Here's 13 Minutes Of Total Warhammer Battling
Defence is the best form of defence
Total War: Warhammer [official site], The Creative Assembly's adaptation of Games Workshop's warworld, will be storming a virtual battlefield near you in less than two months' time. Until then, below is an almost-13-minute look at some of the key battle mechanics you'll want to get to grips in your quest to conquer the war zone.
My relationship with Total Wars games is an odd one. I've played many of them, you see, and yet have mastered not one of them. I've sunk hundreds of hours into 'masterminding' strategies and tactics and formations, but still the death toll in a typical game of Total War for me is equivocal to that of most other folk playing Dark Souls blindfolded. And yet I love it.
Total War: Warhammer is shaping up to be the prettiest looking one yet, so let's have a gander at this particularly defensive battle setup on the off chance you're like me and are really keen to learn the art of survival:
When Total War: Warhammer was first announced, I was a little concerned about how magic would fit into its combat. As you'll see there, however, for all it's clear the dark arts can play an important role in battle, its application is decidedly measured and is never allowed to commandeer fights completely. Another point of interest as seen above is that Warhammer sees the return of Guard Mode (rejoice!) - a feature that ensures troops stay put in predetermined positions, even supposing a unit should triumph over another. Which, as I say, is a rarity in my games. When my guys stay put, it's because they're six feet under.
Anyway, I'm sure you're a much better brawler than I, which is something you can freely demonstrate come April 28th, when Total War: Warhammer is due to launch.