HEROES IV · 11 CLASSES · 77 COMBINATIONS
Where to hire a Knight, Lord or Barbarian and how much gold to prepare. This guide covers all eleven starting classes, six towns and the adventure-map tavern: 77 referenced price or normal-unavailability combinations.
Normal recruitment in base Heroes IV / Complete. A scenario may restrict availability or provide a hero through another mechanism. These prices and ordinary starting skills are not automatically assigned to campaign characters.
Prices exclude additional equipment and development investment. Starting without a magic school does not permanently prevent learning magic.
Amounts are normal hiring prices at that location. A dash means the class is not normally offered there. On mobile scroll the table sideways or use the readable cards below.
| Starting class | Haven · Life | Academy · Order | Necropolis · Death | Asylum · Chaos | Preserve · Nature | Stronghold · Might | Adventure-map tavern |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knight | 1,500 | 2,000 | — | — | 2,000 | 2,500 | 2,000 |
| Priest | 1,500 | 2,000 | — | — | 2,000 | — | 2,000 |
| Lord | 2,000 | 1,500 | 2,000 | — | — | 2,500 | 2,000 |
| Mage | 2,000 | 1,500 | 2,000 | — | — | — | 2,000 |
| Death Knight | — | 2,000 | 1,500 | 2,000 | — | 2,500 | 2,000 |
| Necromancer | — | 2,000 | 1,500 | 2,000 | — | — | 2,000 |
| Thief | — | — | 2,000 | 1,500 | 2,000 | 2,500 | 2,000 |
| Sorcerer | — | — | 2,000 | 1,500 | 2,000 | — | 2,000 |
| Archer | 2,000 | — | — | 2,000 | 1,500 | 2,500 | 2,000 |
| Druid | 2,000 | — | — | 2,000 | 1,500 | — | 2,000 |
| Barbarian | — | — | — | — | — | 1,500 | 2,000 |
11
No class matches this selection.
Haven · Life
Example of a normal named profile: Araja
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | 1,500 |
| Academy · Order | 2,000 |
| Necropolis · Death | Not normally offered |
| Asylum · Chaos | Not normally offered |
| Preserve · Nature | 2,000 |
| Stronghold · Might | 2,500 |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Army support develops from Tactics and its subskills. The hero stands on the battlefield; supporting troops does not guarantee personal survival.
Haven · Life
Example of a normal named profile: Adelaide
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | 1,500 |
| Academy · Order | 2,000 |
| Necropolis · Death | Not normally offered |
| Asylum · Chaos | Not normally offered |
| Preserve · Nature | 2,000 |
| Stronghold · Might | Not normally offered |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Prepare support spells and protect the caster. Learning stronger spells requires the relevant school rank.
Academy · Order
Example of a normal named profile: Annavanta
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | 2,000 |
| Academy · Order | 1,500 |
| Necropolis · Death | 2,000 |
| Asylum · Chaos | Not normally offered |
| Preserve · Nature | Not normally offered |
| Stronghold · Might | 2,500 |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
An economic role needs a town and time to pay off. Compare appointing a governor with recruitment cost and the need for a combat hero.
Academy · Order
Example of a normal named profile: Aine
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | 2,000 |
| Academy · Order | 1,500 |
| Necropolis · Death | 2,000 |
| Asylum · Chaos | Not normally offered |
| Preserve · Nature | Not normally offered |
| Stronghold · Might | Not normally offered |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Plan Order Magic casts and safe positioning. Illusions and target control have a different value from permanent recruitment.
Necropolis · Death
Example of a normal named profile: Charna
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | Not normally offered |
| Academy · Order | 2,000 |
| Necropolis · Death | 1,500 |
| Asylum · Chaos | 2,000 |
| Preserve · Nature | Not normally offered |
| Stronghold · Might | 2,500 |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Offensive army support is separate from personal Combat. Before entering melee, check enemy range and simultaneous retaliation.
Necropolis · Death
Example of a normal named profile: Aislinn
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | Not normally offered |
| Academy · Order | 2,000 |
| Necropolis · Death | 1,500 |
| Asylum · Chaos | 2,000 |
| Preserve · Nature | Not normally offered |
| Stronghold · Might | Not normally offered |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Separate Death Magic, mana resources and individual subskills. The class name alone does not grant a high Necromancy rank.
Asylum · Chaos
Example of a normal named profile: Aidan
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | Not normally offered |
| Academy · Order | Not normally offered |
| Necropolis · Death | 2,000 |
| Asylum · Chaos | 1,500 |
| Preserve · Nature | 2,000 |
| Stronghold · Might | 2,500 |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Use Stealth according to its current rank and the guard’s strength. Bypassing an enemy and fighting it directly are different development options.
Asylum · Chaos
Example of a normal named profile: Aathea
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | Not normally offered |
| Academy · Order | Not normally offered |
| Necropolis · Death | 2,000 |
| Asylum · Chaos | 1,500 |
| Preserve · Nature | 2,000 |
| Stronghold · Might | Not normally offered |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Offensive magic needs mana and time to cast. Compare spell damage with spending an action to protect or reposition the hero.
Preserve · Nature
Example of a normal named profile: Avanine
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | 2,000 |
| Academy · Order | Not normally offered |
| Necropolis · Death | Not normally offered |
| Asylum · Chaos | 2,000 |
| Preserve · Nature | 1,500 |
| Stronghold · Might | 2,500 |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Compare developing a direct shooter with supporting the entire army. Check line of sight, obstacles and ranged retaliation before firing.
Preserve · Nature
Example of a normal named profile: Aleta
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | 2,000 |
| Academy · Order | Not normally offered |
| Necropolis · Death | Not normally offered |
| Asylum · Chaos | 2,000 |
| Preserve · Nature | 1,500 |
| Stronghold · Might | Not normally offered |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Combat summons and permanent army growth have different conditions. Check actual spell availability and mana before the next fight.
Stronghold · Might
Example of a normal named profile: Abegga
| Recruitment location | Gold price |
|---|---|
| Haven · Life | Not normally offered |
| Academy · Order | Not normally offered |
| Necropolis · Death | Not normally offered |
| Asylum · Chaos | Not normally offered |
| Preserve · Nature | Not normally offered |
| Stronghold · Might | 1,500 |
| Adventure-map tavern | 2,000 |
Stronger personal combat does not ensure survival when surrounded. Balance direct attacks against protection from shooters and spells.
A Stronghold normally offers none of the five classes starting with a magic school. A Priest costs 1,500 in Haven and 2,000 in Academy, Preserve or an adventure-map tavern. Choose an accessible location by travel time to the army as well as price.
Priest recruitment →A Lord costs 1,000 more gold in Stronghold than in Academy. Compare the premium with when governance begins, actual Estates income and remaining map length. Estates also scales with hero level; without resolving that scaling this guide does not claim an exact break-even day.
Estates explained →Stronghold offers its own Barbarian plus five non-magic starting classes from other alignments. This does not make Barbarians available in the other towns. They are normally hired in Stronghold for 1,500 or an adventure-map tavern for 2,000. A hero’s name does not expand this list.
Barbarian recruitment →Normal recruitment in base Heroes IV / Complete. A scenario may restrict availability or provide a hero through another mechanism. These prices and ordinary starting skills are not automatically assigned to campaign characters.