoft press release. The following day, a presentation of the game was held at Gamescom. The main highlight of the presentation was the showing of a short pre-alpha demo video for Heroes VI (only selected fans were allowed to play the demo version). Then numerous previews from various publications poured in. There are also several interviews with Erwan Le Breton, the producer of Heroes VI. Below, we have attempted to provide a brief summary, laying out the "bare facts" based on official information and "eyewitness accounts." If you find any inaccuracies or have something to add, write to heroes@ag.ru, specifying in the subject line: Heroes VI.

Main Facts:

PLOT

* The action of Heroes VI takes place in the 564th year of the Seventh Dragon (approximately 400 years before the events of Heroes V), during the second eclipse of the Blood Moon, when Kha-Belekh, the future Lord of Demons, began his rise to power.
* Heroes VI will tell the story of the Griffins at a time when they were still dukes of the Holy Empire and did not sit upon the Imperial Throne (as in Heroes V and Clash of Heroes). The Duchy of Griffin is located in the east of the Empire, in an area that corresponds to Slavic countries in our world.
* The main characters of Heroes VI are five blue-blooded brothers and sisters leading five warring kingdoms.
* Brief backstory: Slava, ruler of the Griffin dynasty, is killed by his own daughter Anastasia. Anastasia is executed for this but is resurrected as undead. Convinced of her innocence, Anastasia sets out to study the dark art of necromancy, hoping it will help her bring her father's real killers to justice. The throne is inherited by Anton, Paul's eldest son. Anton begins to suspect everyone whose faith in Elrath is not as strong as his own – and, encouraged by strange voices speaking to him, Anton immediately declares any forms of worship illegal except for the orthodox ones. Kirill, Anastasia's twin brother, participates in the murder of their father against his will, and then agrees to an offer from the angel Sarah to accompany him on a dangerous journey to Sheol, the prison of demons. Kirill seeks to find the mysterious power responsible for the death of his father and sister.

INTERFACE AND GRAPHICS

* Objects on the map have become much more detailed than in Heroes V.
* Fixed map viewing angle: although the map remains three-dimensional, it is no longer necessary to rotate it to avoid missing an object or item.
* There will be a full city screen (not the "replacement" that was seen in the exhibition demonstration).
* Bookmarks can be made on the global screen and battle screen. For example, on the battle screen, your favorite spells can be placed on the panel and cast from there without digging through the spellbook.

RACES

* There are 5 races in the game. Humans (Paul's race), Necromancers (Anastasia's race), demons (Kirill's race), and orcs (Sandor's race) will definitely be present.
* Each race has its own unique "playstyle" with its own unique units. (Think StarCraft!)
* The racial ability will "charge up" during the battle, meaning it can either be used more often but with a smaller effect, or one can wait for "full charge" and strike with maximum effect. There are 4 levels of racial ability "charge" in total.
* The human racial ability is Guardian Angel: a friendly squad becomes immune to hits and negative effects (presumably for a time).
* The demon racial ability is Gating: it works similarly to the same "opening of gates" from Heroes V.
* The Necromancer racial ability is traditional Necromancy, but it now works differently: creatures fallen in battle now increase a certain "counter," which can be used to increase the size of one of the necro-squads right during the fight. After the battle, only a part of the raised necro-creatures remains.

HEROES

* Each race has 2 types of heroes: warrior and mage.
* There will be hero classes.
* Now there are no primary and secondary skills or abilities, no perks, no separate spells. Everything is now abilities that a hero can obtain by earning "ability points." This system is similar to the World of Warcraft system.
* Female and male hero models will differ from each other.
* The player now determines their own hero's development (i.e., when leveling up, you can choose available skills from skill categories).
* Hero development is limited to level 30.
* Depending on reputation, a hero can choose one of three paths: Life, Death, and Neutral and receive the corresponding Advanced class. Initially, each faction has two hero classes: Might (warrior) and Magic (mage), then there is a branch into an Advanced class (3 possibilities), resulting in 6 different types of Advanced class heroes per race. These types are truly unique because, in addition to racial abilities, "class abilities" are also present.
* Heroes will not be directly involved in combat (system as in Heroes III).

GLOBAL MAP

* Only 4 resources remain in the game: gold, wood, ore, and crystals.
* There is a dungeon.
* Ships will not disappear.
* "Control points" in the form of cities and forts have been introduced. Each control point controls resource extraction (in mines) and creature production (in external dwellings) within its zone of influence. (That is, whoever owns the control point receives resources and creatures from the zone of influence). To take a mine or dwelling from an opponent, you must capture the corresponding control point. (If a hero simply "enters" a mine, it will only be a temporary capture: as soon as the hero leaves, the mine returns to the owner of the control point).
* The above applies only to "owned" mines. If a mine is still neutral, capturing the corresponding control point will not lead to automatic capture of the mine: it will remain neutral. If an enemy hero captures a neutral mine belonging to your control point, as soon as that hero moves from the mine, it automatically passes into your possession.
* If a control point is not yet occupied by anyone (neutral), mines/dwellings "work" in the traditional way (as in Heroes V and before) and change their owner depending on whose hero last visited the mine.
* Heroes move faster in their controlled zones. Some races have unique buildings with an effect that extends only to the castle's zone of influence.
* The introduction of control points depends entirely on the map creator. Only some areas can be "controlled," or no control points can be placed at all (in the latter case, mines/dwellings are captured the old-fashioned way).
* Creature transportation: caravans are no longer required for delivering creatures. External creature dwellings will work like resource-producing mines: after capturing an external dwelling, it will add creatures to a certain "creature pool" every week, from which they can be hired in any city or fort. Thus, heroes are not needed to deliver creatures from external dwellings. Nevertheless, when you first capture a dwelling, you can immediately take reinforcements for the hero's army.
* Each race will still correspond to its own type of terrain: Jungle, Plains (two types: summer and autumn), Lava, Wasteland (for Necromancers), Underground.
* There will be simple "animals" that you don't have to fight: turtles, dolphins, birds, etc. "Weather conditions" do not affect gameplay.

CASTLES

* Each race will have its own 4 unique buildings, each of which provides either creature growth, resource growth, or some "special abilities" on the global map or in battle. However, only 2 unique buildings can be built in each castle (a choice must be made regarding what to orient the castle toward). Having identical unique buildings in several castles increases the efficiency of those buildings (similar to how markets increase in efficiency).
* Captured castles can be converted into castles of your own race. Resources are spent on conversion. Unique buildings are lost during conversion.
* Not only castles, but also forts and external creature dwellings can be converted.
* If you retake your castle during the conversion process, the conversion will stop.
* Unique buildings cannot be destroyed at will (to build others instead). Unique buildings are destroyed only during castle conversion.
* Cities will have specializations.

CREATURES

* Creatures are now divided into three levels: Core, Elite, Champion. Creatures of the same level have comparable (roughly identical) stats but different special abilities. Each castle will have 3 Core units, 3 Elite units, and 1 Champion unit.
* Creature special abilities will be passive (always active "automatically") and active (must be activated, spending a turn).
* There will be approximately 50% new creatures.
* All creatures will have only 1 upgrade.
* Upgraded units inherit all the abilities of non-upgraded ones and are clearly stronger than them.
* Each faction has 2-3 "large creatures" (occupying a 2x2 field).
* The Phoenix will be a neutral creature. It will be blue because it is "linked" to the Moon.

MAGIC

* Magic spells are now added as abilities rather than being learned in the Mage's Guild or elsewhere. (Accordingly, the Mage's Guild has been removed).
* There will be 7 schools of magic: Air, Fire, Earth, Water, Light, Darkness, and Primordial.
* Offensive magic will be significantly weakened so that a mage hero cannot practically wipe out entire armies of Might heroes single-handedly. Magic will play a "support" role alongside other traditional abilities.

ARTIFACTS

* There will be about 160 artifacts, 100 of which are unique. By "unique," it means artifacts that provide bonuses of different types (rather than one type). For example, an artifact +1 Attack, +2 Attack, +3 Attack, etc., is considered as one unique artifact (increasing only attack).
* There will be set artifacts. No fundamental differences from previous "Heroes" games.
* The "Tear of Ashan" remains.

BATTLES

* The battlefield is divided into squares.
* There will be a dynamic battlefield, the size of which can change during the fight depending on the opponent's actions or simply "by script" (as intended by the map creator). Additionally, new obstacles may appear and old ones disappear from the battlefield from time to time.
* There will be various battle goals besides "kill them all": for example, hold out for X rounds, protect a temple in the center of the field, or destroy a specific enemy squad.
* There will be clashes with "bosses" – huge monsters that clearly occupy more than a 2x2 field.
* During a siege, squads can deal damage to fortifications (but clearly with less effect than a catapult).
* There will be defensive moats in front of castles.
* If a squad is in "cover" (behind an obstacle), it takes reduced damage from ranged attacks.
* The initiative bar has been removed (although a set of icons remains at the bottom of the screen reflecting the order of squad turns). Turns are clearly divided into rounds, as they were before Heroes V.
* morale in battle gives an extra turn or causes a skip of a turn.
* Luck in battle affects the damage dealt (from minimum to maximum).
* Weather conditions can affect the battlefield.

CAMPAIGNS AND EDITOR

* There are 5 main campaigns in the game, each tied to one of the races. The campaigns are linked to each other, but they can also be played separately and in any order. Each campaign has 4 missions. After completing all these campaigns, a final mission will become available.
* There will be a tutorial map, which can be safely skipped to play the "real" campaigns.
* The same map editor used by the developers themselves will be released, but with a more "user-friendly" interface.
* The editor will be like in WarCraft III: you'll be able to create maps without knowing programming.
* Bosses can be placed on the map (in the editor) just like any other object.
* There will be "achievements" in the game.

SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS

* Heroes VI will be released only for PC. A Mac release is being considered.
* System requirements are not exactly known, but according to the producer, the game will run on 2-3 year old laptops with a discrete video card at low graphics settings.

Hello everyone,

Here is a series of developer answers to questions. They are sorted by specific themes.

MAP EDITOR

*Can we customize the area of effect for forts and capitals?

Yes.

*Will there be an option to automatically convert maps from previous Heroes games into maps for Heroes VI?

No, of course not. The games use different engines and different code. Given the changes made (zones of influence, etc.), you simply cannot convert them directly.

*Can we place bosses on maps?

Yes, you can use bosses as creatures: for example, to guard treasures.

*What will the editor be like? Like Warcraft III, divided into modules (map editor, trigger editor, sound editor, ...) or like in Heroes IV?

It is a trigger system, like Warcraft III. You will be able to create maps without writing a single line of code.

MODS

*Will it be easy to create mods for Heroes VI?

Indeed, that is our goal ^^

*Will mod integration be simpler compared to Heroes V (for example, file organization, the ability to change/import 3D models)?

We want the game to have a simple interface for activating/deactivating mods. Heroes VI has more neat file organization.
Options

*Will there be an option to disable the dynamic camera that triggers when a unit deals a critical hit?

Yes.

*Will it be possible to turn off/on the camera fly-over in adventure mode, which shows us the main points of the map, via options? Can we "restart" it during the game?

To the first question – yes. To the second – no.

*Can we reset hotkeys?

Yes.

OTHER

*Regarding demons, how will Ubisoft explain to us the absence of some creatures that we didn't see during the events of Heroes V (for example, juggernauts)?

Sheol is chaos itself. It has thousands of different forms. We only observe a small part of them. A creature can be in Heroes V and not in Heroes VI, and vice versa. But that creature still exists in Ashan and from time to time its form may have fundamental differences in different periods.

*Will there be Achievements?

Yes. We will give a more detailed explanation later.

*Will there be a Beta? Open or closed?

We can't tell you yet J

*Which features that you added to Heroes VI do you love the most?

There are some things we haven't presented yet.
Technical Information

*If an opponent captured my castle and started its transformation, but then I took it back. In this case, will the conversion continue or be stopped?

In this case, it will automatically stop.

*Will we be able to load/save the game during battle?

Loading – yes, saving – no.

*How will Multiplayer work in Heroes VI? Through ubi.com? Or a more simplified interface, like in H3?

We will tell you about multiplayer later J

*Will we have access to the battle log?

Yes.

CITY

*If we build 2 towers, is their price lower? (As in Heroes Kingdoms)

No.

*Can we destroy a unique building in the city to build a new one instead?

No, although something similar is possible during city conversion.

*Will external buildings (speeding up creature growth) affect only ordinary creatures or upgraded ones as well?

The increase will affect all creatures. The player can choose which creature they want to buy.

*Will cities have specializations (in Heroes 5, each city has its own specialization, if I'm not mistaken)?

Yes.

*Will there be a Grail or its equivalent?

Yes, the tear of Ashan.

ADVENTURE MAP

*How will creatures in a hero's army affect the hero's movement?

The hero's movement is the movement of his army. In other words, the type of creatures in the hero's army does not affect movement.

*You talk about preserving the fundamental basics of Heroes, but "old-timers" are crying over your first changes with resources :p Why such changes? What new things does the new resource system bring to the game, in your opinion?

Resources are by no means a pillar of the game, but an element. You must understand the difference between the soul of the game, its fundamental basics (such as turn-based nature, RPG elements, kingdom and city management) and elements (for example, the number of resource types). We will explain the reason later. (See another Q&A).

*In one of the interviews you mentioned espionage and reconnaissance in enemy territory, which will allow us to determine our development strategy. Does this imply a real fog of war? If so, will there be an option to clear it or cast it on enemy territory?

The fog of war is static. Once cleared, it disappears. Abilities and artifacts will help with this.

*Can you find an explanation for the mine with crystallized Dragon blood?

Yes, during the Ancient Wars, gods shed their own blood in Ashan, which crystallized into a source of energy called Dragon veins. The inhabitants of Ashan learned to extract these crystals by building special mines.

*Will external dwellings specialize in a specific creature or a certain category (core, elite, champion)?

In a certain category.

HERO

*When customizing our own hero, will we be able to determine their name, gender, orientation toward sword or magic...

Of course, we can customize the hero's name, gender, orientation toward sword or magic, and advanced class, which will determine their skills.

*How will a hero's strength be calculated? Their damage, in my opinion, was somewhat unbalanced in Heroes 5 (a hero could kill at most 1-2 level 7 creatures, and about ten level 1 creatures, while spells easily destroyed hundreds).

We plan to balance Might heroes more deeply with Magic heroes.

*Can you tell us about the schools of magic?

There will be seven schools: air, fire, water, earth, light, darkness, as well as primordial magic (Asha/Urgas).

*Will the development system be similar to the one in King’s Bounty (a tree for might skills, a tree for magic skills, a tree for everything else) or will we see a separate tree for each skill?

There will be a tree for each category of skills, slightly similar to KB, but there will be more of them. More detailed information later. :p

*If we have full control over hero development, how do we avoid the situation where all heroes are similar? Are you going to create intermediate skills so that no perfect template exists?

Each hero belongs to a certain class with a unique ability. Furthermore, not all factions will have identical access to those skills and magic schools. Each faction will have its own unique ability.
Battle

*If the arenas are larger, can more than 7 stacks be placed on them?

No.

*How will morale and luck work?

morale will allow an extra action or prevent an action. Luck will give increased or decreased damage.

*Will we have the ability to place archers on a tower; what happens if it is completely destroyed?

When the tower is destroyed, the squad perishes.

*The shape of the arena will not always be the same, but will weather conditions affect the battle by changing speed, spells, shooting (rain, snowstorm, fog...)?

Actually yes, but not systematically.

*How will changes in the terrain change the course of the battle? For example, will the water level change movement speed or completely block the path?

Flooded squares block the path. On other arenas, other effects are possible.
Creatures

*What is the maximum size of the largest creature of a faction? 2x2 as before in Heroes 5, or can some creatures occupy a different area, for example 3x3?

Faction creatures, as before, are maximum 2×2. Bosses can be larger, 4×4, for example.

*Will there be archer-type creatures like in Heroes 5, who after upgrading to crossbowmen lost the ability to hit an area?

An upgrade is not an alternative. It is a real improvement; they do not lose abilities.

*What will be the ratio of neutral and castle creatures?

I won't give any estimate of the ratio, I'll only say that neutrals will be there. You can look at the Gamescom t-shirts. J

*In the screenshots, we see 5 Necropolis creatures occupying only one cell. Does this mean there will be 2 large creatures per faction?

That depends on the faction. There will be about 2-3 large creatures.

CAMPAIGN

*Can we learn more about Svetlana? Was she also chosen by Asha like Arantir? Is she perhaps from the Dragon Knights or Blind Brothers?

"I am Svetlana, Slava's aunt. I left my home to give my life in service to Asha, the Goddess of Death. Once called the 'flower of the north,' now I am feared and called an Apostate, a Heretic, a Necromancer..."

The daughter of the Duke of Griffin, who hoped for a son, Svetlana was an unwanted child and was forced to live in constant loneliness.

At age 15, after the birth of her brother Paul, everyone forgot about her, while he was named heir to the throne.

Finally coming to terms with the way things were, she left home to study the world of Spirits, first with Angels and then with the mages of the Seven Cities.

She was an excellent student, and soon the Necromancer Aguirre became her mentor.

Having finally severed ties with her family, Svetlana joined the cult of the Spider Goddess that was developing at the time; she became Aguirre's assistant and his right hand.

She traveled with her teacher to the Nag islands in the Emerald Sea to free Mother Namtaru, a powerful aspect of the Spider Goddess.

Aguirre was killed during the expedition, and Svetlana had to return Mother Namtaru to the Seven Cities alone, becoming a living legend among her fellow Necromancers.

But she did not enjoy her new status for long, as after her triumphant return, she went home to help Paul in the fight against demons.

Unfortunately, she was too late to help her brother. Instead, she had to become regent of the Duchy of Griffin until Paul's only son, her nephew Slava, grew up.

*Will both aforementioned orders take even a small part in the campaign plot?

Yes :)

*The Ancient War in which the Archangel General perished – is that the war with the Faceless, or something else?

Yes, that very war.

*Why 400 years before?

Because the events after Dark Messiah are told by Heroes Kingdom. The authors wanted to tell about the past, the origins of the events of Heroes V.

I hope you received the necessary information :)

Xhane

(Consequently, the Magic Guild has been removed).

* If a unit is in "cover" (behind an obstacle), it receives reduced damage from ranged attacks.

The interview with Ervan Le Breton takes place at the Igromir 2010 exhibition. The screen showing the Heroes VI presentation is not visible, but apparently, it is demonstrating the same demo we are already familiar with, featuring the Jungles and Svetlana.
Link: http://stopgame.ru/vreports/20/hq
Ervan Le Breton: Before you is the spirit of the Heroes series, which we have tried to preserve in Heroes 6. We are still in this wonderful fictional world—epic and charming, as they say—with beautiful places to visit and plenty of valuables to collect. We call this the "Christmas tree spirit." The game has many resources, artifacts, glittering gold, and creatures you can interact with to get a quest or simply kill to gain access to treasures. But overall, it is still a turn-based strategy with RPG elements. These are true Heroes. However, in Heroes 6, there are many differences from the 5th and 3rd parts. The main one is, naturally, the graphics. If you look closely, you will see a new tileset that we call "jungles." It is a tropical island. Heroes 6 is the most detailed game in the series to date. Our main artistic goal was to move away from the comic book feel or, I would even say, the cartoonishness of the 5th part toward something darker and grimmer—like an artistic step from Scooby-Doo to Spawn. That was exactly the idea. We wanted the Necromancers in Heroes 6 to look scarier, not funny. Changes also affected some of the core game mechanics. The first thing shown here is a controlled area. Perhaps you have already read about this. This means that the global map is divided into several areas. Each has its own city or fort. Right now, we see a fort that controls an area and all the resource-producing buildings belonging to it. I mean gold mines, sawmills, crystal mines, as well as dwellings of various creatures. They are all linked to one building, and if you want to seize these structures, you will have to capture the main one—the fort or city. If you simply go to the mines and place your flag, as in previous Heroes games, you can still steal resources from there, but every time your hero leaves, the mine will return to the control of the main building.

*The main question, I think everyone has: why did you abandon 6 resources and remove 2 resources?

There were many reasons for that. I will make a list. The main fact was that when we discussed interest in rare resources, everyone said it is interesting to upgrade fighters or build higher-class buildings. So a rare resource must be present—something more expensive and harder to find than wood, ore, or gold. But why so many different ones? Each faction had its own resource that was unique for its development. Sometimes there were maps with sulfur and mercury mines. One player needed sulfur, while the other needed mercury. As a result, they didn't fight over the mines. They only captured the mine that interested their faction, while the other was useless to them. Ultimately, stealing mercury was only for exchanging it for gold, or you could leave it for another player. It wasn't a strategic objective; at most, it could hinder another player's development, which was a hostile tactic. And we decided it would be more interesting if all factions competed for the same rare resource. If you look at the difference between management games like Settlers and strategic ones like Starcraft, there are games with a large number of resources. Mostly, these are games about management, development, and building. But if you look at games with fewer resources, tactics decide everything in those games because you fight for strategic reasons.

*Are you not afraid that players might be outraged? They are already outraged by the amount of resources—specifically what changed in the 6th part.

I was just about to answer this question. They are already outraged by this change. But most arguments boil down to one thing: it was like this in all Heroes, so why change it? That's fine, but what about the interest of the gameplay itself? With the reduction of resources, other interesting changes occurred. First, the interface was simplified. Training for beginners became easier because there are fewer things to master. There is less micromanagement. Map makers found it easier to create maps because they don't have to think as much about which mines to place depending on the playing factions. This mainly concerns multiplayer maps. It speeds up game time on the map. So there were many pluses. And in terms of costs, it is easier for us to make a game with fewer resources. So the arguments were like "a step backward in the Heroes series." It's a pity, of course, to lose this detail. Try to understand. But for us, this is a minor correction because the principle of mines and rare resources is still in place. So the spirit is present; only the appearance has changed. Another argument was that, strategically: the more resources, the better. But again, this concerns development or trade strategy, not fighting for vital nodes. From the earliest days of the project, we had many discussions with fans on the VIP forum. And their first reaction was exactly this: why did you change it?! It sucks! We told them the same thing I am telling you now. Then they had a chance to play on one of the maps. And they began to reflect on the development system and other gameplay features, like controlled areas and city changes. And they said: you know what? In the end, we think it made sense to reduce the number of resources. But I believe only time will tell. I think fans will be happy to get the game in their hands. They'll play two or three maps—and they won't care that there are only 4 resources.

*And which of the Heroes games is your favorite?

For me, it's the 3rd. I played the 3rd, 4th, and 5th. I didn't play the 1st or 2nd. But I prefer the 3rd because I like the system where the hero is a commander rather than fighting on the battlefield. Because while playing the 4th, I had the feeling that I was playing an RPG with strategy elements, not vice versa. And I prefer the 3rd over the 5th because, even though I worked on Heroes 5 (at the time I was assistant producer and then producer), there were many things in the game that seemed unfinished, which could have been polished if we had spent more time. You know, it was more a question of contributing all efforts and considerations into the game, and sometimes this was rushed. That is something I would not wish for Heroes 6. But Heroes 3 had time for polishing, especially with expansions. So there was a feeling of perfect balance, which I feel when playing Blizzard games. A game that is truly finished—that is what I want to make with Heroes 6.

*In the 5th part of Heroes, what would you choose as the best and worst idea?

The best idea in the game for me (and we kept it in Heroes 6) was the faction ability. The fact that each faction or race has a special ability that distinguishes it from others: "Gate Opening" for demons, "Necromancy" for Necromancers, etc. We kept this (and even developed it) in Heroes 6. And I consider this a good idea. What I liked least (or what I hated most) in Heroes 5 was probably the skill system. I know many players like it. Let them. But personally, I like to manage my character's development, especially in a game where RPG is second to strategy. It was frustrating to play as a Knight of Haven who is offered Dark Magic spells. That was wrong. That wasn't the hero I wanted to play. But I had no choice but to say "yes" because the choice had already been made for me instead of me choosing my hero's path myself.

*Why did the game change its name? Previously it was "Heroes of Might & Magic," now it is "Might & Magic: Heroes."

This is a general revolution at Ubisoft. Now we treat our brands as umbrella brands. Meaning that each brand has several games belonging to it. For example, the Tom Clancy series, where there is Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon, Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell, Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six. And we did the same with Might & Magic. Because now we have Might & Magic: Heroes, Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes, Might & Magic: Kingdoms. One thing unites them—the world in which events take place. The world of Might and Magic, which is now associated with this world and the brand itself. And this means that it's unlikely a game will appear in the future called simply Might & Magic. It doesn't mean there won't be more RPGs with "Might & Magic" on them. It will be "Might & Magic: something." Like, "Might & Magic: Adventures," Might & Magic... whatever.

*Can you tell us a bit about the combat system? Has it changed? What is new that wasn't there before? And what repeats previous games in the series?

As for battles, they are very similar to those in other Heroes. We know that battles are the main key to the series' success. We all love them. And we didn't want to ruin them. But we made a few changes—small refinements. The turn order bar came from Heroes 5, but we returned to a system closer to Heroes 3, where there was a first turn, second, third... Each creature can be used only once per turn unless there is a morale bonus or a spell that allows moving twice. The hero can intervene at any moment. He does not fall under the turn order. You can play him at any time during your turn, but only once. Again, you can use the hero twice if there is a special ability. We kept the special abilities from Heroes 5, as I mentioned earlier. But we made them more powerful. And now they are used to their full potential during battle. For example, Necromancers still have necromancy, which allows them to resurrect fallen soldiers. But now this ability can be used during battle, not after. So it becomes a tactical ability. Also, the game has new power levels. There are 4 level ranks. There is an indicator that fills up during battle, allowing you to move to level 1, 2, 3, 4. In general, the longer the battle lasts, the stronger the ability becomes. And each faction has certain conditions for filling this indicator. Necromancers, since they honor death, must kill people, and their own soldiers must die too. That is, sacrifice your fighters, kill enemies, fill the indicator—and resurrect the army.

*Siege battles, as far as I know, will change slightly. What exactly are the changes?

There are two changes. But again, they are small, just to make everything more interesting. First: all creatures can smash the wall. Absolutely all creatures. That is, your workers can go and try to break through the gates with their little fists. This wasn't in previous games. Creatures stood and waited until shooters killed them or until the gates broke. Another difference is that each faction has its own catapult, which differs visually and also has a second special ability unique to each faction. But otherwise, everything remains the same.

*A question about multiplayer mode. Are you planning to change anything in multiplayer compared to previous parts? And overall, what will multiplayer look like?

For now, we are not talking about multiplayer. This will be discussed in the future. There were many questions. And the only thing we said was about the presence of a hotseat function for several players on one computer. Such an opportunity will be in Heroes 6. But other modes and details about multiplayer will come later.

*Will there be new war machines during battle?

No. Only catapults, which I mentioned earlier. Faction catapults.

*Is there any special, interesting new magic? And will there be any features in global magic on the global map?

We discussed this during development—the presence of some kind of global atomic weapon or something like that. In Heroes 6, there is no such thing. This doesn't mean it won't be in another game or Heroes 7. No, the magic is traditional. The main difference is only in how you get spells. You no longer need to visit schools of magic. You simply have skill points—and you can buy spells with them in spell schools when your level increases. This is a more classic RPG development.

*We heard that there will be bosses in the game. What will they look like and how will battles with them be implemented?

When we talked about battles and their similarities to Heroes 5 or 3, we didn't want to change anything radically. But we wanted to make battles more diverse. In connection with this, we changed the conditions of battle—or rather, victory. By default, they are the same: defeat the enemy army. Then the enemy either flees or surrenders. But in the campaign, there will be many battles with special victory conditions. For example, holding positions. When the enemy army will obviously overcome you or is too powerful, but for victory, you only need to hold out for three turns and survive. Also possible is the task of eliminating a specific unit in the opponent's regiment. The rest don't matter. All fire is concentrated on one unit, which is your target. There are also opposite situations where you must protect some of your own units, which need to be healed and protected so that the enemy cannot attack them. Protection of a certain part of the map is also possible, like a building that can be destroyed, such as a Temple. And you have to protect it from the enemy. And battles with bosses are exactly part of that same battle diversity. There will be about 10 bosses in the game, who will be unique creatures. Much larger than even the largest creatures in your army. We are talking about sizes 3 or 4 times larger. This means they will take up a huge space on the battlefield. And each requires its own approach. The usual method of fighting them will not work. You will have to understand how they behave, what their weaknesses are, what they want to do with your army and how to avoid it, etc.

*Last question. Will there be a map editor? And will there be a map generator?

We worked a lot on the map editor. We hired a fan named Marzini, Julian Piru, into our Ubisoft team. He is French and known in the community for improving Heroes maps, creating maps, and even a campaign called "The Legend." He was hired into the team to work on several parts of the game. Naturally, this is level design—helping Black Hole create maps for the game. He is also a community moderator because he knows everyone well and is an immediate part of it. And when we speak with the community, we often use Julian as our messenger, our voice. Also, one of his tasks was studying the map editor and explaining to Black Hole how to make it more user-friendly. Our ideas are to distribute the map editor as early as possible, if possible even before the game's release. So that people can rush to edit maps and create their own. And we want to add a map generator to it, but for now, I cannot promise that it will be ready. I hope so, but we still have so much to do…

Cepheus said that the video Q&A this week will be short but very informative: they will show us previously unseen features. There will be several such videos.

Here's a link to another interview: http://www.youtube.com/v/DIQhRaRWWMU?fs=1&hl=ru_RU

all creatures can break down a wall. Absolutely all creatures. That is, your workers can go and try to break down the gates with their little fists. In previous games, this wasn't possible. Creatures would stand and wait to be killed by archers, or until the gates broke down on their own.

What I disliked the most (or, what I hated the most) in Heroes 5 was, perhaps, the skill system. I know that many players like it. Let it be. But personally, I like to manage the development of my character, especially in a game where RPG elements are secondary to strategy. I was disappointed to play as a Knight of the Order, who was offered Dark Magic spells. That was wrong. That wasn't the hero I wanted to play as. But I had no choice but to say "yes," because the choice had already been made for me instead of letting me choose the path for my hero.