Total War: WARHAMMER II moves the trilogy south to the New World, where High Elves, Dark Elves, Lizardmen and Skaven race to seize control of the Great Vortex above Ulthuan. The Eye of the Vortex campaign is a five ritual sprint with a final defensive battle at the end, which makes it far tighter and more directed than the sandbox of WARHAMMER III's Immortal Empires. Tomb Kings and Vampire Coast arrived as paid races with their own rules, one paying no upkeep but capped by unit limits, the other chasing Infamy and a star metal harpoon to kill the merwyrm Amanar.
Starting Total War: WARHAMMER II can feel overwhelming. This guide tells you exactly what to focus on during your first hours so you don't waste time on things that don't matter yet. For the full progression path, see our walkthrough.
What Kind of Game Is This?
Total War: WARHAMMER II is a strategy game built around Eye of the Vortex ritual race and Rites. The core loop involves mastering these systems to progress through increasingly challenging content.
What to expect: Time investment in learning mechanics, experimentation, and gradual mastery. The game rewards patience and knowledge.
Choosing Your First Build
| Build | Beginner Rating | Why |
|---|---|---|
| High Elves | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| Dark Elves | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| Lizardmen | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| Skaven | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
| Tomb Kings | Excellent for beginners | Balanced approach |
Our recommendation: Start with Dark Elves. It offers the most forgiving experience while teaching core mechanics.
Avoid Tomb Kings as your first pick. It requires deep knowledge of game systems to use effectively. Once you're ready, check our classes guide for all options.
First Session Step-by-Step
Step 1: Learn Eye of the Vortex ritual race
Each race performs five rituals to bend the Great Vortex to its will, gated behind a race specific resource. Completing the fifth gives you five turns before the final battle, which you fight as the defender while everyone else tries to stop you.
This is the foundation. Spend your first 15-30 minutes getting comfortable with how Eye of the Vortex ritual race works before worrying about anything else. Our combat guide breaks this down further.
Step 2: Head to Ulthuan
The ring shaped High Elf homeland with the Great Vortex at its centre, split into inner and outer kingdoms and defended by the best missile infantry on the map.
Clear the main content here before moving on. Everything teaches fundamentals you'll need later. See our maps guide for all locations.
Step 3: Get Your First Upgrade
Look for Witch Elves: it's the most accessible early upgrade. Dark Elf frenzied infantry with no armour and enormous attack output. They shred unarmoured targets and evaporate against anything that hits back properly.
Step 4: Understand Rites
Every race can pay gold for temporary faction wide effects, from campaign movement bonuses to recruitment discounts. The Dark Elf Black Ark rite is the standout, since it creates a mobile floating city rather than a timed buff.
This is the system most new players overlook. Invest time here early. It pays off throughout the entire game.
Step 5: Push to Naggaroth
The frozen Dark Elf continent to the north west, where Malekith rules from Naggarond and the coastline supports Black Ark operations.
Essential Mechanics Explained
Eye of the Vortex ritual race
Each race performs five rituals to bend the Great Vortex to its will, gated behind a race specific resource. Completing the fifth gives you five turns before the final battle, which you fight as the defender while everyone else tries to stop you.
Rites
Every race can pay gold for temporary faction wide effects, from campaign movement bonuses to recruitment discounts. The Dark Elf Black Ark rite is the standout, since it creates a mobile floating city rather than a timed buff.
Skaven food and under-cities
Food is the Skaven currency of stability. Drop below roughly 40 percent stocks and growth, leadership and public order all suffer. Skaven also plant Under-Cities beneath other races' settlements, siphoning income and corrupting from below.
Dark Elf slaves and Black Arks
Slaves come from winning battles and drive the Dark Elf economy, with several quests requiring specific slave counts or sacrifices. Black Arks are mobile cities that recruit, repair and bombard coastlines.
Mortal Empires campaign
Owning both WARHAMMER I and II unlocks Mortal Empires, a combined map covering the Old World and the New World with every race from both games. It is a sandbox with no ritual clock, which is the opposite experience to the Vortex campaign.
Common Beginner Mistakes
1. Completing rituals as fast as possible without garrisons in place, then losing the ritual settlements to the intervention armies they summon
2. Playing Skaven like a normal race and letting food fall below the threshold where public order and leadership start collapsing
3. Sitting at peace as Dark Elves, which starves the slave economy that funds the whole faction
4. Recruiting endless free Tomb Kings units without building the cap buildings that would let you field more of the good ones
5. Occupying every Vampire Coast port instead of establishing pirate coves, which trades free income for provinces you then have to defend
First 5 Hours Checklist
- Understand Eye of the Vortex ritual race and Rites
- Choose Dark Elves as starting build
- Clear Ulthuan main content
- Acquire Witch Elves or equivalent upgrade
- Reach Naggaroth
- Time your rituals around your army positions, because every completed ritual spawns Chaos and Skaven intervention armies at the settlements performing it.
- Do not start the fifth ritual until you can win a defensive battle, since finishing it gives you only five turns before the final battle arrives at your door.
Tips for New Players
- Time your rituals around your army positions, because every completed ritual spawns Chaos and Skaven intervention armies at the settlements performing it.
- Do not start the fifth ritual until you can win a defensive battle, since finishing it gives you only five turns before the final battle arrives at your door.
- As Skaven, watch the food stocks constantly. Falling to around 40 percent costs you growth, leadership and public order at the same time.
- Plant Skaven Under-Cities beneath wealthy enemy settlements rather than conquering them, because a cove of income and corruption costs no garrison to hold.
- As Dark Elves, never sit at peace for long. Slaves come from winning battles and several quest chains demand specific slave counts to progress.
- Use the Dark Elf Black Ark rite early, since a mobile city that recruits and repairs turns coastal raiding into a self sufficient campaign.
- As Lizardmen, expect Rampage on your own units when they take heavy losses, and keep a lord nearby to hold leadership together.
- As Tomb Kings, build unit cap buildings before anything else, because recruitment costs nothing and upkeep is zero, so caps are your only real limit.
- Hunt the nine Books of Nagash as Tomb Kings for faction wide bonuses, and spend Canopic Jars in the Mortuary Cult on items and Regiments of Renown.
- As Vampire Coast, build Infamy first, because legendary pirates only surface once your Infamy exceeds theirs, and each one carries a verse needed for the star metal harpoon.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is WARHAMMER II different from WARHAMMER III?
WARHAMMER II is built around the Eye of the Vortex, a race to complete five rituals on a map covering Ulthuan, Naggaroth, Lustria and the Southlands. WARHAMMER III is set in the Chaos Wastes with Kislev, Cathay and the Chaos gods, and its Immortal Empires campaign is a sandbox rather than a timed race.
Which race is best for a first campaign?
High Elves. Tyrion starts on Ulthuan with strong missile infantry, a manageable neighbourhood and an Influence system that lets you buy your way out of wars you are not ready for.
Do I need WARHAMMER I to play?
No. The Eye of the Vortex campaign is self contained. Owning the first game as well unlocks Mortal Empires, the combined Old World and New World sandbox map.
Are Tomb Kings and Vampire Coast included?
No, both are paid race packs. Tomb Kings recruit without cost or upkeep under unit caps and use the Mortuary Cult and Canopic Jars, while Vampire Coast chase Infamy, plant pirate coves and hunt the star metal harpoon to kill Amanar.
What happens when I finish the fifth ritual?
You get five turns of warning, then a final battle in which you are the defender. Every other race gets a chance to stop you, so bank a full army and a defensible settlement before you start it.
More Total War: WARHAMMER II Guides
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Total War: WARHAMMER II Overview
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Best Builds
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Tier List
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Walkthrough
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Tips & Tricks
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Weapons Guide
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Combat Guide
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Boss Guide
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Maps & Locations
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Crafting Guide
- Total War: WARHAMMER II Classes & Characters
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