I must not be playing the same game as other people. The strategies that I am told work for people don't even come close playing on the competent level.

I just had a heck of a time trying to beat the tutorial, on beginner, i just really suck i think....i will be hoping for some insight too...

What difficulties you having?

I, personally found hiring a commander, exploring for a couple of turns around your stronghold until getting 2 swordsmen and 2 bowmen, than looting some crypts, than going conquering the easiest way to go. Develop ranged tactics as much as you can, and have more shooters than melee units. Once you can, get horse archers. Make your commander a Tactician at level 10, so he'll pimp your shooters even more, and will be a badass himself. Bowmen I believe to be much better than crossbowman because he's much more mobile and has got longer range, meaning much more tactical opportunities (also, it will range dwarven siege engines quicker). Swordsman or Pikeman may both work, I was rocking with swordsman. If you want Pikemen, make sure to weaken your enemies with arrows, do not kill them.

Why?
Campaign-wise your units will be much less damaged, which enables longer maneuvers without halting to heal. Battle wise you will be pawning your enemies. If you took ranged tactics, leveled your bowmen a few times you should easily have about 7-8+ ranged attack with them, that's plenty to hurt units that you would normally consider ranger-proof, such as the dwarf or the swordsman. On my last shard I was shooting 10-11s into swordsmen, while with ranged attack 5 you can barely scratch them. End-game (on the shard you're at) you will have 10+ shooters, each shooting with a force of 8-9+, what not to love? I haven't progressed that far to the game, but I wager if you got lvl 5 ranged tactics you would REALLY dominate.

Other useful skills are defensive tactics for ranged defense (it's a nuisance to get your shooters shot down), discipline for resistance and extra hp, maneuvering for extra stamina.

Tips for battles:
Keep your distance. You can play around and drag your enemies if you count their and your available moves. Delaying the melee with 1-2 turns can mean the difference.

Strike first. If an enemy has got 1-3 hps left, move in with your swordsmen or commander and finish it off, saving an extra shot for something that's still uninjured. You will also spare your precious hp from counterattacks.

Old-school killchart: caster, archer, assasin, melee. Casters can hurt your swordsman badly since they have magical attack (that's why discipline is handy), shooters will almost always try to shoot your archers down. Once that's done, enemies with poisons and debuff, than the rest. If you have Zombie-Skeleton, Orc-Goblin warbands on the right, pick the first with your archers, and position your swordsmen to smash the latter first (enemy moves+1 tile inbetween the 2).

You like: Hills, Swamps, Mountains, lakes a lot, since they let you maximise the effectiveness of your swordsman, and let your enemies crawl towards you.
You hate: Forests, plains. The first because they protect enemies from shots, the second because enemies will move quickly.

One more thing:
You may sometimes want to set the combat for quick-resolve (scroll icon next to the double swords). This will not only yield surprisingly good results at times (or not), but I also think the AI tends to award more medals that way. I once had a bowman with 1 fire award and 2 eagle eye awards, now he was a monster. I got it by quick-combating.

That should get you started, I'm unsure if it works mid or late game grand-campaign wise, but it definitely works in the beginning.

Good luck!

I don't think any of that really works on the competent four player map. I can only think there is some trick that once I learn will make the game easy. Until then, I will lose every single map. I suspect I'm going to have to stop thinking of this as a game and start thinking of it as a puzzle. Has anyone really ever won on the four player maps at higher difficulty? I'm really not sure where the designer was going with this game. It is clearly much too hard for the 99% of the population who must be complete idiots.
I would love to see the designer show a complete turn by turn of how to win at this game at the higher difficulties.

Trick - medals. http://www.gog.com/forum/eador_genesis/award_medal_details_request_to_russian_speaking_friends

Good to know - penalties. http://www.gog.com/forum/eador_genesis/wizard_as_first_hero_help_expert_difficulty/post15
and exp distribution http://www.gog.com/forum/eador_genesis/the_tavern_strategies_and_rambling_conversations/post60

Then you simple need more experience with what your troops can do
http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/2116/46626386.jpg
http://img812.imageshack.us/img812/7743/65212580.png
http://img834.imageshack.us/img834/8921/15221743.png

Personally I start with scout and barbarians, then I add healers, when my scout is powerful enough and I have iron I use scout + swordsmen + healers + guardsmen.

Barbarians at first are good because:

1. high HP, get defense medals easily, ranged weakness isn't a problem at first, your scout can kill archers while barbarians kill the rest.
2. berserk, they gain strength and aren't affected by wounds anymore.
3. once you have web spell, with 4 barbarians you can attack inquisitor and knightly order ruins without losses, and at low level. They give a lot of money, good items and experience for your hero. You cannot win these ruins with swordsmen, I think.

Swordsmen are good when you can create a defensive wall, you need at least 4-5 + healer. At the beginning, when I have just 3-4 slots for units, I play offensively rather than defensively, and barbarians are better.

About inquisitors/order - you can outsustain tough unit until it loses all stamina, then it is easy target.

For defensive wall:
scout healer swordsman
swordsman swordsman

I'm curious, Gremlion. What difficulty are those screenshots from? I'm guessing Expert?

Also how do you handle a few situations with so few Swordsmen:

Enemy Ranged units: They always seem to like to target my healers, making the wall useless.

Fast units: Unless I can put all healers inside wall they go around and smash the weak healers.

Finally what spells do you use most with that swordsman setup?

Expert, sure.
On lower difficulty giving medals is harder than on expert. Both offensive and defensive.

Enemy ranged units:
1. If they can't make move and shoot hero/any support(like healer or shaman) in one turn - they will shoot available target.
I will take first battle as example:
At the start your composition must be like:
Healer space swordsman
Then on your first turn you send swordsmen forward
healer space space swordsman.
They take doubleshots, simple shots, enemy loses stamina, you help them with fatigue.VERY helpful stamina diversion - without it I wouldn't attack 15 units with such low level.
When they get stamina penalty on speed - they will be able only to shoot or to move. AI have higher priority on shooting.
So, step back by swordsmen, step forward with healers and heal them. AI will shoot only swordsmen since then.

As for other shooting enemies - I leave centaurs for warrior and simple buy nomads (if there are more than 3 horse archers, otherwise kill them).

2. Fast units.
Sometimes I expose hero to enemy with composition like:
swordsman
healer swordsman
hero

But usually I skip them. Fast units very weak, they are great source of exp for warrior.

3. Spells.
Usual build order as sniper+swordsmen/healers:
1. Wizardry. Magic weapon /armor. Magic weapon restores ammo - great for healing(and giving medals of healer)/shooting, Armor - for tanking
2. Sphere of wind. Basically - for ritual, saves a lot of time(swordsmen have 1 speed, very slow). Sometimes pick air shield(Effect stacks - if you cast 2 Air shields - you will get 8 ranged defense on healer). In endgame sometimes pick 2 haste and go solo ranger vs lone Hydra. With good bow you can shoot and run away, very funny.
3. Sorcery. Astral energy - 2 heals per turn if needed, even more shooting from hero. Web - this is spell for evil side, with swordsmen I usually don't pick it. (Easy way to kill knight in early knight order - barbarians attack knight, each get counterattack-> berserk, cast web, on next turn knight will die)
4. Necromancy. Fear (VERY helpful to disable strong units like Ogre or Executor).

To T2 I build necromancy first - vampirism is epic spell for warrior, with round attack easily full health, amazing ritual to complement Scout's morale diversion, ghoul is very strong tank (couple with phantom's form), disease is nice disable(one disease = dead bowman). then sorcery - for phantom form (saves your healers), also nice attack debuff on something like minotaur.

Thanks, those were some great tips! I didn't know the AI "rules" of combat about only moving if they can move and shoot. That makes it a lot easier. I was keeping my Swordsmen back for that extra round of sniping, but I see I need to have some space now.

And great spell advice too. Didn't realize Magic Weapon gives ammo - that makes it so much better than I thought!