H4: Strategy, tactics and hints

[pepak]

2. What is to be done to get the heroes to the maximum level allowed?

Use the available enhancers wisely (I don't quite recall if there are any Trees of Knowledge in the first scenario, but if they are, don't use them before you are at level (18-number of trees)).

I've never found one in the first scenario. In the second there is one. I used it as the very last leveller. In the third there are two. I used them both only after anyhting other except visiting the final hut was done. The maximum last time i tried was level 16 in the first scenario. Allowed is 18. In the second i got them to level 20, limit is at 25. So i get more and more behind the possibilities.

Interestingly enough, I tried to go through the campaign once again (Champion again, of course) and got to even lower levels than you did - I had heroes of level 16, 14, 12 and 11. Still, even with such an underpowered army it wasn't a problem defeating the Efreeti in the second scenario.

[Siegfried]

Interestingly enough, I tried to go through the campaign once again (Champion again, of course) and got to even lower levels than you did - I had heroes of level 16, 14, 12 and 11. Still, even with such an underpowered army it wasn't a problem defeating the Efreeti in the second scenario.

I had exploited every single option for getting some XP. I even took one of the 4 heroes alone at the end to take out some of these "week of the whatever" stacks until he got to level 16. But then nothing more was left. I tried it in 3 different difficulty levels, always the same result. Although i did not get through the second scenario in the higher difficulty levels. But i think i'll try your hints with skills and correct positioning, just to see if it works.

Currently i'm at the second scenario of the Emilia Nighthaven campaign. I remember when i did it last time (already some time ago) i had more difficulties. So may indeed be i already got better

The problem i currently have: To access those chaos towns you need some medusas. I've currently no idea from where to get them. I hope i find some somewhere.

The current strategy is quite simple: I go with the 2 main heroes alone, they just take some of the stacks won by diplomacy. The key is, as in the other campaigns, speed. In the first scenario the main key for getting through was speed, too. Pressing hard with as few troops as possible was the key. This campaign has the opposite problem then the true blade campaign: I could have taken as much as 5 heroes to maximum level, although Emilia alone is carried over.

[Charles J Lee]

Of all campaigns, I found the chaos the most limiting. You have to basically 'know' things that the storyline doesn't cue you to know - things that you really learn only after being squashed on your first two tries.

I played Chaos on Normal, taking time to pick up the seaman's hat, pick up resources, etc. I got nowhere. Downgraded to Novice and moved faster, and still got nowhere.

Then I changed my strategy. I assumed knowledge that Tawni shouldn't have, given the storyline. Since that was 'cheating', I played on Hard. Then I made a beeline for the first Barbarian town, ignoring the Asylum. Once the first Might town was mine, the game turned farcially easy. And the rest of the chaos campaign is a breeze. You can solo most battles, at most hire an evil eye to help cast spells, a bandit to distract the enemy, whatever.

I guess this is a big problem with most of the 3DO generated scenarios/ campaigns. They're not well-balanced. If you play on Normal, once you get past the first scenario it gets boringly easy. If you play higher difficulty settings, there's the danger that you'll get stuck at a point and can't get anywhere without a restart.

[csarmi]

Pepak, I'm really interested in how you plan on beating the Wearjak 1st scenario WITHOUT retries or any reloads. So no fixing of what arties and stuff you get, assume the worst case scenario.

BTW I played the chaos campaign on impossible, it was my 1st campaign or so, I didn't even hurry up with Tawni or anything and my knowledge of the game was very limited by then. I went for the chaos town 1st and I think I didnt even occupy the bar town for a long time. Still it was very easy so I cant see what the problem can be.

I really hope there are archives because all the valuable discussion in these forums (okay 98%) was in the old site... since then nothing happened, basically.

[Vlad The Devil]

Hi there! I'm a huge Heroes IV fan since I never had the opportunity to play (I mean really play) the other versions of Heroes. I tried to experiment more of Heroes III but I never got used to it; the two III and IV are quite different and also recently Heroes V which is interesting but unfortunately my PC is still too limited and the speed of the game is terrible (plus in both III and V I miss the "super-heroe" type of playing walking without any army and fighting against creatures "alone"; plus caravans; creatures exploring without any heroe and not to mention the storyline). I have been playing Heroes IV for 4 years (I bought my PC in 2003). Recently I've decided to restart the campaigns. The Heroes IV default campagins I've done them when I first played Heroes IV so only the Chaos campaingn I've done it at the Champion difficulty. Now I've finished 5 of them (champion of course) except the Might Campaign which is by far the most difficult and challenging (and as I can see not only in my opinion ) at least the first scenario.

Playing the Might Campaign at Champions is impossible for me at least. I can't figure it out how to defeat both the pirates + bandits near the shipyard and the Thief with his company bandits + pirates. I've tried not to waste any time and but still I only am capable to defeat the pirates + bandits near the shipyard close to Month 2 and by then the Thief is much too strong plus that the rate of which the neutral si growing is way superior than my ability to get troops (so waiting is not an option). If you're trying to stall you'll just lower your chance to win the scenario. Fighting again is not much of an option not even with the centaurs that guard the two centaur stables (by the way you still can get troops from one stable without any fighting). I've tried to fight the nomads and get some extra troops but they are still too strong if you want not to stall. And as csarmi said is really interesting to find out what you guys did in worst case scenario.

P.S. Regardind the Chaos campaign I've just finished it at Champion level (again I may say) and I didn't find it that hard. The first scenario can become easy to play if you know what to do. Me for instance again I didn't waste any time and stopped only to pick up more pirates and bandits; skipped the neutral chaos town and went straight to fight the green barbarian town near. That way you won't have problems at least in the first months with the AI players and you'll be able to develop quickly and painless . Sure you'll have some problems with morale but you still can get though this problem...

[asandir]

okay, I got my copy of HIV reinstalled yesterday and cranked up the Nature campaign .... intermediate difficulty .... all was going along quite well, except pretty slowly .... I had taken the first nature town and the other town east of that, then I hit the town further to the east before you go underground .... couldn't take it with acceptable losses, so I ignored it, then moved along to the next area (after getting the orange keymaster from the underground), then army in the chaos? town just past the orange border was way too strong, so missed that as well, ended up taking the nature town to the north and after the ai left the town to the east of that, I snaffled that town as well ..... here's my dilemma

it's about 3 months in, I'm near the level cap and seem to be doing fine, but am disillusioned by the fact that I can't take out those towns on intermediate! If I go for a harder difficulty it obviously just gets worse, plus I feel that too much time has been wasted .... am I missing something? Am I supposed to ignore those towns and just run for Gramin? Cause if that's the case then all well and good, but it offends my sense of completion, I like to own the whole map

[pepak]

Pepak, I'm really interested in how you plan on beating the Wearjak 1st scenario WITHOUT retries or any reloads. So no fixing of what arties and stuff you get, assume the worst case scenario.

Probably I won't make it, but I think with the knowledge of game's mechanisms I have today, I can realistically try.

[asandir]

no one has anything to say about my little dilemma?

[gaspi2]

As I remember, I reached lvl cap before the cahaos town. I was sitting duck there until I got griffins(yes that took long:D go on unicorns instead:D)
when u will have aroun 5-6 unicrod chaos hero will be afraid to challenge u and he cannot overtake u'r town cuz of keymaster tent(I think)

[Charles J Lee]

I remember this Nature map with pain. It is not a difficult scenario if you move quickly, but almost any delay makes the difficulty rise dramatically. I've beaten it easily on intermediate (basically rushed the enemy castles with everything I got, hiring the orcs at the tower outside the first enemy asylum). Whereas when I played on Normal and spent a few extra days picking up stuff on the seaside, I couldn't beat the enemy castles.

I can't remember how I did it, but I think if you make for the Asylum ASAP, they may not have medusas yet.

[asandir]

thanks guys, I may just have to accept that this is one of those things where you can just run along and get to Gramin however you choose

[csarmi]

I think I can beat the Centaurs guarding the dwelling with minimal losses. (tough). The skeletons guarding the wagon as well, I suppose. The stack guarding the shipyard is tricky, but doable using the berserkers the best way possible AND abusing the knowledge of how AI moves his stacks. All those stacks give me an ending army of about 45-50 berserkers, 30-35 centaurs and a level 2 Waerjak versus 200 pirates, 100 bandits and a thief. Hard. I did a wrong move and my zerk stack was gone.

[berntie]

the knowledge of how AI moves his stacks.

Could you share your knowledge with us please? Recently, I was searching the Web for advice on how to use them but I didn't find nothing.

I think I do remember reading an article on berserkers on CH some time ago but I can't find the page anymore. Heroescommunity also doesn't seem to have information on that subject.