Knights: Ambrose, Arturius, Dmitri, Ector, Lord Haart, Lord Ironfist, Lord Kilburn, Maximus, Sir Gallant, Tyro

Warlocks: Agar, Alamar, Barok, Crodo, Falagar, Kastore, Sandro, Vesper, Wrathmont

Hero Comparisons

The heroes of Heroes of Might and  Magic all have their own origins and back stories. Each  has their own flavour and way about them. We will explore the many way these character branch out and develop as time passes. Alphabetically. There are even some heroes in the Gameboy version of Heroes of Might and Magic 2... except that game is a port of Heroes 3 with many things changed and no story, which thus is non-canonical. Be warned if you have played very little Might and Magic. This section contains many spoilers.

Hero evolution

Agar

Agar starts out as an ambitious middle aged Warlock serving Alamar in Heroes of Might and Magic....

By the time of Heroes 2, he is much more grayed and appearantly likes to hang out in Ruins as opposed to in front of purple backdrops... Okay... Agar really isn't a super important character to the story. But he DID evolve as time went on. After serving (and losing alongside) Archibald Ironfist, he decides to stay in Enroth and is not heard from again... except for a brief excerpt in the Heroes 3 Overlord, Ajit's biography. "Ajit studied carefully the works of Agar, the foolish wizard/ scientist of Enroth who accidentally created the beholders and evil eyes which he now commands, training a 'better breed' to be used in combat."

Alamar

It's true that Lord Alamar is not technically a hero in Heroes of Might and Magic, he is the player guiding everybody in the campaign as himself. He returns subsequently in later games.

After a humiliating but total defeat at the hands of Lord Ironfist, Alamar serves his new king in 25 years of peace, which appearantly resulted in a breakout of Jaundice, graying hair and RedEye (did he drink those 25 years away?). Upon breakout of the Succession war, Alamar falls in with Archibald's promises of power and wealth and takes Sandro's place as a Warlock.

Once more, Alamar was defeated. But the glorious combat brought back his golden mane and cured his appearant liver disease at least. His biography describes it best. "Alamar served Archibald Ironfist during the succession wars, and was barely able to escape Enroth following Archibald's defeat." He had since taken up residence in Nighon where he secretly served the Dungeon Overlords. It does not seem that he had escaped to the new world of Axeoth.
Alamar's previous lives and the Impostor.

Lord Alamar started out as a benevolent lord on the world of Varn. The Guardian of Terra, Sheltim, came to Varn fleeing from Corak, his successor (also groomed to destroy him). Sheltim originally kidnapped Alamar to assume his identity. Sheltim began a reign of Terror from Castle Alamar. Whether the Heroes version of Alamar is a reincarnation or merely a person with a concidentally identical name is possibly never to be discovered as the series is no longer with New World Computing and the original designer. What is more confusing is that Lord Ironfist does not seem to draw a connection between the Alamar in Homm1 and the one from his homeworld of VARN.

"Alamar" had a revival on the World of Xeen, first revealed upon the defeat of Lord Xeen, the heroes whom defeated the undead monster learn that Alamar is behind the evil. Eventually, the adventurers help Corak to confront Alamar, whom reveals himself to be Sheltim. The fight ends in a draw with both him and Corak being destroyed. Thus the saga of the fake Alamar comes to a close.

Ambrose

Ambrose is a semi-Asian looking knight with a serious look on his face. His helmet resembles a white Drama mask of despair.

Ambrose survives to the Succession wars. His armour is more intricate but he drops the drama mask for a more typical "Goalie" type Jason Voorhees style Knight helmet. His portrait depicts him in front of an ocean view of a volcano. He is not mentioned or heard from ever again after Heroes 2.

His look is based off an NPC from the World of Xeen.

Antoine

Antoine is one ugly son of an Orc. I have not seen him in any other games past or future but if you happen to find and references to him, please mail me. (With a picture, info and your name for crediting)

It's possible he may have gotten sex changed (as a curse or otherwise) into Jaclyn or Jezebel as they replace him and Yog in Heroes 2.

Arie

As you can see, Arie doesn't change at all between versions except that he serves Alamar and then Archibald respectively. He seems to have no backstory but please correct me if I am wrong. Also if you have any other photos or information on his exploits, it would be appreciated.

Arturius

Arturius started off as a young Knight in the world of Xeen, appearantly, where he obtained his disfigured scar. He would go on to serve Lord Ironfist for the war that united Enroth. Arturius disappeared after the events of the war, being replaced by Gwenneth and Ruby.

Ruby looks a lot more like him. He may have had a gender change (whether a curse or otherwise).

Arturius, Hero of Xeen

Ariel

Ariel was a supporter of Queen Lamanda in the first war. She has a slight grey streak in her hair similar to Rogue from X-Men and changes very little between serving Queen Lamanda and Roland Ironfist.

Except that she has forsaken screen generic wash backdrops for castle Rose gardens.

Ariel also has the honour of looking very similar to an NPC from Xeen.

Astra
Astra serves the Sorceress Queen, Lamanda but loses to Lord Ironfist. Any additional information would be appreciated.

Astra changes very little between the two wars. Only her loyalty and the detail quality of her hair change.

She bears a slight resemblance to the Buxom sorceress from King's Bounty.

Atlas
Atlas serves Lord Slayer as a generic, double-chinned Barbarian. He drops the Red Wash backdrop in the future however.

Archibald Ironfist appearantly helps Atlas discover his Asian side (Pagoda Backdrop) and gives him some Neck Bling in exchange for servitude. He disappears after Heroes 2, presumably settling down on Enroth.

Atlas is based off a Generic Xeen NPC (This one is a blacksmith from Swords of Xeen)

Barok
Barok is a warlock through and through, sadly, that is complete with a mysterious past. He serves Lord Alamar and loses, than goes on to continue this feat under Archibald Ironfist.

Other than being noticeably more wrinkled and having a slightly more detailed/unkempt beard, Barok changes little in his transition to serving Archibald Ironfist.

Carlawn
Carlawn is a sorceress in service of Queen Lamanda. She goes through a few small changes before serving Roland, son of he who beat her Queen.

Carlawn serves Roland in the Succession Wars, her skin is more creamy, less peach. She smiles less. Her hair and dress are more detailed, less drab and she now stands in front of a bush rather than blinding folks with her radiant blue aura of Homm1.

Hm.. another re-used character design, that's fine though. The characters in Might and Magic 4 and 5 had a lot of flavour to them.

She a also bears resemblance to the Sorceress of King's Bounty, really, several Sorceress' were.

Crag Hack
Crag Hack is a survivor. He has struggled through and fought his way into and past nearly every conflict in the Might and Magic universe. He serves Lord Slayer, than Archibald, than Kilgore of Krewlod, but much more detail will be explained here.

Barbarians (particularly dwarven ones like Crag), see Might as Right. He lost under Lord Slayer, so he serves Archibald (the stronger seeming of the two brothers) during the Succession wars. All while seeming unchanged from events 20 years prior.

Defeated once again, he sets forth for a new land, Erathia. "A decorated hero in Enroth, Crag Hack became bored with his home, deciding to seek out a new life in Erathia. He boldly set sail for this new frontier, and was delighted to find a land in turmoil where his skills could be best put to use." He met the Necromancer Sandro and could not resist the urge for adventure and itch for treasure. "Recently arrived from Enroth, Crag Hack seeks fame, fortune and glory on this new continent, Antagarich. He meets a young wizard’s apprentice, Sandro, who is seeking four artifacts. Sandro promises gold, glorious battle, and a land title, which interests the adventurous barbarian." He served with dignity and savagery, until Kilgore and Gelu blew up the world. It should also be noted that his starting skill of offense made him a favourite among Stronghold players.

Crag Hack survives the Cataclysm. He joins the magicless faction of Might and continues his campaigns of barbarism. "Crag Hack will forever remain an opportunist, fighting for pleasure and profit instead of foolish intangibles like ideals or beliefs. Even his narrow escape from the destruction of the old world has failed to give him a more profound outlook on life." The fiery destruction of the old world also seems to have burned off his beard. He is sadly, never heard from again.

Crag Hack as a hero of Terra.

That same Crag Hack, pictured above as a Hero of Terra started out on the world of Varn. Originally known as "Crag the Hack".

However, it turns out that this Crag Hack, the human Barbarian is just one that had the same name and greatly resembles the Dwarven Crag Hack of the RPG series. They both exist in the same world simultaneously in Might and Magic 7.

Crodo

One can only assume Crodo is short for "Chrome Dome". His choice of habitation while under the service of Alamar is a swirling red Maelstrom.

After the war, Crodo loses the giant Headplate and instead decides to grow some more hair, wear a smaller, top only headplate (complete with center jewel) and spend less time maintaining his beard. He also seems to have moved to a Foggy wood of sorts (whether forced to by Archibald or by choice). He does not seem to participate in the Restoration wars or survive the cataclysm.

Crodo was the overseer of the Light side of the World known as Xeen. In Clouds of Xeen, he beseeches you to help his lord, King Burlock by defeating the sinister Lord Xeen (a puppet of Impostor Alamar on the Dark Side of Xeen). He is most likely not the same Crodo to serve Alamar in Heroes of Might and Magic, unless he truly does not judge by a name. (He is an enlightened, kindly advisor afterall).

Dmitri

Dmitri is a knight with a distinctly Russian name, fancy red garb and little else. There seems to be no backstory for him.

In heroes of Might and Magic 2 he goes on to serve Roland Ironfist as opposed to his father, Morglin Ironfist. He also adopts a slightly more clueless look whilst standing in front of a castle siege.

He appearantly game from generic Might and Magic NPCs used for Mayors/Magistrates/etc.

Ector

He's appearantly an Elf that serves the Human interests of Lord Ironfist. Possibly one of the first elves attracted by the archery range mentioned in Morglin's letters. I swear I have seen him in a previous Might and Magic game but cannot find him.

In Heroes 2 he stays much the same, serving his lord's son and standing in the woods as opposed to under the clear sky.

Ergon

Ergon appears as a young Barbarian in the first Heroes game, he survives his ordeals of serving Lord Slayer.

He grows up to become a much larger man with darker eyebrows and a chiseled jaw, that's all I know.

Falagar

Falagar is introduced as a simple Warlock in Heroes of Might and Magic 1 and 2, but there is more to him than meets the eye,

In part 2, he get more Jaundiced eyes and appearently prefers to hang out in ruins.

In Might and Magic 6 and Subsequently Heroes of Might and Magic 4, we find out that Falagar was a trusted Court Wizard to Morglin Ironfist. He was appearantly (cannonically, though not in the game) chased out for a while by Archibald, Morglin's not so good son.

Of course, he has a Xeen counterpart as well.

Gem

Gem started out as any other generic sorceress serving Queen Lamanda

.

During the Succession Wars, her loyalty shifted to Roland, the Good Ironfist Heir. Her hair was also more detailed and she spent more time indoors appearantly.

She later moved to the continent of Antagrich, where she was tricked by Sandro (in illusionary flesh, pretending to be a Wizard's apprentice) into obtaining a powerful necromantic artifact for him (which he promptly fled with). Realising she had been duped, she eventually joined up with other heroes who were similarly coerced and created a powerful artifact to fight back against Sandro's forces. "Gem has left the ghosts of war in Enroth that have plagued her since the Succession Wars. She finds a home in AvLee and has begun to work for Lord Fayette. While working near the Erathian border she meets Sandro, a wizard’s apprentice who is helping his master perform anti-necromancy research. She agrees to help Sandro find some artifacts and is soon laying a path of destruction through necromancer territory."

She later fought in the Restoration War for the nation of AvLee. "Gem was one of the greatest Sorceresses that Enroth had ever seen, serving King Roland Ironfist during the Succession Wars. Shortly after Roland had secured the throne of Enroth, Gem left for Erathia, finding a new home in AvLee."

To think that nice big picture started out as this monstrosity!

Jojosh

Little is known about Jojosh. His loyalties always seem to be on the losing side.

Not much different in Heroes 2.

This might be a Jojosh base, or might not. Who knows.

Kastore

Kastore is a strange character, he has the name of a hero from Might and Magic 3 (and Villain in 7) but has the face of a Hero from Xeen (Seymour)

Seymour as shown.

Kastore fought in both wars in Enroth and presumably stayed there.

The Alternate Kastore is a powerful wizard from the world of Terra, who was misguided and landed on the world of Colony by mistake after being sent by Corak to pursue Sheltim (who instead went to Xeen).

He sought out a legendary forge that could create ancient weapons of immense power. He was stopped however. Not much else is known of what happens to him.

Kelzen

Kelzen is a mysterious figure, all that's known is he changed his name to Fineous after the first war ended. Possibly from shame.

He serves his time in Archibald's army under the new name of Fineous then fades into the woodwork.

His looks might have come from Moradon, a Villain from King's Bounty.

Lord Haart

Lord Haart served Morglin Ironfist well throughout the first war for Enroth. He was duly rewarded, but not seen again during the war for Succession.

He was later ressurrected and as an undead death knight he wreaked havok on the marsh kingdom of Tatalia until he could be stopped by a young, but very adept fire mage ."Resurrected by his cult of necromantic followers, Lord Haart has emerged a more powerful foe than before."

Lord Kilburn

Lord Kilburn is a trusted advisor of the Ironfist family and may even possibly be the one you were tasked to save in Might and Magic: Secret of the Inner Sanctum. Lord Kilburn and Sir Galland have their pictures swapped in the Gameboy version.

Other than his other-worldly origins (seemingly from VARN), there is little known about him.

Lord Slayer

A rival to Lord Morglin Ironfist except he appearantly is slain in the war and never heard from again. He looks strikingly similar to Thundax.

Luna

Luna served her queen to the best of her abilities in the first war, though she failed she was kept as a trusted aide after he Queen's defeat.

Maximus

Maximus is an Orcish knight who serves Lord Ironfist in the first war for Enroth.

He trades for a more traditional armour in the Succession Wars, but disappears afterwards.

He is nearly identical to a hero of Terra, who returns also in Might and Magic 7.

Morglin Ironfist

He's not so much a hero as he is a lord and ruler of the Knights. He leaves behind 2 sons who vie for his throne upon his passing. He arrived in Enroth after a failed assassination attempt against his cousin. He quickly found out he could not return and attempted to establish a power base for himself, eventually coming into conflict with 3 other lords. He bested them and united the land under his flag.

This is presumably him younger and before the 'stache.

Archibald and Roland Ironfist, the Evil and Good sons of Morglin Ironfirst, respectively.

In the Original Might and Magic there is a Lord Ironfist as well, it is presumed from Morglin's letters the Lord Ironfist in VARN is Morglin's cousin, whose father killed Morglin's Father to lay claim to the throne.

Natasha

Natasha is a rare dark skinned sorceress in the game. She really is the equal of every other sorceress in game.

Little has changed from her first appearance by Homm2 except better looking hair and fuller lips.

Queen Lamanda

She leads the Sorceress' armies to war. She has no real resemblance to other characters, but some fans have speculated that she is Roland and Archibald's mother (though the letters Morglin writes which take place before this seem to deny it).

She bears a slight superficial resemblance to the Sorceress in King's Bounty (named Tynestra in the Genesis version).

Rebecca

Rebecca is a generic sorceress who does not have any back story; Unfortunate as that may be. Her Gameboy portrait makes her jewelry look weird, like weird ears or some sort of head brace.

Her lips get fuller and she stands in an autumn garden. That is all.

Sandro

Now we're getting to the good stuff. Sandro is a fan favourite for obvious reasons. He served under Alamar as a Warlock as nobody would accept him for his necromancer self, at least until the next game.

After Archibald rose to power, Sandro was able to openly flaunt his Necromantic prowess and followed his choice of lords through his dark destiny.

After Archibald's defeat, Sandro duped several heroes individually into believing he was a human wizard out to protect the world from Necromancy (using a fleshy disguise). He obtained the parts to the artifact he desired and used it to grab more power for himself, mostly through a puppet that he brought to be King of Deyja. His actions however brought the wrath of the heroes whom had helped him previously, though they were easily repelled at first. Until they assembled the lost artifact, the Angelic Alliance. "Having successfully garnished all of the pieces for the Cloak of the Undead King and the Armor of the Damned, Sandro is now traveling to Deyja. His old master, Ethric, has other plans for the power-hungry necromancer. Ethric has sent word to Sandro’s enemies of his location and that he possesses the powerful artifacts. Sandro must fight his way through these opponents before continuing to Deyja and making allies there." He also slew his old master, Ethric, and raised him as a Lich.

Sandro in Fleshy Guise.

 

The heroes defeated him and destroyed his artifacts, but not before he obtained a strategic alliance with both the Kreegans and the Overlords of Nighon.

He was later betrayed by his own puppet (who took all the credit for Deyja's successes in the war and its new alliances) and thrown into an antimagic prison until being freed by Lord Haart shortly before the return ofCatherine and he Restoration War started.

After being freed, he had no alternative, but to pledge loyalty to his former puppet Finneas, at least until Finneas expired. "Sandro first studied Necromancy under the tutelage of the wizard, and later the lich, Ethric. Sandro has seen nearly all of Enroth and Erathia, and now serves Finneas Vilmar, leader of the Necromancers of Deyja."

Sandro just couldn't catch a break though, despite everybody that was really in his way expiring during the wars of Restoration and Armageddon's Blade, he still could not gain the power he so desired. "Sandro's instinct to survive is almost as strong as his tireless ambition. His network of power in the old world was destroyed by the Reckoning, so now he has to start all over. Unfortunately, many of his old allies perished as well. But no one can say Sandro isn't up to the challenge." 

Sandro as he appears in Might and Magic 8, as the Guildmaster of Shadowspire.

Sandro either escaped to Ashan or another Sandro with similar ambitions exists. This Sandro has had several students, including Lucretia. "Seduced and turned to the Necromancer ideals by Sandro himself, this ex-Bull Duchy countess immediately showed thirsts for both blood and power. Already a talented courtesan when still alive, Lucretia's vampiric embrace granted her a couple of centuries to hone her natural gifts for seducing, backstabbing, and politicking. Promoted to the rank of Undead Princess, she is a spiritual and (im)moral leader to other vampires that dream of re-creating her escapades."

Markal is another student, however, he chose to keep his human form to further his own ends. He referrences Sandro constantly in the campaign. "A devoted student of all that Necromancy can offer, Markal has risen to the highest heights that one can achieve among the Necromancers -- while still being alive. Formerly the court astrologer and favorite counselor of the Griffin Queen Fiona, Markal established a strong (but secret) base of Death cultists within the Holy Empire. The religious leaders of the Church of the Light became suspicious of his nefarious activities, however, and when Fiona passed away her advisor was exiled.Realizing that he will no longer circulate freely among the other kingdoms of Ashan once he receives the Kiss of the Spider Goddess, Markal furthers the goals of Heresh through diplomacy and, of course, skullduggery."

This is a different Sandro from the World of Xeen. Obviously it heavily inspired the hero. Look at and compare this to his Homm 1 and 2 character portrait. I mean, they took this skull, recoloured it and threw it in a robe for ultra style points. Can't get better than that. He fights you on compulsion, but truly desires to be released from his undead condition by the return of his heart.

Sir Gallant

Sir Gallant is a knight that likes to hang around if front of Fortifications. Galland and Killburn have their portraits swapped in the Gameboy Version.

He stays the same in Heroes 2.

He is probably based on Sir Galland of Might and Magic: Secret of the Inner Sanctum.

Thundax

Thundax is your generic butt ugly barbarian to fill out the ranks. He tries to copycat how Lord Slayer looks but doesn't pull off the toughness or coolness factor of his lord.

There's really nothing exceptional about him. He's like one of those ultra HD closeups of your favourite actors showing all the vericose veins and warts in detail. How do you like your hero now?

Troyan

Troyan is a sorceress with a spiky choice of headwear and little else to get her apart, except she looks like she may enjoy long walks on the lake.

Her hair has more detail and is a lighter hue, she appears to have a mole and her jewelry has etchings on it now. Still ho-hum.

Yes, She has a Xeen counterpart too.

Tsabu

Oh he's in front of an adobe house now. Way to go Tsabu, you're special.

Tyro

Tyro normally wouldn't really be worth mentioning. He does have some nifty evolution though. He's a night by the way, not easy to see that I know.

He develops more hair and has a more "Hagrid" type of look in Heroes 2. What's interesting is his roots though.

It looks like he was a mix of 2 characters, Tyro (the one of the left with the eyepatch, a hero of Xeen) and the second portrait that more closely resembles his HOMM character (a generic NPC).

Vatawna

A sorceress with nasty looking jewelry and an ugly scowl.

Her hair gets more detailed and she stands in front of what looks like a nice seaside resort, she loses the evil scowl mostly and now looks somewhat presentable. She also dyed her eyebrows brown for some reason.

Yes, she had a Xeen counterpart too.

Vesper

Ever seen the movie version of the Hogfather? Vesper resembles Mr. Sydney, at least in the gamebody incarnation. Regardless, his picture exudes "Mr. Nice Warlock".

And he stays exactly the same for Heroes 2 then disappears forever.

Wrathmont

Wrathmont looks very angry, with a sneer stuck on his face. He's like an angro Warlock Lando Calrissian.

His hair gains detail and he moves to a study away from the (green) glow zone.

He's based on a Xeen NPC alright. Except he looks a lot more content.

Yog

Yog is a half Genie Barbarian who originally was a wizard. He however grew to despise magic and eventually found his way to the life of a Barbarian. He fought on Lord Slayer's behalf in the first Succession War. And he subsequently disappeared to his adoptive land of Krewlod for the second war for Enroth. What many people don't know are his humble beginings.

Yog spent those years bored, reading texts on war over tomes of magic. He really lost it when his love interest, Vidomina became a Necromancer and was banished for practicing forbidden arts, that was when he swore off magic for good. "Yog studied for many years with the Wizards of Bracada, but he was often found reading texts on war rather than those on magic. The Duke of Krewlod offered him a military command, allowing Yog to happily combine his knowledge of magic and war."

Yog was eventually tricked by Sandro into gathering an artifact of great power for him. He later traveled to make amends as one of the heroes weilding the Angelic alliance. He participated in the upcoming trials of Krewlod as well and fought to expand/keep its borders while Erathia was weak.

He survived the Cataclysm and went on to be one of the great heroes of the Might faction. "Yog is a living contradiction. He may have the blue skin of his genie mother, but he has the battle fury and strength of his Barbarian father. At one time, he considered following his mother's path and embracing a life of magic, but his passion for warfare proved stronger."

Yog art from Shadows of Death.

In Might and Magic 5 there was another, nearly identical looking Yog who just happens to be a different character.

If you see any information that is amiss or if you find any images of characters (such as additional pictures or information of any specific characters. It would be appreciated).
Thanks to Barzyńcy for providing the Heroes of Might and Magic 2 and 3 hero images. Thanks to Carlawn for the Might and Magic 1 Ironfist/Alamar, Might and Magic 4 and 5 character pictures, and the Heroes 4 Pictures. Special thanks also go to Jutta of the Might and Magic 4 and 5 shrine for the pictures of Yog and Sandro.

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