In Total War: Warhammer 3, Update 5.2 is coming and brings a ton of new features. One of the most important innovations: Dwarfs can finally build a huge empire under the mountain. There is even a new feature for all factions – and it’s completely free.
What kind of game is this?
- Total War: Warhammer 3 is a strategy game in the Total War series, offering a mix of turn-based grand strategy with massive real-time battles. It is considered one of the best strategy games on PC.
- The centerpiece of the game is the massive “Immortal Empires” campaign. Unlike typical campaigns, this one focuses purely on conquest. You compete against over 280 other factions, with a game session often lasting several hours or days.
- In the latest developer update, the devs revealed that they are now fully committed to Immortal Empires and plan to expand the mode. The first look at the updates is already available.
Here’s what’s coming in Total War: Warhammer 3: Developer Mitch Heastie has introduced four new features and revisions for the upcoming Update 5.2 in a new blog post. This includes a new mechanic for the Dwarfs.
If you play as a legendary commander of the Dwarfs, you will have the opportunity to explore “The Deeps” with the new update. In every city, you can build a gate to connect the settlement to a tunnel network:
- You gain access to more building slots and unique buildings that can only be constructed in the depths.
- The tunnels are underground and connect all settlements that have a gate. Therefore, you can be supplied even while under siege.
- As all cities are connected by a gate, supply becomes weaker the larger the network gets.
- Expanding the Deeps is costly, and you will need to research a lot to fully utilize the mechanic.
According to the developer, this aims to accommodate a playstyle of the Dwarfs: hunkering down. Instead of focusing fully on expansion, you can develop three to four mountain fortresses in the Deeps and reinforce them so much that no one can take them – just like a stubborn Dwarf.
This is not a necessity but rather provides an alternative playstyle. However, to ensure that not only the Dwarfs benefit from the update, there are also new content for all factions.
Total War: Warhammer 3 has recently received significant new content with Thrones of Decay:
Better mechanics for 2 factions, new feature for all
The other introduced content includes two major revisions for the gods of Chaos and the Grand Empire Cathay:
- You can now specifically create Chaos cults, building more and better buildings there. This is intended to help eliminate their “unpredictability.” They function similarly to the undercities of the Skaven, but on a smaller scale.
- The caravans of Cathay are getting a revamp and are roughly modeled after those of the Chaos Dwarfs. However, information on this is still lacking.
Additionally, there is a new feature for all factions in Immortal Empires: “Unusual Locations”. In many settlements, special “buildings” may appear that are somehow related to the area and provide bonuses.
Similar to landmarks, some of these locations are only available in certain settlements, while others can appear in multiple places. There are supposed to be a total of 20 of these locations, of which the developers have already shown 2 and teased several others:
- The Grave of the Grail Knights provides control and removes corruption.
- The Residence of the Grand Illuminator may corrupt the area with Chaos, but it grants prestige in the Empire.
- The icons of other locations feature an imperial port, a ritual site of the Skaven, and the Chaos star.
Heastie emphasizes that this is all very much in its early stages and that many things will still change. The ideas are already in place. However, it is still unclear when exactly Update 5.2 will be released. It is already preparing for the DLC that will come later, which is supposed to bring new Khorne commanders. If you prefer historical strategy over fantasy, you can find new content here: Strategy geniuses showcase a map of the Holy Roman Empire with 357 playable nations – fans rejoice
