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Once, the “Return to Avenge” map seemed simply inhumane. I was, I think, 10-12 years old... I was playing as the Swamp faction, and suddenly, unexpectedly, I realized that heroes move very slowly in the swamp, which slows down development, while my opponents run around like crazy, and they already have everything: everything is explored, everything is built, and so on. But the catharsis came later – when I suddenly realized how much time was left before the loss, how many creatures I needed to defeat, and how many dwellings I needed to visit before that, and all this with a ban on magic! It was so shocking that I abandoned the map and the game for about ten years.
Returning to it, no, I didn't become a super-player or someone with a lot of experience; I remained the same clumsy player in the world of any strategy game. But I decided to replay it, having thought through the tactics in advance. It turned out to be simple; I completed it on the first try, without any reloads. I played as Demons with allies. Although I realized quite late that allies don't make the game easier, but rather more difficult, I was helped by the ubiquitous Imps, who quickly destroyed the ally – it turned out that this was even better; the captured castles were already fully equipped for a good life. Well, and a simple tactic. A bunch of Demon Cities on the Demon continent, connected by Demon Gates, a slow replenishment of troops, and a stable defense against various upstarts. Close proximity to Azure Dragons. No travel; I only ran around the map in search of one thing – the Guild of Mages with the "Dimension Door" spell. And I found it in the Necropolis not far from the coveted creatures. That's it. Expert "Defense," "Attack," and various spells. I relied on Azure Dragons, Devils, Magogs, Cerberuses, and, strangely enough, the "shameful" and "useless" Demons. It wasn't even about strength, but about quantity; from all the "Demon Cities," an incredible number of these creatures accumulated, and there was even enough time left to accumulate more, but I was already too lazy to wait. Overall slowdown, overall curse, overall bloodlust, and the creatures were defeated like nuts.