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Well, I don't know about the extreme difficulty. Yesterday, I tried to play it through to the end and see what it's all about. I set it to 3x3 (since it was my first time), but on the highest difficulty. I came, saw the enemy, and easily defeated them. At the same time, my allies finished off the second enemy. And the third, who was practically right across the road from my second city (the one I captured), I simply "tricked" in a crude way. Or rather, he tricked himself. Although he was really deadly for me. Every time he left the city, he left it practically empty. The next day, he had to retake it. Moreover, he spent his turns so foolishly that he couldn't catch up with my "marauders" in the same turn.
But what really annoyed me was the blatant cheating with the borders, where controlling a city means controlling the mines around it. It's just a cheap trick for newbies. Buying troops from two cities in one turn. The battles have turned into
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something else. Instead of fighting, everyone is casting spells, everyone is doing something strange.
Conclusion: Parts three or five are more interesting, more lively, more well-thought-out, and generally more gameplay-oriented. I will continue to play them.