Upcoming RTS Dawn of War 4 has a new CGI trailer to reveal the Adeptus Mechanicus, but it was the depiction of Necrons that sparked a debate within the Warhammer 40,000 community.
The trailer acts as an introduction to the Adeptus Mechanicus, the Imperium-aligned faction within the Warhammer 40,000 universe that’s made up of cybernetically enhanced, technology-obsessed warrior priests who worship the Omnissiah, aka the Machine God.
Things start off well enough, with Magos Dominus Nulpherus-1 and a fellow tech priest descending into what they believe to be a long-buried Necron tomb while on the hunt for lost knowledge. As you’d expect, the Necrons wake up, and based on how well they perform out in the field here, they should have stayed asleep.
Here’s the official blurb on what happens next, courtesy of publisher Deep Silver and developer KING Art Games:
Necron forces begin to awaken, turning a calculated exploration into a chaotic firefight within the collapsing ruins. With the situation rapidly spiralling out of control, Magos Nulpherus-1 is forced into a fighting retreat.
Salvation comes in the form of Sicarian Ruststalkers, cutting through the darkness as the Adeptus Mechanicus make their escape. What starts as a mission of discovery quickly becomes a battle to survive.
The thing is, the Necrons are next to useless in this battle. They slowly move forward firing their xenos weapons with all the accuracy of a drunk Stormtrooper, conveniently taking it in turns to miss shot after shot. When they do get into melee range, they crumble like plastic toys. And yes, they eventually overwhelm their foe, but only after extreme, perhaps improbable losses against just two Adeptus Mechanicus.
It’s fair to say Warhammer 40,000 fans have picked up on this, with a stream of comments across the likes of YouTube, Warhammer 40,000 subreddits, and even IGN’s own comments calling out the depiction of the Necrons here.
“Dude, did these Necrons roll all 1's with 20 dice?” said one fan. “Those necrons got teleported from the Star Wars universe,” said another. “You know the new faction has plot armor when they are presented,” another fan commented. “I don't know whether to laugh or cry,” another said. “The strongest Tech Priest in all 40,000 years,” another joked. You get the idea.
For me, this Adeptus Mechanicus trailer isn’t the best we’ve seen board the Dawn of War 4 hype train. Previous trailers focused on the Space Marines were much better, and even confirmed some pretty exciting gameplay features. But this is just a CGI trailer after all. It’s not gameplay, and that’s what really counts.
Dawn of War 4 is still without a release date, but we can expect a release on PC at some point this year. fingers crossed the next faction reveal trailer isn't so one sided.
Wesley is Director, News at IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.
