Right then. Sorry for the delay, you already know why this came late in the first. And thus, without further ado, I’d like to talk about one of the most important video games to me. Quite frankly this game actually shaped who I became today because it’s always been a part of my life; some of my earliest memories are of playing this game or watching my family members play it. So a lot of my perceptions of fantasy are based fundamentally in what it sparked within me. And I am, of course, talking about Heroes of Might and Magic II [Footnote 1]. I know that III is the more popular of the two games [Footnote 2], but I… like HoMM II better? In some ways, at least. HoMM III is probably the ‘better’ game – it’s certainly the more balanced of the two – but I also feel like it lost some of the charge of the earlier title in becoming a more generic fantasy. But if I’m going to dive that deep, I might as well just get into it.
So for those of you unfamiliar with the series, Heroes of Might and Magic II is, predictably, the second entry in the ‘Heroes’ spin of to the longer running Might and Magic series. The latter was more of a generic party-based RPG with a sci-fi story hidden behind the veneer of fantasy, while Heroes was a turn-based strategy series set in the same universe that mostly ignored those sci-fi aspects [Footnote 3]. The kind-of first entry in the series – effectively the first seeds of the gameplay but not really the story ties – was the original King’s Bounty. Which is a very interesting game, especially if you’re used to HoMM. Because for as much as there are things that feel very similar, it is a very different game. Then the first Heroes game came out and codified most of the gameplay, but still had a few bits of weirdness like spell memorization instead of spell points and no upgrades to creatures. HoMM II was the first game which really solidified what the series would be about and become popular through III. Then, of course, the series went through some tumultuous times that it’s never really recovered from because the company that made it, 3DO, went under very soon after the release of IV. Ubisoft picked up the series, but V was met with luke-warm reception at best, VI had some design choices a lot of fans ust couldn’t get past, and I didn’t even hear about VII until I found a copy of it in a used game store [Footnote 4]. As far as I know, the series is dead in the water now though, as I stated before, III still has a fairly decent following even a solid 25+ years after release.
With that in mind, why II? Or, perhaps to start with a more obvious question, why is III more popular than II in the first place? As stated before, the primary issue comes down to balance [Footnote 5]. While III certainly has it’s balance problems as well, every single castle can basically be played effectively against every other castle and has an endgame to them. And for the competitive players who keep the game alive through more than kitchen-sink hotseat play, that’s what’s important. In Heroes II, this is… not the case, putting it lightly. So for a kind of mechanical rundown, combat in these games occurs between stacks of creatures on a hex-grid [Footnote 6]. You get these creatures from your castle, of which there are a handful of factions determining creature type. The primary issue with II’s balance is that game design is focused a lot more about speed than direct comparison, so the rush-based castles have weaker overall creatures than the late-game castles. But this just means these rush castles are basically useless [Footnote 7] against those late-game castles as long as the latter can even remotely get going. This is also theoretically accounted for by numbers, but it doesn’t really matter. And then there’s the fact that magic can snap the game in half. In III, the Dimension Door spell is one of the best overworld spells in the game, usually regarded as somewhat overpowered since it lets you bypass obstacles and attack from unexpected angles by teleporting your entire army. It’s somewhat balanced by the fact that you can only cast it four times a turn max, if you invested in an (admittedly very useful) skill. In II, you can cast it as many times as you have spell points. It isn’t hard to cross the entire map in a turn and completely blindside your enemy. Or, for a different example, the strongest unit in the game is the Black Dragon [Footnote 8], which is immune to all magic. One of the strongest spells in the game is Armageddon, which damages all units in a combat, ally or enemy. Do the math. You can’t really counter that strategy [Footnote 9].
So with that long explanation of the ways that HoMM II isn’t really that good of a game, from a balance perspective, again: why II? And for me, simply, it’s a matter of presentation and aesthetic. Of the feelings the game tries to put across. I mentioned this in a footnote [Footnote 5], but III has a generally more realistic look to its graphics which complements a somewhat more generic modern fantasy feel to it. Which makes it very easy to accept in broader audiences. But II’s general vibe is closer to the classical fairy tale [Footnote 10] slash chivalric romance that came from much earlier fantasy. Sure, it’s still just as generic. It’s trope-y as all heck, but that’s precisely what I love about it. There’s so much these days that takes a far more serious ‘grounded’ approach to fantasy that I really like something with a bit more of a dreamy feel to it. Where there’s all these monsters and magical creatures living as simply a part of the world. Where a villain can just sic a dragon on someone he wants to kill because it’s expedient. Where you can find random enchanted objects throughout the world, each with their brief little snippet of story explaining how you recovered them; whether that be winning a game of knucklebones, saving a paladin from an evil necromancer, or definitely not dancing the rama-buta. It feels like a world where the lines between the other-worldly and the real are blurred just like they were in the ancient times that weren’t, described in the likes of Arthurian tales or the Mabinogion.
And this goes out to the story too. I mean, the Succession Wars campaign is just classic. It’s the very, very simple story of ‘evil prince kills his dad and frames his good brother so he can take the throne’, but oh man is it effective. Because it leans so far into it. Archibald is unapologetically evil and Roland is a veritable paragon of virtue. The story starts by explaining how Archibald not only poisoned their father, but proceeded to orchestrate the deaths of a handful of court seers until one amenable to bribery put him on the throne [Footnote 11]. And another fun thing is the fact that because Archibald starts in a far more stable state, the evil campaign is far easier than the good. You get a few more bonuses as you go forward [Footnote 12] and honestly, there isn’t really as much of a run-ending map like there is in Roland’s campaign. For the unitiated, I’m talking about the Wyrm map [Footnote 13]. But either way, good or evil, it’s a fun story to play through as you go through the moments like unifying the local lords, shutting down the Necromancer or Sorceress guilds, saving or killing the Dwarf King, all the way to mustering an army for the final battle or finding the ultimate crown of magical power. Quite simply, its an unvarnished story of good versus evil that you don’t often find these days because it isn’t complex enough.
To me, however, what’s most important about this game is the fact that it’s the first image of fantasy I ever had. In my mind, when I think of elves, I go to HoMM II’s before Tolkiens. And sure, HoMM II’s are very Tolkien-esque if you actually pay attention to them. But when I was young, there felt like a difference. Like these preserved a bit more of the fey inhumanity from older mythology. Like these elfs are as much part of the forest as the trees and you’d be lucky to catch more than a glimpse of emerald eyes glowing in the underbrush as their clothing blends in with the leaves and their skin the bark around them. And actually, continuing the Tolkien thread, I’d point out that in my mind, the Necromancer castle is the quintessential Minas Morgul; even having seen the movies with their own depiction, there’s just something about the castle – particularly during siege – that feels right to me. The green lights in the windows, the pale stone of the walls and pavement that should feel calming but is made menacing by the air around it. It’s fun. And of course, the classics of knights and dragons. Tangentially related to another footnote [Footnote 8C], but HoMM II’s dragons are what I think of when I think dragons. Nothing so intelligent as the likes of Smaug [Footnote 14], but calamity given form. An overwhelming monster almost none can hope to defeat that brings fire and destruction on iron-hard wings. Devastation that cannot be reasoned with or averted. Sure, I like intelligent dragons. They’re fun. They make interesting characters. But there’s just something to be said about the classic Saint George style dragon; evil and destruction simply by nature.
And speaking of Saint George, knights. If I’m being frank, I like knights. A lot. And sure, this is more of the idealized vision we have of them influenced by fantasy and mythology over the years as opposed to historical fact, but I only really care about the ideal for my purposes. And all of that starts here for me. In all my years playing HoMM II, my favorite castles have always been the Knight and Sorceress castles Footnote 15]. As such, the former basically became my vision of the ideal fantasy hero. It formed the basis in my mind of the Knight in Shining Armor, which was then codified by the likes of King Arthur and Disney’s Sleeping Beauty [Footnote 16]. The likes of Master Swordsmen with their heavy armor and classic sword-and-board style. Champions on with their lances and horses arrayed in full parade-colors. Crusaders and Paladins with their brilliant panoply and smite-tier great-swords. Even just the basic architecture of the town itself with timber-framed buildings and colored cloth covering things like the market, jousting arena, and archery range along with the crenelated walls of the keep proper and the white-walled, stained glass windowed cathedral and chapel-like mage guilds. All of the set on green fields beneath a blue sky. It forms the basis of what is effectively the fantastic ideal to me. Of heroes with nothing more than mundane arms and armor, the virtues they hold to, and the strength of arms and heart arrayed against a world of things far more powerful than they could over hope to be.
Which then conveniently slips over to some of the other castles that found the kind of world beyond the veil, the magical lands an adventure would travel. Like the Sorceress castle in its hidden mountain glen. Just as green as the Knight’s fields, but nearly all of its buildings worked more into nature; whether open to the elements or tucked into the tress themselves. Except for the keep of course, with its seeping staircases and fey towers that call to mind more elegance than defensive utility. All of it home to the mysterious but good-natured creatures like the hidden, subtle elfs I mentioned earlier or the quiet, robed druids with all their mystical knowledge. Then there’s the villains, the threats faced. Certainly the Necromancers mentioned before, in their eerie keeps with empty tombs and ruined mansions tucked in between far more desolate mountains, but Warlocks too. The Warlocks being a far more interesting villain because they don’t have to be. They could be merely ambivalent, even good, because all they care about is power. A single look at their castle itself can tell you that; with all the impressive show of the Sorceresses and fortification of the Knights, but as empty and haunting as the Necromancers. A sentiment furthered by where they choose to build, in the empty spaces near swamps and beneath cold mountains where nothing else would choose to live. Of course all of this just the interpretation my mind formed as a child, but that’s why it’s important to me [Footnote 17]. Because I spent a lot of my childhood daydreaming in worlds shaped by that interpretation. I’d go around the house with a stick for a sword thinking of myself as a knight fighting undead monsters and dragons, so yeah. This is where basically everything I ever dreamed of came from. At least the shape of it, if not the fundamental ideals driving it.
And beyond that too, there’s just some little things in the game that have stuck with me throughout my life. Like the sounds accompanying some spells. I could pick out the effects for Bloodlust, Disrupting Ray, and Haste in a heartbeat. Who am I kidding? It’s basically ever spell. And the creature sounds too. I actually despise a recent mod made to put some QoL updates in the game because it gave the Orcs a more monstrous, pig-ish squeal when they’re hit instead of the more human… grunt? I don’t think it’s really harsh enough for a grunt; of pain. Some of the artifact icons live in my mind as the most generic form of fantasy equipment. And then there’s the music. I’ve got some of those songs basically memorized because they played so constantly in my youth. The Grass Overworld theme is one that I’ve always loved for its sense of adventure, in particular in a mystical, fey sense. It promises mystery, but also wonder. Adventure and magic in equal parts. Or some of the town themes (I prefer the… MIDI songs, I believe?). The Sorceress with its harps and flutes is probably my favorite song in the game for its sense of peace and mysticism. The Knight town with its simple piano peace is just a great bit of home base feeling. And the Warlock with its bombastic… I’m not even sure I know what it is, but it builds a great sense of menace and dread and I’m here for it.
All told, Heroes of Might and Magic II is a game that holds far too much personal meaning for me to ever judge it from an objective standpoint. But I do think it’s worth a look still, because it holds a lot of value you can’t find very much these days. A lot more of a tie to some of the older things that’s too cliche for modern stories. I just hope if you do, you can like it as much as I do.
Footnote 1: Price of Loyalty in particular. I mean, Succession War is still part of that, but the expansion was always there for me.
Footnote 2: Shadow of Death or Horn of the Abyss in particular still having something of a competitive presence, to my knowledge.
Footnote 3: For instance, one of the castles in III is the ‘Inferno’, filled with demons and devils. In the Heroes subseries. In Might and Magic proper, it turns out the Kreegans are actually alien invaders and the ‘fire and brimstone’ aesthetic is their means of terraforming. Related: the ‘angels’ built in the ‘Castle’… uh, castle; are apparently actually HK drones designed by the ancients to exterminate those same aliens.
Footnote 4: Though on the other hand, they also made the Clash of Heroes spin-off game which I adore and believe had a pretty positive reception.
Footnote 5: Though I also contend that graphics and general aesthetic have something to do with it [Footnote 5A]. III has a somewhat more ‘realistic’ look than II’s vaguely cartoon-y art design, for lack of a better term, and III has a very D&D-esque feel to it. I’ll talk more on this later.
Footnote 5A: And probably mechanical issues like ease of map randomization and multiplayer connection, but that’s tangential to the point.
Footnote 6: Squares in the Ubisoft games, but I quibble.
Footnote 7: Not exactly, since my brother and I have discussed this a lot, but enough that it shows.
Footnote 8: But Titans~ – the Twisted Jerk.
Footnote 8A: Quiet, you! Black Dragons have better utility and I’m fairly certain I found an analysis that proves Black Dragons will win in a one on one fight, from a sheer statistical standpoint. It might come down to who strikes first, but that’s still just a might. [Footnote 8B].
Footnote 8B: Also, it should be noted that there is a… not really character so much as obstacle, I intend to include later in EKI that is a direct reference to these particular Black Dragons. Look forward to Knightslayer. I sure am.
Footnote 9: My family, at least, calls it Dragaggedon. Not sure if it’s part of the common parlance. And it does still exist in III too, but it’s easier to manage across castles since more creatures are capable of sustaining it and it’s simply not as overwhelming.
Footnote 9A: Also, as another ‘my family-ism’, there are some creatures like dragons that can attack two hexes at once thanks to fire breath or laser eyes. We’ve always called doing this a ‘double toast’. Just one of those things, you know?
Footnote 10: Fixed it for you – the Twisted Jerk.
Footnote 10A: Gosh darn it! Why do I keep making that mistake? And why do you feel the need to keep pointing it out?!
Footnote 11: Of note, one seer is killed by dragon attack and one is killed by a summoned lightning bolt. It’s fantasy right out the gates.
Footnote 12: Including an optional map to enslave the king of dragons so that every wandering stack of dragons automatically joins you. If that sounds broken, it is.
Footnote 13: Sure, maybe I’m just bad. But it is a hard map. You’re open from three sides, can’t effectively assault your enemy on the ocean without leaving yourself open by land, and you’re stuck in the swamp so your mobility is heavily restricted. The fact the Wyrm has a serious case of ‘But I Killed you!’ only makes things worse.
Footnote 14: Even though lore shows that they are intelligent [Footnote 12]. Whoops. Interpretation of a younger mind. Something something ludo-narrative.
Footnote 14A: I don’t think you’re using that word right – the Twisted Jerk.
Footnote 14B: I don’t think I’m going to acknowledge that comment.
Footnote 15: Which is why I’m so sad that the former is so bad, but I digress.
Footnote 16: I know people have their problems with the movie, but it’s always been my favorite classic Disney movie because HECK YEAH, DRAGON! I actually found the final bits of the movie somewhat distressing as a child because Phillip just let his sword fall down the cliff after killing Maleficent. I mean, come on man. You’re a knight(ish). Gotta have that sword.
Footnote 17: And of course there’s also the Wizard and Barbarian too, but they’re a bit more… eh. I like both of them, but it’s less about the whole vibe of the town and more about specific bits. Like, I really like the Ivory Tower and Cloud Castle that serve as home to Magi and Titans, along with the wizards very Tin-man approach to Golems. And just about every creature in the Barbarian castle is a staple whose vision was seared into my mind by this game. But, well, Wizard doesn’t quite do what I need a Wizard to do – I think the snowy approach of III fits my mind better than the wasteland here – and I was never much one for Barbarians. I’m a chivalry appreciator, after all.
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