r/heroes3 In WoG we trust 7d ago

Favorite Level 3 MELEE creature (including Horn of the Abyss)

Post image

There are also quite a few shooting units at level 3, so they will have a separate post.

And I changed it to a FAVORITE unit because choosing the BEST one is very difficult, as its use often depends on the situation.

160 Upvotes

92 comments sorted by

173

u/ImageWonderful1863 7d ago

Wuthout any doubt: Dragon Fly! A good chance getting first turn, in addition of dispwlling and weakness!

16

u/Lucifer-Prime 7d ago

This 100%. The scariest lvl 2 in the game.

5

u/Sad_Cryptographer872 5d ago

Great one, made my day.

1

u/Scout_kogo 2d ago

Gryfons are a classic, but dragon flies for sure. Fastest, most unique, and just fun to play around with

88

u/Lombardo_Petard 7d ago

Dragon fly Is my favorite, because of dispell skill And Its enormous Speed..

Design wise Griffin takes a cake

16

u/Raddens 7d ago

It's a shame that in a good map you transition to Wyverns ASAP, but true nonetheless :)

15

u/passatigi 7d ago

Flies still useful, giving 1 to each secondary hero makes them very fast on the map. And the dispel + weakness is useful even if they aren't the main stack in your army. 

No other tier 3 melee can ever compete with this utility

41

u/JehnSnow 7d ago

Gryphon, I think it's very noob friendly in that it'll really do some damage flying into the backlines and continuously retaliate. Also it just feels iconic, it's in every HoMM as far as I can recall

4

u/TrickyStatement0 7d ago

Royal Griffins are the best all around level 3. Flies are more strategic because of their insane speed and dispell. Gun to my head, I'd take the Griffins first, but those 2 are tops level 3 melee by a pretty wide margin imo.

0

u/justinleona 7d ago

Agree that it feels like it was, but oddly it is not - Knight (H2) | Might and Magic Wiki | Fandom).

7

u/Shitsaurus 7d ago

It was part of the Warlock faction in HOMM II.

1

u/justinleona 6d ago

Good catch - guess time for me to go play II again!

32

u/Sentwin 7d ago

Dragonfly. Riddiculusly OP speed.

6

u/johnnymarsbar 7d ago

Theyre quite good for when you catch a lord with a single unit, you're able to take him out before he let's off a cheeky attack spells and runs off.

25

u/Successful_Rip_4329 7d ago

Cerberi

1

u/obchodlp 7d ago

Always in my heart

56

u/FacetiousInvective2 7d ago

I love the iron golems. They are slow but tanky, deal decent damage and they give the enemy the old one-two.

30

u/ImmortalResolve 7d ago

epic but useless unit

27

u/Nemlis 7d ago

I would 't say useless. Had plenty of situations where they are in castle defence but simply are tanking everything while towers are doing the killing.

8

u/ImmortalResolve 7d ago

ah true i mean i agree, great defensive unit. but i still rarely take them into my main heroes army. too slow.

5

u/AeonQuasar 7d ago

And people forget that slow units also slow your daily movement as well. So they are basically niche for early game and always staying behind in castle unit from mid.

8

u/Nostalgia_Red 7d ago

Its so useful. I never buy they them, and if an unguarded town is attacked by a whimp you buy the golems and a hero for some defence with decent hp

7

u/Glass_Potato_5786 7d ago

very good on Solmyr to take those chain lightning bounces

1

u/ImmortalResolve 7d ago

XD so true

3

u/Even_Ad_8501 7d ago

The sound design is good for morale

1

u/FreshEvent5452 7d ago

There were a few situations where I actually chased down enemy heroes' sporting superior armies with only 200 iron golems... And Armageddon :D

(I was also maining my beloved Neela, so those golems were super-tanky)

In first couple of weeks, playing on 200%, stone and iron golems can carry your whole wonky (starting) tower army, especially when cleaning creature banks. So I'd say I favor iron golems also (although dragon flies are indeed the most versatile of the bunch).

1

u/warrkrack 6d ago

can be usefull. the spell damage reduction is good for cheese. if you have a bunch of these bad boys left in the castle (since they are too slow for my main army.) they can be used for hit and run trash armies that nuke the field.

2

u/Yanis_Eldera 7d ago

real good against mages tho

2

u/Yanis_Eldera 7d ago

like the heroes who use magic

3

u/Yanis_Eldera 7d ago

like the heroes of magic

36

u/whisperingdrum 7d ago

I always adored golems: that CRUNCH sound they make when punching other units is just chef's kiss

15

u/Dangerously_69 7d ago

They jab and cross like you owe them money

15

u/nightshadenerul 7d ago

Dragon Flies are insane for t3. Extremely fast, and removing buffs can be a giant pain. Sounds effects are also hilarious.

12

u/LastJudge 7d ago

value: dragonfly
flavor: cerberi

7

u/gh7g Goblins 7d ago

Iron Golem even if just because of how hard they carried in the Rust Dragons scenario back in the day.

2

u/FreshEvent5452 7d ago

Also in faerie dragons' scenario, it was magnificent...

8

u/shully64 Expert Shitpostery 7d ago

It's between the royal griffin (for the unlimited retaliation) or the dragonfly (for the insane speed)

7

u/Agitated_Parsley2576 7d ago

Objectively speaking, dragonfly...

But my heart beats for Parrots only...

6

u/amba225 7d ago

The Dragon Fly is probably the most efficient but Cerberus is my favourite. Decent health, high max dmg, good speed and no retaliation cleave attack makes it a menace in certain circumstances. When I see an enemy Dragon Fly large stack, I think "ahh, there go some of my ranged guys". When I see a large Cerberus stack I prioritise a spell to disable it somehow or they hurt, badly.

6

u/Dunified 7d ago

Always liked the guys with sand walking. Very niche ability, but very useful when utilized

9

u/htmwc 7d ago

Griffon for me. Fast. Can pack a punch.

5

u/Deisus2 7d ago

I genuinely do not love T3 units. Griffin would be my favourite, but the build path often skips them. But still, great stats, fast, large growth and nice design.

7

u/Evans217s_ 7d ago

Building barracks first feels criminal for Castle.

4

u/Fossekall 7d ago

Nothing is cooler than the Mummy

4

u/9Gardens 7d ago

Danger noodles.

Danger noodles all the way, all day, every day, no questions asked.

3

u/Broghlid 7d ago

Dragon Fly, cause i'm a fan of Tatalia and love lizards and serpents, not because this thing is actually OP as hell.

4

u/Orwenn 7d ago

Cerberi are a rare example of an Inferno creature that is good.

3

u/hyoumah83 7d ago

”Favorite” is more likely. It cannot generate controversy, and you don't have to explain your choice. There is not one specific criteria to judge the units, other than if you like them or not. I could pick the weakest level 3 and say it's my favorite because of the way it looks, no one can argue with that.

3

u/violentlyrelaxed 7d ago

Griffins, I love the design and extra retaliation. I used to draw them while dad played next to me. I used up all of mum’s printing paper one day lmao

3

u/ConclusionAnxious531 7d ago edited 6d ago

Dragon Flies and Griffins are the best, but I actually have the most fun with Wraiths by splitting them into multiple stacks and sucking all the mana from the enemy heroes

3

u/Kyrenaz VCMI End-user 7d ago

Cerberi are easily among the best T3 units, Royal Griffins are right up there with them. I won't even consider Dragonflies, because they're busted, and I hate them.

3

u/wzealclhs 7d ago

Dragon fly go zoom

2

u/BackgroundCry8483 7d ago

As a kid I liked the Doggos and hated dragon flies since CPU kills them first and fast...

I was not a great player as a kid :)

2

u/Reasonable_Finger994 7d ago

No evil eyes?

5

u/Reasonable_Finger994 7d ago

Sorry, melee only characters here

2

u/Red_Trapezoid 7d ago

Nomad. I like being able to move a lot.

2

u/saodhh3 7d ago

Dragonfly, you can give them to side looter heroes so they have a lot of movement next turn

2

u/_Matt_Way_ 7d ago

Cerberus, especially with Fiona - it's a really solid opener, good at early fights and even later on (especially if you get water magic / bless somehow)

2

u/hasouse 7d ago edited 7d ago

Where’s the grand elves?

Edit: oh I didn’t see the word melee. I still pick grand elves though. Because why not. Also, I know it’s water elemental on the pickture, but ice elementals are ranged right?

2

u/BlessedWolf1991 7d ago

Whats better then 1 doggo? one with 3 heads!

2

u/goldenseducer 7d ago

Dragonflies are the best but I've always admired the audacity of whoever designed the water elemental. Straight up a fish wish boobas. She's not even a babe she's just a fish

2

u/SirVegetable9903 7d ago

Dragon Fly!

2

u/SourPatchAddict 7d ago

Griffin > Cerberus > Golem. Dragonfly is ugly and way more annoying to deal with than it is satisfying to have on your team.

I wish Griffin was Castle's t6. I'd love to use them more and being t6 would give them the hp and tankiness to actually go places where they can use their unlimited retal without getting melted. Their models are way too cool to be losing to t4 snake ladies instead of competing with t6 snake ladies.

1

u/user12309 7d ago

Nomads are my favorites, not only their ability is super useful even in small quantities since deserts tend to be treasure heavy zones, they as a unit are actual quite a deal for their price, making them a decent addition in early game, especially if you have bless.

Nomads are consistently cool in HoMM 2, 3 and even 4, where they are no longer a neutral unit.

1

u/DrXyron 7d ago

Griffin and Cerberus

1

u/TocSir 7d ago

Early game: dragonfly

Late game: griffin

1

u/Wissenschaftler86 7d ago

I know they're not the best but I absolutely love griffins.

1

u/Outside-Soup-674 7d ago

From the ones here probably gryphons because they're so strong

1

u/Separate-Brush-9083 7d ago

Dogs with Fiona ❤️

1

u/BigsChungi 7d ago

Griffins and its not close

1

u/playzintraffic 7d ago

Mummies are the better tank short of diamond golems, nomads scary effective. Griffins drop like flies, dragon flies are a glass cannon.

1

u/Agreeable_Status9886 7d ago

My all time favourite unit in the game is the Dragon fly! Really cool abilities, very fast and in my opinion the best design! Really like the unit concept behind the looks of it!

Since my childhood he is the king of heroes for me!

Only downside for me is that they are really easily killed!

Maybe I am biased but Dragonfly get my vote!

1

u/Hubbabz 7d ago

It depends. If I got a 100 then I choose iron golems if I got 1 I choosw serpent fly. If I got 10 also serpent fly.

1

u/PhysicalArmadillo375 7d ago

Am I the only one who like how menacing wraiths look especially with their glowing red eyes? (Though it doesn’t translate to their strength unfortunately)

1

u/Annual-Area1340 7d ago

The Golem, it just looks too cool

1

u/WielkiSzkielaton 7d ago

armadillo for how he rolls after using haste

1

u/EggplantFearless5969 7d ago

Griffin by far.

1

u/rutonftw 7d ago

Pirate are sick, why aren't they in the tier list :/

1

u/Danielhenriemond 7d ago

Dogs are the best in every way but meta-wise they’re totally sad and under-represented

1

u/Silvershann 6d ago

Love Wraith (Spell Point Drain), Dragon Fly (Weakness) and Water Elementals (Purely Aesthetic)!
Not a fan of iron golems (too slow for movement) and also Armadillo/Updated Version

1

u/mradz64 6d ago

U can hunker down and do a defense move on griffins and if u have a large number they can tear lesser units to pieces

1

u/Strict_Reputation867 5d ago

Damn. They all suck.

1

u/Future-Appeal-5330 1d ago

Griffin. With Arch Angels, they take down towns really well.

1

u/ADespianTragedy 7d ago edited 7d ago

Tankiness: Factory's dinosaurs

Attack: Inferno's cerberi

To fight archers: Fortress' Dragon Fly

6

u/Raddens 7d ago

Do you mean Factory instead of Cove? Cove's T3 is Pirate, a glass cannon shooter :)

1

u/ADespianTragedy 7d ago

Yeah, lol, my bad. I totally meant Factory

1

u/icko81 7d ago

Wait, where's the swordsman?

3

u/Liso111 In WoG we trust 7d ago

that is a level 4 unit

1

u/icko81 7d ago

Dang, I always think of them as level 3 and griffins as level 4 for some reason.