Characteristic of Vampire Counts TW: Warhammer Guide
Last update: 08 September 2017
Vampire Counts are quite unique as a faction. They combine aspects of The Empire (settlements, public order) and the Warriors of Chaos (their own version of corruption). Their units are one of the most mobile in the game and a lot of them cause terror, but they lack any missile and artillery units.
General information
The army of the Vampire Counts differs from other factions. They can't recruit any missile or artillery units, which forces them to rely on a more aggressive and direct approach in battles - you can't just stand and wait for the enemy to come at you. Fortunately, they make up for it with numerous mobile units, capable of moving a lot faster than their equivalents in other factions. Furthermore, all of them cause fear, decreasing the enemy discipline, and a large portion of them cause terror as well, causing enemies to run away in fear.
Their biggest difference in army compared to other factions is quite a wide access to flying units. They can recruit three different flying units capable of serving different purposes, and their Lords and Heroes can have powerful flying mounts. Flying and mobile units are what makes up for their lack of missile and artillery units, and allows them to have a unique approach when sieging a settlement.
Vampire Count's discipline works different than in other factions. When they suffer low discipline they won't route. Instead, every unit with low discipline will start taking damage. The lower the discipline, the higher the damage they receive. This also causes their armies to be completely obliterated in case they lose a battle - there won't be anyone to retreat from battle as everyone will crumble.
Their most distinctive trait is the Raise Dead ability. Aside from the normal recruitment method, Vampire Count Lords can use the Raise Dead ability to quickly raise some units from the dead, recruiting them into army during the same turn. They don't have to wait for a number of turns to finish this process, it happens instantaneously. They have a limited amount of troops they can resurrect, but if a Lord ventures towards an area where a lot of units died (where a large battle took place), he will be able to recruit the most powerful Vampire Counts units. This can lead to a situation in which you will be able to recruit Black Knights at 12th turn.
Similarly to Warriors of Chaos, Vampire Counts must corrupt the terrains they move through. If they move through an uncorrupted terrain, their armies will suffer attrition. Additionally, settlements where the corruption level is low will also suffer from huge penalties to public order, reaching up to -15 points.
While playing the Vampire Counts faction you will be able to conquer the settlements belonging to the Empire, Bretonnia and other Vampire factions. You won't be, however, capable of seizing control over the terrains belonging to The Empire, Bretonnia and and Athel Loren controlled by Wood Elves - in case you attack their settlements (or when they attack you(except for Wood Elves attacks))) you will only be able to pillage them to gain gold, or raze them to the ground.
Victory conditions
When it comes to Vampires, apart from their main faction, you can also play as the Von Carstein faction. As all other factions in the game, these two have their own victory conditions. These victory conditions may be slightly different for each faction.
In order to successfully complete Vampire Counts campaign, you will have to:
- Maintain control of 20 provinces, either by direct ownership or through vassals and military allies.
- Destroy the following factions: The Empire, Bretonnia, Dwarfs
- Ensure that any military presence belonging to the Warriors of Chaos faction exists only in the following region: Chaos Wastes.
- Ensure that Archaon the Everchosen is in wounded state.
When playing as the Von Carstein faction:
- Maintain control of the following number of provinces, either by direct ownership or through vassals and military allies: 20
- Destroy the following factions: The Empire, Bretonnia, Bordeleaux, Carcassonne
- Maintain control, either by direct ownership or through vassals and alliances of the following settlements: Drakenhof Castle, Mousillon
The objectives are similar to other factions, with only a single difference - you will need to conquer 20 provinces, making this campaign the longest (maybe besides Warriors of Chaos). When playing as Von Carstein, you will also need to reclaim Mousillon, located on the other part of the map, by the ocean. As you don't have to fight with the Greenskins and their factions, you should try to have friendly relations with them.
Available faction leaders
The main fraction offers two lords: Mannfred von Carstein (who is also the leader of the faction), or Heinrich Kemmler. If you own DLC The Grim and the Grave, you can also select Helman Ghorst. The main difference will be visible during the first turns, and abilities of the very Lord
If you decide to play as the Von Carstein faction, you can select between Vlad von Carstein and Isabella von Carstein.
There are two starting Lords to choose from - Mannfred von Carstein (who is the leader of the faction as well) and Heinrich Kemmler. As always, they differ in both playstyle and starting units, although those differences fade out later in the game when you gain access to all of the units.
Mannfred von Carstein starts with the following units: Crypt Ghouls, Fell Bats and Varghulf. The last unit is the one you want to focus on, as the remaining two can easily be unlocked in the early game. Varghulfs are one of the best single-troop units in the game - they deal tremendous armor-piercing damage, they are very fast and can regenerate their health. This single unit will give you a huge edge against your enemies. Mannfred von Carstein himself is one of the best Lords in the game. He is both a powerful melee fighter and a spellcaster, allowing you to build him in multitude of ways. His global bonuses are also decent: 5% increase of movement range for all of your Lords and Heroes, as well as -10% upkeep costs for high-tier units (Grave Guards and Black Knights). Out of the two he is definitely the more powerful.
Heinrich Kemmler starts with the following units: Dire Wolves, Hexwraths and Cairn Wraiths. The first one can be completely ignored, as you will be able to recruit it early in the game, but the remaining two are the most unique units in the Vampire Count's arsenal. The reason for that is their etherealness - they don't have a physical form, which causes them to reduce any incoming damage by 75%. However, they will take full damage from spells. This makes them astonishingly effective when fighting with enemies dealing normal damage, while being extremely vulnerable to magic because of their low health. Additionally, both of those units cause terror, allowing them to scare enemies into routing. When it comes to the Lord himself, he has access to powerful spells, but is a very weak melee combatant - Mannfred von Carstein is a lot more powerful and has better skills. However, Heinrich can summon Krell - a mighty warrior that will protect him. Although the warrior will gradually lose health as the battle continues, it is possible to reduce this by constantly casting Invocation of Nehek. His global skills reduce upkeep costs for Necromancer heroes and decrease the process of raising dead.
Helman Ghorst (DLC The Grim and the Grave) starts with the following units: Grave Guard, Corpse Cart, The Direpack (Dire wolves). When it comes to troops you start with, this is the least interesting lord. Only the first unit is worth your attention. Grave Guard is the elite infantry of the Vampire faction, and you can unlock it rather early in the game - 3 level of region development. The leader's effects will increase the recovery time of all units in his army by 20%. Helman is a mage, and has access to the Lore of the Vampires. Unfortunately, he is useless in combat.
Vlad von Carstein starts with the following units: Fell Bats, Blood Knights, Vargheists. One should draw attention to Blood Knights- this powerful cavalry unit is rather slow for Vampire standards. On the other hand, Vargheists are strong, flying creatures which are perfect for taunting your enemy. Furthermore, the leader's effects allow to deploy all units in an expanded deployment area - use it to position your troops near the enemy lines and perform a rapid strike. For all your characters, movement across the map is increased by 5%. Vlad is both a good warrior and a wizard. However, unlike Mannfred, he knows spells from the Lore of Vampires. Purchasing one of his abilities will let all the units gain additional experience each turn.
Isabella von Carstein starts with the following units: 2x Crypt Ghouls, Black Knights. The most important unit are the Black Knights - they are a good cavalry unit, and their main advantage is their speed. You gain access to the Crypt Ghouls from the very start (1st level of your settlement). Isabella's effects give a 25% bonus to damage dealt by vampiric heroes. Furthermore, their limit is exceeded by 3. Just like Vlad, Isabella has access to the Lore of Vampire. The only difference is that she is a weaker warrior.
Furthermore, regardless of the lord you select, the Von Carstein faction can raise a special building in the Drakenhof Castle. If Vlad and Isabella take part in the same battle, their close combat attack and defense is increased by 15. The second Legendary Lord can be recruited in the first turn. One should keep in mind that Von Carstein start the game with a smaller settlement, and not the capital, like in case of other factions.