You only gain progression for Elite units as they kill units on the battlefield. But once it reaches level three, you can equip a different ability that lets you relocate Webway gates without having to research tier 2 tech. The Wraithlord’s starting ability, for instance, lets you teleport all Wraithguards and Wraithblades (Eldar’s equivalent of mechs, more or less) to its position. The XP unlocks new doctrines that can be equipped, which often provides a specific buff to a single unit or class of units once they’re on the battlefield. There’s two core parts: your Elite units, which gain experience as they kill units in singleplayer and multiplayer games. Angelos is sporting a fairly healthy scar and only one functioning eye these days, while Farseer Macha and the ranger Ronahn return for the Eldar.ĭoW 3 doesn’t have any persistent RPG elements or loot that carries over from one mission to another, but there is a persistent progression system that operates across the campaign and multiplayer. It’s largely coherent and takes place in a timeline after the original games. The campaign switches sides every mission, although each mission carries on from the battles preceding it. It meant walking away from some of the things that made DoW 2 great, although it also meant the campaign could properly explore all of the game’s factions, rather than being a 20-hour love in with the Space Marines.Īnd off the bat, that’s what you’re presented with. So when Relic announced that resource management and basebuilding were back for the Dawn of War 3 campaign, it caused instant concern. The opening mission is reminiscent of Dawn of War 2, with Gabriel Angelos repelling an Ork attack on a sandy planet And the campaign was eminently replayable because you could play through the whole thing with a friend in co-op. Three, if you include the wave-based Horde mode. DoW 2‘s multiplayer was structurally similar, but the campaign was completely overhauled to become more of an aRPG, where the player controlled a small squad of units and upgraded them with loot after every mission. There was always going to be a schism amongst the community: the original Dawn Of War revolved around base-building, cover and several other tried and tested RTS tropes.
Fans have been fairly fraught over the last few months, and with good reason.