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MAJOR CHANGES FROM THE ORIGINAL Although ''Heroes of Might and Magic II'' is visually quite similar to the First Installment Of The Series , it contains several important changes in the Gameplay . Secondary skills Heroes II allowed heroes to customize their abilities with newly introduced secondary skills. While the first installment of the series only featured four characteristics of a hero (''Attack'', ''Defense'', ''Spell Power'' and ''Knowledge''), Heroes II adds a number of secondary characteristics. A hero can possess up to 8 different secondary skills, with each skill developed to one of three levels: ''Basic'', ''Advanced'', and ''Expert''. Secondary skills serve for various purposes: for example, the ''Wisdom'' secondary skill allows a hero to learn Spell s of level 3 and higher, and the ''Logistics'' skill increases the hero's movement ability over land. Some of the secondary skills resemble the special abilities of hero classes in the first part of the game (''Scouting'' for Warlocks, ''Navigation'' for Sorceresses, etc.) When a hero gains a Level-up (by collecting Experience and visiting special map locations), he receives a bonus to one of his primary skills, and a choice of 2 secondary skills to acquire or advance. New magic system A new system for casting Magic Spell s has been added in Heroes II. In the first installment of ''Heroes of Might and Magic'', the ''Knowledge'' primary skill of each hero indicated how much spells a hero could memorize. For example, a hero with the ''Knowledge'' of 3 could gain the ability to cast any spell no more than 3 times. In HoMM2, this system was replaced with the ''spell points'' system: the hero memorizes the spell once and forever, but each spell requires a certain amount of spell points to be cast. The maximum amount of spell points a hero can have is usually determined by multiplying that hero's Knowledge skill by 10. So, for example, a hero with the Knowledge of 3 initially gets 30 spell points; after casting a spell which requires 8 spell points, he is left with 22. Normally, each hero recovers 1 spell point every day, although wells and castles could refresh all of a hero's spell points. In addition, the number of levels of the ''Mage Guild'' was increased from 4 to 5. New Hero Types The Wizard and Necromancer were added to the original cast of Knight, Sorceress, Barbarian, and Warlock from the original Heroes of Might and Magic. Upgraded monsters Heroes II features Upgrade d variants of some of the Monsters . Many monster dwellings (for example, the ''Pikeman'' dwelling in the ''Knight'' castle) can be upgraded to provide advanced breeds of the corresponding monsters. Usually, the upgrade increases one or several of the monster's characteristics (such as ''Attack'', ''Defense'', ''Hit Points'' or ''Speed''), but in some cases, the upgraded monsters receive valuable special abilities (for example, upgrading ''Vampires'' to ''Vampire Lords'' enable them to suck blood from their enemies, restoring their hit points). Regular types of monsters can be upgraded for double the difference in price at any town which has a corresponding upgraded dwelling built in it, and any new troops recruited would automatically be of the upgraded type. STORY Heroes of Might and Magic II assumed that the Ironfist family had won the war in Heroes of Might and Magic I and unified Enroth. After the death of King Ironfist, a special counselor is appointed to decide on the matter of succession. The main claimants for the throne are the two brothers Archibald and Roland. Unfortunately, a series of freak mishaps claims the life of the counselor and each new advisoer appointed to the role. Roland flees the palace and a sufficiently pliable counselor is found, and Archibald is declared king. Archibald accuses Roland of having murdered the other counselors, and a war for who will reign in Enroth begins. If you choose to play as a commander siding with Archibald, after rallying nearby forces to your cause, you are given the choice between acquiring the aid of the Necromancer's Guild or the gratitude of the ogres for helping defeat the dwarf homeland. Later on, you crush a peasant revolt while gaining a vast army of skeletons, and are given the opportunity to solicit the aid of the dragons should you desire. You also are given the option to either hunt for the Ultimate Artifact to aid your cause, or else simply build up your army. Once your forces are assembled, you strike out at the country lords around Roland's base before finally defeating Roland himself. If you choose to play as a commmander aiding Roland, after defeating nearby rebellious lords, you are given the option of helping to bail out the dwarven homeland, which is under attack. Should you do so, you gain the gratitude of the dwarves in an alliance. Later on, you gain the alliance of the Sorceress's guild, and are given the same choice as in Archibald's campaign when preparing for the end- to either build your forces, or search for the Ultimate Artifact. Afterward, you strike out at Archibald himself and defeat him. The fifth mission in the middle is the same for both sides, called "Turning Point." In it, you are offered a chance to turn to the other side, which will make that mission extremely easy- but the cost is that you lose any alliances or awards you acquired earlier. You are "scored" on how well you did by how fast you were able to complete the campaign and end the war. In Canon , Roland wins the conflict and defeats his brother in the Succession Wars. CASTLE TYPES Much of the gameplay in Heroes II revolves around the different castle types, as they act as your bases of operation to earn money, hire heroes, and recruit armies. All castles share the following improvements:
Additionally, each castle has an improvement that increases the growth rate of its level 1 unit by 8 a week. Of the 6 castles, Knight, Sorceress, and Wizard are "good," while Barbarian, Necromancer, and Warlock are "evil." This has comparatively little effect on gameplay, though, as most troops are equally incompatible with any troop from a different castle alignment. Knight Castle The Knight castle features the combined armies of humans. The special buildings allowed for a Knight castle are
Knight heroes tend to have the highest defensive values in the game and start with 2 Attack, 2 Defense, 1 Power, 1 Knowledge, Basic Leadership, and Basic Ballistics. Barbarian Castle The Barbarian castle is a wild stronghold of raiding armies. Its unique buildings are
Barbarian heroes are the most offensively oriented in the game and start with 3 Attack, 1 Defense, 1 Power, 1 Knowledge, and Advanced Pathfinding. Wizard Castle The Wizard castle is a haven for wizards' magical allies and creations. The unique buildings are
Wizard Heroes are inclined towards magic and start with 0 Attack, 1 Defense, 2 Power, 2 Knowledge, Advanced Wisdom, and the spell ''Stoneskin''. Necromancer Castle The Necromancer castle is a haunted city of the dead. Its unique buildings are
Necromancer Heroes are inclined towards magic and start with 1 Attack, 0 Defense, 2 Power, 2 Knowledge, Basic Necromancy, Basic Wisdom, and the spell ''Haste''. Sorceress Castle The Sorceress Castle is a peaceful abode for the denizens of the forest. Its buildings include
Sorceress Heroes are dedicated to magic and start with 0 Attack, 0 Defense, 2 Power, 3 Knowledge, Basic Wisdom, Advanced Navigation, and the spell ''Bless''. Sorceress heroes are always female. Warlock Castle The Warlock Castle is a base for various servants of evil warlocks. Its unique buildings are
Warlock heroes are dedicated to magic and start with 0 Attack, 0 Defense, 3 Power, 2 Knowledge, Basic Wisdom, Advanced Scouting, and the spell ''Curse''. Warlock heroes are always male. HISTORY AND EXPANSION PACK Heroes of Might and Magic II was released in a very competitive enviornment at the time, right next to two more established sequels in the strategy market (. It included four additional campaigns, new standalone scenarios, several new artifacts, a substantially improved map editor, and new map objects. Later, 3DO released the original game and the expansion pack in one box labeled Heroes of Might and Magic II Gold. EXTERNAL LINKS
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