HEROES OF MIGHT AND MAGIC IV
SPELL GUIDE
VERSION 1.0
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Disclaimer
2. Introduction
3. Order Spells
4. Chaos Spells
5. Life Spells
6. Death Spells
7. Nature Spells
8. Strategic Spellcasting and Tips
9. Contact Info and Thanks
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1.DISCLAIMER
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This may be not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal,
private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed
publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other
web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a
violation of copyright.
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2.INTRODUCTION
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I've noticed that no one wrote a guide about spells, so I decided to start
writing one. This guide is about all the spells sphere of every allignment
and how to use them wisely and some strategy on spellcasting and tips on
choosing the best magic skill for all heroes, including Might heroes.
There are five different spell sphere in Heroes of Might and Magic IV: Order,
Chaos, Life, Death and Nature. Each spell sphere are unique from one another
and have different effects. I will include a list of every spell for different
alignment, their definitions and how to use them on different enemies.
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3. ORDER SPELLS
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My favorite magic skill :) Order Magic is one of the most powerful magic in
this game, if the player has the wits to use it because most Order spells are
mind controlling spells or "Mind Spells" such as Teleport, Berserk, Blind and
a hell lot more that can really make the adversary extremely annoyed. In other
words, you need to be creative and tricky to use Order Magic, because there's
a chance of defeating your enemy even if their army size outnumbered you
5 to 1. (seriously...).
It's better for your mage to have a secondary Magic Skill. These are the
skills (including non-magic)I prefer and believed best for Order alignment
spellcasters.
CHAOS MAGIC
===========
What Order Magic lacks is damage spells and Chaos Magic have aplenty. Another
factor why I prefer this skill is that Undead may be the toughest army for
Order since undead aren't affected by Mind Spells, some of Chaos spells like
Disintegrate will be able to deal with those Vampires. The only problem is
that Academy doesn't promote Chaos Magic and your mage will never have the
chance to learn its basic skill unless learned from Magic School, University
etc.
LIFE MAGIC
==========
Not only the Academy promotes Life Magic, but all those blessings may boost
your considerably-weak Order troops. Plus, Order Magic and Life Magic will
convert your Mage into a Monk, giving him/her a ward against your archrival-
Chaos.
COMBAT SKILL
============
When a spellcaster is unable to do magic, you'll need to unsheathe your sword
and kill enemies by force! It would be good to learn at least one non-magic
skill. Expert Melee or Archery is enough. And that Grandmaster Magic
Resistance will make your spellcaster invisible.
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Level 1 Spells
**************
< BLUR >
Increases selected troops range defense by 50%. Only useful if you're
one-on-one with a range attacking creature, or else it's pointless to spend
one turn casting on one of your troops when you can cast Mass Blur.
< DISPEL >
Remove all spells from selected unit. Some players didn't notice that Dispel
also removes beneficial spells, not just curses. Only use this spell when your
hero is cursed or when the enemy has too many beneficial spells
< DISPLACEMENT >
Moves the target 2 yards in a direction of the caster's choice. The perfect
spell to force a range attacker to be behind an obstacle, so it does less
damage or forcing a group of bandits out from their hiding spot so they
could taste arrows, stones and lightning!!! Some players use Displacement
to push back an advancing enemy, but I don't recommend this spell.
< MAGIC FIST >
Does damage based on caster's level. There's nothing much to say about a
damage spell, just remember not to use it on a creature that has magic
resistance.
< PRECISION >
Increases selected troops range attack by 25% and removes range penalty. Only
useful in the early game, so don't bother casting it when you've
Mass Precision.
< VISION >
A useful spell that shows exact number of troops of nearby enemies.You could
then rearrange your troops before going to battle.
For example, your enemy has the word "scores" under the Minotaur portrait
when you view the enemy's army. But after casting Vision, the number that
indicates how much Minotaurs is 89 which is more then you've expected. So you
consider rearrange your troops in such a way that it is well away from your
Halflings and your Dragon Golem nearer to it. A little adjustment do make a
lot of difference y'know...
**************
Level 2 Spells
**************
< COWARDICE >
Causes the target unable to attack an enemy with more hit points for 3 turns.
I seldom use this spell because it's unnecessary to disable a weakling, but if
there's a pesky range attacker won't stop firing at your most vital troop,
this is the perfect spell.
< CREATE ILLUSION >
Creates a number of clones of the target based on the caster's level. This is
a good spell. Let's say your your enemy has prefer to hide behind the walls
during a siege battle, you can create lots of illusions while they're hiding,
and then use those illusions to destroy them and your real troops remain safe.
< FLIGHT >
Gives the target the ability to fly. No point casting this unless you really
need to have one of your ground troops fly over the enemy walls if they won't
come out.
< ICE BOLT >
Does ice damage based on the caster's level. Like Magic Fist, don't use this
spell on Ice Demons or creature that have magic resistance.
< POWER DRAIN >
Target's spells will cost double the normal spell points. When you're one-on-
one with a spellcaster, this spell will make him run out of spell points fast.
I prefer casting this on Magi or Genies, once they've 0 spell points they will
be very weak.
< SLOW >
Causes target to move at half speed and movement. Another great spell when
you're facing a melee fighter alone. After casting this, it'll take them
plenty of turn to reach you, giving you enough turns to eliminate them with
Ice Bolt or arrows or enough turns to cast other beneficial spells or curses
before you engage close-combat.
< STEAL ENCHANTMENT >
Removes a beneficial spell from an enemy and place it on one of your troops.
I don't like this spell because it removes one beneficial spell. You can save
up your spell points for a better one...
**************
Level 3 Spells
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< BANISH >
Destroy a number of summoned creatures based on hero's level. Notice that this
spell does huge damage on summoned creature, should be one of your best weapon
against Nature.
< FORGETFULNESS >
Restrains the target from using range attack during combat. When a range
creature unable to do range attacks, it'll be terribly weak. Use this spell
at the beginning of the game, especially during siege.
< MASS BLUR >
Increases all friendly targets' range defense by 50%. This spell is just like
Blur, only difference is it affects all friendly targets.
< MASS DISPEL >
Removes all spells from all target, friend or foe. This erased all spells from
everyone, so think twice before casting it. I prefer using this when the enemy
has too many beneficial spells or when your troops have too many curses.
< MASS PRECISION >
Increases all friendly targets' range attack by 25% and removes range penalty.
This spell is just like Precision, only difference is it affects all friendly
troops.
< TELEPORT >
Instantly transport target to another point on the battlefield. Ha, one of my
favorite spell in this game!!! There are so many ways to exploit this spell.
(A) You're facing 500 Squires alone. first, cast Slow so they move like snails
then cast any damage spells or use range attack, when they're near enough,
cast Teleport on you or the Squires to the far end of the battlefield. Repeat
this process till the enemy dies. Nasty, eh? (B) The enemy prefers to hide
behind an obstacle. Cast Teleport on them and transport them right next to you
so you or troops could easily destroy them. There are still other ways to use
this spell, but I'll leave you to do the thinking...
< TOWN GATE >
Transport caster to the nearest friendly town. This is just like surrender for
free. Use this spell to escape when you're overpowered. You could also use
this spell for hit-and-run tactics, that is kill as much monsters as you can,
then town gate yourself home when your hero's weak. The army's strength will
gradually decrease and soon it'll be weak enough for you to destroy them. Be
warned that your hero will only receive exp from the last battle.
**************
Level 4 Spells
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< BERSERK >
Target is force to attack its nearest creature, regardless friend or foe. Use
this spell on the strongest enemy troop and it'll do massive damage on its
nearest troop. Or Cast this spell on a troop nearest to an enemy hero to
quickly take him out before the hero does anything.
< BLIND >
Causes the target unable to take any action for three turns. This spell is a
lot better than Confusion but never attack the target because the spell effect
will end if being attacked. Use this spell to hold-off the enemy's strongest
troop so your army could deal with the weaker ones one-by-one without being
attacked by other troops.
< MASS SLOW >
All enemies move at half speed and movement. Certainly better than Slow, cast
this spell first before other spells if most enemy troops are melee fighters.
< PHANTOM IMAGE >
Creates a duplicate of the target. This spell is almost the same as Create
Illusion, except that the mana cost for Phantom Image is more than double
compared to Create Illusion and Create Illusion creates more duplicates than
Phantom Image when cast twice. So Phantom Image cost more but less duplicates.
Use this spell if you need to summon more clones in one turn.
**************
Level 5 Spells
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< HYPNOTIZE >
When cast, the target will be under the caster's control for three turns. The
Ultimate spell in Order Magic!!! Cast it on your enemy's strongest troop and
use it to attack their own troops. Always cast this first before the enemy
could counteract will Order Ward or Magic Mirror.
< PAIN MIRROR >
Causes 50% of damage done on the target to be done on the attacker. This spell
will do good when you're facing a creature immune to spells like Black Dragon.
Since there no way you can cast spells Black Dragons, this spell will do half
the damage the Black Dragons had done on you.
< STEAL ALL ENCHANTMENTS >
Removes all beneficial enchantment on enemy targets and distribute randomly to
all friendly troops. If the enemy is Life alignment, This spell will steal all
blessing and place among your troops.
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4.Chaos Spells
--------------
The opposite of Order. Most Chaos spells are damage spells, some curses and
blessings but they don't have any summoning spells. This spell sphere requires
much less wits compared to Order Magic. It's simple using Chaos Magic, just
blast the enemy with every damage spells like Disintegrate, Implosion or
Armageddon. If the enemy's too strong, then hold off one or two troops with
Confusion and have your troops finish the rest. Of course they're other
strategies to claim victory, but we shall focus on that later.
It's better for your sorcerer to have a secondary Magic Skill. These are the
skills (including non-magic)I prefer and believed best for Chaos alignment
spellcasters.
NATURE SPELLS
=============
Since Chaos spellcasters does damage through spells, You'll need a couple of
summoning spells just in case the target is immune to spells. Another tactic
is to summon creatures as bait to lure the enemy away from your hero being
attacked.
DEATH SPELLS
============
Just like summoning, Deaths spells raise plenty of the dead-since Chaos spells
is capable of killing millions of troops. Raise a couple of troops using Death
Call or Animated Death can sometimes confuses the enemy and cause them to
panic.
TACTIC SKILL
============
With some tactics, your army does more damage and receives less. This indeed
lessens the casualty amount of your army, especially to the feeble 1st level
creatures.
SCOUTING SKILL
==============
Many players(including me) thought that Scouting is a useless skill. But after
reading Tan Chia Han's FAQ, a player named Jon stated that a hero stealth
skill can sneak pass all 1st creatures to flag mines or collect resources.
Plus, Your hero will gain 20% effect for all fire damage spells if he/she
becomes a Fire Diviner (Chaos + Scouting).
Thanks to both of them for this vital information.
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Level 1 Spells
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< BLOODLUST >
Causes friendly target to do 25% more damage during battle. Use this spell on
your strongest troop.
< FIRE AURA >
Selected target to do additional fire damage to its melee attack. Only useful
on a melee fighter.
< HASTE >
Increase selected target's speed and movement by 3. Use Haste when you need
the target to reach the enemy quickly.
< MAGIC ARROW >
Does damage based on caster's level. There's nothing much to say about this
damage spell, just remember not to use it on a creature that has magic
resistance.
< SLAYER >
Selected target does 50% more damage against 4th level creatures. Use this
spell on your strongest troop.
< SPARKS >
Does damage based on caster's level. Sparks does damage to all adjacent
enemies, so I don't recommend using this spell.
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Level 2 Spells
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< CONFUSION >
Causes target to lose its next turn. Like Wasp Swarm, Use this spell to hold
off the target while your troops quickly eliminate it.
< FIRE BOLT >
Does fire damage based on caster's level. Like Ice Bolt, do not use this spell
on creatures that have Fire resistance.
< FIRST STRIKE >
Grants a friendly target First Strike ability. This spell benefits melee
fighters, so it's not worth casting on a spellcaster unless he/she is force
not to use magic on a creature like Black Dragons.
< MANA FLARE >
Reduces the spell cost for all creatures and heroes by 2. This would be a big
help for Order army, since they have spellcasting troops. I wonder why would
they (the programmers) include this spell in Chaos Magic? If you have many
spellcasters in your army, Then this spell should be cast first.
< MISFORTUNE >
Causes target to have maximum bad luck. Misfortune seems to lower the target's
defense, because the target with maximum bad luck receives much more damage.
So use this spell more often.
< SPELL SHACKLE >
Enemy target recieves damage for every spell point they use. This spell may
force an enemy spellcaster not to cast too many spells.
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Level 3 Spells
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< BLOODFRENZY >
Causes all friendly targets to do 25% more damage. I prefer Mass Misfortune
over Bloodfrenzy, so this spell should be cast later.
< FIRE RING >
Creates a ring that causes fire damage to all targets within 1 yard radius
surrounding that area. If your troop is surrounded by enemies, this is the
spell you'll need.
< FIRE BALL >
Does fire damage to all targets within 3x3 yard area. Some troops like to
bundle up to shield their hero from all attacks. Use this spell to destroy
them all.
< LIGHTNING >
Does damage based on caster's level. This is a good damage spell, so try to
learn it as soon as possible.
< MAGIC MIRROR >
Reflects any hostile spell cast on the target at half its original strengh.
Cast this on one of your troop whom your think the enemy would like to cast
spells on it, exp. heroes or 4th level creatures.
< MASS SLAYER >
All friendly troops do 50% more damage against 4th level creature. Best used
when you're fighting an army of 4th level creatures.
**************
Level 4 Spells
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< CAT REFLEX >
Gives a friendly target an extra attack. Cast this to your strongest troop.
< CLOUD OF CONFUSION >
Causes all enemy targets within 3x3 yard radius to lose their next action. Use
this spell on enemy who are close to one another.
< IMPLOSION >
Does damage based on caster's level. Nothing to say about a damage spell...
< INFERNO >
Does damage to all targets within 5x5 yard area. Use this spell on enemy who
are close to one another.
< MASS FIRST STRIKE >
Grant all friendly targets First Strike ability. This spell can save a couple
of troops since your army retaliate first, so do consider using this spell
more often.
< MASS MISFORTUNE >
Causes all enemy targets to have maximum bad luck. Definitely better than
Misfortune, all enemy targets receive more damage. Cast this spell at the
start of combat.
**************
Level 5 Spells
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< ARMAGEDDON >
Does damage to all targets on Combat Map. Unless your troops are protected
by fire, this spell also kill your troops. Best cast during siege combat when
the enemy refuse to come out.
< CHAIN LIGHTNING >
Does damage based on caster's level. Does full damage on the first target,
half damage to the second target, one fourth on the third target, one eighth
on the fourth target, and one sixteenth on the fifth target. Since this spell
strikes the nearest target to the first one - friend or foe, you should
be careful with this spell. Use this at the start of combat.
< DISINTEGRATE >
Does damage based on caster's level. Creatures killed cannot be raised or
resurrected. The ultimate damage spell in this game!!! This spell not only
does massive damage, units killed will never be resurrected too. This means
all dead creatures cannot be raised by necromancer, evidently the perfect
spell against the undead.
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5.LIFE SPELLS
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Most Life spells are healing spells and blessings, so there's nothing witty
about this magic. Some Life spells does damage, only to Death creatures and
some can only be cast on Life targets. Quite frankly, you can't expect a
priest going solo because Life spells does little to the hero. In other words,
Life spells mostly boosts your army's strength, especially to Life targets.
I recommend your priest learns other magic skills, so here are some skills
(including non-magic)I prefer for Life alignment spellcasters. Some skills are
best for heroes who rather go solo in the game, while others are ideal for a
supporting priest. I added a note beside the name of every skill whether its
favorable for go-solo hero or supporting hero.
ORDER MAGIC [GO-SOLO]
===========
If you want a priest to go gallivanting around the map, this is the skill you
need since Order Magic is the most powerful magic in this game. Once you've
reached Master Order Magic, your priest (or perhaps, monk)is capable of
defeating all your enemies without the help from your army, IF you have the
wits to use it.
NATURE MAGIC [GO-SOLO]
============
Another thing that you'll miss using Life Magic is the ability to summon
creatures. A priest with Nature Magic can summon creatures to distract the
enemy so your priest could focus on certain thing without being attacked.
Usually the AI would fall for this trick.
TACTIC SKILL [SUPPORTING]
============
A little tactics will increase the ability your army to crush the enemy
without much resistance. Since this hero depends on his/her troops, Tactic
skill will make them harder to die and easier to defeat the enemy. Your hero
will be able to learn this skill from seminaries or leveling-up, so this makes
your hero a lot easier to be introduced to Tactics.
COMBAT SKILL [GO-SOLO]
============
If not for Combat skill, how would your hero be able to do massive damage in
combat? Or how would he/she be able to survive if he/she choose to wander
around alone? If you choose not to learn any more magic, your hero will need
to learn this skill. once he/she masters the art of combat, your priest will
be descend fighter. Plus some other spells like Heavenly Shield , Heal or
Regeneration, he/she will be unstoppable.
**************
Level 1 Spells
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< BIND WOUND >
Heals a number of points based on caster's level. You don't need me to guide
you for this spell, do you?
< BLESS >
Causes target to do maximum damage. I prefer using this spell when the enemy's
close enough for hand-to-hand combat. You'll noticed that Bless and Curse are
total opposites, so if a necromancer cast Curse on your priest, it's wiser to
cast Bless than Exorcism because Bless seems to counter Curse.
< EXORCISM >
Remove all negative spells from a friendly target. Removes all curses that
weaken your troop, but it won't remove Poison.
< HOLY WORD >
Does damage on a Death target based on caster's level. This one does more
damage than Holy Shout, since it focus on one target. Again, nothing else to
say about this damage spell.
< SPIRITUAL ARMOR >
Increases a friendly target's melee and range defense by 25%. Better not to
cast this until you're forced to engaged close combat.
< SUMMON SHIP >
Causes a ship to appear at caster's present location. This doesn't create a
ship for you but transports your ship near you.
**************
Level 2 Spells
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< CHAOS WARD >
Gives a friendly target 50% resistance to Chaos Spells and 50% defense against
Chaos aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Chaos aligned opponents.
< DEATH WARD >
Gives a friendly target 50% resistance to Death Spells and 50% defense against
Death aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Death aligned opponents.
< DEFENDER >
Gives all friendly target 50% defense when they are defending. When all your
troops are forced to defend, this is the perfect spell to cast.
< HEAL >
Restores a number of points based on caster's level. Heal also cures Poison
and Plague. I prefer using Heal than Bind Wound, so learn this handy spell as
soon as possible.
< HEAVENLY SHIELD >
Give additional hit points to the caster. When a priest goes one-on-one with
a Black Dragon, this serves as a better shield then any another protective
spell. When your hero is poisoned, Poison will consume hp from Heavenly Shield
instead of your hero's hp, leaving your hero safe.
< MARTYR >
Martyr is cast on a friendly target. All damage done on the second friendly
target is transferred to the recipient of this spell. You might rather having
your toughest troop or hero to take all the damage, but I recommend cast this
on your weakest troop. One that will die after one hit. For example, cast
Martyr on your squires with a 10 hp left. when an enemy does 100 damage to the
creature the squires are protecting, the damage would overkill the squires and
your troops unscathed. This is much better than a stronger protector like
Angels since they will receive the full damage.
< MIRTH >
Gives a friendly target maximum morale. There are plenty of artifacts that
boost your army's morale, so don't casting this unless your troops have low
morale. Like Bless, Mirth is the opposite of Sorrow. So Mirth can be used
to counter Sorrow.
< NATURE WARD >
Gives a friendly target 50% resistance to Nature Spells and 50% defense
against Nature aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Nature aligned
opponents.
< ORDER WARD >
Gives a friendly target 50% resistance to Order Spells and 50% defense against
Order aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Order aligned opponents.
< RETRIBUTION >
Does damage based on caster's level to the melee attacker who attacks the
friendly target with Retribution. This is just like Pain Mirror, but the
damage is based on the caster's level. Cast this spell before engaging melee
combat.
< SONG OF PEACE >
Target is unable to attack for one turn. This spell is similar to Confusion,
but the creature may move or defend. Use this spell to hold off the target
while your troops quickly eliminate it.
**************
Level 3 Spells
**************
< CELESTIAL ARMOR >
All friendly targets' melee and range defense are increased by 25%. This spell
is like "Mass Spiritual Armor". Cast this when you feel it's the appropriate
time to cast :)
< HOLY SHOUT >
Does damage to all Death creatures based on caster's level. Like other damage
spells, no need me to guide you for this spell.
< MASS BLESS >
Cause all friendly targets' to do maximum damage. I prefer using this spell
when the enemy's close enough for hand-to-hand combat.
< MASS HEALING >
Heals all friendly target based on caster's level and cures poison and
plague. Use this spell to cure your troops from Plague. Mass Healing heals
less compared to Heal, so if you need to heal a large portion of health, use
other healing spells.
< REGENERATION >
Causes target to regenerate a number of points every turn based on caster's
level. Regeneration is best cast on your hero or high level creatures. Cast
this at the beginning of combat. This spell works well with Sanctuary of
Heavenly Shield as these two protective spells protects you from all attacks
while Regeneration slowly recover your health.
**************
Level 4 Spells
**************
< MASS CHAOS WARD >
Gives all friendly targets 50% resistance to Chaos Spells and 50% defense
against Chaos aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Chaos aligned
opponents.
< MASS DEATH WARD >
Gives all friendly targets 50% resistance to Death Spells and 50% defense
against Death aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Death aligned
opponents.
< MASS EXORCISM >
Removes all negative spells from all friendly targets. Use this spell when
your army are cursed.
< MASS FERVOR >
All friendly targets gain maximum morale. There are plenty of artifacts that
boost your army's morale, so don't casting this unless your troops have low
morale. Like Bless, Mass Fervor is the opposite of Mass Sorrow. So Mass Fervor
can be used to counter Sorrow.
< MASS NATURE WARD >
Gives all friendly targets 50% resistance to Nature Spells and 50% defense
against Nature aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Nature aligned
opponents.
< MASS ORDER WARD >
Gives all friendly targets 50% resistance to Order Spells and 50% defense
against Order aligned opponents. Useful when you're facing Order aligned
opponents.
< PRAYER >
Increases all Life targets' hit points and damage by 25%. I favor cast this
spell at the start of combat. Prayer also affects enemy Life targets, so don't
bother casting this if the enemy is Life aligned since you'll be helping the
enemy too. Let the enemy cast Prayer, this saves one of your hero's turn ;)
**************
Level 5 Spells
**************
< DIVINE INTERVENTION >
Removes a portion of damage from all friendly targets and resurrects slain
heroes. You will love Divine Intervention when cast it. Like a god descending
from the heaven to aid you, this is one of the most powerful spell in this
game!!! Of course the gods hate to be bugged every turn, don't use this spell
too often. Use this at the last resort.
< GUARDIAN ANGEL >
Gives a friendly target a number of extra lives based on caster's level. The
number of targets protected depended on the caster's level and no target is
protected twice or more. This is only good for 4th level creatures. no point
casting this on 3rd level creatures because they die quite easily and
definitely not on 2nd and 1st level creatures. As for heroes, a Potion of
Immortality is much favorable.
< SANCTUARY >
All friendly targets are protected by all attacks and spells. If a troop
attacks, Sanctuary ends. When your troops are badly wounded, cast this to give
them some time to rest. I recommend to cast Sanctuary before Regeneration.
Your troops can move about, so this spell is ideal for certain tactical
advantages. Example, cast Sanctuary then move your melee attackers near the
enemy.
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6.DEATH SPELLS
--------------
Death Magic specialize in curses and raise dead. Dead is in contrast with all
living creatures. Necromancers have one unique skill, that is rasing the dead.
They can resurrect the fallen adversary and turn them against their own kind!
How evil indeed, and Death Magic are effective against Life target-especially
Life Drain and Plague. Using this spell sphere is little tricky, so you'll
need all your intelligence in this one.
It's better for your necromancer to have a secondary Magic Skill. These are
the skills (including non-magic)I prefer and believed best for Death alignment
spellcasters.
CHAOS MAGIC
===========
Death Magic resurrects the dead. Chaos Magic kills enemies with deadly spells.
What other Magic would be better than Chaos Magic? Chaos and Death are the
two important skills to make your necromancer invincible. First, kill an enemy
with Lightning or Implosion (but definitely not Disintegrate), then raise
them using Raise Ghost, Raise Vampire or Death Call - simple as that!!!
NATURE MAGIC
============
Some players might not agree with me about this, but I find Nature Magic quite
useful at some situations. Example: You're fighting against the undead and
your necromancer is mortally wound, you can summon creatures to use Life Drain
on them or Sacrifice them for other benefits. Another thing is the Necromancy
Ward that prevents dead creature from being raised, so you can summon
creatures freely without worrying your living troops being resurrected.
NOBILITY SKILL
==============
Necromancers should not travel alone; they can't survive long by cursing and
raising undead. Even with Grandmaster Necromancy; which allows the hero to
raise Vampires, they still face some serious problems. To solve this problem,
They need to be accompanied with some troops, and Nobility will help them a
lot. Nobility will increase the weekly creature production rate while Estates
and Mining will make sure that they'll never run out of money to purchase
troops.
**************
Level 1 Spells
**************
< CANCELLATION >
Removes all beneficial spells from one target. I reckon there are better
spells than this like Steal Enchantment to cast, so use this spell when you
don't have other spells to eliminate all beneficial spells from an enemy.
< CURSE >
Cause target to do minimum damage. Cast this on range attackers first. Since
there's little Death spells to cast, make it a habit to cast this at the start
of combat.
< DISRUPTING RAY >
Lowers target's melee and range defense by 20%. Cast this when you're about to
engage close combat.
< POISON >
Does damage every turn based on caster's level. Use this spell as soon as
possible, because the earlier you cast, the more it'll damage an enemy troop.
< RAISE SKELETON >
Raise a number of skeletons based on caster's level from dead creatures. I
don't like to use this spell because skeleton are too weak, so don't bother
casting it unless its necesary. If not, just save those spell point for other
raise-dead spell.
**************
Level 2 Spells
**************
< ANIMATE DEAD >
Resurrects a number of creatures based on caster's level from dead creatures.
the lower-level of resurrect-the-dead spell. Cast Animate Dead on your
strongest troop on the battlefield (yours or the enemy's). Casting this on
low-level creature is quite futile because they die easily.
< FATIGUE >
Causes enemy to move at half speed and movement. Like the Order spell, Slow;
cast Fatigue to slow your enemy down while your range attacker deal with them.
< LIFE DRAIN >
Drains all Life or Nature targets' hit points based on caster's level and
caster gains a portion of total hit points drained. When your necromancer is
near death, cast this once or twice and you'll regain to full health.
< MIRE >
Causes enemy to move at half speed on Adventure Map. Nothing useful unless you
want a larger enemy army to slow down while you quickly escape.
< SORROW >
Gives target maximum negative morale. Cast this spell on the strongest enemy
target as soon as possible. Use this to counter the Life spell, Mirth.
< UNHOLY SONG >
All Life targets' do 20% less damage and lowers their melee and range defence
by 20%. Unholy Song is like a combination of Weakness and Disrupting Ray, so
use this spell often and you'll save one more turn for other spells.
< WEAKNESS >
Target does 25% less damage. Cast this if you don't have Curse. Overall, Curse
is a better spell because the enemy does minimum damage while Weakness only
reduces its damage by 25%.
**************
Level 3 Spells
**************
< ARUA OF FEAR >
Gives a friendly target the Fear ability. The attacker cannot retaliate unless
it is immune to Fear, Death or Mind spells. Use this on the troop or hero who
does the most attacks, or a hero with Grandmaster Melee.
< MAGIC LEECH >
Cause any spell cost of the target to cost double the normal spell cost. The
caster gains 1 spell point from every 2 spell points used by target. Use this
on spellcasters, of course. The more they cast, the more they drain their
mana and you'll gain half of the mana they drain. in the end, they cast less,
you cast more.
< MASS CANCELLATION >
Removes all beneficial spells from all targets. This is a good spell to dispel
all beneficial spells from Life target, since they have so many spells to aid
their troops; so have at least two heroes to know this spell.
< MASS CURSE >
Cause all targets to do minimum damage. Always cast this at the start of
combat to minimize all damage done by the enemy. Unless the enemy are all
spellcasters.
< PLAGUE >
Does damage to all living creatures based on caster's level. This is like
"Mass Poison", effective during siege combats, when the enemy has chicken out.
< RAISE GHOST >
Raise a number of ghost based on caster's level from dead creatures. The
second level of raise-dead spell. Use this until you have the Raise Vampire
spell.
**************
Level 4 Spells
**************
< DEATH CALL >
Resurrects a number of creatures based on caster's level from dead creatures.
This spell is similar to Animate Dead spell, but this summons more dead
creatures and cost more than double than Animate Dead.
< MASS SORROW >
Gives all enemy targets maximum negative morale. Cast this spell as soon as
possible or to counter the Life spell Mass Fervor.
< MASS WEAKNESS >
All enemy targets do 25% less damage. Cast this if you don't have Mass Curse
Overall, Curse is a better spell because the enemy does minimum damage while
Weakness only reduces its damage by 25%.
< VAMPIRIC TOUCH >
Causes friendly target to gain 1 hit point from every 2 damage inflict. Cast
this on your heroes or 4th level creatures. Once cast on your hero or troops,
he/she will have the ability to suck life like a vampire. Use this spell
when you're force into melee combat.
**************
Level 5 Spells
**************
< HAND OF DEATH >
Instantly kills a number of creatures based on caster's level. What other
spell that will guarantee the death of an enemy? Since this spell eliminates
the enemy target immediately, it is best to use this spell on heroes or 4th
level creatures.
< RAISE VAMPIRES >
Raise a number of vampires based on caster's level from dead creatures. The
most powerful raise-dead spell in this game. Use this spell anytime you want
to raise dead and always use this unless you've insufficient mana.
< SACRIFICE >
Sacrifice destroys a friendly target. The caster will then select another
friendly who will recover twice the hit points from the destroyed target.
I only use this spell when I'm desperate to heal one of my heroes.
---------------
7.NATURE SPELLS
---------------
Finally, the last spell sphere of this game. Most spells in the Nature magic
sphere are summoning magic, some beneficial spells, few curses but no damage
spells. Little strategic thinking is required to use this spell sphere due to
its small variety of spells. Summoning creatures as barricades to protect the
caster or to distract the enemy are some of the common strategies used by
most players. For Nature Magic, I won't be guiding you how to use summoning
spells.
It's better for your druid to have a secondary Magic Skill. These are the
skills (including non-magic)I prefer and believed best for Nature alignment
spellcasters.
LIFE MAGIC
==========
Quite frankly, your druid or druidess depends on creatures to win, a little
beneficial spells from Life Magic like Regeneration, Celestial Armor or Ward
spells will make your strong troops even stronger, thus increases the chances
of winning.
ORDER MAGIC
===========
You can always depend on Order spells to claim victory. This spell sphere is
unique from the rest. You need to do a lot of strategic thinking, but it's
possible crush your enemies without spilling a drop of your troops' blood.
As a matter of fact, Order Magic can be used with any other spell sphere.
Since there's only one spell sphere I can think of that blends well with
Nature Magic, I use Order Magic.
TACTICS SKILL
=============
Similar to Life and Death, a little tactics can make a lot of difference. And
Druids often relied on creatures, Tactics will make their army much more
resilient. Another thing is Tactics increases your troops' movement, you don't
need to cast Speed, therefore saves some mana.
COMBAT SKILL
============
This is where you can put your spell- Dragon Strength into great use. With
Grandmaster Melee and Archery, your druid becomes a deadly fighter, Casting
Dragon Strength on himself will make his sword arts fatal.
**************
Level 1 Spells
**************
< PATHFINDING >
Grants an army no movement penalty on the Adventure Map. Useful when your army
need needs to move through tough terrains quickly.
< SPEED >
Increase selected target's speed and movement by 3. Like Haste, use Speed when
you need the target to reach the enemy quickly.
< STONESKIN >
Increases target's melee range defense by 25%. Like any other defensive spell,
Better not to cast this until you're forced to engaged close combat or to
reduce the damage done by enemy range attackers.
< SUMMON LEPRECHAUN >
Summons a number of leprechauns based on caster's level.
< SUMMON SPRITE >
Summons a number of sprites based on caster's level.
< SUMMON WOLF >
Summons a number of wolves based on caster's level.
**************
Level 2 Spells
**************
< GIANT STRENGTH >
Increases the target's hit points and damage by 25%. Only a quarter the
strength compared to Dragon Strength, but its good enough for a 2nd level
spell. So use this on your strongest troop or hero.
< FORTUNE >
Gives a target maximum good luck. Creatures with good luck do more damage
and receives less, so use this spell often.
< QUICKSAND >
Creates a patch of quicksand which all target require one full turn to move
through 2 feet of quicksand. The size is based on caster's level. Quicksand
is the best spell to slow down all ground troops. Since it takes one full
round to move 2 feet, this gives you more turns to eliminate your enemy with
spells or arrows.
< SNAKE STRIKE >
Grants a target the first strike ability. Like First Strike, This spell
benefits melee fighters, so it's not worth casting on a spellcaster unless he
or she is force not to use magic on a creature like Frenzied Gnashers.
< SUMMON ELF >
Summons a number of elves based on caster's level.
< SUMMON SATYR >
Summons a number of satyrs based on caster's level.
< SUMMON WHITE TIGER >
Summons a number of white tigers based on caster's level.
< WASP SWARM >
Target loses one turn. This doesn't affect dead or mechanical creatures.
Similar to Confusion, Use this spell to hold off the enemy target while your
army quickly destroy it.
**************
Level 3 Spells
**************
< ANTI-MAGIC >
Makes the target immune to all spells. This includes friendly spells, so think
twice before using this spell. If you want to cast some beneficial spells on
the target, then cast everything before Anti-Magic.
< MASS SPEED >
Increases all friendly targets' speed and movement by 3. Cast this spell when
you need your army to rush to destroy all your enemy or to escape some troops
on the battlefield.
< SUMMON AIR ELEMENTAL >
Summons a number of air elementals based on caster's level.
< SUMMON EARTH ELEMENTAL >
Summons a number of earth elementals based on caster's level.
< SUMMON FIRE ELEMENTAL >
Summons a number of fire elementals based on caster's level.
< SUMMON WATER ELEMENTAL >
Summons a number of water elementals based on caster's level.
< NECROMANCY WARD >
Prevents all raise-dead spells from working for the duration of combat. this
spells affects all targets. Use this only when you're in battle with a
necromancer or anyone who could raised the dead.
**************
Level 4 Spells
**************
< MASS FORTUNE >
Give all friendly targets maximum good luck. Like Fortune, use this spell
when you've nothing to cast.
< MASS SNAKE STRIKE >
Grants all friendly targets the First Strike ability. Like Mass First Strike,
this spell can save a couple of troops since your army retaliate first, so do
consider using this spell more often.
< SUMMON GRIFFIN >
Summons a number of griffins based on caster's level.
< SUMMON UNICORN >
Summons a number of unicorns based on caster's level.
< SUMMON WASPWORT >
Summons a number of waspworts based on caster's level.
**************
Level 5 Spells
**************
< DRAGON STRENGTH >
Increases target's hit points and damage by 100%. Imagine several Potions of
Strength and Potion of Toughness conjoined into one powerful spell, that is
what you'll get casting Dragon Strength - the strength of an ominous beast!!!
Dragon Strength doubles the target's life and damage, and its most suitable
for a 4th-level creature or any warrior hero. In my opinion, this spell
offset some useless spells in Nature Magic. If cast on phoenixes, this make
them the most powerful creature in this game! No wonder the Black Dragons are
immune to spells...
The gods (or programmers)have blessed us with this powerful spell, so consider
using it more frequent.
< SUMMON FAERIE DRAGON >
Summons a number of phoenixes based on caster's level.
< SUMMON MANTIS >
Summons a number of phoenixes based on caster's level.
< SUMMON PHOENIX >
Summons a number of phoenixes based on caster's level.
----------------------------------
8. STRATEGIC SPELLCASTING AND TIPS
----------------------------------
In this section, I'll give you some tips on how to handle the enemy with
different spell sphere. There's no guarantee that these tips are fool-proof,
so don't complain to me that it didn't work for you. These instructions gives
you an idea on how to use spells wisely.
I did mention that I'll give you tips on choosing the best magic for Might
alignment heroes, and the best magic skill is obviously Life Magic! For a
ferocious barbarian, he/she needs some healing magic to heal all his/her
wounds and other beneficial spells to aid to his/her army.
Now, on to the final section of this FAQ.
[ ORDER MAGIC ]
For every alignment except Death, you'll noticed that there one similar
strategy to defeat the enemy, that is Hypnotize or Berserk any 4th level
creatures or hero and have them attack their own troops, Blind or cast
Forgetfulness on range attackers, then Mass Slow and Ice Bolt or range attack
the rest. Use Town Gate to quickly escape when the situation is under control.
As for Death opponents, you'll need to rely on other Magic skills - since
undead aren't affected by Mind spells. First, Hypnotize the imps, cerberi,
demons or other living undead creatures, then cast Mass Slow , Ice Bolt and
Teleport. You can Hypnotize the hero and have him cast Curse, Disrupting Ray
on his own troops too.
[ CHAOS MAGIC ]
Cast Mass Misfortune first, then throw in any damage spells you like. If the
enemy has a hero, especially the one with Tactics skill, use Chain Lightning
or Disintegrate on him. A sorcerer is incapable of handling the entire army
alone, so always travel with another hero. If you've being confront by a
large army, use this common strategy: have one sorcerer cast Confusion or
Cloud of Confusion while the other does the damage. As for troops who are
immune to magic, Cast Mass Slayer, Cat Reflex, Mass First Strike and
Bloodfrenzy. Drink a couple of Potions of Immortality if you must.
[ LIFE MAGIC ]
Prayer or any Ward spell first, then Regeneration, Celestial Armor, Mass Bless,
and Mass Fervor. The last four spells are in random order, so which spell to
cast first is up to you. If you're alone, then just use Regeneration,
Retribution and Heavenly Shield. Unless you have other magic skills, your
priest shouldn't wander around or certain death awaits.
[ DEATH MAGIC ]
Like the priest, your necromancer must be escorted with some troops. Use Curse
and Disrupting Ray first, but Hand of Death gets first priority if there's
an enemy hero. Still, if your necromancer is alone, Then Hand of Death the
strongest troop and cast Death Call or Raise Vampire. Anyhow, I suggest having
your necromancer learn Necromancy skill to grandmaster before advancing to
Death Magic skill. This way you don't have to worry about coming back for more
troops or being alone.
[ NATURE MAGIC ]
Easy. Summon your strongest creatures, then cast Dragon Strength, Anti-Magic,
Mass Snake Strike and Stoneskin. For Nature Magic, this is nothing much of a
strategy, just a basic routine.
-----------------------
CONTACT INFO AND THANKS
-----------------------
Finally, I'm done with this one. I admit this FAQ a bit sketchy, but I'm sure
you've learn something, unless you're an expert in spellcasting! If you have
some useful info and would like to share, please e-mail to this address:
< assassin_jian@yahoo.com >and you'll be credited. Please stated your subject
clearly, example: ( Heroes 4 Help ) because I got plenty of e-mails everyday.
Lastly, I wanna say thanks to:
3DO : for such a great game
My friend : for some useful tips
Tan Chia Han and Jon : for some useful tips
