Retrospective Review - Dawn of War: Dark Crusade

Third time's the charm as Dark Crusade continues to build upon the foundations of Dawn of War's brilliantly-executed approach to RTS, at the risk of a few potentially-ageing bugbears...
0:00 Introduction
0:44 Initial Impressions
1:29 Plot
3:16 Campaign
7:01 New Races & Units
11:32 Presentation
13:11 The Verdict

[@DarthDevorin]

This game introduced me to the Warhammer 40K universe.

[@captainkirk1945]

S ame

[@goodqualitysaltgg3297]

Same my guy

[@putinsharmalaimayum1411]

#Me too.

[@sethleoric2598]

Ye

[@umbraghosts9043]

Pretty sure you already have this but you should play the ultimate apocalypse mode it’s great

[@ShermTank7272]

2:12 Before I learned about Warhammer Fantasy I thought that "dwarf-tier grudge" meant a small-sized grudge. But now I know that is the _complete opposite_

[@KiraDidNoWrong8274]

Same lmao

[@CodexQuinn]

"SMALL? YE IMPLYIN DWARVES ARE 'SMALL?' THAT'S GOIN IN THE BOOK!"

[@GarkKahn]

A common mistake It's still going in the book tho

[@agentwash1]

I love that the necrons are slow as hell, it's reflective of the race itself. Necrons don't need to rush, they'll get there when they want to, entropy always wins

[@sernoddicusthegallant6986]

well i wouldnt say the necrons embody entropy... cant have entropy is everything is dead

[@lonecolamarine]

Unless you’re playing against the Eldar in singleplayer.

[@SirMcAwesome]

Funnily enough, Necrons were the best rush faction in multiplayer. You could very quickly get access to the units which wear human skin over their bodies, I forget the name. They are incredibly OP since you can spawn them anywhere on the map, they will borrow out of the ground. They deal a shit load of damage to infantry, armored units and buildings, and knockdown any infantry unit with their swipes so there is nothing beating them early. You would rush into buying 3-4 of these units, then walk your necron lord over to the enemy base, use his teleport ability to go right in the middle and the spawn the dudes out of the ground to fuck shit up. The other thing that made this almost unstoppable was that the Necron lord himself is OP and can best most other lords in melee at the start. It's cheesy as hell but i won a lot of games with this strat. There is also nothing stopping you from doing the same thing in campaign.

[@superspies32]

SirMcAwesome that’s called Frayer and I agree, only Battle sister squad can fight against 4-5 frayer squad. And also after a battle you can teleport them to the Mongolith and insert them inside that fucking pyramid while Necron lord finding next target

[@magosexploratoradeon6409]

@@SirMcAwesome They're usually called The Flayed Ones.

[@darthdangermouse1453]

Wow, I played Dark Crusade starting as the Necrons, instead of complaining of them being slow, I laughed in robot death machines.

[@Sir_Bucket]

*SOI SOI SOI SOI*

[@phylippezimmermannpaquin2062]

i bought the game specificaly to play necrons cause they looked cool

[@djfloofy109]

When I was new to 40k and some friends bought me Dawn of War and Dark Crusade I tried Necrons out cause I love robots and skeletons. Oof, it was hard at first. But now Ive got a bit of time into em and jesus its too much fun to not play them. Build like 4 generators whilst also get to building some totems and artifact chambers or whatever that thing is that lets you get the Orb of Resurrection and its just INFINITE CHEESE as the bodies start piling on at my friends bases, and I just rez all my army back to life

[@essexclass8168]

>the Necrons are slow. *laughs in Flayed one rush*

[@korstmahler]

00:50 That Space Marine pumping the grip of his Bolter has me in stitches every time I see it.

[@ThunderPsyker]

In the grim darkness of the far future, reconstructed technologies of the old human empire must have a tonne of pointless features like pumpable grips that do nothing. Maybe there's bipods on their combat knives too.

[@korstmahler]

Having prayer be an integral part of opening a hatch door on a daily basis would certainly prepare them for that kind of acceptance. "Stick a Stalker sight on that knife Neophyte! As your Initiate I'm forced to take this thing into battle for your range training and buggered if I can find a place for it on my sword next to all these chains and purity seals!"

[@techpriestmarx4356]

Throne of Terra i've never even noticed him pump the bolter until now.

[@alfabusa]

This is the best one yet I feel. The tutorial-bit murdered me. Truly tutorial guy is chaos incarnate. Also, Warboss Gulp confirmed 4:13

[@gonotgentleman]

+Bruva Alfabusa "Hello, I'm Gary the Apathetic, Herald of Stagnation, Son of Nurgle. I see you're trying to play Dawn of War. Would you like some help with that?"

[@dimdagreekdimdagreek4097]

Bruva Alfabusa 10/10

[@jamescooke1645]

Plz get back to the corax/vulkan bro trip, sly Margo has to do more gimmicks with them.

[@cheesemarine]

Choas*

[@georgegregory5415]

FUCK THE SPACE WOLvES SERIOUSLY they’re my least favourite space marines

[@epultric5007]

I play imperial guard because i play Terran in SC2. I guess I just like digging a hole and crying in it while i occasionally throw rocks at people.

[@attila535]

IG are awesome when executed well. There's nothing more satisfying than seeing a line of basilisks tearing the enemies forces to shreds.

[@fireops]

What about two lines of basilisks?

[@k-leb4671]

The difference is the Terrans had a chance in the Koprulu Sector, especially with their surprisingly advanced technology.

[@LukeGeoDude]

holy shit that summarized all of my rts playstyles perfectly!

[@17joren]

Pablo it's funny how you'd think they're more comparable to space marines though

[@formulalyric3173]

"Hottest roast since Prospero" *Cue Magnus crying*

[@magnusthered5994]

😭😭😭

[@GameArchiver]

"Dark Crusade's campaign is something more.... [Help pop-up]: Welcome to the single player campaign.. **Dismiss all help pop-ups**

[@Nick-qx7ln]

"The Tau, Necrons, and Eldar make up the triumvirate of 'Jesus fucking Christ what is this bullshit?'" It was foreshadowing for 7th ed. tabletop

[@mojewjewjew4420]

Idk man,I never found the tau or eldar to be op,the necrons are for real though.

[@AAhmou]

@@mojewjewjew4420 Eldar used to have some vehicles that would be pretty much impossible to hit.

[@mojewjewjew4420]

@@AAhmou in dawn of war or tabletop?

[@Vidve]

Damn you. Making me want to reinstall the original DoW's and play the- Stop looking at me like that Soulstorm.

[@magosexploratoradeon6409]

*ahem* UA

[@lonecolamarine]

@@magosexploratoradeon6409 I was finna say, soulstorm's badass when you get UA.

[@pierreo33]

@@lonecolamarine never knew i could both hate and love a mod at the same time

[@lonecolamarine]

@@pierreo33 yeah. I'll admit, it has its flaws, but it's definitely worth it.

[@grimmshredsanguinus2915]

Soulstorm was balanced at least xD Some maps in dark crusade u got the enemy rush and destroy u within 2 mins

[@jackabsolute5525]

I remember when this first came out. It was the first game I played where a unit can shoot and move at the same time then switch to melee when close. Very groundbreaking at that time! It still holds up pretty well.

[@randomtechpriest8460]

*Holiest Roast since Prospero*

[@HaloFTW55]

I fixed your toaster **slides a functional toaster on the table**

[@rustkarl]

Hottest Burns since the Salamanders

[@ddzero2899]

5:02

[@Sir_Bucket]

This is why every one love space marine

[@connorbarnett3364]

It hurt me I play thousand suns in the tabletop

[@ZoranTheBear]

Warhammer: Dank of War: Dank Crusade: The Revengenance.

[@ThunderPsyker]

+ZoranTheBear Super Ultra Warhammer 40000: Dawn of War: Dark Crusade: Hyper Arcade Remix Edition: EX Plus Alpha

[@alfabusa]

+ThunderPsyker Warhammer 40,000: Fire Warrior

[@snipercomhero6113]

+Bruva Alfabusa Warhammer 40,000: Blazed Warrior

[@ThunderPsyker]

***** YOU FUCK

[@kingofkilps]

+ThunderPsyker Warhammer 40: 420 NO SCOPE BLAZING WARRIOR HUNTERR

[@LordVader1094]

Oh wow, I never realized that in part of the Dark Crusade campaign intro it shows Word Bearers in pre-heresy colours fighting Ultramarines. That's some cool detail. Honestly what irritated me most was how you couldn't ally with other Imperial factions as an Imperial faction, or really use diplomacy period like they advertised originally before the game was released. Also, I loved the new units added. Especially heavy weapon units for IG, grey knights, and harlequins.

[@Generalek333]

Diplomacy? IN THE GRIMDARK FUTURE WHERE THERE'S ONLY WAR?!

[@LordVader1094]

+Generałek I mean, it's always talked about how there's lots of Diplomacy internally with the Imperium. It's just that no one really allies with anyone of a separate species except in very rare and specific cases. Of course there's also the Tau, who will ally with most anyone.

[@AAhmou]

Tau and Eldar would definitely be able to ally... Just as the marines and the guards. The Orks and chaos would also be able to cope with each other... Ahhh the possibilities if Diplomacy was still available.

[@nilix6993]

"hey metal man, come and join us on our murder of these ignorant blue skinned Filth!" Necron Lord: *dial-up tone intensifies*

[@onatyungul872]

In canon there was a time that a Necron Lord and a Imperium Commander (IDK who Exacly) were allied to fight against Tyranids. They NL gifted his mask to the Commander......

[@castizodonkeykong282]

holiest roast since Prospero

[@thetalkj.e.t.5377]

....... but the knoledge and crypts of YEARS of research burned because of leman the furrie....

[@sigismunddorn4617]

+TheTalk J.E.T. You mean Horus

[@nemanjailic8001]

Prospero was a tragedy that could've been avoided if Leman Russ had a brain. Like even a tiny one would do.

[@sigismunddorn4617]

Well boho it happened get over it

[@thetalkj.e.t.5377]

+Nemanja llic, leman russ did have a brain; this is a primarch we are talking about here. He was liking blinded by duty and faith in the Emprah

[@JordanSmith-yi3ji]

Oh Relic and their massive hard on for the Eldar.

[@furiousfinch1587]

Which is weird given how poorly they operate in open warfare, yet are repeatedly put up into the same role as the other more war-prone factions. Eldar are really immersion-breaking in Dawn Of War. "Endangered species" and "will sacrifice a trillion humans for one Eldar", and yet they throw themselves into the meat grinder by the hundred over nothing.

[@feeblemind]

hilariously this didn't end in DOW 1 either. continued to all 3 games.

[@dukkemonterier3429]

@@feeblemind Guilliman approves

[@peterthepeter7523]

@@furiousfinch1587 the same problem permeates the regular 40k lore. And all their tactics are throwing shittons of stuff at the enemy and dying. Same goes for CSM though. Superhuman veterans of 10 thousand yeards of wars who have demons on their side and are sometimes led by some demigod who also became a demidemon are somehow zergs who always outnumber imperials 10 to 1 and all die to some brave IG regiment. Eldars are just fucked up though. They are irrational, arrogant bloodlusting creatures and don't mind fighting for petty reasons. The "Invade the planet, kill everyone to then kill necrons/hide an artefact with daemon inside" motivation in DOWs is especially retarded though.

[@Spaced92]

@gillecroisd 92 You're completely ignoring that Dawn of War was a loose translation of the tabletop gameplay, where the Eldar don't lose out in number to the SM and generally lose a lot despite being very strong due to low durability. In fact, over 1000 Space Marines often died in multiplayer matches which is well over chapter strength. Even in lore the Eldar do pitch battles, especially Biel Tan who were featured in the original Dawn of War campaign and are a huge craftworld pop wise, they aren't endangered to the point a few hundred losses is horrific for the race.

[@anthonynormanpermites1593]

Kitten talking about the TAU? and NO HATE for them? What heresy is this?!!!!!!

[@shatter_dark_owodynasty_sh6234]

Even though there awesome there very hard to play as

[@LordBaldur]

Well it's called a joke. There is nothing in the 40K universe that TTS doesn't shit on.

[@dwarfbard6226]

Metallic voice screeching: REPENT!

[@Sir_Bucket]

@@shatter_dark_owodynasty_sh6234 *laught in tier 1 infiltration units*

[@bobmalone3726]

The * cameraman * was a servo skull.

[@user-tx4cn6vv3u]

No it was a special guardsman that stumbled onto the battlefield and pretended that the camera was a gun

[@YuriPRIMErpg]

B-but... Can the Love Bloom?

[@sigismunddorn4617]

No but can love steave bloom

[@knightofficer]

yes but it is quickly sprayed with herbicides and fire

[@HaloFTW55]

Hmmm..... It's heresy but I will allow it. "Love Can Bloom" is normally enough to get you a blam from a Commissar for the Eldar-Human friendship -(and maybe more?)-

[@rustkarl]

The Emperor gives his blessing for inter species STD pandemics

[@thefirstprimariscatosicari6870]

Guilliman says yes.

[@kokarorloli]

Fucking brilliant as always

[@ThunderPsyker]

+Karl the Deranged You were also pretty fucking brilliant

[@TheDarkkilla12]

How's the torture to let him review Soulstorm working out?

[@Azkamoski]

+ThunderPsyker Get a room guys.

[@Loydthehighwayman]

exceptionally brilliant. also karls; needle idea was pretty good to convince you to cover soulstorm too. btw, take your time to do the dow2 dude. we known that this stuff requires time and also requires that you want to do it in a first place

[@dimdagreekdimdagreek4097]

Karl the Deranged for me is the best dawn of war and one of the best rts games

[@2SSSR2]

To defense of easy mode - it is by far the most realistic representation of Space Marines in any 40k game. Big, tough and extremely devastating to their enemies.

[@Botar48]

No.

[@2SSSR2]

Yes.

[@Botar48]

+2SSSR2 No.

[@2SSSR2]

Yes. Yes it is. Weapons have high damage and Astartes are hard to kill - just like in the fluff.

[@Botar48]

+2SSSR2 No. They are strong but not enough to destroy everything like that if that was the case Imperium would not lose any war. Chaos space marines are equal to them and necrons are stronger. Game has its oen ballance easy mode is just stupid.

[@ThunderPsyker]

I have to say thank you again to everyone for well over 2000 subscribers! I hope in the future these videos have a much shorter wait than the one between the Dawn of War 1 and Winter Assault videos For those recommending Dawn of War to friends or have yet to try them, Humble Bundle is selling Dawn of War, Winter Assault AND Dark Crusade alongside a tonne of other games for only $1! It's a ludicrously good deal, seriously, grab it while you can! www.humblebundle.com/sega-strategy-bundle

[@spencer2651]

An idea for the soulstorm video is maybe a look at the ultimate apocalypse mod with it.

[@SkullHeroLord]

+Spencer lies Or the multiplayer. pls

[@TheDragonaxe1981]

+ThunderPsyker Thanks for the heads up, I was looking to get these games. For the final time I hope. Good watching out!! Thank you and may the Emperor watch over you, with only a minimum of shame.

[@Senthain]

These reviews are pretty damn solid. The only thing I wanted more of from this video was Eliphas fanboying, because he is just that cool.

[@CallyMayz]

+ThunderPsyker Please explain the 'Embarrassment' month on may of 2008.

[@cleansed_in_pestilence_3004]

"the greater good is coming to you from my bolter" is one of the funniest exchanges I've ever heard

[@jordanmanley9172]

Can you believe that Eliphas shares the same voice actor with gretchinz?

[@ThunderPsyker]

+Jordan Manley The Dobson brothers are fucking amazing

[@jordanmanley9172]

ThunderPsyker Absolutely, The only other voice I like more than DC Eliphas is Sternn and Sindri. Amazing voice acting.

[@Costar58]

*pretty much the entire game*

[@michaelcasiano9497]

he a gretchin git...

[@dilophosaurussk4333]

No.

[@andryboi8024]

I just stumbled upon these reviews recently. They are very well done and thoroughly entertaining. I love your use of images, audio, and overall editing. Keep up the good work Thunder, can't wait for the next one.

[@ouchiegiverjr]

This video doesn’t feel 6 years old, this man’s editing is crisp!

[@MrStephenlederle]

I had never heard of W40K before a buddy of mine gave me this game. I had never owned a PC and therefore not ever played a PC game either. I fell in love with this game and the W40K lore and world. I gave DoW2 and chance but it was totally disappointing. I wish they would make another Dark Crusade type game again.

[@zanjose9806]

Steve L holy shit, thats exactly the same with me

[@nopens]

Did you see dow3?

[@giacomomeluzzi280]

exactly the same way I got this game as well ahahah

[@PuellaMagiHomuraAkemi]

I wish as well, sadly DoW 3 is even worse. Dawn of War 2 was still a good RPG but Dawn of War 3 is just a dumb DOTA clone literally, it barely has basebuilding. You dont even have defensive structures, its just an empty shell and a horrifying game The true true successor is the Apocalypse Mod for Soulstorm.

[@pierre-mariecaulliez6285]

Actually I found DoW Retribution to scratch that particular hitch...

[@endhimrightly3408]

I loved the unit cap in Dark Crusade. I used to play Winter Assault multiplayer and the game play became extremely simplified once a game got going because people would spam the same type of unit. People would often throw away their lower quality units just so they can spam more of the high tier ones; it would become a boring spammy slug fest between high tier units. In Dark Crusade, you were encouraged to keep them because you can't for example just spam predators or terminators. It made for varied game play, and I really enjoyed the more realistic "combined arms" approach.

[@techpriestmarx4356]

I honestly prefer the unit limits too. Like you said, it reduces redundancy of the weaker units, but I think the main reason that makes me like the limits is that it makes the high tier units feel much more elite, unique and valuable.

[@Litany_of_Fury]

boy darude soulstorm should be fun

[@TheDarkkilla12]

He will cover Soulstorm. He can't escape the suffering we had to go through.

[@SirAdrian87]

+Primarch Alpharius What you did there, the Ultramarines see it traitor.

[@TheGreatNickpolean]

How do we know you're the REAL Alpharius?

[@Litany_of_Fury]

TheGreatNickpolean Have you SEEN my pasta making skills?

[@sigismunddorn4617]

+Primarch Alpharius are you that Shity ?

[@TheAfroMenace]

These videos always come as a surprise for some reason, and I always stop what I'm doing to watch them.

[@stringstorm]

My name is there! :D

[@vitamemec4708]

StringStorm ‌ Get back to creating 40k idols, Inquisitor

[@dilophosaurussk4333]

@@vitamemec4708 You think to command an inquisitor?! YOU HERETIC!

[@alexyoblick]

Not sure who else might have figured this out, but on the Necron stronghold there is a way to get 2 relic units (things like Baneblades and Land Raiders) on the map. What you do is the following; build your 1st relic unit, purposely send it to get corrupted by the Void Dragon beacon (try to make sure it’s at full health or as close to it as you can), then build a replacement one, and the final thing to do is destroy the Void Dragon beacon as quickly as possible (just focus solely on the beacon). You really only get one good chance to do it right, but if you do then you could have 2 super strong units at once. Guard have the most effective units and abilities to pull this off since you just need to put a couple Basilisk’s on a ledge near the beacon, then use your field command scanner ability to mark the beacon before you hit it with Earthshaker rounds.

[@danielgibson3422]

Wasn't there a map that gave you 2 at the start? I don't remember which one, it may have even been soul storm, I just have memories of starting one map with 2 bayne blades.

[@alexyoblick]

@@danielgibson3422 yes, in Dark Crusade the map that gives you the forward base bonus (set up buildings before deploying) gives you a set number of units and you must destroy all enemy buildings without losing all of your units. Guard get 2 Baneblades, Blood Ravens get 2 Land Raiders, Necrons get 2 Monoliths, etc (Chaos Marines get the worst deal).

[@Tube_Chaser]

Sooo Soulstorm review when?

[@thetalkj.e.t.5377]

WAIT WAS THAT BOREALE AT THE END?

[@TheClassyMaster]

I AM SO HAPPY THIS IS OUT! I found you a few months ago and I loved your two last reviews!

[@rustkarl]

The characterisation of Gorgutz and Eliphas remains some of my favourite characters just based on their voices, design and dialogue.

[@SchazmenRassir]

This is my personal favorite of ALL the Dawn of War games. 1, 2 and their expansions. This is the best.

[@TheHolyKnight932]

Excellent Review once again ThunderPsyker! Love the way how you edit, and the way you talk about the game truly brings back memories. And the ending with Karl, genius. Keep doing what you're doing Psyker

[@TheCrystalon]

Well, that explains a lot. You weren't lying about the Eldar area right before their home base being freakishly difficult. During a playthough as Space Marines on Hard, I spent close to 3 hours on that one freaking map. Within 5 minutes of the game starting, I swear they had reached their pop cap, and level 2 of their tech tree. I am building some light defenses and scouting ahead when my scouts and 2 squads of marines get absolutely roflstomped by a horde of angry Eldar who are beelining straight for my base. The only thing that saved me was they stopped briefly to cap all the req points along the way. I had just enough time to withdraw my remaining units back to base, and build 4 bolter turrets. At this point, they already have a few vehicles and enough infantry to put an orc horde to shame. Luckily for me, there is only one entrance to the little plateau my base is on, and Eldar can't take a lot of punishment. They do kill all but a one of my squads, and all my turrets before the few remaining Eldar either die or run. The problem now is, I have only one req point, so my income is pitiful. As soon as I get another squad, I push out to take some req points, only to get beat back by their hero with a few squads and vehicles. Thus began the long slog up the tech tree while just barely holding back repeated attacks. What eventually turned it around was a terminator squad dropped via orbital relay in their back lines. I did enough damage to their base and other structures that it took them a few extra minutes to build their army back up and come at me. The extra minutes allowed me to start pushing forward, and once I got some momentum, they couldn't stop me.

[@KeeperofthePeace]

That reminds me of my foray against the Eldar in that region. It was a glorious victory for the Emperor, but FUCK was it difficult. Your encounter sounded a lot like how I found out this wasn’t going to be an easy fight (I’d gotten a bit of a big head, and had a fair number of honor guard to strengthen my assault force) when my honor scouts, and my entire infantry force ran headlong into an angry Avatar and a AI-controlled Farseer who actually used her abilities distressingly well. They flattened my advance base and rolled onwards in a pretty looking blob of hyper-death. My penchant for fortification, along with the sacrifice of a goodly number of my honor guard, and ALL of my regular troops, I vanquished the first attack and promptly stopped hyperventilating. I can’t remember how long it took (it was a few years ago) but I remember it being a brutal, ongoing series of engagements all over the map. Corpses literally carpeted many areas so thoroughly I couldn’t see the snow beneath them. It was awesome. Striking different portions of the Eldar army as it travelled with groups of Assault Marines, chainswords for purging the xeno, and meltabombs for their tanks was a particularly efffective and fun strategy...until they compensated with a seer council and a couple of Wraithlords to escort the legions of howling banshees. They still hit my frontlines over and over like a freight train, though. Finally, instead of mounting a grand assault on their main base as I’d envisioned, I realized the same thing you did. The only way to tip the balance appreciably in my favor was to drop some Terminators into their backyard and a Dreadnought or two, and at the same time, give my troops an opportunity to push out and consolidate, stripping them of resources and crushing their secondary bases while they ran away to swat my precious comrades (which was a chore in of itself because I kept forgetting about servoskulls, so I’d just have my Librarian run his paces around every enclosure). It was a really satisfying victory, because I had to work that hard to beat them.

[@TheCrystalon]

Amen to that. Hardest fight of that entire campaign, but wow was it satisfying to throw it all in their face and just say "Based on the death tolls, you outnumbered me something like 20 to 1, and I still kicked your ass." I can't remember the exact numbers, but I remember the death tolls being ludicrously different. My death toll was in the hundreds. Theirs was in the thousands.

[@kodan7879]

Holy shit I am so stupid... I only realised after 15 minutes that you voiced kitten in TTS.

[@thetalkj.e.t.5377]

+KoDan, tts*

[@maximumeffort7096]

*week

[@F1nnlander]

Oooh, I thought his voice sounded familiar. And awesome. And GOLDEN

[@dilophosaurussk4333]

@@F1nnlander "And awesome. And GOLDEN" When you have to fill out a word limit for an essay:

[@adrian9797ful]

We desperatly need a new 'Dawn of War: Dark Crusade' style game for 40k and nothing changes my mind on that.

[@AJZulu]

And the addition of all those extra sprites/pics for emphasis makes this review SO MUCH BETTER. (Heavy Breathing)

[@allseeingeye93]

This brings back memories. I put thousands of hours into this as a kid, both in single player and online multiplayer. Probably one of my favorite RTS games of all time alongside Age of Empires.

[@Fredfredbug4]

Great review Kitten, keep them coming!

[@ibuprofen_psychosis]

fucking eldars i swear to god both my playthrough tries ended up in their stronghold and twenty billion tanks and avatars sent at me

[@nopens]

Its possible to destroy their HQ in series of suicidal attacks with focus on aspect and support portals. Even if you destroy all their buildings you will still see the 'capture point' cutscene.

[@spencer2651]

Pretty excited to watch this. Your videos are pretty high quality and very entertaining, keep it up!

[@nightcloak01]

Amazing reviews as always! Makes me want to play them all over again! Looking forward to more great videos like these ones!

[@87mjung]

The single player campaign at the time was such an awesome addictive addition.

[@henrikandreason7261]

Agree, completed it with all the races.

[@EmperorPrinc3]

Thing I like most about Dark Crusade is that the Necrons just wanted to destroy All life. Now they want to restore their dynastys... Like wtf. Not grim dark enough.

[@lonecolamarine]

they're robo-eldar now.

[@saphirone8030]

Why don't you have more subscribers ? You do such an amazing job with your audio, your montage, your scenery, your jokes hit the spot and your voice is smooth as hell. You deserve to be more known across the community ! xD

[@mfalk6263]

Your editing is nuts dude. Very entertaining!

[@Trixie_I]

Alright ill be honest, this is probably the most entertaining review for this game that i've ever seen!

[@roger7500]

Make more reviews you're simply amazing at them

[@Sealonark]

2:12 "Dwarf tier-grudge" had me chuckling good

[@HexYan]

One of the best review channels. You deserve more subs :D

[@Qichar]

All those years ago I remember winning my clan's in-game tournament playing the overpowered Eldar. I have no idea if I was actually the most skilled player (I'm a diamond SC2 player, nothing special, I admit it). This is because I just abused the crap out of fleet of foot and spammed grenades from the basic infantry, suppressing squads, and getting all up in my opponent's sh1t before they could properly get into their tech tree. Good times. I felt kind of bad for abusing the game (and yes, I wrecked my Eldar opponents too), so I gave away the first prize (1 year subscription to World of Warcraft) to the mate who came in 2nd place. Anyway, I loved the music and art direction of this game, so much so that to this fighting the Necrons controlled by the AI on the hardest campaign difficulty level is still quite scary. It remains in my memory as one of the most atmospheric RTS game settings, and I still go back and play every now and then when I'm feeling masochistic.

[@literallylyons]

This game singlehandedly ignited the fire of computer gaming in me! Your review is spot on, aaaaaand I now feel an overwhelming urge to revisit it 😂

[@igorthelight]

Do it! ;-)

[@iamjullage]

This video is amazing quality, great commentating and very quirky, brought back a lot of memories. great vid.

[@SangTheCryptek]

Funny thing is, when I first played Dawn of War, it was this, Dark Crusade. And at that point I was somewhat familiar with the lore, and desperately wanted to play as the Necrons, so they were the first thing I used. I loved it. It's also worth noting is another thing that balances the Necrons is that they only have one building that actually spawns units.

[@BlandBones]

I guess he meant "jump three years ahead" literally

[@igorthelight]

Yep! xD Warp is a dangerous place, you know... ;-)

[@RevanStarrrR]

Yeah the province before Eldar stronghold was brutal but that's what made it memorable. It was my first time playing yet i still decided to play on hard and that province sure hit hard and i played that battle for over an hour. Yet i finally won. One of the best battles i have had in any game. Of any genre. Also, i believe i speak on behalf everyone who has ever attacked the Tau Stronghold when i say this: Fuck the Greater Knarlocs. FUCK THEM.

[@terminator572]

RevanBladeZ any idea on how to beat it with Marines? I haven't been able to crack it yet.

[@RevanStarrrR]

Dorvuzak Uzn I played as the Guard but i think same strategy somewhat applies for Marines. The field to the north of the map is where most of the fighting is going to happen so build turrets on the right side of the field and also put some Scout Snipers and Whirlwinds on the ridge to support them. Also build a Stronghold or two on the ridge so you can build more turrets and generators and some barracks and machine cults for quick reinforcements. Half of your forces stay here, the other half go to deal with the Eldar base to the left, the stronger half with Terminators and Land Raiders, heavy bolters and rockets are the way to go for regular Marine squads because the Eldar primarily seem to rely on Banshees and Wraithlords. There is a requisition point on the left side and you want to build turrets near that as well but build more on the right side where you are going to be on defense. Its still going to be a stalemate for a while so send some assault marines on the left ridge to capture requisition points to slow down the Eldar production. The Eldar base is cloaked right north of the requisition point, i fought there for almost half an hour until i realized that.

[@terminator572]

RevanBladeZ alright, i'll make sure to try that out! that is literally the only province i had left to conquer!

[@datorin2653]

I seriously only played as the Tau so honestly never tried against them. But I always hated the Chaos stronghold.... Stupid Wells of death.

[@jakeparish155]

Dark Crusade is still amoung the few games I immediately install whenever I get a new laptop. I very much missed the Commander banter in the Stronghold missions when later playing Soulstorm, especially Gorgutz who was my possibly my favourite character in the series.

[@CommissarBRO]

These retrospective reviews really give justice to the original Dawn of War games. Great stuff, ThunderPsyker!

[@chubbyninja89]

Hearing Karl at the end was truly hilarious.

[@gccas081]

Replaying the game now😅

[@trblemayker5157]

Wow awesome reviews so far. Keep 'em coming!

[@LyricalWrench]

Keep up with the content my friend!👍 I genuinely enjoy your commentary and editing, good job! (:

[@triplegrub795]

The necron stronghold took me 3.5 hrs on hard which broke me

[@lokalnyork]

Shit, it's 14 years after release and NOW I noticed there was reversible cover. *SQUAD'S BROKEN!* btw, overheating IS good way of stopping machinery so flamethrower guy from intro is doing his part, unfortunately they are powered by space Cthulhu.

[@lucaalessio1994]

your videos are soooo well done... you convinced me to buy the game of the year edition of dawn of war + all the expansion (1 dollar bundle ftw) and damn i'm loving this series! thanks man, keep up with the good works!

[@Zdrajev]

Aww, MAN!! You knocked it out of the park with this one!!😂😂😂 Simply FUCKING AMAZING! VERY WELL built, comprehemsive, funny as all hell and fun to watch! Keep up the good work!!!

[@hectoriiinuqui9213]

Whoever delivered that Holiest of Roasts to the Tau immediately deserves to be placed into a Dreadnought upon his Death He's more than earned it just for that Glorious Burn

[@alfabusa]

+Hector III Nuqui Funny you should mention that...

[@hectoriiinuqui9213]

+Bruva Alfabusa Okay. First, holy shit, you are actually replying to me. As a fan of TTS, this is my greatest honour so far Two, so he dies? He does get put into a Dreadnought so he can serve the Emperor again right? RIGHT?!

[@alfabusa]

Hector III Nuqui Ahaha, you should play Dawn of War II. Then you will get your answer! Also, his name is Davian Thule, Captain of the Blood Ravens 4th Company.

[@hectoriiinuqui9213]

+Bruva Alfabusa Oh, I will... come the next Steam Sale

[@tuntarallCotA]

Sooo... What was so embarrassing about May 2008?

[@majormajorasic]

IT'S NOT FUCKING CANNON!

[@vanders4198]

It's actually a great game, just not as fleshed out story-wise as Dark Crusade. Plus most of the modding scene is using Sousltorm now.

[@MizantropMan]

@@majormajorasic Kitten!!!

[@phrophetsamgames]

Bruh I spent hours on the province before the Chaos Marine Stronghold. Shit was insane. The AI was sending Daemon Princes, Defilers, and tanks at me constantly. I basically hunkered down as the Guard and used the Basilisks and Lemans to try and hold for as long as possible.

[@st33lbiscuit28]

I have some very happy memories of this game - I still remember the first time I found out you could actually move the monoliths, I was blown away! Such an amazing game

[@TheDarkkilla12]

YESSSSS!!! ANOTHER DAWN OF WAR REVIEW!!!!

[@svetlozarstoyanov2871]

day 123 still no soulstorm

[@svetlozarstoyanov2871]

:D

[@intuendaecivilization9365]

this is a GREAT series your having going here. i hope you keep it up and be succesful.

[@Shroobguy]

Thanks to your reviews, I finally decided to purchase DoW along with all the expansions. May our glorious Emperor always bless your channel!

[@Hippie629]

As a RTS player the problem I had with the Tau, is fact they don't have defense turrets or mines and their "hover" tanks can't jump like other skimmers. The Necrons have ONE production facility which makes it hard to fill gaps in your army and replace units. Also they have no support heroes or squad upgrades which makes the army feel, empty. Where are the Crypteks?

[@jonezs1979]

+Hippie629 this game was released in 2006, made on Necron codex of 3rd edition of 2002 year. So answer is that Crypteks are in far far future of Necron Codex 5th editon, 2011 year. As a RTS player you can build another one, two or three Monoliths to fill gaps in your army faster.

[@Hippie629]

+jonezs1979 Ah ok, I didn't even know about the tabletop game until (I think) 6th edition. I suppose its because of playing the other races, I hesitate building a second HQ to boost production. But I guess that's part of the asymmetry with the Necrons.

[@LordBaldur]

If you get broadside battlesuits. They act as mobile anti-everything turrets.

[@HPmcDoogle]

7:18 Got a genuine laugh out of me

[@ClonesDream]

Your channel is like that one LEGO piece you really need for a model, and you know you have it somewhere but you can't find it anymore. Then you spill out your 4 full boxes of plastic fun to find that one piece. After years of random channels and videos, I stumble upon your channel and I am filled with joy and satisfaction with your videos. You used Vegas to its full potentional, and you really do make entertaining videos. Your channel's a goddamn diamond in a sea full of shit and I love it. Please keep doing what you do now because it's really good.

[@Gaziosman22minecraft]

Loved it! Also, thank god I found you! Subbed.

[@sembowden2893]

Kitten loves disc

[@DangerIncFilms]

I mean, even on easy, the AI can out-build you, as well as shove units down your throat faster than you can reinforce a Guardsman squad.

[@notsosecretsnacker5218]

Early game on hard you can just get swamped and I'm not sure how? They just seem to be able to build, reinforce and create units at the same time

[@spacewargamer4181]

You mean in campaing I guess.

[@GunNutproductionsOG]

Dude you got a subscribe from me. This was well done and funny as hell

[@gkspain1]

Great fun,have subscribed, all the best Garry

[@VileWithABass]

rip thunderpsyker two years and no new uploads.

[@igorthelight]

He is alive now! ;-)

[@svetlozarstoyanov2871]

Please do review dawn of war soulstorm it's my favourite dawn of war games :( ( please don't judge me for heresy)

[@-Big_Big]

+svetlozar stoyanov i liked it ? whats wrong with it ? tell me in a video thunder

[@svetlozarstoyanov2871]

+Killaim the release version had many bugs the new races seemed bad compared to the others.That's what the people thought.the bugs were patched(most of them) but the patch didn't buff the new races.personally my favorite race is dark Eldar but they need a lot of buffs to fit against the other 8.the sisters of battle are strong on the other hand

[@SkullHeroLord]

+svetlozar stoyanov Dark Eldar are very hard to play but they are good. They do have some annoying limitations to them and mixing up your units is almost always essential but they are still good,I'd say.

[@svetlozarstoyanov2871]

+Uncle Skull,14'th Panonian Regiment of the Imperial Guard The scourges are the main problem because they must bridge the gap between heavy ranged infantry and elite ranged infantry and their damage and health (320) just doesn't do it. On the other hand their melee units are probably one of the best in game.

[@SkullHeroLord]

+svetlozar stoyanov Meh. Health yes. Damage,is good as it is,I'd say.

[@Brakvash]

I just found a new favorite channel.

[@AJZulu]

Those extra additions to the video makes this.......FKING AWESOME. [HEAVY BREATHING INTENSIFIES]

[@hectorandem2944]

The Necrons being OP is technically cannon though 🤷‍♂️

[@justiceforjoggers2897]

Oh god the first time I fought them it was absolutely hell on that desert

[@Akatsukileader9]

Easy difficulty rules. Especially when you send only your commander and he does all the flippy animations and aoe attacks and crap.

[@LanceDragonov]

10:22 I see that Revengeance reference there, Thunder! Nice one!

[@17joren]

Really good review! You covered a lot of thoughts (pros and some cons) I had for the game! Including Eliphas' sexy voice, stronghold banter, and how the Demes Northlands was super difficult if the Eldar had two bases. I always saved them for last in the campaign for other races so I had all the honor guard and could rush at least the first base. (Also I like playing on easy because of how lulzy powerful you are, kind of explains why I'm not thaaat good at skirmish)

[@izvarzone]

Playing not on hard - filthy casual!

[@zanjose9806]

izvarzone I agree

[@nicolasriveros943]

izvarzone but seriusly, hard difficulty in this game Is fucking masoquism. You littearlly feel the Warp overtaking You.

[@alibeyzae7445]

i played dark crusade on hard whit imperial guard and every fight against those shity undead robots was a headache

[@konanhuet623]

love your content mate, i hope you get moneh and continue makin great stuff

[@jadew6652]

your videos are actually really fucken good. like good quality, good jokes and original. keep up the awesome work :>)