Heroes of Might and Magic III: In the Wake of Gods

Development of In the Wake of Gods (WoG) began in 2001, and the mod became the first major modification for HoMM 3, setting a high standard of quality. The mod focuses on adding the maximum number of new features, even if it somewhat departs from the spirit of the original game.

One of the most important changes was the reworked hero specializations: for example, Nagash gains the "Veil of Darkness" ability that conceals the area around him, while Jeddite with his "Builder" specialization can restore destroyed towns and convert them into any other type.

A key feature of the mod is the complete destruction and subsequent reconstruction of towns. A hero can sequentially destroy each building by spending movement points and gold, and after the final demolition of the Town Hall, a Ghost Forge appears. The town temporarily becomes unavailable until the player buys out all the ghosts, after which it can be rebuilt into its original type or a different one — and builder heroes can choose any type.

All factions receive level 8 creatures — semi-divine upgraded versions of level 7 units with doubled stats and enhanced abilities. In addition to these, the game introduces emissaries — special neutral creatures that grant the hero permanent weekly bonuses but do not participate in combat. New neutral units also appear, including ghosts from Heroes II and elemental messengers.

The role-playing component is significantly expanded: each hero receives a commander — a unique creature with racial abilities, their own skills, spells, and artifact slots. Commanders participate in battle instead of the hero and can be enhanced with special artifacts like the Helmet of Immortality, which allows resurrection after victory.

The combat system is also enriched with new details. If a creature has multiple attack types, the player can choose the preferred mode — ranged attack, melee combat, spellcasting, attack with return or without it. Archer towers during sieges now gain experience, increasing their damage for each week you hold the castle.

Additional buildings and objects appear on the adventure map: for example, the Sphinx, offering riddles with rewards or punishments; new types of creature dwellings like the "Transylvanian Tavern"; as well as decorative and interactive objects.

Collectively, all these changes expanding the tactical, strategic, and role-playing possibilities of the game transformed WoG into one of the most popular modifications of HoMM3, paving the way for new projects. Although WoG development ended back in 2005, its source code was later released, and projects spiritually continuing this remarkable modification emerged, including WoG Ultra Edition, ERA, and VCMI.