Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War 4 has a release date, and happily for fellow DoW fans it’s not too far away. The excellent-looking RTS sequel will launch on 17th September this year, with a fancier Commander Edition also getting you access a few days early, on 14th September, as well.
The news comes via the annual Warhammer Skulls showcase, where the series’ new, German developer King Art Games also laid out their plan for the first year of post-launch updates as well.
Soon after launch, there’ll be a mix of free updates and paid DLC for the game, we’re told. In autumn 2026, Crusade Mode returns, which sounds like a modernised version of the much-loved Dark Crusade campaign, where you work to gradually dominate a planet via a big, territory-based overworld map. There’ll also be new modes, map packs, and a mission editor to come too, plus additional commanders with their own crusade objectives.
As for the paid DLC, that comes in two main parts, both of which are included in the Commander Edition. The first is a Blood Ravens Story Prologue for the fan-favourite Space Marine faction. “Before war engulfs Kronus,” the blurb goes, “a Blood Ravens strike force returns to their ancestral homeworld of Aurelia. Guided by a legendary commander, their mission sets in motion events that will shape the fate of the Chapter. Fight through pivotal battles ignited by ancient relics.” No word on who that legendary commander is just yet.
There’s then an Aftermath Campaign Expansion, where you’ll be able to “command a powerful new faction as the war enters its next chapter. Aftermath continues the main campaign’s story in a narrative-driven expansion that explores the consequences of your victories — and the new threats set to reshape the battlefield.” That means a fifth faction, new commanders, and a big expansion to the Crusade Mode.
Meanwhile, in a meaty interview with our friends at IGN, King Art Games’ creative director Jan Theysen and senior game designer Elliott Verbiest teased a little more on those new factions, as well as talking a little more depth about the new campaign mode. (There’s lot’s of mentions of board games. As Theysen quipped: “We are German, so we do board games, right?”)
On the new factions front, in particular that fifth faction Theysen had this to say: “Obviously we can’t tell you what it is, but if you look at the history of Dawn of War and ask yourself, what could you expect from a Dawn of War game that maybe isn’t in Dawn of War IV, maybe you’re going in the right direction.” An educated guess from me would be Eldar. Surely!
_OJpP6g5.png?width=2048&height=2048&fit=bounds&quality=85&format=jpg&auto=webp)
As for the future ones, the developers said it would ultimately come down to how well the game fairs, which is to be expected. “This basically covers the first nine months after launch,” Theysen said. “After that, hopefully, if the game works well and everybody is excited, hopefully we can do more. But this is the plan we have so far.”
“I mean, if there is something that Warhammer 40K has, it’s a lot of factions, right?” He added. “So we would be very happy to have more of the game.”
Elliott Verbiest added, similarly: “Yeah. We’ve no shortage of options here, I think.”
Fair enough! If you’re in the mood for more grimdark titillation you can read more semi-subtle teases in that IGN interview. In the meantime, we’ve plenty more on the game, including my hands-on impressions from DoW 4’s first reveal (I liked it very much) and earlier interview with Verbiest and Theyson, too.
