Total War: Warhammer 3 is the third and final title in Creative Assembly’s successful strategy trilogy, and has recently been expanded to include the highly anticipated Immortal Empires campaign. Players who own all three games in the trilogy can now play each faction on a massive combined map that spans the entire Warhammer Fantasy world. Several of the original factions have been reworked for Total War: Warhammer 3but no more than the Warriors of Chaos in their new Champions of Chaos DLC.
Each of the four Champions of Chaos is dedicated to a Chaos God, and Tzeentch’s disciple is Vilitch the Curseling. A pawn of the Architect of Fate, Vilitch combines the solid frontline of the Warriors of Chaos roster with the untethered magic and trickery of Tzeentch. On the campaign map, the Curseling’s armies can teleport through obstacles, confuse their enemies with magic, and sever long-standing alliances.
Vilitch’s Change of Ways
Like the other Champions of Chaos, Vilitch the Curseling inherits some traits from the pure daemon faction of its patron god, the Oracles of Tzeentch. The most important of these features is the Change of the roads, which allows Vilitch Souls to spend to perform powerful magic on the campaign map. Although he compared a limited version of the Changing of the Ways to Kairos Fateweaver, Vilitch can still Unveil the intentions of factions, reveal the shroud and break alliances. In addition, he has three powers that Kairos does not get: Muddle Minds, Spawnify and Drain Magic.
With these powers, Vilitch can prepare for heavy combat by weakening enemy armies and fortifying his own army with Chaos Spawn or Tzeentch. If The Changing of the Ways isn’t enough, though, Vilitch has another Tzeentchian trick up its sleeve. By spending part of his Winds of Magic reserve, Vilitch can: teleport his entire army to a nearby spot on the campaign map. This can be used to dodge aggression, cross impassable mountains, or even jump across narrow seas so that Vilitch is always one step ahead of his enemies.
Dark Fortresses and Soul Harvesting for Tzeentch
With a remote starting position in the far northeast of the Immortal Empires campaign map, Vilitch will want to take the time to build strength in the early game. The best way to do this is to head west and claim the Dark Fortresses along the Great Bastion. Each of these unique settlements allows the Warriors of Chaos to establish a strong base that will become the foundation of their military and economic might. Additionally, taking a Dark Fortress in the Norse homelands will cause Vilitch to automatically vassals that tribe.
Once Vilitch has gained a foothold in the Chaos Wastes, his next goal should be to break through the Great bastion of Grand Cathay. Whether he slaughters unruly Norscans or haughty Cathayans, Vilitch will be given Souls to offer to the Chaos Gods. Thanks to the Changer of Ways’ unfathomable plans, Vilitch will also be able to harvest Souls from his own battle victims.
These souls are used for powerful passive buffs through the Gifts of Chaos mechanic as well as to upgrade Vilitch’s Lords and Heroes. Undivided characters who reach a high enough rank can devote themselves to Tzeench and acquire new magical powers and skills at the cost of half their levels. Players can also spend Souls to transform a high-ranking lord into a Daemon Prince. This will greatly increase their power, but like the mechanic above it will cost them half their levels.
Build armies like Vilitch
Like the rest of the Warriors of Chaos Legendary Lords, Vilitch has a few options for recruiting and upgrading his troops. The first is war band recruitment, which can be performed anywhere on the map, but is limited to the units currently available in that province. Each province has a small pool of units to recruit from based on various factors, including climate and chaos corruption. These units have the chance to renew every turn.
Once Vilitch’s Warband units reach a certain rank, he can upgrade them, provided he has researched the appropriate technologies. These upgrades will transform the unit to a higher level equivalent. As a pawn of Tzeentch, Vilitch can choose to keep his Warband troops as generic Chaos Undivided, or give them the mark of Tzeentch, which will bring unique blessings from the Changer of Ways. Each Lord in the Puppets of Misrule roster has a different authority over Tzeentch or undivided units. They can give bonuses based on factors such as traits, skills, and heroes.
In addition to the Warband recruitment, Vilitch can also: access the types of Tzeentchian daemons found in the Oracles of Tzeentch selection. Once a Gift of Chaos that grants units is placed, players can regularly recruit small numbers of that unit into their armies. Finally, if Vilitch is able to forcibly create vassals or even ally with another Warhammer faction, he can build Outposts in their settlements to recruit units unique to that faction.
Vilitch on the battlefield
As the Chaos Champion devoted to Tzeentch, Vilitch the Curseling uses a combination of mortal and demonic units on the battlefield. Rather than the swift armies of Azazel or the hulking troops of Festus de Leechlord, Vilitch focuses on a mix of power and magic. Tzeentch’s daemons add powerful ranged options to the roster of Puppets of Misrule, with Pink or Blue Horrors able to cast spells from behind the safety of heavily armored Chaos Warriors.
This focus on magic extends to Vilitch’s Lords and Heroes, offering some of the most devastating spells and debuffs through the Lore of Tzeentch. Overall, the original Warriors of Chaos’ melee-heavy roster becomes much more balanced in the hands of Vilitch, allowing for hybrid powers that can dominate both ranged and close combat.
Total War: Warhammer 3 is out now for PC.
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