Hero Basics
This is an article going over the basics of how heroes work in HoMM: Olden Era. For a quick reference on different heroes and their advanced details, please visit the Heroes page.
Heroes are the champions who carry out your will in the land of Jadame. They are the generals that lead your armies, the scouts that explore the land, and the sentinels that guard your kingdom from invading forces. When you start a new game, your heroes will usually begin at level 1, and slowly grow in power over the course of the game.
Attributes
Heroes have 4 main attributes that will govern their performance in battle.
Attack: Each point of attack your hero has will be added to the attack values of your units during Combat.
Defense: Each point of defence your hero has will be added to the defence values of your units during combat.
Spellpower: Each point of spellpower your hero has will influence how effective your hero's Spells are. This generally correlates to spells dealing higher damage to enemy units, and buffs and debuffs that will last longer in combat without having to be refreshed.
Knowledge: Each point of knowledge your hero has will increase the maximum number of spell points your hero has.
Heroes start with a default allocation of attributes that varies depending on faction and hero class, and different hero classes have their own chances of gaining certain attributes on level up. Explore the different classes in the Heroes page to get a full breakdown for different classes.
Classes, Specializations, & Subclasses
Each faction will have access to two classes of hero: a Might-focused hero, and one that is inclined towards Magic & spellcasting. Might heroes are more focused on combat, and will be more likely to gain Attack or Defense upon gaining a level. Magic heroes are more inclined to casting spells, and will be more likely to gain Spellpower or Knowledge upon gaining a level. Furthermore, each type of hero has the capability to learn a skill that is unavailable to the other. Might heroes are able to learn Recruitment, while Magic heroes have access to Thaumaturgy.
Each hero also has a specialization that is unique to them in that faction. Specializations separate heroes apart from one another and allow them to do something better than the rest of the heroes in that faction. Some heroes make specific creatures from their faction stronger as the hero grows in power, while others will specialize in specific spells, gaining a mastery over them that no other heroes have access to, in most cases.
Each hero will also have the potential to branch out to a subclass as they grow in strength. Subclasses are special enhanced versions of classes that can be achieved by acquiring 5 specific skills while leveling and reaching expert level in all of them. Doing this will award the subclass to that hero and they will receive a massive spike in power by granting powerful abilities to that hero, such as their units always having lucky strikes in combat, or adding 10 to all of their attributes, and so on.
Each class has access to two subclasses specific to that class. A list of the skills required to unlock their subclasses and the benefits received by them can be found on the class pages in the table below.
Spellcasting
Spells are magical effects your hero can manifest to have a huge impact on the battlefield & adventure map. Spells can have a wide range of potential effects during combat, such as damaging enemy creatures, buffing and debuffing units, to resurrecting entire stacks of dead units & destroying castle walls during sieges. On the adventure map, they can also be used to spy on uncharted territory, reveal the disposition of neutral armies, teleport your hero across vast distances, and much more. While any hero is capable of casting spells, magic-aligned classes are far more attuned to it and will grow far stronger in spellcasting as they level up.
Having a higher spellpower attribute will add increasing damage and longevity to your spells, while having a higher knowledge will enable you to cast more spells before being drained of mana.
Visit the Magic page for a full explanation of how spellcasting works.
Skills
Skills are passive gameplay-modifying effects your heroes will develop as they grow in power. By default, your hero will start with 1-2 skills that will help inform their initial strengths. One of these skills will be tied to the faction the hero is aligned with, and another pre-determined skill. For a full breakdown of skills, visit the Skills page.
Movement Points
Heroes have a limited amount of movement points they may use to move around the adventure map each day. This can be increased by objects visited on the adventure map, as well as by certain skills & spells. In addition, if your hero is traveling on terrain not native to them, they will suffer movement penalties that will reduce the amount they may travel on that terrain. Visit Adventure Map for a further exploration of this mechanic.
Artifacts
Artifacts are powerful items your hero can acquire on the adventure map, usually being guarded by neutral armies. Heroes can also acquire these artifacts by defeating a rival hero in battle and taking all of the artifacts that hero possessed, or as a reward for defeating high-level creature banks. Artifacts can increase your attributes, luck & morale, give you access to spells above your current understanding, and can even invalidate certain game rules in your favor.
More details on different artifacts and their effects can be found on the Artifacts page.
Hiring Heroes
While you may only start with one hero in most scenarios, in the Classic game mode and during Campaigns you will be able to rally multiple heroes to support your kingdom. There will typically be a limit on the number of heroes you can command that is linked to how many cities you currently possess. The primary way to assemble additional heroes is through the tavern building in your cities. This is a building that every city has access to, and is a prerequisite to building Marketplaces. Hiring heroes via taverns costs 2,500 gold, and they will bring a small starting army with them.*
Another way of acquiring heroes is by finding prison dwellings on the adventure map. Interacting with these objects will prompt you if you would like to release the hero inside, and doing so will add the hero to your forces.
- *Note: While it is possible to continue hiring heroes at the tavern until you run out of money and/or reach the hero limit for the map, only the first two heroes on display at the tavern each week will have a sizeable army. All subsequent heroes will only have a single tier 1 unit upon hiring.
