You can win the game with any party. Its a matter of preference.

I first played (and enjoyed alot) MM6 with default party (paladin, archer, sorcerer, cleric). I played it when i was a kid so i didnt understand that much of tactics, advanced tricks etc. Though i discovered later in the game that my paladin is worthless because monsters mostly do instant - kills with their attacks so i cannot go close combat, and in ranged combat he deals pitiful damage compared to those of the sorcerer with starfalls. I also noticed that archer was just a low-on-mana sorcerer and in close combat he was also useless due to low hp and not having dark magic (shrapnel).

Therefore i walked the path of magic next time and it astunned me, how hard it was at beginning and how terrific at the end (slay the dragon in one click when you cast four shrapnel in his face). I completed all three with magic-oriented groups (1x cleric, others sorcerers).

But now i play might-oriented party because imbalance of the magic bored me kinda. This is also very fun (in MM7 and 8, in MM6 no armsmaster skill so damage is incomparable to those of magic). You dont need to run to temple like chickens and in the end of the game you got a serious power by just holding the attack button.

Then i tried solo run as a troll. No companions, no saveloads. That was also a lot of fun! Alone in the dark, without wizard eye... monsters growling... You almost freak out when you see your gem turn red and hear a blow to your head! want to run away as fast as you can.

You can play it any way you want! In MM8, i can suggest:

- Casual (pick balanced party with might and magic classes, like dragon, knight necromancer cleric dark elf) - Magic (necro x 4, cleric, or necto x 5 for hardcores) - Might (cleric + four melees knight/minotaur/troll/dark elf/vampire) (vampire is the weakest, dark elf is also not that good melee but he is taken for good misc skills) - Ranged party (5x dark elfs or 4xdark elfs + 1 cleric) - Solo run (only one main character, limited use of npc's, like they only brew potions for you, or hold your items like a safe deposit box, no save/load if you died a fair death like were surrounded or stoned etc) - Peace run (no killing anybody except the one monster who carries submarine key) - Dead party=game over, no loading if you died a fair death (Hardcore as it's called, try that and after you mourn your first party you well developed in some days, you will start to feel the game very seriously, unlike ever before. You will keep alot of safety items in every person's inverntory, you will always plan ahead, etc etc, so much of emotion!)

And whatever fits In this game, unlike the others, you set the rules and you play them. Unlike others who provide even that, this game does not get too hard or too easy or too boring with most of the setups (like in Wiz8, any bad party will not succeed as soon as they reach higher levels and tough monsters start to spawn, or like in Transport Tycoon, where you actually have no goal and after some time into the game the income is too big you cannot spend it without constant pausing)

You have unlimited scenarios to try for yourself. For example with magic party when you acquire starfall/meteorite shower its game over for the landscape zones. You just AOE them to pieces. Therefore, you just cannot experience how would that be if you had a might party and had to reach them and slash them. Or when you were struggling somewhere with your mages running constantly low on mana, having to go back to heal, you will then feel pretty nice when your might party bashes through in a single blow, killing everybody and not even thinking about resting.

Have fun