Patch v0.80.49 for Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era shipped on September 3, 2026 with two new custom maps, Prisoners and Broken Alliance. More important, Unfrozen used it to detail the Roadmap Patch due before the end of the month, which includes Alliances.
Update, October 26, 2026: the Roadmap Patch shipped on September 30. It brings Alliances in both PvE and PvP, an advanced random map generator for PvE, a rebuilt emoji wheel and a ranked reset, followed by a hotfix on October 2.
Prisoners and Broken Alliance, two maps
According to Unfrozen’s Steam notes, both maps were fine-tuned to give a fresher PvE experience. Broken Alliance is a classic map recreated by Papyjama, the creator of The Mysterious Island. You face your former allies while painting the map in your faction’s colors.
It is playable in custom games and hotseat, but not in Quick Game. It is the first new custom map available in custom lobbies. Prisoners is a more narrative scenario: you lead a search party looking for the missing commanders of an outpost near a forest. Extra heroes come from freeing them from their prisons, so exploring the forest matters as much as fighting. Unfrozen also says the pace of patches with PvE content will go up, so more maps and scenarios are expected.
The announced Roadmap Patch
The press relayed the list on September 4. The patch was due to bring Alliances, new options for the advanced random map generator, an improved emoji wheel, matchmaking and ranking changes, and a ranked reset.
A major balance patch was meant to follow in a beta branch. Unfrozen announced a rework of the Temple faction skill in the form of prayers, and a first answer to the abundance of percentage-based damage and defense modifiers. The next update also promised new units and a rework of how computer opponents behave.
What to watch at the time
On the date of this patch, the game did not yet offer team play. The question was how Alliances would share resources and armies between teammates, and whether the balance patch would really cut the stacking of percentage bonuses.
The risk was a schedule that slips: two maps do not make a major patch. Unfrozen kept its date, since the Roadmap Patch shipped on September 30.
Going further
- Our Heroes of Might and Magic: Olden Era hub: every article on the game.
- Alliances and the map generator in Olden Era: the Roadmap Patch in detail.
- Patch 13: The Mysterious Island: Papyjama’s large solo map.