Quick Summary
Ziemian earned his place among the 16 players invited to the Exodus and Outcast Invitational after years of competitive Heroes III experience. You can find his twitch streams here
In the second interview of TownPortal’s Invitational Voices series, Ziemian breaks down the current problems with Outcast, explains why Magic heroes have pulled ahead of Might, and shares what Olden Era can learn from the community-driven Heroes III scene.
His hope for Olden Era tournaments is not limited to occasional major events: “Smaller, community-organized tournaments are what kept the Heroes III multiplayer scene alive for all these years.”
Ziemian entered the Exodus and Outcast Invitational with a competitive Heroes background that stretches back to the first Polish Heroes III Championships in 2018.
His main discipline was not the familiar Jebus Cross format, but competitive eight-hero XL+U templates such as 6lm10a. He continued playing on and off until 2025, gaining experience in a scene built largely by dedicated players, organizers, and small community tournaments.
That background gives Ziemian a particularly analytical perspective on Olden Era. His answers go beyond individual wins and losses: he discusses hero-class balance, Town Portal access, map generation, tournament pressure, and the kind of ecosystem the game needs to support players at every skill level.
Ziemian was one of only 16 players invited to compete in the Exodus and Outcast Invitational. Although his run ended during the opening stage, reaching this field was already an achievement - and his honest assessment of both his own performance and the current state of the game makes this one of the most thoughtful conversations in the series.
The answers have been lightly edited for grammar and clarity while preserving Ziemian’s original meaning and style.
From the Polish Heroes III Scene to Olden Era
Q1 How long have you been playing Heroes, and which faction did you play first?
I started playing multiplayer shortly before the first Polish Heroes III Championships, so around 2018.
I mostly focused on the competitive eight-hero XL+U format - templates such as 6lm10a rather than Jebus - and played on and off until 2025, with several long breaks that sometimes lasted up to a year.
My first contact with the series came earlier. I played some Heroes III single-player as a kid, but I don’t remember many specifics - other than repeatedly getting destroyed by dragons on some water scenario.
Q2 Which faction performance impressed you the most during the tournament, and which was the biggest disappointment?
The only real surprise for me was Easy2’s Grove game with Vatawna.
Reaching 30 Spell Power and capturing all the side towns before the first fight was absolutely insane. It required nearly ideal conditions, but it is incredibly unlikely that another hero or map could replicate that performance.
Q3 How did you like the Outcast Tournament template? Would you like to play more of it?
It’s okay, but I would like to see some changes - or at least an explanation from the developers about why certain things work the way they do.
The biggest issues are related to hero picks and class balance. Might heroes seem much weaker than Magic heroes, which can snowball to an absurd degree.
The fact that some classes are unable to use Town Portal from day one is also absurd.
I think it would be worth considering adding Primordial Chaos by default, because the box and break guards can make or break the entire game.
Q4 Did you prepare specifically for your opponents, or did you approach the matches more like regular ladder games?
I didn’t prepare any tailored strategies.
I mainly thought about picks and bans with the two-ban limit in mind. Then I had a brain freeze during the Outcast game anyway and banned Zakron instead of Lodos.
Q5 Which tournament game or moment are you most satisfied with?
My performance could have been better, and I was eliminated early, so there isn’t really anything I’m satisfied with.
I expected to have a better showing.
Q6 Which player did you fear facing the most?
Easy2 on Merry Elias.
Q7 Which player or game moment impressed you the most during the tournament?
Vatawna reaching 30 Spell Power and capturing five towns.
I was also impressed by the overall performance of the game’s AI, which successfully eliminated several players.
:)
Q8 What is your prediction for the grand final?
I have absolutely no idea.
These tournaments are impossible to predict accurately. People are making the dumbest mistakes- myself included - and performing very differently from how they play on the ladder, whether because of nerves or something else.
Q9 How much did GAMBA affect your games?
I would say it affected them pretty significantly.
I was not happy with my Exodus map, to say the least, and the Outcast generation was also insane for Lodos.
That game was still winnable if I had not messed up the first day, though, so I only have myself to blame there.
Q10 Who is stronger in the current meta: Might or Magic heroes?
Definitely Magic - although mainly heroes with solid starting skills or spells.
Some broken Might heroes can compete, but overall, after the buffs to thaumaturgy and sorcery, I find Magic heroes superior.
Q11 How do you expect the competitive scene to look by the end of the year?
I expect nothing, so that I can be pleasantly surprised.
What I hope to see is a healthy ecosystem similar to Heroes III, with tournaments for players of all skill levels happening almost all the time.
Large official tournaments would be great, but smaller, community-organized tournaments are what kept the Heroes III multiplayer scene alive for all these years and allowed close-knit communities to grow.
Salute to Monkey Island.
I am a little concerned about the general balance and template quality, because some of the changes and additions are quite baffling. Still, I hope things will continue to improve over time.
Big Kudos to Ziemian
Ziemian’s Invitational run may be over, but his perspective represents exactly why experienced competitive players matter during Olden Era’s development.
Balance patches and official tournaments can attract attention, but a lasting competitive scene will also depend on the players, organizers, and smaller communities willing to keep creating opportunities between major events.
Ziemian has already been part of that kind of ecosystem in Heroes III. We hope to see much more of him as Olden Era’s own competitive scene takes shape.
More interviews with Invitational participants will be published throughout the playoffs as part of TownPortal’s Invitational Voices series.