Total War: Warhammer 3 developer Creative Assembly has put patch 6.3 into beta, adding 20 new Unusual Locations that can dramatically alter campaign play. The update is currently in Steam beta while an AMD compatibility issue is resolved and is expected to go live this week, because some landmarks can spread plagues or grant persistent campaign benefits.
Unusual Locations have been part of the series since Total War: Warhammer 2 and act as special landmarks that sometimes spawn inside settlements and change how a campaign is played. These new sites continue the mechanic’s tradition of offering tempting buffs with a downside, or outright dangerous traps masquerading as opportunities. Players can disable the four most game-balance altering locations in campaign settings if they want a steadier experience. Full details and the developer notes are available from Creative Assembly’s patch 6.3 notes, which list the additions and the beta status.
- Carnival of Chaos
- Warpstone Meteor Impact
- Dwarf Construction Company
- Abandoned Forge of Hashut
- Ogre Mercenary Camp
- Unearthed Tomb
- Primordial Spawning Pools
- Covenant of the Crimson Plague
- Sartosan Vault
- Cathayan Merchants
- Peg Street Pawnbroker
- Purple Hand Cult
- Underworld Sea Entrance
- Faulty Doomsphere
- A Dark Gift
- Unstable Chaos Portal
- Cult of the Crimson Skull
- Cult of Pleasure
- The Cabal
- Elven Enclave
Many of the new locations lean into the devil’s-bargain idea: a tempting benefit that brings long-term problems. The Faulty Doomsphere, for example, plants one of Ikit Claw’s Skaven weapons under a settlement and forces dealing with its consequences later. The Purple Hand Cult can corrupt a province for riches while spreading cults to other regions that are hard to remove until certain conditions are met. Two additions stand out for their potential to upend campaigns: the Covenant of the Crimson Plague and The Cabal.
Causing a pandemic with The Covenant of the Crimson Plague
The Covenant of the Crimson Plague is a Nurgle laboratory that offers powerful local and faction buffs while carrying an infection risk. Benefits listed include immunity to non-plague attrition for all armies, reduced Winds of Magic costs for spells, and a greatly improved replenish rate, including replenishment in foreign territory. The lab also corrupts the province with +20 Nurgle corruption, and it has three possible plagues that can break containment and spread each turn:
- The Crimson Fever (5% chance): This plague will infect the region the lab is located in, causing attrition, reducing unit stats, as well as region income and growth.
- The Crimson Pox (1% chance): This plague will infect your entire faction with the same debuffs as above.
- The Crimson Plague (0.01% chance): Now this is the world-ender. The Crimson Plague is worldwide, disabling replenishment for all armies infected with it, as well as a 50% chance each turn to destroy a unit in said armies. Massive corruption strikes infected regions and there is a 30% chance per turn for a building to be destroyed. Settlements with no remaining buildings will, themselves, be destroyed.
Mitchell Heastie, Principal Live Designer at Creative Assembly, describes how containment failure changes campaign goals into survival: “If the Crimson Plague does ever seep out from the lab into the world then your campaign changes completely, changing from one of expansion into simply trying to be the last to survive.” Heastie recommends defending borders tightly if the lab appears, because infected armies spread the disease.
Time traveling with The Cabal
The Cabal is a Tzeentch cult that remembers player progress across multiple campaigns and can grant persistent, powerful effects if its tasks are completed. The cult offers tasks—such as acquiring many legendary lord traits—that, once fulfilled, cause the Cabal to disappear and then return in later campaigns stronger. The Cabal’s progression unlocks mechanics that can affect recruitment, settlement outcomes, and even cause enemy factions to be destroyed at very low odds as the cult grows in power.
- At 30% power level the Cult provides the “Expedited Schemes” effect: Each time you destroy an enemy faction you gain an effect, lasting one turn, that provides near-instance recruitment and construction
- At 50% power level the Cult provides the “Flawless Machinations” ability: After losing a settlement to an enemy there is a chance the invading force will be destroyed and the settlement returned to you
- At 70% power level the Cult provides the “Inevitable Consequences” ability: After conquering a region there is a chance you will automatically occupy the entire province
- Finally, at 90% power level the Cult provides the “Impossible Outcomes” ability: There is a (very) small chance that each turn that one of your enemies will have their faction be utterly destroyed
These mechanics are intentionally extreme, which explains why the four most disruptive locations can be toggled off in campaign options. Creative Assembly has flagged the potential for unexpected interactions as the cabal remembers player actions across campaigns, adding a persistent meta to what would normally be isolated playthroughs. The update is presently available in Steam beta while an AMD issue is addressed, and it is expected to be released publicly once that is resolved.
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