Combat

6:59 Battles in Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era are fought turn by turn on a hexagonal grid, the "traditional hexagonal battlefield with an orthographic camera" of the classic games (FAQ, Aug 30, 2024). Creature stacks act in order of Initiative, shown on a bar along the top of the screen, while each army's hero casts spells, makes Heroic Strikes and uses a faction ability. Unfrozen's twist on the formula is "a lot of active unit abilities", paid for with Focus Charges that the whole army shares (Designing a Heroes Game, Aug 29, 2024). The biggest change since launch is in the public beta of Oct 15, 2026, which replaces the formula that turns Attack and Defense into damage.

Quick facts

The battlefield

The field is a grid of hexes with obstacles, ponds and terrain. After the free demo, players asked for more room, so Unfrozen made the battlefield bigger, widened the background and added zoom "to enable more strategies (including some oldschool ones)" (Community Feedback #4, Mar 6, 2026); most unit stats were adjusted to match (Devlog #15, Apr 24, 2026). Settings let you change the combat camera at any time, and Patch #7 added an alternative starting camera (Patch #7, May 21, 2026). Fighting on a creature's native terrain matters: several laws and subskills give bonuses there, and Necropolis's "Terra Mortis" law makes its heroes always fight on native terrain (Faction Laws).

Turns and Initiative

0:51 Each stack takes its turn in order of Initiative, and Speed sets how far it moves. A stack can attack, use an ability, wait until later in the round or skip its turn to defend; the Battlecraft skill rewards waiting with Attack and skipping with Defense (Devlog #11). Spells move the order: Early Start adds Initiative, Icebolt takes it away, and Doreath's Tide changes Speed and Initiative for both armies (Devlog #10). The beta made the initiative bar easier to read and fixed Initiative bonuses not applying to waiting units (beta notes, Oct 15, 2026). Vilestride's combat guide for beginners (May 10, 2026) adds that a tie in Initiative goes to the faster stack and then to the attacker, and that waiting stacks act at the end of the round in reverse order of Initiative, so a stack first in line that waits can act twice in a row.

3:03 Ranged units have unlimited shots, and their penalty for distance "is not constant": it grows gradually with range (FAQ: Part 2, Dec 6, 2024). Shooters also take a penalty in melee, which the beta's Elven Blade artifact removes. Creatures counterattack when hit, using counterattack charges: Weakening Ray removes one, Shackles stops the target retaliating, and the store page singles out griffins that "counterattack multiple times" (Steam). Vilestride counts three basic attacks, ranged, melee and Long Reach (which hits from one hex away), and points out that a glowing orange light at a unit's base shows it still has a counterattack. Each creature's stats are on Creatures.

How damage is calculated

3:55 On the live game, a stack's damage is multiplied by (20 + ATK) / (20 + DEF), where ATK is the attacker's Attack and DEF the defender's Defense, both including what heroes add. Unfrozen kept low-tier creatures relevant with it, but as heroes grow, a point of Attack matters less and less: +1 Attack raises a Troglodyte's damage against Waurms by 4.5% early on but by less than 1% when heroes have 80 Attack and Defense, and strong creatures lose ground to weak ones (beta notes, Oct 15, 2026). Vilestride works the live formula through with a Swordsman (Attack 4) hitting a Parasite (Defense 3): 24 / 23 is about 1.04, times the average of the damage range, times the number of creatures in the stack.

The beta's new formula uses only the gap, Delta = ATK - DEF. The first point of difference adds 4.00%, the second 3.96%, the third 3.92%, each point 0.04% less, until a gap of 100 where further points stop counting. If Attack is higher, damage is multiplied by (1 + the sum); if Defense is higher, it is divided by it. In Unfrozen's example, Waurms (Attack 20) hitting Troglodytes (Defense 3) have a gap of 17, worth 62.56%, and that ratio no longer changes as heroes level up, so high-tier stacks stay strong and stat artifacts feel "equally strong from the beginning to the end of a match". The beta also lowers many creatures' stats to suit it (beta notes).

Damage comes in kinds: basic attacks, Magic Damage from spells (cut by the Resistance skill and by magic resistance, 85% on the Lich Dragon after Patch #8) and Pure Damage, which spells such as Umbral Grip deal and "cannot be modified in any way" (Devlog #10).

Morale and Luck

5:02 High Morale can give a stack a bonus action; Luck can make a hit a lucky strike for extra damage. Since Patch #11, each point of Luck gives an 8% chance (up from 6%), "twice the base trigger chance of the high Morale effect" (Patch #11, Jul 6, 2026). Mixing creatures of different factions lowers morale, which Necropolis can cancel with a law (Devlog #14). The Leadership and Luck skills each add +1, +2 or +3, and artifacts such as Monster Head and Ring of Neutrality neutralize Morale or Luck for everyone (Artifacts). Vilestride adds that a lucky strike deals 150% damage and an unlucky one 50%, that low Morale can make a stack skip its turn, and that each creature has a Morale and Luck range that buffs and curses cannot push it past.

The beta adds protection against long streaks of good or bad rolls, so that a stack with 5 Morale that never gets a bonus action while an enemy with 1 Morale gets one almost every turn "will become practically impossible" (beta notes).

Focus Charges and abilities

6:44 Focus is a combat resource shared by all your units. It is generated by attacking, taking damage, casting certain spells and at the start of each round, and both creatures and heroes spend Focus Charges on active abilities (Devlog #9, Apr 11, 2025). Some creatures have "fighting styles" that change their basic attack at a cost: Troglodytes can make a Long Reach attack at a 50% damage penalty, and Medusae can turn their ranged attack into an area attack (Devlog #8, Mar 13, 2025). Grove's Murmuring skill starts battles with up to 3 charges, Grove laws lower ability costs, spells such as Energize restore charges and Silence stops an enemy generating them. In Vilestride's guide a Focus Charge takes 6 Focus Points, earned 1 for a ranged attack, 2 for a melee attack and 1 each time a stack takes damage.

Heroes in battle

Each hero can open the spellbook once per round (twice with Thaumaturgy), make a Heroic Strike, which the Combat skill improves, and use its faction's ability: Dungeon's Triumvirate's Strength stances, the Hive's larva cocoons, Schism's extra units, or Temple's prayers in the beta. In the beta, faction skills get their own panel and you can mark 3 favorite spells for quick casting (beta notes). Spells are on Magic and Spells and hero skills on Skills.

Tactics phase and formations

Before a battle starts, the Tactics skill lets you rearrange your creatures within 2, 3 or 4 lines and see where neutral enemies start (Devlog #11). Since Patch #10, the formation you set in the tactics phase is saved per hero for standard battles against neutral armies and reused, following each creature type even if you reorder your army slots (Patch #10, Jun 18, 2026). Patch #8 closed an exploit that let a fast creature peek at the enemy's placement (Patch #8).

7:44 Vilestride's biggest tip is splitting stacks. Single creatures fill hexes that shield your shooters, soak up an enemy's overkill damage and bait out counterattacks before your big stack strikes, and splitting your own shooters keeps them from wasting damage on a small enemy stack. Fewer losses mean faster clearing of the map, which he calls the start of a snowball.

Sieges

Attacking a town means a siege against walls and defense towers. Tower damage grows with the town's buildings, by 15% per constructed building since Patch #3 (up from 10%) (Patch #3, May 3, 2026), and traps created in a siege take priority over other traps since Sep 30, 2026 (Unfrozen). The attacker's catapult deals +50, +100 or +150 damage with the Siegecraft skill, and the Primal spell Earth's Rage damages defensive structures and the creatures inside the walls (Devlog #10).

Auto-combat, fleeing and timers

You can switch auto-combat on and off during a battle, and quickly finish a manual battle whose outcome is clear (Community Feedback #4, Mar 6, 2026). If the odds are overwhelming, you "can always pay the price to flee the battlefield", as the store page puts it (Steam), unless the enemy is Grove with the "Live roots" law, which forbids fleeing and surrender, and in the beta AI heroes flee battles they cannot win (beta notes). Online battles run on a modified chess timer set in the lobby (FAQ: Part 2): Patch #6 added 5 seconds after each stack's turn, and Patch #8 set combat time to 60 seconds on Sprint and Vendetta and 80 seconds on other templates (Patch #6; Patch #8). More on Multiplayer.

Frequently asked questions

How is damage calculated in Olden Era? On the live version of Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era, damage is multiplied by (20 + Attack) / (20 + Defense); the Oct 15, 2026 public beta replaces this with a formula based on the gap between Attack and Defense, where each point adds about 4%, slightly less for each further point, up to a gap of 100.

What is Initiative in Olden Era? Initiative decides the order in which stacks act in an Olden Era battle, shown on the initiative bar; Speed is how far a stack moves on its turn.

Can I auto-battle in Olden Era? Yes. Olden Era lets you turn auto-combat on or off during a battle and quickly finish a manual battle when the result is clear.

How do Morale and Luck work in Olden Era? In Olden Era, Luck gives an 8% chance per point of a lucky strike, and Morale can give a stack a bonus action at half that base chance per point; the beta adds protection against long lucky or unlucky streaks.

What are Focus Charges in Olden Era? Focus Charges are a battle resource shared by your whole army in Olden Era, gained by attacking, taking damage, some spells and each new round, and spent on creature and hero abilities.

What does the tactics phase do in Olden Era? With the Tactics skill you can rearrange your army within 2 to 4 lines before a battle and see where neutral enemies stand, and since Patch #10 your formation is saved per hero for battles against neutral armies.

Sources

• Designing a Heroes Game, Unfrozen, Aug 29, 2024
• FAQ, Unfrozen, Aug 30, 2024
• FAQ: Part 2, Unfrozen, Dec 6, 2024
• Devlog #8: On Triumvirate's Strength and the Alvar Pact, Unfrozen, Mar 13, 2025
• Devlog #9: The Binding Roots of Murmurwoods, Unfrozen, Apr 11, 2025
• Devlog #10: Game Mechanics pt. 1: Magic, Unfrozen, Jun 13, 2025
• Devlog #11: Game Mechanics pt. 2: Skills and Subclasses, Unfrozen, Jul 25, 2025
• Devlog #14: Gameplay Mechanics pt. 3: Faction Laws, Unfrozen, Dec 5, 2025
• HoMM: Olden Era | Community Feedback #4: UI, QoL and Others!, Unfrozen, Mar 6, 2026
• Devlog #15: How and Why We Chose the Artstyle of Olden Era, Unfrozen, Apr 24, 2026
• Patch #3: Bug fixes and Network stability improvements, Unfrozen, May 3, 2026
• Patch #6: Network Stability, Balance Tweaks & Campaign Fixes, Unfrozen, May 13, 2026
• Patch #7: Removing Abuses and Improving Campaign, Unfrozen, May 21, 2026
• Patch #8: Skills Rework, Balance Pass & Exploit Fixes, Unfrozen, Jun 1, 2026
• Patch #10: Tactics Phase Formation Saving & Bug Fixes, Unfrozen, Jun 18, 2026
• Patch #11: Necromancy Update, UI Tweaks and Balance Changes, Unfrozen, Jul 6, 2026
• Alliances & Updated Random Map Generator, Unfrozen, Sep 30, 2026
• BETA Patch: Balance Update - New Damage Formula, Smarter AI & New Creatures, Unfrozen, Oct 15, 2026
• Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era on Steam, Steam store page, read Oct 21, 2026
• Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era Early Access Review, IGN, Apr 28, 2026 (video)
• A Beginners Guide To Combat In Heroes of Might and Magic Olden Era, Vilestride, May 10, 2026 (video)