Greed

As soon as the previous scenario ended, I was greeted by a cutscene informing me that my clients are now vying for the same territory.

Tatalia starts the scenario in the upper-left corner of the map. Krewlod starts in the lower-right. Separating them are two roads (with ambushes) and a series of Erathian forts. Both factions have their own advantages and disadvantages in the final scenario.

Tatalia

Since the map is almost completely covered with swampland, the Tatalian witches and beastmasters will mostly fight on native terrain and gain attack, defense, and speed bonuses. Tatalian heroes are also more likely to have learned Pathfinding, which neutralizes the penalties associated with swamp travel. However, Tatalia will be disadvantaged when constructing new buildings and hiring units due to the scarcity of sulfur and wood on the map.

Krewlod

The barbarians will have a lot of difficulty navigating the swampland, which makes up about 85% of the map. However, they will be able to compensate for their lack of speed with brute force. Krewlod will be able to recruit cyclopses and behemoths earlier than Tatalia, which enables them to more quickly burst through the starting garrisons and conquer the red Erathian army. Also, Krewlod has access to the sea, which allows its heroes to quickly reach Tatalia's expansion town in the southwest via whirlpool.

In the end, I chose the Tatalian army because I'd put more effort into building up their stats in the first mission.

I only trained 5 heroes in the earlier scenario and make certain to specialize in Pathfinding and Logistics skill.

The two most important resources for Tatalia are wood and sulfur. In fact, it costs 20 sulfur just to build a Hydra Pond. Unfortunately, the map is notorious for its lack of sawmills and sulfur dunes. It's critical for Tatalia to compensate for this weakness by doubling up on its efforts to obtain gold. With a large gold cache on hand, it will be easy to obtain all other resources through the marketplace.

My first order of business was to put together a quick strike force and break through the eastern garrison. One trick is to split up your dragon flies into multiple stacks and cast Weakness on as many enemies as possible. The Weakness spell reduces a unit's attack strength, allowing your army to survive longer.

Immediately outside the eastern garrison, there's a Library of Enlightenment. It gives a worthy hero a permanent +2 to all primary stats. That's the equivalent of gaining 8 levels!

I felt it was important to first capture the Erathian forts separating me from the barbarians. These forts protect two warp gates, one of which transports enemies directly in the heart of my territory. The enemy sometimes uses these gates to steal my fortresses from under my nose while my heroes are away. Holding the Erathian forts prevents the enemy from showing up on my door unannounced.

Securing the Erathian forts also gave me the ability to attack the barbarian cities without having to break through their garrison. I immediately sent two heroes to wreak havoc in barbarian territory. It's okay if the heroes aren't strong enough to capture the strongholds outright. Flagging enemy mines and visiting stat-enhancing buildings can be just as effective.

While I was exploring the map, I also noticed many gold mines controlled by large stacks of level 7 creatures like behemoths and hydras. I approached a few with my strongest army, intending to fight them and gain experience. To my surprise, at least two of them offered to join my army. I suddenly had 20+ hydras at my command!

Once I stomped out the Erathian army, I cornered the barbarians in their starting area and forced them to stay in their strongholds while I built up my army for a final attack.

Greed is one of my favorite scenarios in Restoration of Erathia. It has two balanced factions and a very well designed map. It's too bad the map isn't available for multiplayer.