Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia

About Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia

Heroes of Might and Magic III (1999) is New World Computing's turn-based strategy classic in which Queen Catherine returns to reclaim her father's kingdom of Erathia, with eight factions, underground maps and a modding scene still active decades later.

Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia in Depth

With King Roland Ironfist missing, Queen Catherine rules Enroth until her father, King Nicholas Gryphonheart of Erathia, is assassinated, and Erathia falls to the Dungeon Overlords of Nighon and the Kreegans of Eeofol, who sack the capital Steadwick. Seven campaigns on the continent of Antagarich, told from alternating sides, follow Catherine as she rallies the wizards of Bracada and the elves of AvLee, retakes Steadwick and pushes into Nighon, while the necromancers of Deyja, who killed her father, raise him as a lich only to lose control of him. A final unlockable campaign follows separatists in the Contested Lands, a rising later implied to be Archibald Ironfist's work.

Heroes lead armies of mythical creatures across the world, gathering loot, resources for their towns and artefacts that boost them, and contesting mines for income, with combat on a hexagonal grid of moving, attacking and spellcasting units. It refines earlier mechanics and adds an underground layer, larger maps and more victory conditions, including hunting the Grail to build a powerful permanent structure. Eight factions are included, up from six, and heroes gain skills such as Diplomacy, which can persuade enemies to join rather than fight. It offers campaigns, cooperative and competitive multiplayer and 50 skirmish maps.

Making Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia

Van Caneghem developed it through New World Computing, and 3DO released it for Windows on 28 February 1999, with Mac and Linux ports at the end of the year. It entered PC Data's weekly chart at third and was the second best-selling US computer game of March 1999, selling 185,553 copies in the US by September 2000. It received universal acclaim and became a defining turn-based strategy classic: Computer Gaming World said it "expands upon the insanely addictive play of the previous edition" and was "mind-boggling in its depth", despite uneven campaign pacing and sluggish online play, and Next Generation said it showed "turn-based play is alive and well". Armageddon's Blade and The Shadow of Death followed, bundled as Heroes III Complete in 2000, with the Heroes Chronicles episodes. Ubisoft's 2015 HD Edition, missing the expansions, was poorly received, while a large community, especially in Russian and Polish, has kept making mods, and a full remake was announced in 2026.