The new spells of Total War: WARHAMMER III
Total War: WARHAMMER III
Welcome back to TotalWar.com – let’s get magical. One thing that sets the Warhammer world apart from our own boring, drab one is the ability for individuals to summon devastating power as if from nowhere, decimating legions of enemies with a snap of their fingers, should they have spent appropriate time studying and becoming a master of the mystical arts.
Spells are a major part of battle gameplay in Total War: WARHAMMER, and we’ve got plenty of new ones in the third installment. The powers of each Chaos God and the harmonic forces of Yin and Yang are brought to the fore. Let’s dive in.
Lore of Tzeentch
- Blue Fire of Tzeentch (Magic Missiles)
- With a twist of the hand, the spellcaster causes the bodies of their opponents to be consumed by coruscating blue flames.
- Single-target magic-missile that applies the Warpflame! debuff, increasing fire damage received.
- Overcast version deals increased armour-piercing damage.
- Pink Fire of Tzeentch (Breath)
- A roiling tide of iridescent energy flows from the spellcaster, enveloping their enemies in a cone of searing magical flame.
- Conal damage spell, inflicting the Warpflame! debuff.
- Overcast version deals bonus damage.
- Treason of Tzeentch (Hex (Area))
- The spellcaster whispers into the enemies’ minds, subtly stoking the fires of mistrust and treachery.
- Lowers the leadership of all enemies affected in an area.
- Overcast version also lowers melee attack.
- Glean Magic (Hex of the Winds)
- Reaching into his enemy’s mind, the spellcaster steals their sorcery for his own diabolical use.
- Increases your army’s power recharge speed and reserves pool, while decreasing the enemy’s.
- Overcast version lasts longer.
- Tzeentch’s Firestorm (Vortex)
- Blistering balls of scarlet flame emanate from the spellcaster to engulf the foe in deadly balefire.
- Three pillars of flame move randomly around the target area, dealing damage and applying Warpflame!
- Overcast version deals increased armour-piercing damage.
- Infernal Gateway (Vortex)
- A portal to the Realm of Chaos opens, a magical tear in the mortal plane that sucks those nearby inside to face certain madness, if not their doom.
- Massive, stationary area damage.
- Overcast version deals increased armour-piercing damage.
Lore of Slaanesh
- Lash of Slaanesh (Breath)
- The exquisite kiss of the Dark Prince’s three-tailed whip strikes the enemy with a delicious fury.
- Conal damage spell that sends enemies flying.
- Overcast version deals increased armour-piercing damage.
- Acquiescence (Hex)
- The spellcaster’s corrupting touch puts their victims into a blissful, euphoric state for a short time, rendering them little able to move, let alone defend themselves.
- Decreases speed and melee defence of a target unit.
- Overcast version has a large effect on speed.
- Hysterical Frenzy (Augment)
- The caster’s victims are engulfed by a torrent of unreasoning emotion, excruciating pain and blissful rapture, causing them to embark on a riotous, clawing rampage.
- Buffs the armour-piercing weapon damage and melee attack of a target unit, as well as giving them the Rampage! Attribute.
- Overcast version further increases armour-piercing weapon damage.
- Pavane of Slaanesh (Direct Damage)
- Whistling one of Slaanesh’s perverse darkling dances causes the foe’s bones to jerk spasmodically until they break.
- Deals damage over time and reduces the melee attack of a target unit.
- Overcast version increases duration (and thus, damage).
- Slicing Shards (Bombardment)
- A mirror forms in the sky, only to be shattered into a myriad of deadly shards that lacerate the enemy below.
- Bombards an area with damage from deadly, exploding glass shards.
- Overcast version deals increased damage.
- Phantasmagoria (Hex (Area))
- A complex sigil is performed, transfixing the enemy with a shifting array of hallucinatory images that disjoint and befuddle, inviting their deaths.
- Reduces the leadership and prevents movement of all units in an area.
- Overcast version lasts longer.
Lore of Nurgle
- Miasma of Pestilence (Hex)
- The most putrescent vapour fills the air, loosening lunches and bowels, and causing violent, crippling vomiting seizures in nearby foes.
- Target unit has reduced melee attack and charge bonus.
- Overcast version changes this to all units in a target area.
- Stream of Corruption (Breath)
- A poisonous spurt of diseased gas and bile spews forth from the spellcaster’s diseased lungs, drenching the enemy in vile, choking pus.
- Long, thin cone attack that leaves a trail of damaging poison, and applies Poison! to all enemies hit.
- Overcast version deals more damage.
- Curse of the Leper (Augment)
- As the caster speaks, his followers are blessed with resilience, whilst his enemies watch in horror as their limbs wither and drop off.
- Adds armour and damage reflection to a unit.
- Overcast version increases both values.
- Rancid Visitations (Direct Damage)
- The enemy is gifted the Plague Lord’s nightmarish necrosis, causing their skin to blacken and their internal organs to mulch.
- Pours filth over an enemy, dealing damage all the while.
- Overcast version lasts longer.
- Blight Boil (Explosion)
- This filthy, pulsating blister rapidly grows before suddenly bursting, showering the enemy with its disgusting fluid and all the maladies contained within.
- Creates a massive explosion at target area, after a short delay.
- Overcast version deals more damage.
- Fleshy Abundance (Regeneration)
- The most repulsive growth spurt imaginable occurs – the wobbling mounds of fat sealing wounds as soon as they are formed.
- Greatly replenishes the hitpoints of target unit.
- Overcast version changes to units within target area.
Lore of Yin
- Storm of Shadows (Hex)
- Ghostly shadows spring from the caster’s outstretched arms, enveloping the foe in dancing shades that make their footing uncertain and their vision confounded by the gloom.
- Greatly reduces the speed of a target unit.
- Overcast version changes to units within target area.
- Cloak of Jet (Hiding)
- This shadowy barrier of dark Yin energy turns aside enemy sorceries, protecting those within its midnight embrace from the elemental winds.
- Target unit gains Snipe, Stalk, and Unspottable traits.
- Overcast version increases the duration.
- Blossom Wind (Wind)
- A wind of leaves and blossoms rolls across the battlefield, cutting into the enemy with supernatural power and blinding them with its fury.
- Column damage spell that also inflicts Blinded!
- Overcast version deals additional armour-piercing damage.
- Missile Mirror (Hex)
- A magical of shifting darkness and howling wind snatches the enemy’s missiles from the air, even as they are fired, and hurls them back at their owners.
- Target unit’s projectiles are reflected back on it for a duration.
- Overcast version lasts longer and as a larger cast range, keeping your wizard safe from harm.
- Talons of Night (Vortex)
- An icy wind rolls out across the battlefield, filling those who enter its coiling gloom with panic and fear.
- Large, persistent, damaging vortex spell.
- Overcast version deals more damage.
- Ancestral Warriors (Summon Unit)
- The warriors’ ancestors are summoned from the underworld, rising up to strike at the enemy with a furious assault before vanishing into the earth once more.
- Summons a unit of Ancestral Warriors to fight for you. Ancestral Warriors are a strong Halberd Infantry unit. They will degrade over time.
- Overcast version has a longer cast range.
Lore of Yang
- Jade Shield (Ward Save)
- A blazing wind of light creates a potent barrier against harm, as well as invigorating all living things who shelter beneath its protection.
- Gives a unit significant damage resistance.
- Overcast version increases duration.
- Dragon’s Breath (Breath)
- If the enemy sees the Dragon in a single glance its fiery breath will burn them to cinders.
- Conal damage spell, applying a field of fire to burn enemies.
- Overcast version deals increased damage.
- Wall of Wind & Fire (Wind)
- A vortex of fire and wind distorts everything seen through it and sows disorder and confusion among the enemy, leaving them vulnerable.
- Wide, slow-moving wall of fire damage spell.
- Overcast version adds armour-piercing damage.
- Stone Ground Stance (Augment (Area))
- The Yang of all loyal Cathayans present comes to the fore, making even the humblest footsoldiers resolute and ready to fight and die where they stand.
- All units in an area receive extra mass, leadership, and the Expert Charge Defense trait.
- Overcast version effects a wider area.
- Might of Heaven & Earth (Augment)
- Soldiers present are filled with the pure power of the Yang, which makes them stronger and more skilled, and their weapons blaze with celestial energy.
- Imbues a unit with flaming, magical attacks and increases their melee attack, base damage and armour-piercing damage.
- Overcast version further increases these stats.
- Constellation of the Dragon (Explosion)
- Blazing starlight leaps from the Wizard’s fingertips, dancing and forming the constellation of the Dragon Emperor before descending upon the foe and exploding among their ranks.
- A great explosion that deals large damage in a big area.
- Overcast version deals more, armour-piercing damage.
Lore of Ice
- Ice Sheet (Hex (Area))
- Such is the volume of snowfall that Kislev’s enemies must wade through that the air itself becomes a near-opaque wall of ice no gaze can penetrate.
- All enemy units that enter an area have reduced speed and charge speed.
- No overcast version.
- Ice Maiden’s Kiss (Breath)
- The numbing kiss of winter is enough to have hoarfrost crystalise on the skin, chilling any creature to the bone.
- Short, wide conal attack that deals damage and applies the Frostbite! Debuff.
- Overcast version deals increased damage.
- Frost Blades (Augment)
- Crackling magical energy envelops the unit’s weapons, imbuing them with deadly new properties. Those impaled on these murderous blades will die in frozen agony.
- Imbues a unit with magical attacks and increased weapon damage, armour-piercing damage, and melee attack.
- Overcast version increases all these values.
- Death Frost (Direct Damage)
- Warriors shiver and shake in a wintry grasp until the piercing cold reaches their hearts and, finally, they move no more.
- Deals direct damage over time to a unit.
- Overcast version deals greater damage.
- Crystal Sanctuary (Augment)
- Constructs are woven from the ice itself, sheltering Kislev’s courageous soldiers from the onslaught of their foes.
- Target unit cannot move but has a massive increase in damage resistance.
- Overcast version changes this to all units in a target area.
- Heart of Winter (Direct Damage (Area))
- At one with the frozen plains and snowy tundra of Kislev, wherever this one goes, they bring the icy heart of the Motherland with them.
- Deals damage in an area and slows enemies, both values increasing over time as the storm gathers strength.
- Overcast version increases all values at all stages.
Lore of Tempest
- Gust of True Flight (Augment)
- Projectiles of all kinds can be fired faster and further, as if guided by a sentient essence deep within.
- Target unit gets bonus range and accuracy.
- Overcast version changes this to all units in an area.
- Hailstorm (Bombardment)
- A deluge of lacerating, fist-sized shards of ice falls from the sky, battering the foe into submission.
- A medium area is bombarded with explosive projectiles.
- Overcast version lasts longer and has more projectiles.
- Swiftwing (Augment (Area))
- The spellcaster and their allies become a blur of cyan energy which darts through the air at incredible speed before coalescing back into their natural form.
- All units in an area gain speed and a significant charge bonus increase.
- Overcast version has an increased affect area.
- Biting Wind (Wind)
- The Winds of Magic are gathered into a mighty, freezing gale that slashes at the enemy with icy shards.
- Long column damage spell.
- Overcast version deals more damage and more armour-piercing damage.
- Hawks of Miska (Vortex)
- The spellcaster summons frozen spirits of fear, hatred, and dread, that loose fearful cries, tormenting all others who bear witness.
- Randomly moving vortex that deals damage and applies Discouraged! to enemies.
- Overcast version deals increased damage.
- Blizzard (Vortex)
- Snow and ice rise from the land, freezing and blinding any and all in their path with an unnatural cold.
- Large damaging vortex that also applies Frostbite!
- Overcast version deals extra damage.
Those are the new lores coming to Total War: WARHAMMER III, though rumours abound of another source of power in the Cathayan borderlands. There are some new effects and new tech we’ve managed to implement, such as the multi-stage Heart of Winter and the projectile-reflecting properties of Missile Mirror. We hope you’re looking forward to unleashing these devastating powers on your enemies, hungry as they are for your lands and lives.
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