The latest DLC for Total War: Warhammer 3 does not bring any new playable factions. Nevertheless, it costs a proud 25 €. That causes trouble. MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus played the DLC and spoke to the boss. Benedict understands the displeasure, but can also say: there is a lot of anger about nothing.
When Total War: Warhammer 3 released in 2022, it was a huge hit almost immediately, with over 166,000 players at its peak (via steamcharts).
The big, free update Immortal Empires then dared what no other strategy game has done before: unite 3 games and enlarge the map absurdly. Over 280 factions banging on and fighting for victory.
Since then, Total War: Warhammer 3 has been a household name on Steam and actually has good reviews. In mid-August 2023, however, they fell sharply: a measly 14% of the reviews are still positive, the game is now one of the “worst” on Steam.
The reason for this is the new DLC “Shadows of Change”, which has repelled fans. This is a “Lords Pack”, which does not bring any new factions, but only new commanders for existing peoples.
Traditionally, these actually cost between 10 and 15 euros, not 25. An explanation from the devs followed, but only caused more resentment and negative reviews. The communication was damn bad here, because I can say: the pack is much more than “just” 3 new commanders.
Total War: Warhammer 3 – The trailer for the Shadows of Change DLC
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No new factions, but entirely new mechanics
I was able to play Shadows of Change in full beforehand, both at home indefinitely and live at gamescom 2023. Game Director Richard Aldridge was even there to answer my questions. The new content in the DLC is:
Total War: Warhammer veterans are familiar with such DLC packs and know that the lords usually just slightly expand a core mechanic of the faction. This is also the case with the Jade Dragon. There are cool new buffs here, but at its core it plays just like Cathay.
But the changeling and the witch are something completely different. Ostanya starts far from Kislev north of Lustria, has new units with spiders and a whole new mechanic with which she can mix curses and blessings. A little like Nurgle’s Blight Cauldron, only less disgusting and with a more witchcraft focus.
When it comes to the changeling, things get really crazy. The idea behind the Lord isn’t simply to defeat everyone else. He simply wants to sow chaos and enjoys causing as much trouble as possible. To do this, he uses a number of mechanics that are not known from Tzeentch and some of which are completely new:
In addition, the changeling can research completely different things than, say, Kairos, the original lord of Tzeentch. The most important thing: portals with which armies can teleport to other areas in order to cause unrest there. This is even important for victory, which is not decided by battle alone.
Not only new lords, but also new victory conditions
The boss explained to me that many new factions in the past still have “painting the map red” as a win condition, as the community put it. That means: occupy areas, defeat opponents. This is how victories are usually won.
However, the Changeling and Ostankya have new victory conditions unique to them. Ostanya knows sorceries. Once she gets to the last one, she can summon armies that will essentially wipe out an entire faction instantly.
With the changeling, the special victory is even more interesting. He sees the world as a stage on which he performs plays. Here he has various acts or “plans” in which he must complete specific tasks such as: turning all the realms of the Empire against each other, blowing up the Great Wall of Cathay with Skaven Engineers, or corrupting the High Elves.
After completing 5 “Big Plans” he can initiate the “Ultimate Plan”, a kind of world war. Depending on how much preliminary work is done, the two sides have more or fewer allies to choose from. If the changeling wins this battle, he wins the campaign.
According to the descriptions in the game and in the blog so far, these are only conditions for the long victory. However, Aldridge spoke to me about how these achievements actually trigger a campaign win. Unfortunately, I haven’t gotten that far yet – but I really hope that it’s true. In any case, the system offers a lot of new strategic options.
Immortal Empires made Total War: Warhammer 3 the massive game it is today:
Total War: Warhammer 3 Launch Trailer Immortal Empires
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€25 is okay, but not as the new standard, please
I can understand why fans get angry at the announcement of €25 for three new Lords. I would be too. But now that I’ve seen how much is really in there, I have to say: That’s completely okay.
The boss also told me that such special mechanics will probably be used more often in the future. For example, a Wood Elves ritual would be a pretty fitting win condition.
Nevertheless, I have to say: That shouldn’t become the standard. If the DLCs keep getting as big as Shadows of Change, it’s fine. But for Lord Packs from before, where there was at most a different focus on units and a few gimmicks, the price wouldn’t be right at all.
Shadows of Change will be available as a paid DLC for Total War: Warhammer 3 on August 31st on Steam, the Epic Games Store and the Microsoft Store. From there you can form your own picture of it.
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