------------------------- Dawn of War: Dark Crusade ------------------------- FAQ/Walkthrough --------------- Version ?.?? ------------ By NightmareHunter ------------------ [email protected] ---------------------------- ------------------------------------------------ 1 - INTRODUCTION - DOW-INTR ------------------------------------------------ It's been a few years since I played 40K on the tabletop, but thanks to Relic, in recent times I've been able to get my fix of the Warhammer 40,000 universe playing Dawn of War and it's two expansions. The second expansion, Dark Crusade, takes the game to a whole new level, adding two new playable factions, an open-ended campaign and new units to all the existing armies. And what's more, the expansion doesn't require the original game. This, however, limits you to only the two new factions, the Necrons and Tau, in skirmish and multiplayer games. To get the most out of it, you really do need the original game and the Winter Assault expansion. Still, trust me when I say that if you're looking for a fast paced, action based real time strategy game, you've come to the right place. At the moment, the whole FAQ is fairly basic, due to the facts that, firstly, I haven't written an FAQ like this before, so I'm still trying to organise and properly articulate some ideas, secondly, because, like the theory behind my GT4 Tuning FAQ, I would like to see this FAQ more as a set of guidelines which encourage people to think for themselves and develop their own style. Thus, I'm hoping that, over time, the FAQ will grow with both my contributions and those of the readers. Finally, I thought it would be better to provide basic information for all races and scenarios in the first version, rather than go in depth on only a few things. Also, please note that it has been a while since I've played this game, and as such I'm no longer responding to emails regarding it. Feedback is always lovely, but I just don't have the time to do so anymore. ------------------------------------------------ 2 - VERSION HISTORY - DOW-VERS ------------------------------------------------ 5/01/07, 8/01/07, 12/01/07-18/01/07 Completed Introduction, Contents, System Requirements, Armies, Single Player Campaign, FAQs, E-mail Policy, Thanks and Copyright Information. ------------------------------------------------ 1 - INTRODUCTION - DOW-INTR ------------------------------------------------ 2 - VERSION HISTORY - DOW-VERS ------------------------------------------------ 3 - CONTENTS - DOW-CONT ------------------------------------------------ 4 - SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS - DOW-SYSR ------------------------------------------------ 5 - ARMIES - DOW-ARMY 5.1 - NECRONS - DOW-NECR 5.2 - TAU - DOW-TAU 5.3 - SPACE MARINES - DOW-SPMR 5.4 - CHAOS SPACE MARINES - DOW-CSMR 5.5 - ELDAR - DOW-ELDR 5.6 - ORKS - DOW-ORKS 5.7 - IMPERIAL GUARD - DOW-IMGD ------------------------------------------------ 6 - SINGLE PLAYER CAMPAIGN - DOW-SPCO 6.1 - CAMPAIGN MAP - DOW-CMAP 6.2 - MOVING AND ATTACKING - DOW-MVAA 6.3 - CONTINUITY AND DEFENCE - DOW-CNTD 6.4 - HONOUR GUARD - DOW-HONR 6.5 - WARGEAR - DOW-WARG ------------------------------------------------ 7 - SINGLE PLAYER STRATEGIES - DOW-SPLS 7.0.1 - GENERAL STRATEGIES - DOW-GNST 7.1 - BY ARMY - DOW-STBA 7.1.1 - NECRONS - DOW-NECS 7.1.2 - TAU - DOW-TAUS 7.1.3 - SPACE MARINES - DOW-SPMS 7.1.4 - CHAOS SPACE MARINES - DOW-CSMS 7.1.5 - ELDAR - DOW-ELDS 7.1.6 - ORKS - DOW-ORKT 7.1.7 - IMPERIAL GUARD - DOW-IMGS 7.2 - BONUS DEPENDENT SCENARIOS - DOW-BDSC 7.2.1 - PAVONIS - DOW-PAVO 7.2.2 - ERES BADLANDS - DOW-ERES 7.2.3 - ACERIA FORESTS - DOW-ACER 7.2.4 - HYPERION PEAKS - DOW-HYPR 7.2.5 - ARIEL HIGHLANDS - DOW-ARIE 7.2.6 - VANDEAN COST - DOW-VAND 7.3 - STRONGHOLDS - DOW-STHD 7.3.1 - NECRONS - DOW-NEST 7.3.2 - TAU - DOW-TAST 7.3.3 - SPACE MARINES - DOW-SPST 7.3.4 - CHAOS SPACE MARINES - DOW-CSST 7.3.5 - ELDAR - DOW-ELST 7.3.6 - ORKS - DOW-ORST 7.3.7 - IMPERIAL GUARD - DOW-IMST ------------------------------------------------ 8 - SKIRMISH - DOW-SKIR ------------------------------------------------ 9 - MULTIPLAYER - DOW-MULT ------------------------------------------------ 10 - FAQs - DOW-FAQS ------------------------------------------------ 11 - E-MAIL POLICY - DOW-EPOL ------------------------------------------------ 12 - THANKS AND COPYRIGHT INFORMATION - DOW-TCPR ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------ 4 - SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS - DOW-SYSR ------------------------------------------------ -------------------- Minimum Requirements -------------------- DirectX 9.0c (included on Disc) 2.0 GHz Intel Pentium 4, AMD Athlon XP or equivalent processor 512 MB RAM 3.5 GB free hard drive space 4x DVD-ROM drive 64 MB DirectX 9.0b compatible AGP video card with Hardware Transformation and Lighting DirectX 9.0b compatible sound card, 16 bit Keyboard Mouse ----- ------------------------ Recommended Requirements ------------------------ DirectX 9.0c (included on Disc) 2.4 GHz Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent processor 512 MB system RAM (required for 8-player multiplayer games) nVidia GeForce 3 or equivalent with 64 MB of Video RAM Sound Blaster X-Fi series ------------------------- ---------------------------- Requirements for Multiplayer ---------------------------- 1 disc per computer Internet: Cable modem, DSL modem, or better Network: LAN or broadband WAN ----------------------------- ------------------------------------------------ 5 - ARMIES - DOW-ARMY ------------------------------------------------ Provided you have the original game and the Winter Assault expansion, there are seven playable factions in Dark Crusade, including the two new races, the Necrons and the Tau, both of which are very different from the five existing races, not to mention each other. As for the other five, they're pretty much the same, except they each get a new unit type. This information is really just a summary of the different races, for strategies and anything else gameplay related, see the Single Player Campaign Section, below. ------------------------------------------------ 5.1 - NECRONS - DOW-NECR ------------------------------------------------ The Necrons are an ancient race, and in many ways they're the futuristic undead. They're a race of robots which house the souls of the Necrontyr, who lived some 60 million years ago. Since that time those on Kronus have slumbered in underground catacombs, at peace in their un-death. They are offended by all life; they see all those who cling to their lives as misguided and deluded, and whenever there is life the Necrons rise to destroy it and bring the peace of death. Thus, the presence of all the other races on Kronus has awakened the Necrons. Strengths - Melee Combat - The Necrons are powerful in combat, they have several units which excel in melee, and even the basic warriors are quite proficient. - Ranged Combat - Necron ranged attacks are also powerful, and they have a good range as well. Defensive structures have extremely powerful attacks. - Toughness - The Necrons give Space Marines a run for their money as the toughest race in the game. They have a lot of health and good defences, and they also have a chance at resurrecting after they've been killed. - Structures - It's debateable as to whether this is a good thing, but the Necrons train all their units at one structure: the Monolith. Being their HQ building you don't have to build a separate barracks or vehicle depot, but, if you only have one of them, you really have to be, to borrow the words of Mike Walker: 'The sort of person who doesn't mind all their unhatched infant hens being in a lone woven wood receptacle.' Needless to say, building more than one is often a good idea. - Economy - Again, this is debateable, but the Necron economy relies on power, and you don't get any requisition at all. You capture strategic points to increase the population and vehicle caps, and provide a bonus which reduces the time it takes to train units and research technology. However, getting the 'You don't have enough power, build more plasma generators' message when you're trying to build generators can be annoying. Weaknesses - Cost - Necrons ain't cheap. In fact, they're quite expensive. There's no doubt that you're getting good units, but you'll need a good flow of power to get your army off the ground and maintain it. You will find, in the end, that if you can keep a high power rate you won't have a problem, but in the early days, or if you lose the momentum, it can be a challenge. - Speed - Necrons are really slow. So slow, in fact, that I need to say it again. NECRONS ARE REALLY SLOW!! There are very few Necron units that move at a reasonable speed. These are the Lord and elite units like the Pariahs, as well as Destroyers. This can be really annoying, because if you're not careful your fast units will end up leaving the slow ones behind. And it's not just movement. The more units you have, the longer it takes to train new ones, and it's the same with building structures (regardless of the bonus you have for captures strategic points). So when it comes to the Necrons, patience really is a virtue. ------------------------------------------------ 5.2 - TAU - DOW-TAU ------------------------------------------------ The Tau are almost the opposite of the Necrons; young, idealistic and tolerant of other races (provided they join the Greater Good). The Greater Good is what the Tau's ruling class, the Ethereals, believe to be the ultimate goal for society at large, centred around peace and tolerance, although not that much is known about the Ethereals, so there's probably a dark side nobody's seen. They lack abilities in melee combat, so they have enlisted the help of alien mercenaries; the Kroot and Vespid. Strengths - Ranged Combat - The Tau excel at destroying their enemies from afar. They have some of the most powerful guns in the game, and some of them have phenomenal range. A Tau army, if composed and used properly, is almost impossible to outshoot. - Manoeuvrability - A Tau army can be surprisingly mobile if well composed, although this type of army tends to lose some of its shooting prowess, as some of the heavier guns are obviously less mobile. Weaknesses - Melee Combat - The Tau are bad up close, and, while the Kroot and Vespid can provide melee skill, this is more as a support role, as an army composed entirely of Kroot isn't going to be the strongest in melee combat. - Cost - The Tau aren't exactly cheap either, especially considering some of the technologies you need to research to access tier three units. You will find, in the end, that if you can keep a high requisition rate you won't have a problem, but in the early days, or if you lose the momentum, it can be a challenge. ------------------------------------------------ 5.3 - SPACE MARINES - DOW-SPMR ------------------------------------------------ There's not really much that needs to be said here, is there? Genetically engineered, superhuman warriors fighting the enemies of the Imperium of man. Tough as old boots and really killy, if you're new to Dawn of War this is the place to start. Strengths - Melee Combat - Space marines can dish out the damage in melee; they have units geared specifically to close combat, and the standard marines can hold the own. This is incredibly useful; knowing that your range based army won't capitulate when the enemy starts hitting it with big sticks. - Ranged Combat - Space marines can shoot just as well as they can fight; a space marine army consisting of tactical marines with heavy weapons, supported by predators and dreadnoughts, can devastate most opponents, the key however, is to equip your tactical marines with the right weapons. - Toughness - It's been said a million times before, but space marines just don't die. One of the reasons space marine armies are so successful at dealing the damage is because it takes the enemy so long to kill them. Admittedly they may have lost the title of toughest race to the Necrons, but they are, at the very least, the second toughest race in the game. - Versatility - This is probably the space marines' biggest strength. Their ability to engage both at range and up close and the equipment options for tactical marines make them quite versatile; a well composed space marine army will be able to meet almost any challenge head on. This ability to adapt to the situation can, however, be a double-edged sword. The space marines are a 'jack of all trades, master of none' race, so an army dedicated to ranged attacks will be able to outshoot them, and an army dedicated to melee will be able to outfight them. If you can't read the situation and adapt your tactics accordingly, then your space marines will get chewed up and spat out. This isn't always as easy as it sounds, because it often involves more considerations than; are they sooting me or hitting me? Weaknesses - Cost - Space marines aren't cheap. Building up an army of any reasonable size can cost quite a bit, and maintaining it in the field can prove to be just as expensive. You will find, in the end, that if you can keep a high requisition rate you won't have a problem, but in the early days, or if you lose the momentum, it can be a challenge. ------------------------------------------------ 5.4 - CHAOS SPACE MARINES - DOW-CSMR ------------------------------------------------ Chaos Space Marines: for those who like their space marines to be a little bit evil. They're still genetically engineered and superhuman, but other than that they're actually quite different from their former battle brothers; now they worship the Chaos Gods and are capable of all sorts of nasty things. Strengths - Melee Combat - Chaos space marines are scary in close combat. They have numerous units dedicated to melee; they can swamp the enemy and break them surprisingly easily, and then finish them off. Some of these units are also very effective for destroying vehicles and buildings. - Toughness - While not as tough as space marines (they certainly break more easily), they are still difficult to kill, and are more numerous. Weaknesses - Ranged Combat - Chaos space marines can't shoot in any real way. Some of their vehicles function well in a support role, but trying to create a Chaos army which relies on shooting isn't a good idea. They have few infantry units that can shoot well, so they have problems simply bringing enough guns to bear. That's why you need to be wary of enemies who attack you from afar, as you'll need to close quickly and get into melee, rather than try to shoot back. ------------------------------------------------ 5.5 - ELDAR - DOW-ELDR ------------------------------------------------ Eldar, aka Pansies. The Eldar are the futuristic equivalent to elves. They're an ancient race (they fought the Necrons aeons ago, and have fought Chaos for longer than any other race) whose time has passed, and they are now trying to destroy the evils of the galaxy before it's too late. Despite this, the Eldar are quite conceited; and it's apparent in most of the words of the Farseer. Note: I don't play with the Eldar very much, so this summary and the strategies in section 7 will be quite basic, I hope to improve them over time. Strengths - Speed - The Eldar are a fast moving army, they specialise in fast strikes, where they can get in, do some damage, then get out again before they get killed. Almost all of the Eldar vehicles are skimmers, making them very fast and manoeuvrable, and most Eldar infantry have the Fleet of Foot ability, allowing them to move faster at the cost of weapon accuracy. This isn't really a problem though, since you can simply turn Fleet of Foot off when you need to shoot. - Stealth - Stealth is another component of the Eldar's ability to deliver fast strikes where the enemy is unprepared, and it also serves as an effective defensive mechanism. Using Rangers to pinpoint the location of an attack can be useful, although it is undoubtedly the ability to have you entire base concealed from enemies which is the most helpful. All you need be wary of is enemies that can detect infiltrated units. - Special Abilities - The Eldar have a lot of special abilities; just look at the Farseer. These abilities range from defensive to offensive, to augmentative, and using them well can make all the difference. They can help you rally your troops, or kill or break the enemy, as well as a few things which are useful in less obvious ways. Weaknesses - Toughness - The Eldar aren't exactly tough. In fact, they're disturbingly fragile. If you don't use their speed and stealth, you could very well find yourself in a lot of trouble. ------------------------------------------------ 5.6 - ORKS - DOW-ORKS ------------------------------------------------ We'z da Orkz an' we'z da best!! Orks aren't exactly the brightest race out there. Put simply, they like to hit things. And shoot things. But mostly hit things. And just generally kill things. They're the futuristic version of the fantasy race, and they live for fighting and war. They believe they're superior to all races and that they can't be beaten in battle because, well, day'z da best. Note: I don't play with the Orks very much, so this summary and the strategies in section 7 will be quite basic, I hope to improve them over time. Strengths - Melee Combat - The Orks are great in melee, it is what they live for after all. They have a number of units which excel in close combat, most of which have different secondary characteristics, like jetpacks or heavier armour. This can create a flexible and powerful melee based army. - Numbers - There are a lot of Orks. Their population caps increase as you build more Wagggh!!! Banners, and you can amass quite a large number of Orks before it hits the maximum. Weaknesses - Ranged Combat - Ranged combat for the Orks is similar to ranged combat for Chaos, its best used in a supporting role. Most Ork vehicles have good firepower, if you use them to take out targets your masses of infantry will have problems with, ranged combat isn't that much of a weakness. It's really just a matter of knowing how to use it. ------------------------------------------------ 5.7 - IMPERIAL GUARD - DOW-IMGD ------------------------------------------------ The Imperial Guard is the army of humanity. It's the men and women of the Imperium fighting the enemies of The Emperor. They often work alongside the space marines, however not on Kronus; the Blood Ravens on the planet are there for reasons of their own, while the Imperial Guard of the 1st Kronus Regiment are there to reclaim the planet. Strengths - Ranged Combat - The Imperial Guard can shoot. The combined firepower of an entire army is something to see; while a single squad of guardsmen shooting with their lasguns may look pathetic, eight squads with special weapons and the support of Leman Russ battle tanks, Hellhounds and Basilisks and, if you had the time to research it, a Baneblade, is anything but pathetic. - Numbers - You can end up with a lot of Imperial Guardsmen, which results in the ability to swamp an opponent. This can be very handy; send your guardsmen in to attack the enemy while your tanks lay waste at a distance. Your enemy will get tangle up in your guardsmen and (because they're so quick and cheap to reinforce) have a lot of trouble getting through them. Your guardsmen will probably end up splattered across the battlefield, but you can't be a true Imperial Guard Commander unless you have a total disregard for the men at your disposal (besides, there's always more where they came from). - Bases - Imperial Guard bases are useful for several reasons. Firstly, you increase your population and vehicle caps by building barracks and vehicle depots. This means that you don't have to spend much more requisition than most other races to increase your caps, but you get multiple infantry and vehicle producing structures, thus minimising any 'unhatched infant hens in a lone woven wood receptacle' incidents. Secondly, Imperial Guard bases contain vast tunnel networks, allow any infantry unit to travel from one structure to another (excluding Listening Posts) with only a slight delay, which is extremely useful if your base is built over a large area, which can be common due to the number of buildings you can end up with, or if you have more than one base. Weaknesses - Melee Combat - The Imperial Guard don't fare to well in melee. They only really have one unit that can do well in combat, they can be handy support if you find the enemy manages to get to grips, but otherwise, keep your distance and get as many guns as possible. - Toughness - Imperial Guard infantry are weak. Vehicles are a different story; the Guard have some of the hardest vehicles in the game, but since you'll have so much infantry in your army, it's something you need to be aware of. Guardsmen can be reinforced quickly and cheaply, but it can be difficult to keep track of all the squads while directing the battle, unless you're clever with your grouping. ------------------------------------------------ 6 - SINGLE PLAYER CAMPAIGN - DOW-SPCO ------------------------------------------------ The single player campaign in Dark Crusade is different from those of the original game and Winter Assault in that it is completely free-form. You are presented with a battle map of Kronus, which is divided into 25 provinces, and tasked with conquering the planet any way you like. This will not be an easy task though, as all of the other six races are attempting to do the same thing. ------------------------------------------------ 6.1 - CAMPAIGN MAP - DOW-CMAP ------------------------------------------------ The campaign map is where you will control your army's movements between the different provinces, as well as allow you to do many other things, such as create honour guard units, station troops in friendly provinces and track your kills and conquests. --------- Provinces --------- There are 25 provinces in the game, seven strongholds, six provinces providing special bonuses and twelve normal provinces. However, regardless of the type of province, they all have some basic information in common, which indicates how valuable that province is and how hard it will be to conquer: Strength This is a number from 1 to 15 representing how heavily fortified a province is. In the case of a enemy province, it will let you know the kind of resistance you will face should you attack it. In the case of your own provinces, it will let you know what kind of attack you will be able to fend off (This only really applies to auto-resolve, see below). You can increase your defensive rating by garrisoning troops in a particular province, your rating is also affected by the number of structures you built when you conquered the province in the first place. Typically the most heavily defended provinces are strongholds. Requisition This is a number between 50 and 100 showing the amount of planetary requisition that the province will generate for you each turn (see below). Bonus There are three possibilities here. Firstly, the bonus for a normal province will be an honour guard unit that you can train using planetary requisition. Secondly, a special bonus can be earned from six provinces (see below). Finally, strongholds do not provide any bonus, but they always provide 100 planetary requisition. Army If an enemy army is in the province you are looking at, you will see the units currently in that army's honour guard, and will have to click the Recon button to see the basic information. -------------- Province Types -------------- Strongholds Strongholds are the HQ provinces for each of the seven races, and are vital to the success of an army on Kronus. Successfully attacking an enemy stronghold will drive that race from Kronus, regardless of what other provinces the may still hold. Conquering all six enemy strongholds will result in victory and the completion of the campaign. This is, however, a double edged sword: you have a stronghold as well, and if you are defeated at your stronghold you will fail the campaign and reload a previous save or restart. Special Bonus Provinces There are six provinces on Kronus which provide unique special bonuses for the faction which controls them. They are as follows: - Pavonis - Spaceport - This allows you to launch an attack on any enemy province, excluding strongholds, regardless of where your army is. - The Eres Badlands - Fury - This allows you to move or attack twice in a single turn, which is a potent ability, as you will amass planetary requisition and honour guard units more quickly than everyone else. Note that with Fury and Spaceport you can attack an enemy stronghold from anywhere, by first moving to an adjacent province to the stronghold, and then attacking it with your second move. - The Aceria Forests - Increased Manpower - This increases the population caps for all of your battles, allowing you to field more troops. - The Hyperion Peaks - Forward Base - This allows you to use planetary requisition to have certain structures dropped with you HQ building when the battle begins. - The Ariel Highlands - Bulwark - Reduces the amount of planetary requisition needed to garrison troops at a province, as well as the amount of requisition returned when troops are withdrawn. - The Vandean Coast - Industrial Production - This allows you to start every battle with additional resources. Normal Provinces Normal provinces are just that, normal. They have no special bonus and an average amount of requisition, although they do add a unit to your honour guard, just remember you still have to spend the planetary requisition to train them. --------------------- Planetary Requisition --------------------- Planetary requisition is essentially requisition spent on the Campaign Map. You get it at the beginning of every turn, and the amount depends on the number of provinces you control, and the amount of requisition each one provides. Thus, the more provinces you conquer, the more planetary requisition you get. Each type of province gets it's own amount of planetary requisition: - Strongholds - +100 - Normal Provinces - +75 - Special Bonus Provinces - +50 There are two things you can spend it on: - Reinforcing Provinces (see below) - Training Honour Guard units (see 6.2) --------------------- Reinforcing Provinces --------------------- Reinforcing involves spending planetary requisition to station troops at provinces currently in your control, and thus increasing your defensive capability should any of those provinces come under attack. The number of squads you can reinforce a province with is limited, and so garrisoning the maximum of squads in a province will not limit the number you can garrison in others, or the caps on the battlefield. If you decide that a province is no longer under threat, you can recall the troops there, but you will only get back half the planetary requisition you spent in the first place. Also, should a province come under attack and the garrisoned troops be destroyed, you must re-train them if you want to keep them there (provided you won the battle). To reinforce a province, simply click the province, then click the Reinforce button to bring up the list of troops you can garrison, and their respective costs of planetary requisition. You can play around with the number of squads you want to garrison, provided you have the requisition; the reinforcements aren't actually sent until you hit the Accept button. -------------------- The Commander Screen -------------------- Clicking the Commander button in the lower right hand corner of the screen will bring up a screen which shows details about your campaign. It lists the enemies you've defeated, the units currently in your Honour Guard as well as those available for training, the Special Province Bonuses you currently have, as well as your kills, Conquests and Defences. Also listed are the health and damage stats of your Commander. If you click on the Wargear button you are taken to the Wargear screen, which shows all of the wargear your Commander can obtain, the pieces they already have, and their current stats. If you have any available selections you may double click on a piece of wargear to obtain it. If you change your mind simply double click again to de-select it, the wargear isn't added until you hit Continue, and once a piece of wargear is added it can't be removed or changed, so choose wisely, even though you'll end up with all of them. ------------------------------------------------ 6.2 - MOVING AND ATTACKING - DOW-MVAA ------------------------------------------------ Moving and attacking on the Campaign Map is really easy. Your army's position is represented by a small model of you Commander, and from this province will be arrows leading to all adjacent provinces. If a province is controlled by you, then the arrow will be green, and if it is controlled by an enemy it will be red. If you click on one of these friendly provinces and click the Move button, your army will move there. If you click on an enemy province and click the same button, which now says Attack, you will bring up a screen displaying the province's information as well as the enemy presence there. From here you may add Honour Guard units if you have the requisition, then either Attack the province or Cancel, by clicking the relevant button. ------------------------------------------------ 6.3 - CONTINUITY AND DEFENCE - DOW-CNTD ------------------------------------------------ While you're moving around the Campaign Map attacking and conquering provinces, the enemy is doing the same, and sometimes they'll have the nerve to attack one of your provinces. Now, you can Auto-resolve them, but you stand more chance of retaining the province if you fight the battle yourself, plus if you want all ten pieces of wargear you'll have to fight five successful defences. It's now that you'll realise why it pays to build a big base whenever possible. The game remembers what you've built in a province and when you start the a defence, you start with all those structures. This means that you'll start with capped Strategic Points and Plasma Generators for a good economy, and the structures necessary to train and upgrade infantry, as well as build vehicles. This is why, when conquering a province, if you ever find your builder units standing around with nothing to do while your army goes off to attack the enemy, have them build as many unit producing structures as possible, along with Plasma Generators if you don't already have the maximum. You should also upgrade Listening Posts at this point. Now if you have to defend the province, you'll be much better equipped to do so. You'll be able to build several infantry squads straight away (you may have to wait a bit for extra power to build vehicles), you should use these to rush the enemy; remember how fragile you are in the first few minutes of attacking a province. Well, now it's the other way round, get in there fast (within two minutes if possible), even if it's only with a couple of squads, and start wreaking havoc while newly trained units come to join the fight. Against enemies attacking from an well entrenched province, they'll start with two bases, but each one will be just as vulnerable. Speed is paramount here, you need to knock out one base very quickly, then get all your troops together and charge into the second base. The only problem you could run into is a large enemy Honour Guard. You don't get to see their Honour Guard on the screen where you choose to fight or auto- resolve, so make ure you keep track of Honour Guards at all times. If you do run into a big one you'll either find yourself in a big fight right at the outset where you'll need to keep pumping troops into the enemy, or, if your base is big enough and you train your troops as quickly as possible, the enemy Honour Guard may very well end up being nothing more than a speed bump on the road to success. ------------------------------------------------ 6.4 - HONOUR GUARD - DOW-HONR ------------------------------------------------ Your Honour Guard is like a standing army. They are troops you can train using planetary requisition that will begin the battle alongside your commander. You'll start off with no Honour Guard units, and for every normal province you conquer, you'll add a unit to your honour guard list, so by the later stages of the game you can have quite a large army at the beginning of every battle. Just remember that your enemies will have Honour Guards too. There are a couple of things about Honour Guard units which make them different than their standard counter-parts. For squads, the Honour Guard units usually have less members, but are also usually some sort of veterans, making them more powerful. Vehicles are usually the same, although in most cases they're only light vehicles. It's also worth noting that Space Marines and Chaos Space Marines don't actually get squads, they get individual marines. This may seem quite bad, but the marines are capable of taking down quite a lot, especially the Chaos Marines. In fact, a full Chaos Honour Guard, despite being very small in numbers, is surprisingly powerful. The other good thing about Honour Guard is that they only need to be re-trained if they're killed. If they don't die in one battle, they'll be right there for the next, in fact, if you lose control of a province, you keep the Honour Guard bonus it gave (if you currently have it trained), until it dies. This can be incredibly helpful, and allow you to save quite a bit of planetary requisition in the long run. There are twelve Honour Guard units for each race, and they are as follows: ------- Necrons ------- The Demes Northlands - Tomb Spyder The Panrea Lowlands - Wraith The Orestan Plains - Crypt Warrior Squad The Pavonian Heartland - Crypt Immortal Squad The Agamar Desert - Catacomb Flayed Ones The Western Barrens - Builder Scarabs The Van de Mar Mountains - Crypt Warrior Squad The Janus Savannah - Crypt Warrior Squad The Rhean Jungle - Catacomb Flayed Ones The Rhean Floodlands - Destroyer The Morriah Coast - Crypt Warrior Squad The Murad Swamplands - Crypt Pariah Squad --- Tau --- The Demes Northlands - Fire Warrior Bodyguard The Panrea Lowlands - Veteran Stealth Team The Orestan Plains - Crisis Suit Guard The Pavonian Heartland - Kroot Alpha Pack The Agamar Desert - Fire Warrior Bodyguard The Western Barrens - Vespid Elder Strain The Van de Mar Mountains - Veteran Stealth Team The Janus Savannah - Kroot Alpha Pack The Rhean Jungle - Crisis Suit Guard The Rhean Floodlands - Kroot Hunting Pack The Morriah Coast - Skyray Missile Gunship The Murad Swamplands - Kroot Elder Shaper ------------- Space Marines ------------- The Demes Northlands - Veteran Assault Marine The Panrea Lowlands - First Company Veteran The Orestan Plains - First company Veteran The Pavonian Heartland - Veteran Assault Marine The Agamar Desert - Dreadnought The Western Barrens - Land Speeder The Van de Mar Mountains - First Company Veteran The Janus Savannah - Hellfire Dreadnought The Rhean Jungle - Reclusiarch The Rhean Floodlands - First Company Terminator The Morriah Coast - Senior Librarian The Murad Swamplands - First Company Terminator ------------------- Chaos Space Marines ------------------- The Demes Northlands - Daemonkin Obliterator The Panrea Lowlands - Berserker Champion The Orestan Plains - Berserker Champion The Pavonian Heartland - Raptor Champion The Agamar Desert - Chaos Sorcerer The Western Barrens - Defiler The Van de Mar Mountains - Possessed Champion The Janus Savannah - Chosen Champion The Rhean Jungle - Raptor Champion The Rhean Floodlands - Raptor Champion The Morriah Coast - Chosen Champion The Murad Swamplands - Chosen Champion ----- Eldar ----- The Demes Northlands - Veteran Ranger Squad The Panrea Lowlands - Veteran Ranger Squad The Orestan Plains - Fire Dragon Exarch Council The Pavonian Heartland - Warp Spider Exarchs The Agamar Desert - Reaper Exarch Council The Western Barrens - Banshee Exarch Council The Van de Mar Mountains - Vyper The Janus Savannah - Vyper The Rhean Jungle - Seer Council The Rhean Floodlands - Wraithlord The Morriah Coast - Banshee Exarch Council The Murad Swamplands - Warp Spider Exarchs ---- Orks ---- The Demes Northlands - Killa Kan The Panrea Lowlands - Wartrak The Orestan Plains - Big 'Eavy Nob Squad The Pavonian Heartland - Mega Armoured Nobz The Agamar Desert - 'Eavy Shoota Boyz Squad The Western Barrens - 'Eavy Shoota Boyz Squad The Van de Mar Mountains - 'Eavy Tankbustaz Squad The Janus Savannah - Mad Dok The Rhean Jungle - 'Eavy Shoota Boyz Squad The Rhean Floodlands - 'Eavy Stormboyz Squad The Morriah Coast - 'Eavy Stormboyz Squad The Murad Swamplands - Killa Kan -------------- Imperial Guard -------------- The Demes Northlands - Sentinel The Panrea Lowlands - Vindicare Assassin The Orestan Plains - Regimental Commissar The Pavonian Heartland - Regimental Bodyguard The Agamar Desert - Bone'ead Squad The Western Barrens - Hellhound The Van de Mar Mountains - Vindicare Assassin The Janus Savannah - Sanctioned Psyker The Rhean Jungle - Sentinel The Rhean Floodlands - Veteran Kasrkin Squad The Morriah Coast - Regimental Bodyguard The Murad Swamplands - Veteran Kasrkin Squad ------------------------------------------------ 6.5 - WARGEAR - DOW-WARG ------------------------------------------------ Wargear turns your Commander from a basic character in an army killing machine. Well, almost. Each Race has ten pieces of wargear which increases the Commander's power, and is also reflected aesthetically on the character model. The wargear will increase health, morale, melee damage and ranged damage, as well as a few other things which are more specific to each race. Generally speaking the upgrade that allows the Commander to detect infiltrated units is the most useful, given the new infiltration system, which allows units to attack while still hidden. Wargear is earned by completing ten different requirements over the course of the campaign, all bar one of the requirements are based on progression, so you don't really need to do anything special to get them. They are as follows: - 3 to 1 Kill Ratio - 1 Conquest - 5 Conquests - 15 Conquests - 1 Defence (Auto-resolve doesn't count) - 3 Defences (Auto-resolve doesn't count) - 5 Defences (Auto-resolve doesn't count) - 2000 Kills - 5000 Kills - 3 Defeated Enemies The pieces of wargear are as follows: ------- Necrons ------- Skinning Blades - Increases melee damage and morale lost. Reaping Blades - Requires Skinning Blades, increases melee damage. Necrontyr Sigils - Increases ranged damage. Gauss Flayer - Requires Necrontyr Sigils, increases ranged damage. Death Mask - Reveals infiltrated units, increases health. Reinforced body - reduces damage from melee, greatly increases health. Mantle of Doom - Requires Reinforced Body, increases health and morale. Heart of Darkness - Increases health regeneration. Death Grip - Increases damage and health. Death Shroud - increases speed, reduces damage from ranged attacks. --- Tau --- Flamer - Additional weapon, effective against infantry. Fusion Blaster - Replaces standard burst cannon, effective against vehicles. Plasma Rifle - Requires Fusion Blaster, effective against all units. Missile Pods - Additional weapon, effective against vehicles. Advanced Sensor Array - Reveals infiltrated units, increases health. Iridium Armour - Reduces damage from all attacks, greatly increases health. Jetpack - Enables jump capability. Stealth Field - Enables infiltration. Shield Drone - Commander can train one shield drone, drone can draw fire and generate powerful ion shield. Gun Drone - Requires Shield Drone, Commander can train gun drones, drones can protect against infantry. ------------- Space Marines ------------- Alexian's Blade - Replaces standard chainsword, increases melee damage. Daemonhammer - Requires Alexian's Blade, increases melee damage. Plasma Pistol - Replaces standard bolt pistol, increases ranged damage. Melta Gun - Requires Plasma Pistol, increases ranged damage. Iron Halo - Protects against ranged attacks, increases health. Veteran's Pauldrons - Greatly increases health. Azariah's Cincture - Protects against melee attacks, increases health. Champion's Gauntlets - Increases health and damage. Custom Greaves - Increases speed and health. Teleporter - Enables teleportation. ------------------- Chaos Space Marines ------------------- Manreaper - Replaces standard power sword, increases melee damage. Accursed Crosius - Requires Manreaper, increases melee damage. Plasma Pistol - Replaces standard bolt pistol, increases ranged damage. Melta Gun - Requires Plasma Pistol, increases ranged damage. Helm of Lorgar - Reveals infiltrated units, increases melee damage and health. Daemonic Armour - Protects against melee attacks, greatly increases health. Daemonic Gauntlets - Increases damage and health. Runic Boots - Grants immunity to knockdown, increases health. Banner of Chaos - Damage enemy morale, increases health. Daemonic Ascension - Requires all other wargear, Commander permanently ascends to become a Daemon Prince. ----- Eldar ----- Witchblade - Replaces standard power sword, increases melee damage. Singing Spear - Requires Witchblade, increases melee damage. Shuriken Pistol - Replaces basic pistol, increases ranged damage. Twin Shuriken Pistol - Requires Shuriken Pistol, increases ranged damage. Ghosthelm - Increases ability recharge rate and health. Wraithbone Armour - Greatly increases health. Gauntlets of Isha - Increases ability recharge rate and health. Runes of Warding - Protects against ranged attacks, increases health. Runes of Witnessing - Reveals infiltrated enemies, increases ability recharge rate. Rune Aura - Greatly increases regeneration of Farseer and nearby allies. ---- Orks ---- Bigga Claw - Replaces standard claw, increases melee damage. Mega Claw - Requires Bigga Claw, increases melee damage. Kustom Shoota - Replaces standard shoota, increases ranged damage. Mega Blaster - Requires Kustom Shoota, increases ranged damage. Big Horns - Increases melee damage and health. Red Iron Gob - Increases melee damage and health. Mega 'Eavy Armour - Greatly increases health. Fasta Legs - Increases speed and health. Skullz - Damages enemy morale, increases health. Boss Pole - Increases Ork population and vehicle cap, increases health. -------------- Imperial Guard -------------- Master-Crafted Power Claws - Replaces standard power claws, increases melee damage. Power Fists - Requires Master-Crafted Power Claws, increases melee damage. Storm Bolter - Replaces standard Bolter, increases ranged damage. Plasma Pistol - Requires Storm Bolter, increases ranged damage. Targeting Optics - Reveals infiltrated units, increases ranged damage. Carapace Pauldrons - Protects against ranged attacks, increases health. Carapace Chest Plate - Protects against ranged attacks, increases health. Carapace Greaves - Increases movement speed and health. Victory Sash - Increases Morale of all Guardsmen squads, increases overall requisition rate. Governor's Raiment - Adds Squad and Vehicle Cap, allows Kasrkin bodyguard in Command Squad. ------------------------------------------------ 7 - SINGLE PLAYER STRATEGIES - DOW-SPLS ------------------------------------------------ This section contains, as the name suggests, strategies to use against the AI, including the specific scenarios which have special victory conditions. It is grouped by army, enemy, bonus dependent scenarios (the battles played on provinces providing special bonuses), and stronghold battles, which also have their own special victory conditions. As noted in the introduction, the strategies outlined are fairly basic, my aim is to provide simple and effective tips and tactics now, and add more complex and advanced strategies over time, along with reader contributions. ------------------------------------------------ 7.0.1 - GENERAL STRATEGIES - DOW-GNST ------------------------------------------------ This is a brief outline of tried and tested RTS strategies, which can prove effective in Dawn of War for most, if not all of, the races. ------- Rushing ------- Ah, the rush; the quintessential RTS strategy. If done correctly, it can provide almost universal victory in any number of real time strategy games, and it works well in Dawn of War. Rushing in Dark Crusade can be very powerful, and will defeat the AI on normal in almost any situation. The nature of Dawn of War is actually very conducive to the rush. It emphasises action over resource gathering and base building, so it is quicker and easier to build an army and also means that an opponent's base will be small and closely grouped, making a successful rush much easier to perform. Rushing, for those of you who don't know, involves, as the name suggests, quickly training units and attacking the enemy as soon as possible. In Dawn of War you don't need to be that fast, at least not against the normal level AI, and if you attack within the first five minutes or so, you'll only need two or three infantry squads to reach the enemy's HQ building and destroy it. There are only two things which can hinder this strategy in the campaign. Firstly, enemy Honour Guards, which, if they are large enough, can blunt a rush and leave you vulnerable to a counter-attack, although, if you add the strength of your own Honour Guard you can often overcome this problem, and be sure to check the size of an enemy's Honour Guard before you start the battle to know whether a rush is feasible. The second thing is an enemy who is well entrenched in a given province, and thus has two bases. This can provide problems if you are unable to knock out the first enemy base, or you are unable to find one of the bases, as the second will develop to the point where it can repel your rush. ------------------------------------------------ 7.1 - BY ARMY - DOW-STBA ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------ 7.1.1 - NECRONS - DOW-NECS ------------------------------------------------ ---------- Basic Tips ---------- - The Necron economy relies on power; you don't even get requisition, so more Plasma Generators are needed than for other armies. - Don't neglect strategic points, you need them to increase the population and vehicle caps. Remember that these points mush have Listening Posts on them, and that only Builder Scarabs can capture points. - Necron infantry is slow, grouping your unit types by speed can provide a simple way to regulate the formation of your army as it moves across the battlefield and attacks opponents. - Necrons are proficient at both range and in melee, so it can be useful to create your army based on whichever your opponent is weakest at. - Upgrade your Listening Posts. They have more powerful weapons than other Races' Posts, and they can provide a valuable defence. - If you're going to use the Awakened Monolith, make sure you build a second one; sending your only HQ building out towards the enemy is not a smart thing to do. ---------------------- Strategies and Tactics ---------------------- Your objective in the single player campaign is (obviously) to win, and to do this you need to maximise your strengths and exploit the enemies weaknesses while protecting your own. This means you need to create an army which will be effective and efficient at what it does, and also be the deadliest one you can create against the particular race you are fighting. The Necrons are an easy race to achieve this, as their strengths are quite versatile, and their weaknesses are not very encumbering. Their speed is simply something you have to live with; an army is only as fast as it's slowest unit, and their cost can be overcome with an effective use of Necron Warriors (which are free to create), so that you can use early power resources to create Plasma Generators. Their offensive capabilities are extremely useful and just about take care of themselves; building an army based on Warriors supported by Immortals, Pariahs and Destroyer variants will be capable of fighting both at range and in melee. This really comes into play when you consider the Necrons' toughness. Their health and armour, combined with the chance to get back up after being killed (not to mention the Resurrection Orb, an upgrade for the Lord which allows the resurrection of all dead Necrons in the area around the Lord), make them able to withstand attacks that would destroy other armies. This allows you more time to change your tactics should you come across a specialised enemy; if you're suddenly attacked by a Tau army with a million guns, you'll have more than three seconds to get your troops moving in to melee before it's too late and you're reduced to a heap of molten slag. If you're planning on rushing with your Necrons, you'll need to be quicker getting your army on its way than you would for other races, as it'll take them longer to reach the enemy base. You'll only really need three squads of Warriors, plus an Honour Guard that you may have, and you should be able to take out the enemy base with ease. If you're fighting an enemy with two bases, keep training troops after your first rushing force has left, just in case you have trouble finding one of the bases or you encounter more resistance than expected. ------------------------------------------------ 7.1.2 - TAU - DOW-TAUS ------------------------------------------------ ---------- Basic Tips ---------- - The Tau themselves don't do well in melee. If the enemy gets close you need to make sure you troops can retreat to keep shooting. - The Kroot and Vespid are useful auxiliaries, even of all you use them for is to provide a screen for your Fire Warriors. - Unlike other races, Tau can't build defensive turrets, so leaving more troops to defend at your base can be a good idea. Deployed Broadsides are great for this purpose. - At the upper technology tiers, you should decide between using the Mont'ka Command or the Kauyon Command, depending which one suits your style. You don't have to use either, but they provide bonuses you wouldn't otherwise get, so you should use one of them. - Tau aren't cheap, so make sure you always keep a good economy, and always upgrade Listening Posts near your base for that extra defensive boost. ---------------------- Strategies and Tactics ---------------------- The biggest strength the Tau have is their ranged attacks. The Tau can shoot really well, thus the backbone of your army should be Fire Warriors supported by Battlesuits and vehicles sporting bigger guns. You also shouldn't overlook the Kroot and Vespid; they have melee skills which can hold an enemy in place while you shoot them or other parts of the enemy army. These troops also have a less obvious benefit. If you send them at the enemy while your Tau units stay back, you'll increase the line of sight distance and allow you to shoot from farther away (some Tau troops can actually shoot further than they can see!!) One of the tricks to using the Kroot and Vespid effectively is knowing how many you need. Having a few squads means they can survive longer and do more damage in combat, but for every squad you have, that's one less squad of guns, which is where the Tau really excel. You should also steer clear of using an army composed almost entirely of Kroot and Vespid, while it isn't automatically doomed to failure, I've found that they don't always do so well; unsurprisingly, the auxiliaries work best when used in an auxiliary role. As for the minimising the Tau weaknesses, your first and foremost consideration should be keeping them away from all enemies, especially those proficient in melee combat. Fire Warriors are some of the worst melee fighters in the game, so you want to keep them in a position where they won't have to fight against anything, to both minimise the weakness and maximise the strength (they can't shoot if they're in melee). If an enemy army happens to come charging at you, you're confronted with an interesting problem. You may be tempted to leave your troops where they are if you think you can destroy the enemy before they reach you, be warned that if they fail you'll be in big trouble. In the long run you're better off forsaking the extra fire in favour of moving your forces out of harms way, or better yet, use Kroot and Vespid to keep them safe without having to move them. Rushing with Tau can be easy if you can establish a solid economy. Only a few squads of Fire Warriors are necessary for a rush, but since they cost 210 requisition to train, and you need to spend that much again to get them from three warriors to six, if you don't have the economy or the Honour Guard, then it may not be the best idea. One more thing, if you get far enough along the technology tree, you'll be able to train an Ethereal. The Ethereal is quite powerful, not because of his abilities but rather the bonuses he provides to all Tau on the battlefield (increases in health, morale and damage). The downside is that all Tau will suffer temporary, but large losses in each of those stats should the Ethereal die, so it can be a good idea just to leave him in the protection of your base. ------------------------------------------------ 7.1.3 - SPACE MARINES - DOW-SPMS ------------------------------------------------ ---------- Basic Tips ---------- - A couple of units of Scouts in the early days can be useful for capturing Strategic Points and, once the Infiltration research is complete, scouting the enemy position. - Tactical Marines are the backbone of the Space Marine army, start making squads as soon as you have a barracks and keep making them. - Grey Knights, the new unit for the Space Marines, are a potent unit, capable of taking on infantry at range or in melee, and vehicles and buildings in melee. They're not invincible though, and need support or they'll end up dead really quickly. - With the heavy weapon capacity upgrade, tactical squads can wield five heavy or special weapons, so use them all. The most effective way to do this is with five of the same weapon, to create a squad that is extremely effective at it's given role. - Terminators and Assault Terminators no longer require a Relic to train, but are limited to one unit of each type. Use both if you get that far along the technology tree, they are very powerful, provided they receive good support. - Space Marine Honour Guard infantry units are single marines rather than whole squads, grouping them together with your Commander and the Librarian, and a squad of Assault Marines for extra support can create a very strong melee unit to spearhead any attacks. ---------------------- Strategies and Tactics ---------------------- Space Marines, being the most versatile race in the game, have plenty of strengths, allowing you to easily create an army which is designed to exploit the weaknesses of the enemy. This means that, on the most basic level, you should compose you army with units your enemy will have problems dealing with; a melee based army against Tau, a range based army against Chaos and so on. You need to be wary of enemies who are also quite versatile, particularly Necrons, and against them you need to decide at the outset what you want your army to do and stick to it, rather than trying to cover all your bases, which can leave you vulnerable to a more concentrated foe. If you're unsure as to your final army composition, a few tactical squads are a good place to start. Reinforce them and equip them with heavy weapons, support them with vehicles that can take on opponents the marines can't, and make sure to research at least some of the upgrades, they can be very helpful. If you're looking for a fast strike army, Assault Marines and Landspeeders can be effective at fast attacks; groups of Landspeeders can be surprisingly effective against buildings, are cheap and only take one slot in the vehicle cap, while the Assault Marines can take down vehicles if equipped with Melta Bombs. To take out an enemy quickly, this force can be easily used, as to win a campaign battle all you have to do is destroy your opponents HQ building. This army is somewhat fragile for Space Marines though, so if you aren't successful quickly, you'll need to get out of there or you'll be in trouble. One of the biggest weaknesses of the Space Marines can be the economy, in order to build and maintain a force, you need to make sure you have a good requisition and, particularly, power rate, if you're unable to do this you'll be overrun very quickly. The key here is to take as many Strategic Points as you can, but stop before you overextend yourself. If this happens and your points are attacked, you may have to just let some of them go; if you try to take too much rope, you may very well end up hanging yourself. ------------------------------------------------ 7.1.4 - CHAOS SPACE MARINES - DOW-CSMS ------------------------------------------------ ---------- Basic Tips ---------- - Cultists are useful in the early days for capturing Strategic Points, but after that, really can't do much. - Chaos Space Marines don't have nearly as many weapon upgrade options as their good-guy counterparts, your best bet is Heavy Bolters, in large numbers they are devastating anti-infantry weapons, and can take on some vehicles and buildings. - Chaos Space Marines can now infiltrate, which, combined with the new infiltration rules allowing units to attack while still concealed, makes them quite scary; a few squads with Heavy Bolters that the enemy can't attack without a unit that can detect them can provide a disturbingly powerful stealth attack. - Raptors and Khorne Berzerkers make a good backbone for a melee based army, and are quite fast, making rapid assaults a real possibility. - Possessed Marines are now limited to only one squad, but with other melee squads they are still very powerful, provided you upgrade them. - The new Chaos Space Marine unit, the Daemon Prince, is a powerful unit and adds a lot of punch to an army, but like other, similar units, will be easily outclassed if not supported. Also, given you need all other wargear to have your Lord become a Daemon Prince, it will be late in the campaign before you'll be able to use him. - Defilers make good melee support units, but if you need ranged support, use Predators upgraded to take on vehicles and buildings, they'll still be somewhat effective against infantry. ---------------------- Strategies and Tactics ---------------------- Chaos Space Marines thrive on melee combat; they're fast, powerful, tough, and more numerous than Space Marines. Admittedly they do break more easily, but if you compose your army well, most of your squads will be immune to breaking. When you first start out you'll won't have access to some of your best melee units, use Cultists and Chaos Marines to capture Strategic Points and build an economy, and don't be afraid to use the Forced Labour ability of the Heretic builders. Yes, it will kill them, but they'll build that much faster, and they're cheap and quick to replace, so you can build up a base quite quickly. Once your cultists are finished capturing points, feel free to get rid of them, but keep the Chaos Marines. In fact, two or three squads in addition to your main force of melee fighters will provide great fire support, especially if you research the Infiltration ability, because the enemy will be distracted by the melee squads and thus less likely and less able to send a unit to detect the infiltrated marines, leaving them quite safe while they whittle away at the enemy with their heavy bolters. If you gain access to Possessed Marines, don't hesitate to use them, they make the perfect spearhead for a fast attack. One of the keys for a successful melee based assault is to swamp the enemy, and with a good composition you can do this. Sending your possessed and Khorne Berzerkers straight into the enemy base will draw all the defensive forces out, which provides a great opportunity to drop your Raptors in at the side or rear of the base, where they can use their Melta Bombs to deal some serious damage to vital enemy buildings. The other nasty surprise you can use, if you take the time to research far enough along the technology tree, is the Bloodthirster. Having your army reinforced by a Bloodthirster springing out of nowhere (well, actually out of an Aspiring Champion) while in the middle of the enemy army or base is a great thing. In terms of vehicle support, Defilers are useful if you want something to get stuck in next to your melee troops, but don't count too much on their ranged abilities. If you want so anti-tank punch from your ranged support, take upgraded Predators, Chaos Marines don't have access to dedicated anti-tank weapons and Defilers tend to be inaccurate with their main gun (which is only to be expected, they are the Chaos artillery). If you plan on rushing with your Chaos, make it a melee rush using Raptors and, if you're quick enough, Khorne Berzerkers. It can be done with chaos Marines, but a melee oriented rush will be easier and more efficient. Chaos' two biggest weaknesses are firstly, their ranged power, although this isn't a huge problem unless you try to take on an enemy with a dedicated ranged army (which may still not be a problem, unless the enemy is able to shoot you back, in which case you could very well end up being outshot). Secondly is cost. It takes a lot of resources to research some of the technologies which make Chaos as deadly as they can be, and to be most effective with Chaos, you need to be fast, so take a similar approach to the Chaos economy as you would to the Space Marines; build plenty of Plasma Generators early on, and take as many points as you can, placing Listening Posts on all of them, but don't over-extend yourself. ------------------------------------------------ 7.1.5 - ELDAR - DOW-ELDS ------------------------------------------------ Note: I don't play with the Eldar very much, so the strategies here will be quite basic, I hope to improve them over time. ---------- Basic Tips ---------- - Eldar are fast, probably the fastest race in the game, use this to your advantage; it's helpful in a rush or a stealth attack, as well as many other situations. - Eldar are fragile, throwing them headlong at the enemy will almost always result in disaster. But if you do have to run away, at least you've got the speed to do it. - Eldar builders, Bonesingers, can teleport, so use this ability if you need to repair a building that's far away. It can also be helpful in expanding your base; teleport your Bonesingers, make a Webway Gate to make a control zone, and then start building. - Webway Gates have the ability to infiltrate all units and buildings around them, once you research the technology. This is infinitely useful, so make sure you've got plenty around to conceal your base. - Guardians are useful in the early game, but once you get going you should devote more of the squad cap to Aspect troops, who are more specialised and thus more efficient at what they do. - While the Eldar have a few good melee units, their lack of toughness means they don't fare well in melee against enemies who can fight back. Consider range based armies against Chaos and Orks, particularly. - Eldar have a lot of technology and special abilities, many of these are extremely beneficial, so don't be afraid to spend resources on them. ---------------------- Strategies and Tactics ---------------------- The Eldar's greatest strengths are speed and stealth, so use them to your advantage. Firstly, stealth have both offensive and defensive capabilities; you can stealth your whole base using Webway Gates, this means that an enemy attack must include units which can detect infiltrated units, or it will come to literally nothing; they won't be able to attack you, while all your defensive forces can destroy them at their leisure. It's also a good idea to build a Webway Gate at each of your Listening Posts to further defend them against attack. In an offensive role stealth is much more limited, due to the fact that only Rangers can infiltrate; a few squads of them can make a great scouting party which is potent against infantry, but this is really the only directly offensive tactic using stealth. Rangers can be used to scout the enemy position though, and can be used in a defensive role, positioned outside the main base as spotters in order to see the enemy coming from farther away. Speed is much more offensive, and can be used in several ways. It's a great strength to have for those planning to rush, as it will allow you to cross the map much more quickly, and also allow you to spend some time looking for the enemy base if you have trouble finding it. Lightning attacks are a great strategy of attack for the Eldar, several Aspect Warrior squads; Dark Reapers, Fire Dragons etc., and a Seer Council if you can afford it, supported by Vypers, Falcon Grav Tanks and Fire Prisms can strike very hard and fast, just remember to use Fleet of Foot when you're moving your army into position. An effective variation of this strategy is to have a second, smaller group of only a couple of squads of Guardians and a couple of Vypers or Falcons. Attack first and from a different position with your small force, to draw the enemy out. When they take the bait, start moving the small force away while your main army moves in to strike against the now open base. You need to be sure to keep your diversionary force in there as long as possible though, as the enemy AI is smart enough not to follow too far. The Eldar have a big weakness; toughness, or specifically their total lack of it. Avoid direct confrontations with an enemy army wherever possible, the speed of the Eldar allows for quick withdraws, and the enemy usually breaks off pursuit quite quickly if they are being outpaced, so keeping out of trouble isn't that hard. You have to make sure you dictate the situation, because if you're your attacks could end very quickly and messily. ------------------------------------------------ 7.1.6 - ORKS - DOW-ORKT ------------------------------------------------ Note: I don't play with the Orks very much, so the strategies here will be quite basic, I hope to improve them over time. ---------- Basic Tips ---------- - Gretchin are free but also die pathetically easily, so make sure you keep training them. - The Orks are great in melee, so build your army around close combat with fire support. - The Orks achieve real superiority when they are able to bog the enemy down with large numbers, so whatever you do, keep training infantry. - Ranged support in an Ork army should come primarily from vehicles, Looted Leman Russ', Wartraks and Wartrukks can all provide good fire support. - Killa Kans are great combat support units, they are incredibly tough, and can inflict large amounts of damage against most enemies. - Ork bases become very large and sprawling, you should keep building structures so that you can keep training Orks as often as possible. ---------------------- Strategies and Tactics ---------------------- ------------------------ Note on the Ork Resource ------------------------ The Ork resource allows you to train Orks. You increase it by building Waaagh! Banners, and, as you train more Orks, your Waaagh! meter increases, allowing you access to better units and technologies. So keep building Waaagh! Banners and training Orks! -------------- The Orks excel at two things; swamping their opponent with superior numbers and melee combat. These two things combine well to create a race that can be very powerful if used well. The first thing to note about the Orks is that their bases aren't exactly well organised. In fact, they're usually a total shambles; you need Waaagh!!! Banners to increase the number of Orks you can field, and there are numerous unit producing structures to build, so quite quickly you'll just end up throwing them wherever there's room. You should be making Gretchin constantly; they die really easily, so if you train them whenever you can you'll be able to keep building up your base. The other thing to do is to keep making structures whenever you have the requisition to do so, as the more Boyz Huts you have, the more Orks you can train quickly. This is important, as the Orks are best used in numbers to bludgeon the enemy, if your first attack is repulsed, then you can quickly follow up with a second. When it comes to attacking with Orks, there really isn't that much subtlety. You've got a lot of Orks to get across the battlefield and into combat, the easiest way is simply to charge with your giant horde. While you still don't want to run headlong into the enemy army, it is sometimes unavoidable due to the sheer size of your army. If you do get to the enemy base, let your army run rampant, attacking the enemy's HQ building primarily, because this is all you need to destroy to win in the campaign. If you do run into the enemy army, then it becomes a war of attrition, which is where that huge base comes in handy. If the two armies end up destroying each other, it simply becomes a race to rebuild your army more quickly than your opponent. If you can do this you should be able to get to the enemy base the second time round, or just keep training troops until you can overwhelm the enemy. If your army gets overrun, you'll be able to train squads to defend against the remains of the enemy army should it attack your base, and if you overrun the enemy, you should be able to get to their base and begin your attack while you train reinforcements. The fact that you won't be at full strength when you attack shouldn't be too much of a problem, as the enemy will have even less troops than you. The Orks primary weakness is a lack of concentrated firepower; the ranged capacity they do have is limited in terms of both numbers and effectiveness. This means that against enemies with dedicated shooting armies you need to close quickly or you'll suffer great losses without inflicting many in return. If you know you're up against an enemy with ranged power, move your army quickly and keep fast units like Rokkit Rangers at the front to engage the enemy and prevent them shooting at you while the rest of your army moves up to engage. ------------------------------------------------ 7.1.7 - IMPERIAL GUARD - DOW-IMGS ------------------------------------------------ ---------- Basic Tips ---------- - The Imperial Guard rely on number like the Orks, so start training guardsmen straight away and keep training them. - Imperial Guard require multiple Infantry Commands and Vehicle Commands to increase the population caps, but you're best off building one of everything first; you'll be onto your second barracks before you need the extra population anyway. - The Imperial Guard are most effective if you take the time to build a huge army; some of the best vehicles take a lot of research to build, so if you don't rush you're best off waiting until you're unstoppable. - The new Imperial Guard unit, the Heavy Weapons team, can be useful, while it's only one gun, the autocannon/lascannon can pack a punch, and, because it's only two guardsmen, it won't a attract a huge amount of attention. That, and it's also tougher than you'd think. - Guardsmen provide the best fire support if equipped with special weapons and upgraded, so build a Tactica Control early on and make sure to research as much as you can. - Use the Commissars, Sanctioned Psykers and Priests; they provide useful bonuses and special abilities. - Imperial Guard base have tunnels which allow infantry units to travel between structures. Admittedly this is most useful if you build two separate bases, but given the number of structures you need to build, this isn't always a bad idea. ---------------------- Strategies and Tactics ---------------------- The Imperial Guard's two biggest offensive strengths are numbers and ranged ability, so make sure you have both. You can train guardsmen from your HQ, so the first thing you should do, before you train any Techpriests, is to create a couple of squads to capture points. Then, once you have your Techpriests, you should keep training guardsmen. This is useful regardless of what you do, if you want to rush you'll need quite a few guardsmen to do so, and if you want to wait to create an all-powerful army, you'll need all the guardsmen you can get. You want to keep the requisition flowing in, because you need to make a lot of structures to get the most out of the Guard. This is made easier if you have more points to build around, but it's also worth noting that unit producing structures actually increase the control zone in which you can build. If you ever run out of room to build, and it does happen on some maps, send a Techpriest out to a different area (not too close to your initial base, this will make it harder for the enemy to destroy you, and build a second HQ to start a second base. Attacking the enemy can require some coordination, more so than other races, because with so many guardsmen and vehicles, you'll need to be careful how you approach the enemy base, or you could end up trying to force your army through a chokepoint and feeding them to the enemy piecemeal. Attacking from multiple angles is a good way to avoid this problem, send your infantry in on one side, then when the enemy troops rush at them, send your tanks in on the other side to start blowing up buildings. An important thing to remember with the Guard is that, generally speaking, they are designed to destroy their equivalent; tanks are designed to take on vehicles and infantry to take on infantry. The upside to this though, is that Imperial Guard tanks have so many guns on them they're good at taking out infantry as well, so leading an assault with your tanks can be devastatingly effective. Normally I don't really use artillery, but the Basilisk is too useful to pass up. It has tremendous range and hitting power, so camp a couple out behind a ridge opposite the enemy base while the rest of your army goes in, just make sure you tell the Basilisks to shoot an area away from your troops, because that fire is anything but friendly. What really makes the Basilisk great though, is its ability to fire special shells. These do outrageous amounts of damage, and, because you get to manually select the target location, are incredibly accurate. The Imperial Guard have a couple of weaknesses. Firstly, they don't do melee combat well. If it's nothing really serious, they can survive, but you can't win battles up close with them. The best way to combat this is to kill the enemy before it reaches you, and, while this is easier said than done, if you concentrate your fire you can usually get the AI to pull his troops back once they start taking heavy losses, giving you time to shoot as they run away, and keeping you out of combat. The other thing to be wary of, with regard to infantry, is toughness. Guardsmen die pretty quickly when faced with serious opposition, so you need to be ready to reinforce them. This can be done quickly and cheaply, but you have to be on the ball to keep the production queues up. Finally, the Imperial Guard can be vulnerable to a mid-game attack. They don't reach full strength until late game, so you could find the enemy on your doorstep mid-game with a force that you may struggle to defeat. If you have a lot of guardsmen (you are still training them, right?), and a good Honour Guard, you should be able to take care of it, but you won't have much in the way of vehicle support, so you need to be careful and bring heavy tanks into play as soon as possible. ------------------------------------------------ 7.2 - BONUS DEPENDENT SCENARIOS - DOW-BDSC ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------ 7.2.1 - PAVONIS - DOW-PAVO ------------------------------------------------ Objective: Find six Servitors and return them to your base before the enemy does. The bonus for Pavonis is the Spaceport; a Techpriest found the Spaceport's ancient systems and left his Servitors to investigate, so the first faction to bring six Servitors back to their base will gain control of the Spaceport. This battle can be played without a direct confrontation with the enemy, but it may be necessary to go into their base to steal the Servitors they've captured (there are 10 Servitors in total). When you begin the mission there will be three Strategic Points around your base, and a Servitor near the northern-most one. Capture the points and post them; the more troops you can train in this mission, the easier it'll be. Once you have a couple of squads of basic infantry trained, send them out to look for Servitors, when they find one it'll automatically head back to your HQ, but if you don't shepherd it back it may very well be intercepted by the enemy. Keep sending out troops as you train them, and you should find three or four quite quickly. At this point it's actually easier, and safer, to steal the two or three at the enemy base. Now the enemy actually has two bases, one in the north corner and one in the south corner, but the Servitors are almost always at the north base, so head there will a few squads and destroy the base (the resistance should be quite low, as most of their troops are out looking for Servitors). Once it's destroyed shepherd the Servitors back to your base. Once you have five you're pretty much safe; the enemy has to steal one of yours to win. If you have trouble finding the last ones, try heading over to the far east side of the battlefield, where they're usually not picked up by the enemy. If you're having trouble finding any at all, you can go the cheap route of building up a force, waiting until the enemy has four, then going in and stealing them, then repeating the process to win, that way the enemy does all the hard work. Just be sure to move in before he could get the necessary six (you receive a notification every time they find one, and you should never let him get five at once). Alternately you can just destroy the enemy, that works just as well. ------------------------------------------------ 7.3 - STRONGHOLDS - DOW-STHD ------------------------------------------------ ------------------------------------------------ 10 - FAQs - DOW-FAQS ------------------------------------------------ None yet. ------------------------------------------------ 11 - E-MAIL POLICY - DOW-EPOL ------------------------------------------------ Questions, comments, critiques? Email me at [email protected], and let me know what you think. And make sure you put the words Dawn of War in the topic or it just might get deleted as spam. What and what not to email me with are as follows: What to email me with: 1. - Constructive criticism about my FAQ. Let me know if you found it useful, what you liked and didn't like, and anything you had trouble understanding. Anything that can help me improve the quality of the FAQ is greatly appreciated, so please tell me what you thought of it. 2. - Helpful tips or other info about Dark Crusade not already included in the FAQ. 3. - Mistakes I've made in the FAQ. 4. - If you need help with the downloaded content and the answer is not already covered in the FAQ. Also, I'm an Aussie, so if you're emailing me about a typo, make sure its actually a typo, not just a word spelled differently between Australian/ American English. I know its a pretty insignificant detail in this FAQ, but you'd be surprised how many people emailed me about my GT4 Tuning FAQ saying that the word tyre is spelt with an i. What not to email me about: 1. - Anything that has nothing to do with the Dawn of War: Dark Crusade. 2. - Anything that has already been covered in the FAQ. 3. - SPAM, I hate it as much as everyone else. ------------------------------------------------ 12 - THANKS AND COPYRIGHT INFORMATION - DOW-TCPR ------------------------------------------------ Thanks go to the following people: You - for reading my FAQ. Relic - for making such a great game. CJayC - for running the best video game site for all these years. Mike Walker - for his numerous and hilarious contributions to the Games Workshop magazine, White Dwarf (The quote in Section 5 is from the WD 261 article 'To Kill a Bloodthirster'). And anyone else I forgot to thank. ---------------------------------- Websites with permission to post this FAQ: gamefaqs.com ------------ This FAQ may be not be reproduced, in part, or full, under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and is a violation of copyright. This FAQ Copyright(c)2007 Michael Green aka NightmareHunter.
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