:D I'm feeling a bit... off today...
THE THEORY OF EVOLUTION OF THE HOMO HEROES SPECIES.
Homo heroes bot – the heroic botanical human. Many scientists believe this species has long been extinct, however, new waves of bots prove otherwise. An adherent of economic strategy, he stubbornly tries to build a capitol in week 1 and rejoices at the game's conclusion in month 9. He attacks neutrals only when he has a 5-fold advantage in one meat, and in terms of skill level, he hasn't gone far beyond a computer bot; however, it is impossible to verify this since he doesn't play online—he's that kind of greenhouse fruit. Despite the fact that this species belongs to the plant kingdom, it possesses the ability to move and often appears on streams and forums, where it leaves valuable remarks on strategy and tactics. He is confident in his infallibility and strength of play. Some of them, having reached a helpful "how to play online" section, unexpectedly decide: "why not give it a try?". And here, the heroic human moves to the next stage of its development.
Homo heroes nub – the new heroic human, or simply a nub, a beginner. Call them what you want; the essence of this type can be expressed by the motto: "I try something new, therefore I exist." Experimentation is the foundation of a beginner's life; having watched plenty of VODs, he tries to replicate the play of the pros (papas), but it doesn't work. He tries again and fails again. In general, a nub plays worse than a bot because a bot basically cannot throw. But for a beginner: throws are reliable and faithful companions. When the number of defeats reaches a critical point, the beginner faces a choice: either return to the bot level and forever remain the theoretically strongest player, or continue the same suffering. Choosing the second option leads to a qualitative change in the beginner's game. The first victories have a truly healing effect, and the beginner notices that it is easier for him to play with certain castles. He begins to play these castles and moves to the next stage of evolution.
Homo heroes seasons – a small predator, a regular at seasonal tournaments, who loves to fight nubs or players like himself to build up his rating, so to speak. This player has a favorite template and castle that "works" for him. The favorite can be any, but most often it is Castle. Although some are drawn to Barbarians, Swamp, or Dungeon. Sometimes it happens that he likes one castle, but playing another works better. It's the same with templates; one favorite is chosen, and all games are played only on it. As the seasonal player develops, another castle is added to his favorite, and mastery of them is honed to the smallest detail—essentially practicing "right and left hooks." Feeling his strength, the seasonal player attempts to play in tournaments, where he is welcomed by larger predators at a higher level of development. The first thing these experienced comrades do: they move the game to an unusual template and strike out the seasonal player's favorite castles. Some do this consciously after looking at game statistics, others simply out of spite. As a result: the experienced seasonal player (with many victories behind him, or perhaps a long win streak) is slammed back down to the level of a helpless nub. And here the hero faces a choice again: either return to the same old season where it's warm and cozy and you can choose your favorite castle and an opponent your own size, or continue learning. And if he doesn't give up, he will take a step to the next rung of the evolutionary ladder.
Homo heroes universalis – a player of universal style. "Oh, you won't let me play my favorite Castle? Well then, we'll roll with Dungeon. Striking out my dear Jebus Cross? Let's study 8mm6a!" Having made such a decision, the hero enters a difficult path. Difficult because the game consists of more than just castles and templates. Heroes of Might and Magic has 3 components, almost physically separate from each other: tactics, operational art, and strategy. And it must be said that some players are naturally inclined toward tactical play, while others are inclined toward maneuverable macro-play.
Tactics (sc Micro) – this is the assessment of the situation and decisions made directly in battle and before battle (which troops to take, how to position them, etc.). Tactics is a concrete, clear game.
A player inclined toward tactics loves to fight, conducts many battles per game day, fights with different heroes; in the heat of battle, he is focused, neutral morale doesn't throw him off, and having made a mistake in battle, he doesn't panic but carefully thinks about how to fix it. Disadvantages: chains don't connect, the map isn't scouted, and the main troops end up not where they are needed, with no way to redeploy them.
Operational Management (sc Macro) – this is scouting the map, building chains, determining priority objects and goals. Macro-play operates with more generalized concepts compared to tactics. For example, it's no secret that on day 1 a player performs an operation codenamed "the run," the goal of which is to decide: play the layout or take a rest. For a good player, all actions are subordinated to this goal: scouting goes in all directions, primarily along the road. Only money is picked up from resources, with which new heroes are bought; snakes in the swamp are bought strictly one by one (otherwise there might not be enough 220 coins for a hero), troglodytes in the dungeon aren't all upgraded, only 110 pieces—this is enough for 1 day, it's better to buy a 5th hero, etc. Also in week 1, an operation "build-order" or castle construction is performed, and again all actions, all battles are subordinated to one goal. This is typical macro, but by week 2 there is already plenty of room for imagination, and the result of the match depends on how correctly and timely the player sets goals for himself. A player inclined toward operational management skillfully builds chains (via teleports and lifts), scouts the map in a timely manner, and has an excellent eye for priorities in the game. But disadvantages: he doesn't like to fight; throwing or nearly throwing every battle prevents him from realizing perfectly conceived plans.
In general, tactics answers the question "how to fight?", while macro answers the question "why fight?".
At first, a micro-player looks better; his tactical muscles grow faster, and he more easily overcomes the path from nub to seasonal. A macro-player, however, due to constant and frustrating throws, might leave the game entirely. And that would be foolish, because tactics are very concrete and consequently easy to train. Try asking an experienced player how he conducted a particular battle, and he will explain it briefly and clearly. But ask why he decided to go into this zone rather than that one, and he'll mutter something vague. For a macro-player, a good solution would be: a solid portion of tactical exercises and playing on rich templates, for example, Jebus Cross.
And in general, all battles in Heroes can easily be divided by type:
1 battle with slow units
2 battle with fast raiders (speed 6 and above)
3 battle with shooters
4 taking the treasury (from crypt to Dragon Utopia)
5 battle with a bot
6 battle with losers—oops
7 and finally the finale, of which there can be several (field and siege variants).
As you can see, the number of typical battles is large but not infinite. Yes, in every battle you might encounter an upgraded stack, morale might kick in or terrain might cause trouble, but nevertheless, there is a recipe for conducting all battles. For successful combat, it is enough to understand the principle rather than memorize moves, such as taking crypts. No matter how good the method of capture is, it doesn't cancel the requirement to think for yourself.
Moreover, by training tactics, a player improves his macro; chains start being built through objects not yet taken. As a result: it is easier for a macro-player to overcome the path from seasonal to universal.
At the upper levels of a universal hero—tactical and operational skills inevitably even out, and the weaker component is brought up to an acceptable level. Although different players reach universality via different paths, some retain a love for tactics, while others for macro-play. A battle between two universals is a true pleasure for spectators, a competition between two fighters implementing the layout with maximum efficiency. And the finale is the apotheosis of this implementation.
Universal style fighters are the lions and dragons of Heroes, frozen one jump away from prize positions. Having made that jump, they land... right into the paws of super-predators.
Homo heroes papa – also known as papa, or GO, or simply His Majesty the Champion. When the number of games, wins, and losses reaches a huge magnitude, throws on 111 and fast Dragon Utopias no longer cause a storm of emotion. However, the player does not retire. He is held by the most interesting component of the game: contact with the opponent, the clash of designs and worldviews. It is for this that he is willing to sit for hours at the computer, earning himself hemorrhoids and beating miserable neutrals for the thousandth time. Here, the 3rd element of gaming power fully manifests.
Strategy – this is the work a player performs before and after the match. This is the identification of the most general laws of the game and struggle, which are fair regardless of layout and one's luck (cherk). A strategist lives in every hero, but for a time he remains in a dormant state. Until tactics and macro-play are worked out, the strategist cannot manifest his power.
Upon close inspection, a universal is no less than a papa, neither in tactics nor in macro. And yet he loses with enviable consistency. So what is the difference between a strong player and a champion? There is a difference...
A universal hero continuously struggles during the game: with neutrals, with bots, with his own mood. In his view—the more efficiently the layout is gathered, the fewer the losses and the better the main hero is leveled, the greater the chances of victory. FB (final battle) is the final tally. This is where the brain's glucose reserves are spent.
The champion, however, knows perfectly well that it is impossible to gather more from the map than the generator put on it. All battles and eating the map are a formality for him; he has seen victories in all variations: with raw power or through magic or control, by rushing or camping—it doesn't matter. The champion coolly looks at what the almighty RMG offered him today. There will always be some tool for victory on the map. And he shifts all the weight of the struggle to the stage of contact with the opp; until then, he played almost on autopilot. Now his strengths awaken, and he becomes extraordinarily inventive and dangerous. That is, one opponent has already spent his strength and the game in his understanding is almost over. But for the other, the game is only just beginning, and he is still fresh and full of energy. In the end, a universal fights against the layout, while a champion fights against a living person.
And finally, I have 2 pieces of news for you, and both are bad.
1 Since this is a theory of evolution, it's impossible to skip one of the steps. A bot cannot become a seasonal player, a nub cannot become a universal.
2 If you think that the evolution of homo heroes follows the chain:
bot->nub->seasons->universal->papa
then you weren't reading carefully; in reality, the chain looks like this:
bot->nub->seasons-> nub->universal-> nub->papa
That is, every time a player tries to rise to the next level, he relentlessly plunges himself into a period of unstable results.
P.S. Let's not forget that the author does not boast great competitive results. Don't take everything as gospel or too seriously. :D
Good luck to all and lots of fun.
The_
