Update log
Full Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV update
The complete published notes, normalized for clean reading and source attribution.
Extracted changes
- Security
- Gameplay
Hi everyone!
When we began thinking about our vision for Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV, we knew straight away that crafting an unforgettable story would be absolutely essential. Big stories have always been a big part of our work at KING Art Games, and this was our opportunity to do what we do best on the biggest stage.
We also knew early on that we wanted to have a separate campaign for all four of our factions, and then weave those stories together into a compelling overarching story - one that was fit for a legendary series like Dawn of War.
Finally, we needed an expert on board to help us navigate the seemingly endless universe of Warhammer 40,000! We’re thrilled to be working with best-selling Black Library author John French, who not only knows his way around game development but is also a huge Dawn of War fan.
To set the scene for the world we’ve created together, our story picks up some 200 years after Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, the expansion to the original Dawn of War.
A tear in reality known as the Great Rift has torn the galaxy asunder and left returning planet Kronus - not to mention some of the Blood Ravens Space Marines - stranded. Leaders Cyrus and Jonah head to Kronus to begin rebuilding their Chapter, but quickly discover a sinister threat that places the entire galactic sub-sector in danger.
This being Warhammer 40,000, of course, they’re not alone in wanting to explore and exploit the secrets of Kronus for their own ends.
Deep beneath the sands of Kronus, an Adeptus Mechanicus expedition has discovered a Necron complex. At first they believe it to be a tomb, then a prison - but a prison for what? As the campaign unfolds, we discover how this buried secret influences the Orks and Adeptus Mechanicus, and draws the Necrons to Kronus - while the Space Marines battle to survive.
This is just a very spoiler-free sneak peek at our game world, but just choosing those factions was no simple matter! A universe like Warhammer 40,000 has a huge number of incredible factions to draw from, and it’s fair to say we found this a very tough nut to crack.
We knew we wanted to have the Space Marines, because it’s Dawn of War - the Blood Ravens had to be in there! We were also starting to think of Dawn of War IV as a kind of reimagining of the first Dawn of War, so we all felt very strongly that we wanted to include the Orks too.
This left us space for two more factions that would go on to inform our story. The Necrons haven’t been playable in the series since Dark Crusade, so having the game set on Kronus gave us the perfect opportunity to bring them back. As for the last spot, we wanted to round off our cast with a faction that had never been part of a Dawn of War game and would be new for everyone - the Adeptus Mechanicus fit the bill perfectly!
Now that we had our cast in place, we set to work with John French to develop our ideas and start building out the narrative. Together we crafted a story packed with the kind of intrigue, treachery and epic conflict that’s truly worthy of the Warhammer 40,000 universe.
Our goal in all of this wasn’t to simply continue a story that the first three games had told, but instead tell a new epic tale that just
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