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Horn of the Abyss, a community expansion for Heroes 3, just got a huge new update

homm_3_cove

Heroes of Might and Magic III is old, but it’s still one of the best and most compelling turn-based strategy games ever made. That’s reflected in the enduring passion of its community, who are still making content for it almost 20 years after its release. Horn of the Abyss is a fan-made expansion that adds a new faction, new campaigns, new objects and plenty more, and it’s just got its version 1.5 release.

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Here’s the announcement via the Horn of the Abyss Facebook group. The devs say version 1.5 is the biggest release since the mod’s beta, and adds a template editor for the game’s random map generator, as well as a savegame converter, a spell research system, a new terrain type (the first successful terrain addition in Heroes III’s long history of mods), and much more. Check the announcement for a full changelog.

The town screen for the nautical Cove faction

For more on Horn of the Abyss, check the community site(though you may have to rely on Google Translate if you don’t speak Polish). If you’re curious about the new Cove town, its units include pirates, sea serpents, and nymphs. It’s coherent thematically and gorgeous visually, and looks like a really cool addition to the game.

You can download Horn of the Abyss 1.5 here. The devs say Horn of the Abyss is compatible with a clean install of Heroes III: Shadow of Death or Heroes III: Complete. You can get Heroes III Complete from GOG here for the splendidly low price of £7.59. It’s doubtful that Horn of the Abyss will work with Heroes III HD, which is the only version of the game you’ll find on Steam, and only gives you the base game with a rudimentary HD makeover (so none of its expansions, which were great). Get the Complete edition from GOG and download an HD texture pack instead – the Horn of the Abyss site has one that is compatible with their expansion.