Olden Era PvP laws: where to start each faction's tree

Updated: May 25, 2026

Laws in Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era are the same tech tree you’d find in a Civilization-style game, tied to your faction. Every adopted law is a permanent buff to economy, army, or magic. The cap is hard — 100 points per game — so a “grab everything” plan never works.

This guide is about what to take in the first weeks of PvP, how tiers unlock, and which laws stand out per faction. Build the actual tree in the interactive law calculator.

How the tree works

Our database lists 193 laws — each of the 6 factions has its own tree of roughly 30-35. The structure:

5 tiers (T0-T4) — bottom to top in power and cost.
2 branches per tree: “Faction” (102 laws total) and “Army” (91 laws).
Law cost — 1-3 points per level; most laws have 1-3 levels.

Tier unlocks

Tiers unlock once you have cumulatively spent that many law points across your faction:

Tier	Points spent	Access
T0	0	available immediately
T1	5	basic income, early army buffs
T2	15	rare resources, upgrades
T3	30	faction win-condition
T4	50	late-game “broken” laws

The game cap is 100 points. Reaching T4 in one branch while picking up everything you want in T0-T2 is the reasonable target for a 3-4 week PvP game.

Where points come from

Law points come from:

Hero experience and levels.
Events and map objects.
Specific “accelerator” laws (every faction has 1-2 of these — see below).
Artifacts and buildings (varies by map and faction).

Universal priority (any faction)

The order to spend points in a PvP game:

One-time resource — Resource Riches I (T0, 1 point). Every faction starts with this law: +2500 gold, +5 wood, +5 ore. Pays itself off in ten seconds.
Daily income — Tax Collectors (T0 or T1, 2-3 points). +250 or +500 gold per day. Breaks even in 5-10 days; everything after is profit.
One Army T0 — buffs growth and stats of your key T1 unit. Every faction has an “Elite …” law for their starting T1 at 3 points.
Accelerator law (if your faction has one) — see above.
Rare resource mining (T1, 2 points) — Crystals / Gems / Mercury, whichever your T6-T7 upgrades require.
Army T1 — Elite units of tiers 2-3.
Faction win-condition law (T2-T3) — Necromancy upgrade, Summon Swarm upgrade, Abyssal Communion upgrade, etc.

By the end of week 2 the first 20-25 points should be allocated — without that you can’t trade armies with a competent opponent.

Starting laws by faction

For each faction, 3-7 early-tier (T0-T1) laws that punch above their weight in PvP.

Temple (humans)

Resource Riches I (T0, 1) — starter resource bump.
Inquisition Crusade (T0, 1) — +25% damage against summoned enemy creatures. One point, flexible bet against mages with summons.
Elite Swordsmen (T0, 3+2) — +4 swordsmen growth, +2/+4 Defense.
Tax Collectors (T1, 3+3) — +500/+1000 gold per day.
Elite Griffins (T1, 3) — +2 griffin growth, +5 HP.

Dungeon

Resource Riches I (T0, 1) — same starter.
Leaders of the Nation (T0, 2) — +10% law points for all heroes. One of the best early laws in the entire game.
Dungeon Masters I (T0, 3) — +4 to T1 creature growth.
Elite Infiltrators (T1, 3) — +50% combat-style damage + 2 HP. The Dungeon signature: double-attack synergy.
Dungeon Masters II / III (T1, 3 each) — +4 / +2 to T2 and T3 creature growth.

Necropolis

Resource Riches I (T0, 1).
Animate Dead I (T0, 3) — +2% to Necromancy strength for all heroes. Direct snowball boost.
Elite Skeletons (T0, 3) — +4 growth, +2/2 ATK/DEF. Without it the “skeleton storm” never launches.
Elite Wights (T0, 3) — +4 growth, +1 min damage.
Tax Collectors (T0, 2) — +250 gold per day.
Laws of the Immortals (T1, 2) — +20% law points generated in cities. Take this right after Animate Dead I.
Animate Dead II (T1, 3) — +250 to necrotic energy cap.

Schism (unfrozen)

Resource Riches I (T0, 1).
Elite Ra’shoth (T0, 3) — +4 growth, +1 initiative.
Elite Cultists (T1, 3) — +4 growth, +1 base damage.
Elite Aga’shoth Riders (T1, 3) — +2 growth, +5 HP.
Tax Collectors (T1, 2) — +250 gold per day.
Mining: Mercury (T1, 2) — +1 mercury per day (needed for magic-unit upgrades).

Hive (demons)

Resource Riches I (T0, 1).
Elite Parasites (T1, 3) — +4 growth, +1 HP.
Elite Locusts (T1, 3) — +4 growth, +1 speed.
Elite Hornets (T1, 3) — +2 growth, +1 initiative (critical: the upgraded hornets have low initiative, this law plugs the gap).
Tax Collectors (T1, 2) — +250 gold per day.
Mining: Crystals (T1, 2) — +1 crystal per day.

Grove (nature)

Resource Riches I (T0, 1).
Tax Collectors (T0, 3) — +500 gold per day at T0 — Grove is the only faction with this kind of gold income at tier 0.
Elite Fauns (T0, 3) — +2 growth, +50% melee damage.
Elite Hoplets (T0, 3) — +2 growth, always deal maximum damage.
Veiled by the Trees (T1, 2) — +2 ATK and +2 DEF to all creatures on your territory. The best “home” law in the game.
Nature’s Wildness (T1, 2) — +25% damage on lucky hits; stacks with the Luck skill.
Clear Sky (T1, 1) — +250 astrology points per day.

Astrology and constellations

Beyond regular laws every hero has an astrology meter — a separate resource that accumulates from laws like “Faith in Magic”, “Arcane Knowledge”, “Clear Sky”, and similar. It’s spent on constellations — global card-style effects:

Town Portal — teleport the hero to any owned town.
Movement Recovery — restore movement points mid-day.
Flight — ignore terrain for 1-2 days.

In PvP all three are must-have for any faction. Town Portal cuts threat response from 4-5 days to 1, Flight breaks terrain blockades, and Movement Recovery buys an extra strike in tempo-swap windows.

Accumulate 250 astrology per day from T0-T1 (Temple’s “Faith in Magic”, Dungeon’s “Arcane Knowledge” at 6 points pricier but +500/day, Grove’s “Clear Sky” at 1 point being the cheapest starter astrology law).

What to avoid in PvP

Spreading thin between faction and army with equal weight — both branches matter, but if you fan 50 points into 5-7 laws without reaching T2-T3, the game finishes without a win condition. Hit 15 points spent first, then push into T2.
Expensive standalone T0-T4 laws “for later” — e.g. Dungeon’s “Arcane Knowledge” at 6 points looks like a great investment, but before “Leaders of the Nation” at 2 points it’s wasted.
Scout-flavored laws under PvP — often useful, but in a duel against one opponent they have the smallest impact on combat outcomes.

Where to next

Build a concrete tree in the interactive calculator.
Hero attributes and skill priority — Hero & PvP skills.
Cross-reference combat formulas — PvP combat mechanics.
Three concrete faction builds — Top 3 Overpowered Builds.

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