Posts from In your opinion, which faction is the strongest in Heroes 5? Let's discuss the advantages and disadvantages of each faction.

I hate Haven. Miserable, pampered humans. Nothing outstanding. In the late game on a large map, their crowds of paladins won't help them, neither against Academy (the strongest in Heroes 5), nor against Necropolis (theoretically the most dependent on map conditions).

I like Inferno on large maps. They have 2 strong specs — a very scary Ballista with 3 shots, each of which is fiery death, and 2 — Attack+Morale+Luck, with fast teleport and haste spells. The enemy dies before they even get a chance to move. Very stylish.

Necropolis — I used to love it, now not so much. I like Bone Warriors, the strongest level 1 unit after trackers, Vampires, Harbingers; the defense-summon spec is the most effective. Above, I mentioned their heavy dependence on map conditions, specifically the number of resurrectable neutrals (RN) on the map, the presence of external RN dwellings, and the number of castles on the map (from which they can later convert undead); basically, these are the most important factors for a strong, OP Necromancer. But let's imagine a map (a duel on a large map, for example, against an Academy player), where there are few RN neutrals or they aren't RN at all, few or no RN dwellings, and only, say, two castles: yours and the opponent's. The map is huge, there are enough resources for development, rushing is impossible in any form, so heroes are fully leveled (up to Grand Master). And here is what we get in the finale — almost equal army growth for both heroes, BUT due to "weak" troops (Necromancers rely on the number of raised undead, and necromancy in part 5 is equal to others, not a bonus, unless RN conditions are met, but we are talking about their absence), the Necromancer simply has no chance against the Academy troops decked out in minimax artifacts. That's it. I think everyone understands now...

I hate Sylvan. Miserable, pampered elves. The central skill is OP, but getting it is almost impossible.

Dungeon is top-class. 2 units with invisibility, several kamikaze heroes can face a countless enemy army with 3 trackers and kill a ton of people before retreating. Almost every battle happens without losses or with almost no losses because Dungeon mages can fire 4-5 chain lightnings or infernoes before their troops become visible and take any damage. And after that, there might be no enemy left at all. Specs? Charms and chaos, only that way.

Academy is a faction with cheating minimax artifacts; effectively, 1 squad of lions can wipe out an entire enemy army if the mage has Light. Yes, lions are better than titans with high-level artifacts, paradoxical but a fact. Mages, well yes, not bad, but only at the beginning and against AI. They die instantly; for a human player, they are target #1, after all. In the late game on huge maps, they have no equal, minimax... Above I described the essence of the confrontation between mages and Necromancers. Resurrectable neutrals run out sooner or later, dwellings might not be on the map at all, but the resources needed for minimax in the mines never run out... The only thing I don't like about mages is their "Eastern" styling, which doesn't fit the tall, beautiful, fair-haired COLOSSI and TITANS at all; that's Greece, my friends, and has nothing to do with the turbans on the heads of heroes and archmages with golems. Same for the gargoyles, they are from Western European culture... In general, I only dislike playing them because of this.

Dwarves... Light+Defense combined with their factional runes make dwarves some of the strongest. And their Grand Master is very satisfying — OP.

Orcs — a prototype of the Golden Horde, to hell with them.

Yeah, you'll get 100500 shots from the archers, you'll have fun. Thanks to the preparation, you can dominate at all stages of the game.

What archers? Archers will be taken down in the early game by the same mages, elves...


What other build? The "Triple Ballista" perk is available to many. Demons simply prioritize Attack and Magic stats - which is what the ballista's damage depends on. Teleport and speed spells are also available to everyone.

But does everyone have quick gate opening?


No one plays on large maps in Multiplayer. Necromancers only lose in a drawn-out game, and even then, if they don't have extra towns.

What are you talking about? :D Those you know don't play? In fact, most people play on large maps for a grand endgame, to fully upgrade and utilize all possibilities... This is where the balance ends, and mages dominate.

It's not worth it. You don't necessarily need to go for Castle of the Undead - Enchanted Arrow + Rain + Ballista is much more effective and faster. And I won't even mention the archers.
That's also an option, I don't argue.


It's good at the beginning, but then it's useless. Invisibility is revealed pretty quickly. Of course, it's easy against the AI.
The sneaky ones annoy them... Although there's often a ban on this tactic...


Miniatures are great, of course, but only for long games and upgraded heroes. Mages dominate thanks to their vast knowledge and magic. The units are weak, Rakshasas die in one shot... Golems and Gremlins can survive for a while if the former heal the latter.
With miniatures, even the Academy units start to dominate, Rakshasas don't die so quickly anymore, and if you add +13 to the Gremlins' health... +30 initiative...


Dwarves combine light and runes well, that's true. They also hold up well in the city. But in an economic crisis, they can be easily "smoked out" of the castle, where they won't last long in the open.
In the open, they can take on almost anyone, except for Stronghold and the Academy.


It's useless. The style doesn't matter here. Orcs are good at almost any stage of the game; Rage allows them to overwhelm huge squads and protects them from damage; shouts are also very effective, especially on large maps, where "Tophet's Cry" spoken seven times wipes out all enemy squads; the units are also well-made, Cyclops with Rage are absolutely invincible; the only problem is the bulky archer-centaurs, but you can counter them with tactics. If you equip them with dwarven artifacts from the Archer set, no one has a chance against a skilled Orc.

What are you talking about? Don't the people you know play? In fact, most people play on large maps for a grand endgame, to fully upgrade and utilize all possibilities... This is where the balance ends, and mages dominate.

Maybe they play that way somewhere else, but not here... Large maps are interesting in single-player, but in multiplayer, fighting against another player is much more interesting than clearing out neutral creatures, so the key is the pace. Only those who benefit from it try to prolong the game, but in that case, the opponent, on the contrary, tries to attack as soon as possible while they still have a good chance. It's pure calculation.
In general, I don't agree that the Academics are the strongest... They are definitely the most unpredictable because they depend heavily on resources and what comes up in the Guild of Mages (the ability to develop any school). Once, I played against a friend, I was Necromancer, and he was Academics. In the final, I was surprised because he had Darkness... And he did well, although I still managed to win thanks to my army. But sometimes it can be extremely unlucky; it varies from game to game.

What archers are you talking about? Archers will be taken out in the early game by the same Mages and Elves...

Does everyone have the ability to quickly open portals?

What are you talking about? You don't play against people you know? In fact, most people play on large maps for a grand endgame, to fully upgrade and utilize all possibilities... Here, the balance ends, and Mages dominate.

That's also an option, I don't argue.

The tricksters annoy them... Although, this tactic is often banned...

With Miniatures, the Academy units are already strong, Rakshasas don't die as quickly anymore, and if you add +13 to the health of the Goblins... +30 initiative...

Mages are the strongest in the late game, where resources are no longer needed for buildings, and you can invest everything in Miniatures, and with the help of Miniatures, you can create an army against any race, you just need to test it, with knowledge +60, a Miniature gives +40% initiative... Any opponent won't be able to attack even once, even Wingael... Regarding spells – a special ability + light/darkness, and that's it. And Miniatures give not only initiative... Necromancer is more dependent on the map.

If we agree that you can attack after three or four months of the game, or even more... In my opinion, I can only assess the strength of a race at its maximum level of development and using all its possibilities; here, I repeat, mages beat everyone...

Of the normal archers, only Battle Mages, who should be replaced with Fire Mages in the early stages.

By the way, the Necromancer's special ability is one of the most useless ones – a -6 penalty to morale is just laughable, especially considering that the maximum negative morale you can achieve is -11, while it's easy to get over 12 positive morale, and a Mage with Minotaurs can easily crush them... And getting to that ability is one of the most difficult things, the lack of "Mind Control" only makes this already useless ability even worse...

If we agree that you can only attack after three or four months of the game, or even more... In my opinion, I can only evaluate the strength of a faction at its maximum level of development and using all its possibilities; here, I repeat, Mages crush everyone...

I'm not going to argue, but a reasonably good opponent won't let you level up to 60 knowledge. At best, to 30, and even that's a lot. Normally, it's 20... The Necromancer, by the way, is less dependent on the map, but also less dependent on randomness in general. His tactic of "making a lot, a lot of troops" is effective to some extent, because there are no large maps with a small number of neutrals, and no additional cities, at least the random map generator doesn't create such maps, these are already some kind of fantasies. The Necromancer is good on small maps, good on large maps, and not so dependent on resources, constant in all respects. Only on large maps without additional cities is he just okay, and with additional cities, he becomes a very serious opponent that not every faction can defeat.

No, the strength of a faction is evaluated by the number of victories with it in games, when there are no agreements (except perhaps for the rules of online games, which are made to create some additional balance, so they can be understood). People should play to win, not for ambitions, then it will be clear which faction is strong in what. But these agreements... You could as well agree to use only Chaos magic and buy armies exclusively of the third level, no more, no less. This is so that Mages definitely win, with Alt-Grey golems against Chaos. Come up with something else... But there is little point in these agreements.

By the way, I wouldn't replace it. Fireball is a Fireball, but archers need to be protected, and archmages cannot be protected, they will shoot at their own (not all the time, of course, throwing fireballs).