A Preview of the Legions of Darkness Expansion for Warhammer: Diskwars

“Take their gold, burn their homes, kill their families and enslave their souls. Show them no mercy.”
    –Malekith, Witch King of Naggaroth

In our last preview of Legions of Darkness, we looked at the Vampire Counts and saw how their powerful heroes could draw upon the Wind of Death to raise armies to threaten the whole of the Old World. However, there’s more to Legions of Darkness than just the Vampire Counts, it also introduces heroes and units for both the Dark Elves and Skaven.

Today, then, as we turn our attention to the death, darkness, and destruction that these two new races will add to Warhammer: Diskwars, developer Michael Gernes introduces us to their heroes and units, and explores the strengths that their regiments may add to your Destruction armies.

Cloaked in Darkness

Hailing from the frozen reaches of Naggaroth, the Dark Elves are a bitter race, driven by their resentment and their hatred of their kinsfolk, the High Elves. Their armies are lightning fast, though potentially frangile, and they’re capable of striking nearly anywhere in the Old World, which they frequently do in order to secure the slaves that do the bulk of Naggaroth’s menial labor… and that provide fodder for ritual sacrifices to Khaine, the Thousand Faced Lord of Murder.

Accordingly, the Dark Elves of Legions of Darkness, excel at striking fast and subduing their foes. They’re hateful and cruel, and as Michael explains, they can easily surprise and destroy unwary enemy forces:

“The Dark Elves are deceitful, merciless raiders, and players will do best with Dark Elf regiments that utilize the sort of aggressive tactics that reflect their nature. Like the High Elves, Dark Elves must control engagements in order to win in melee because they cannot count on toughness.

“Black Ark Corsairs are best when they’re able to flip onto and pin their prey, using their mobile ranged attacks to soften up their targets or to slow down enemy disks that might be waiting to counter-charge the Corsairs. As they advance, their stealth keyword helps to protect them from enemy ranged attacks.

“Unwary opponents might underestimate the Dark Elves’ Karond Kar Harpies, but such a mistake might prove fatal. The Harpies’ flying keyword, combined with their ability to give slow ( ,) to enemy disks that they engage, makes them an excellent melee support disk, even when they are embattled.

“Further adding to the Dark Elves’ penchant for picking their battles and ganging up on their foes, their hero, Lokhir Fellheart provides flank to Corsairs in your reserve, so that they can launch sudden attacks from an unguarded battlefield edge and overwhelm isolated enemies. Then, when he joins in on the attack, Lokhir Fellheart is ferocious on offense with a high attack value, frenzy, and fear.

“Finally, the Cloaked in Darkness command card grants all Dark Elf disks temporary immunity to ranged attacks, better allowing them to rush forward and pin their enemies.”

Rising Upward in a Verminous Tide

The Skaven are a subterranean race of ratmen that have the numbers, the strength, and the sorcery to threaten the whole of the Old World. However, they have long been held back by in-fighting and distrust among their separate clans.

In Legions of Darkness, we receive our first units from the Skaven’s many different clans, and while there are many different aspects of this malevolent, selfish, and cowardly race begging to be explored, developer Michael Gernes explains how their first appearance is designed to add more new dynamics to the forces of Destruction:

“The Skaven disks in Legions of Darkness emphasize the ratmen’s warpstone-fueled ranged attacks, rather than their horde tactics, and these first Skaven units are best used to give your Destruction armies a more powerful reach.

“Gutter Runners are adaptable infiltrators who can scout before the battle starts, and rely on their stealth to avoid being picked off at range when caught in the open. Meanwhile, they have the speed to quickly race to the location they’re needed most, and as they approach, they can use their own ranged attacks to pepper the enemy.

“The Ratling Gun is a support disk that can use its mobile ranged attack to keep up a marching fire and soften up multiple enemies. Like many Skaven weapons, though, it can be unpredictable, so you’ll want to be careful as you position with your troops. The Ratling Gun’s ability guarantees that scatter results will deal damage to disks near its target.

“The Skaven hero, Ikit Claw, is both a powerful caster and a solid melee combatant. His ability to use magic 3 at long range can be deadly when used against low toughness disks, or as support for your other ranged attacks. Then, when Ikit Claw is… inevitably… rushed by enemies, he can use the Skaven command card Vermintide to deal an impressive amount of destruction to any disks caught within short range.”

Rain Destruction Upon Your Foes

While the Vampire Counts of Legions of Darkness present the expansion’s greatest threat to the Old World, the Dark Elf and Skaven regiments it allows you to build should not be overlooked. These races add new range and depth to the forces of Destruction, and their first opportunistic units will gleefully join any Destruction-aligned army in the hopes of claiming blood, slaves, and treasure.

How will you make use of these new races? Head to our community forums to share your strategies and army builds. The darkness is coming.

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