I will split this guide into three parts. Every part has it's speciality and is usually very good against a a certain type of enemy.

• The Annihilator
  
• The Summoner
  
• Game of Thorns, The Weedmaster or the Phantom Menace

The Annihilator
The Annihilator uses destructive spells to diminish the enemy forces. This gameplay is usually fast and not much of a challenge. Losses are possible.

The Summoner
The Summoner relies heavily on his summons, keeping his own units at safe distance. Usually mana intensive fights that may take pretty long.

Game of Thorns, The Weedmaster or the Phantom Menace
My personal favourite part. It is all about hiding your single troop you take into fights, create phantoms of it and let them do the dirty work. Because I consider Royal Thorns the best unit for this tactic, I chose this name. Only playable if invisibility and Phantom was found, which are 2 rare scrolls.

Every spell is good for one or more of the three tactics. Because I don't want to type out every tactics name again, I will use the short forms:
(A) - The Annihilator
(S) - The Summoner
(P) - Game of Thorns, The Weedmaster or the Phantom menace

Order Magic

Summon Phoenix (S)
Summons a strong Phoenix at your side, whose strength is determined by the casters intellect, "Creation" skill and the level of the spell.
Ideally suited as first summon for the Summoner, the Phoenix is a strong fighter.

Distortion Magic

Ghost Blade (A)
Deals Damage and ignores part of the units resistance.
A good single target damage skill.

Greasy Mist (A)
Makes the affected units susceptible to fire and reduces their ranged damage capabilities.
This spell is the opener for a devastating fire attack. More useful in conjuntion with "Higher Magic"

Invisibility (P/S/A)
Makes the selected unit invisible for a certain amount of rounds.
In my opinion a must have spell for any mage. Combined with high initiative, this spell efficiently enables to play loss free. Why should you bring more troops to the battlefield if you can have one that's constantly hidden?

Phantom (P)
Makes a copy of the selected troop with a percentage of it's health.
The base spell for the Phantom tactic, this spell can be used on an invisible creature to make copies of it and let them do the fight. If the copied unit can summon troops, the will also stay on the battlefield after the phantom's spell has worn off.

Exorcism (A)
Deals damage to undead and demons and additional damage to summoned creatures.
A powerful single target attack against the unholy creatures. Only of limited use.

Hypnosis (A/S/P)
Creatures of certain level are put under your command for 2 turns.
This spell is only a mere preparation for the Chaos spell Sacrifice and part of a special tactic mentioned later.

Calm Rage (A/S/P)
Converts some rage into mana.
A must have for any mage. A mage without mana is cannon fodder.

Geysir (A)
Lifts up some enemy units and deals ice and physical damage to them.
A great spell for when the enemies' troops are scattered around the battlefield and your other spells aren't as effective.

Rune Magic

Timelessness (A/S/P)
All the effects on the selected unit endure until the end of the spells duration.
Because invisibility is really mana costly, you'll rather want to use Timelessness.

Blizzard (A)
Spreads forth an icy blizzard, that damages everything in its path.
A perfect opener as you can hit almost every enemy unit with a single, high damage spell.

Runic Word (A/S/P)
Grants additional runes to one of your troops.
If you see that you'd need to use another timelessness on your invisible unit, but it has no rune left for activation, you can give them some.

Chaos Magic

Fire Rain (A)
Rains fire on a 7 hex area and deals hefty damage.
In combination with greasy mist there will not be many enemies surviving this assault.

Book of Evil (S)
Summons a book of evil, that casts deadly spells at your enemies and gorges on them in close combat.
The ideal instant summon for the summoner.

Demon portal (S)
Summons a demon portal, that spawns demons after one full round.
Strong summon for the summoner. Good if you have invisible troops, summon a portal and when the demons come out, summon a book of evil to have right away 2 summons at the enemy lines before they can strike them.

Sacrifice (A/S/P)
Sacrifices own troops for the sake of another troop.
A tool useful only in combination with Hypnosis. Exact use will be covered later.

Generally I advise you to use only one troop and hide it with invisibility. This will prevent losses at a 100% success rate. For the Phantom tactic, you should have a troop that can summon minions to be more effective. Because it may be very time consuming to always change your troop layout, I'd advise you to simply stick with one of them. So that means you should take one, that can summon. Note that I will only cover unitsfor a one-troop-army.

Royal Thorn
This is my personal favourite. It has the highest maximum leadership summon of all units that can summon with a 2 round cooldown. Furthermore, the summoned thorns may also seed fallen units to produce even more Thorns. If chosen and having a long fight, the battlefield may not offer enough space for all your thorns to live. That's why I also call the tactic "Weedmaster". Not recommended against demons and other fiery creatures. Excellent against Undead, because they're not affected by the Necromancer's spell plague. Resurrection doesn't work on Thorns.

Dryad
Also having a 2 round cooldown, the maximum leadership of summons is far lower compared to the Royal Thorn. Has Thorns as summon and thus also offers the possibility of seeding fallen troops. The powerful abilities to make enemies sleep and also charm them is a very good alternative while the summon ability is in cooldown. Increases Thorns Morale by 1. Good against male (humanoid) enemies.

Druid
Has a 2 round cooldown. Summons bears to aid. Leadership for the summoned creatures is far lower than that of the Dryad, Demonologist and the Royal Thorn. Can lure enemy animal troops in your army for 3 rounds. Has an area of effect attack which damages 7 hexes. Good against multiple enemies in a small cluster. More of a damage dealer than a summoner.

Demonologist
A 3 round cooldown summoner, that can summon demons in special places on the battlefield, shortening ways for the summoned. Leadership effectiveness is between the Dryad and the Druid. Excellent against Demons due to bonus damage against them.

Royal Griffin
A one time summoner, which responds to all attacks. Not the best as summoner itself, but responding to all attacks makes him a real deadly tool. His speed also helps to reach the enemy fast which is good to annoy enemy archers.

Engineer
Although no high summoning leadership, this unit has two charges to summon right away and use his potion to blind the enemy on the remaining turn. Additionally, the summoned droids are rather hardy with good health and defenses. The Repair droid can even repair damaged droids and with the high amount of droids spawned per turn by the engineer phantoms, you will probably soon have no more room for all those troops. This is pretty much one of the fastest ways to populate the battlefield.

Demons
Although they only have one charge to call a troop of demons, they are good fighters themselves which respond to all attacks. They can also reach the enemy lines pretty quickly with their run ability.

Not every skill is equally good for each tactic, so I will also use the short forms of the tactics for each skill.

Might

Heroism 3 (S/P)
Your summons and phantoms deal more damage with higher attack. Summoners make less use of this skill as most of the summoned unit's attack is determined by your Intellect and Creation.

Resistance 3 (S/P)
See Heroism.

Onslaught 3 (A/S/P)
A mage without initiative is a dead mage. A must have for every mage.

Quick Draw 3 (A/S/P)
Only recommended if you make friends with Thorns and use the Royal Thorn as your only troop. Assures that your Royal Thorns also have the initiative later on.

Berserker 3 (S/P)
Chance to deal double damage is useful for whatever troop actually fights in the end.

Mind

Oratory 3 (S/P)
Some morale for your summoned or phantomized troops is never a bad idea.

Glory 3 (P)
Because your effectiveness is also based on your own Leadership, every additional Leadership is beneficial.

Jarl 3 (P)
Even though you don't really get much out of the 5% Leadership bonus, it's still maybe one or two summoning units more that you can phantomize.

Magic

Linguistics 3 (A/S/P)
More intellect is the key for a successful mage.

Wisdom 3 (A/S/P)
Again, a mage without mana is a dead mage.

Meditation 3 (A/S/P)
See Wisdom.

Order Magic 3 (S)
Only for the Phoenix summon

Rune Magic 3 (A/S/P)
On one side a source of damage for the annihilator and on the other hand a tool for prolonged invisibility.

Distortion Magic 3 ((A/S/P)
Worth it alone for the Invisibility, but also for the Phantom and Hypnosis spell. Must have.

Chaos Magic 3 (A/S/P)
On one hand heavy damage for the annihilator and on the other hand summons for the summoner. Needed for Sacrifice tactic.

Alchemy 3
Highly recommended as you're going to use all three tactics probably and need many crystals. The sooner you get it, the better. But don't neglect your other skills for the sake of alchemy.

Transmute 3 (A/S/P)
A reliable source of mana. A must have. Phantomic tactic makes most use of this.

Soothsayer 3 (A/S/P)
More intellect and mana? A must have for any mage.

Concentration 3 (A/S/P)
A reliable income of mana.

Creation 3 (A/S/P)
Strengthens all spells not involved in direct damage, so even useful for the Annihilator to have a better greasy mist.

Destruction 3 (A)
Only really useful for the annihilator as I don't know if it is any good for the spells of the summoners book of evil.

Higher Magic 3 (A/S/P)
A must have for every mage. While you can use invisibility on your first turn, you may already begin with how you want to kill your enemy. Also useful to spawn 2 weaker phantoms right away.

You will probably not come across all of thos items, so just go for the items giving most intellect and for the phantom tactic, as well leadership. Not every item is suited for every tactic. I will again use the short forms for the tactics.

Crown of Blackthorne (P)
+50% Slowing of the loss of rage after battle
+100% physical damage to all thorns
---
This essentially doubles the damage if you use royal thorns for the phantom tactic. This item is really rare.

Battlemage Helmet (A/S)
+3 Intellect
+1 Defence
---
The most intellect boosting helmet.

Prismatic Helm (A)
+10 Mana
+10% power of destruction Spells
---
The best helmet for an Annihilator.

Hammer of Terno (P)
+2 Attack
-5 Defence of undead enemies
---
Not really good weapon but required for the set Friend of nature, which increases effectiveness of all thorns.

Battle Mage's Staff (A)
+3 Attack
+10% Power of destructive Spells
---
A general damage boosting staff for the Annihilator

White Chill (S)
+2 Intellect
+5% Power of Spells
+10% power of Ice Spells

Living Shield (P)
+4 Defence
+25% Resistance to poison
---
Not really good stats, but needed for the set Friend of Nature.

Ancient Amulet (A/S/P)
+4 Intellect
+15 Mana
---
Gives 10 Magic Runes after 50 victorious battles. May be substitued afterwards.

Ring of the Snake King (A/S/P)
+5 Intellect
+3 Poison damage to allied snakes.
---
Just for the intellect.

Necklace of the Firestorm (A)
+30% damage to fire spells
---
A real damage booster

Dragon Cloak (A)
+15% Base defence of the hero
+15% Power of attack spells
---
Boosting damage further

Wizard Mantle (S/P)
+20 Mana
+30% Magic Resistance
---
A good protection for fights against Gremlin towers

Mana Well Belt (A/S/P)
+3 Mana Recovery per round in battle
---
A real mana recovery tool

Rage Eater (A/S/P)
Converts 5 points of rage into mana every round
---
Another great mana recovering tool

Mystic Boots (A/S)
+2 Intellect
+1 Power of the spell Slow and Haste
---
Only for intellect

Hunters Boots (P)
+1 Speed to flightless neutrals
---
Because you should make room between your invisible royal thorn and your phantom ones and the royal thorn only has a speed of 1, you absolutely need this in order to prevent losses through area of attack spells.

Sprig from the Tree of Life (P)
+3 Attack and defence of all plants
+3 Mana
---
Increasing Thorns power.

Amulet of Death (A/S/P)
+5 Intellect
-2 Morale to all Humans, Elves, Vikings and Dwarves
---
Only for the intellect

Usurer's Ring (A/S/P)
+5 Intellect
-30% Gold income after battle
---
Just for intellect

Intellect Ring (A/S/P)
+3 Intellect
---
Gives 3 intellect after 30 victories. May be replaced afterwards

Shackles of War (A/S/P)
+2 Intellect
+20% Mana
-2 Attack
-20% Rage
---
For mana shortage prevention

Gloves of the Destroyer (A)
+10% Power of Attack spells
---
A slight damage booster

Student Belt (A/S/P)
+1 Defence
+1 Intellect
5% chance to grant 1 class rune after battle
---
Mostly for the additional runes

Sandals of the Martyr (A/S)
+4 Intellect
+1000 Leadership
-1 Speed to land based units
---
Intellect and Leadership? How awesome

Metamorphic Axel (A/S/P)
+4 Intellect
---
Able to change it's properties (/Attack/Defence, 2000 Leadership, 20 Mana/rage)

Sword of the two Elements
+2 Attack
+7% Power of Fire Spells
+7% Power of Ice Spells
---
Can be turned into Sword of Ice or Sword of Flame (+20% Power of Fire/Ice, -10% Power of Ice/Fire)

Ice Storm Pendant
+30% Power of Ice Spells
---
Quite a damage booster

Clothing of the Ancient Order (A/S/P)
+8% Power of Spells
+10 Mana
---
A good booster for all sorts of spells

Ever bought the very last unit of a troop and can't find any other store to buy them? Then you need 2 spells and an enemy that's not too strong.

First of all, do what you always do, but let one enemy troop below level 5 that is not immune to mind spells unharmed. When you see, that you could easily finish the enemy, use Hypnotize on the said troop. It will become friendly and you can command it. In the following round use Sacrifice on the hypnotized troop and replenish the force of your own troop.

Careful! Don't overdo it. Know how many units of your own troop your leadership supports. If you have more units than you can support, your own unit first are uncontrollable. If you really overdo it, they even turn hostile and would attack any other friendly troop. You could not win the battle if you still have a raging own troop. So you will probably want to use rank 2 or even 1 (Shift + Spell / Ctrl + Spell) of Sacrifice in order to prevent that.

Of course, because I described 3 tactics I can't grant a general gameplay rule, that always applies. It is also up to you, what you would like to use.

Certainly, you will start as annihilator as it is highly unlikely to find good scrolls to summon early on. I recommend you to focus on fire spells at first.

This is for advanced levels of the game. You won't be able to do so until mid to late game.

As Annihilator I would do the following (divided into the different tactics):

• Cast invisibility on rank 1 on your single troop and end your turn
  
  
• 1.1) Cast Greasy Mist on your enemy and a Fire Rain just Afterwards.
  
• 1.2) Repeat Step 1.1
  
• 1.3) Use Timelessness on your invisible troop and Calm rage for a mana gain.
  
• 1.4) Restart at 1.1
  
  
• 2.1) Cast Blizzard
  
• 2.2) Repeat Step 2.1
  
• 2.3) Use Timelessness on your invisible troop and Calm rage for a mana gain.
  
• 2.4) Restart at 2.1

As Phantomic do following:

• Cast Invisibility on rank 1 on your single troop and end your turn
  
  
• 1.1) Repetively cast Phantom on your invisible troop
  
• 1.2) Make sure to have at least 1 cell free between your phantoms and your original unit.
  
• 1.3) Use timelessness on your invisible troop and use Calm Rage.
  
  
• 2.1) Cast two level 2 Phantom spells
  
• 2.2) Make sure to have at least 1 cell free between your phantoms and your original unit.
  
• 2.3) Use timelessness on your invisible troop and use Calm Rage

Whenever your Thorns stand next to a fallen troop, they should seed it instead of attacking. This is only for mana economic reasons. Even though the seeded troop is much weaker than the seeder troop itself, it counts as summon and converts to mana if destroyed and the Transmute skill is taken. Also, it looks funny.

As a summoner do following:

• Cast Invisibility on rank 1 on your single troop and end your turn
  
  
• 1.1) Use Summon Phoenix and attack with it.
  
• 1.2) Use Book of Evil and attack with it
  
• 1.3) Use timelessness on your invisible troop and use Calm Rage
  
• 1.4) Repeat Step 1.2 until the end of Combat
  
  
• 2.1) Use Demon Portal near the enemy
  
• 2.2) Use Book of Evil next to the Spawned Demons
  
• 2.3) Use timelessness on your invisible troop and use Calm Rage
  
• 2.4) Repeat steps 2.1 and/or 2.2 to your likes

The Soothsayer is probably the most versatile of all characters in Kings Bounty. He can adapt to every situation. He can efficiently use his enemies' weaknesses to his advantage. However, I based this guide heavily on the spell invisibility, so if you can't find it any soon, you're just having a bad time. If you do the Game of Thorns tactic, you will have a very entertaining battlefield. That tactic will be successful until the very end because this tactic is more based on Leadership than on intellect. As Summoner you will have some problems in late game when enemies get stronger but you can't get anymore intellect. As an Annihilator you may experience the same problem as the Summoner, but you have at least items to find, which could boost your effectiveness further.

Pro's

• Very adaptable
  
• Almost every fight is differently
  
• Can use his enemies' weaknesses
  
• Fun to play

Con's

• Depends heavily on certain spells. If you don't find them, you're having a bad time.
  
• Fights can take incredibly long.
  
• Very mana intensive gameplay.