points on the map. Most units spawn
as squads rather than single troops,
and as they take damage, squad
members will perish, reducing the
squad in question’s overall efficacy
until you can find enough reprieve to
get them back to base and summon
reinforcements – or better yet, find
a way to replenish them without
retreating from the frontlines.
Aside from that, almost everything
else has changed. Base building
is back, so if you want access to a
specific unit, you’ll need to work
your way up the tech tree to get
there. Armies are much larger and
designed to be mostly expendable,
relatively easily replaced should the
worst happen. DoW II’s cover system
has almost entirely vanished. No
longer do you need to strategically
position troops around light/heavy
cover to mitigate damage. Instead,
a new type of capture point is
available which, once captured,
will provide protection from ranged
(but not melee) attacks. Adjusting
the cover system makes sense in
the context of DoW III’s new design
philosophy, but I can’t help longing
for the DoW II way of doing things.
The single-player campaign is
a complete about-turn too. Gone
are the incredibly compelling
ARPG mechanics and the sense
of player choice touted by the
previous game. By contrast, Dawn
of War III’s campaign is incredibly
straightforward, presenting a
linear sequence of missions for
you to play through. The missions
themselves and the objectives
within aren’t anything memorable,
but they’re entertaining enough,
aside from one or two that manage
to become painfully tedious. The
most interesting aspect of it is that
it doesn’t specifically focus on any
one of the game’s three playable
races (Space Marines, Orks and
Eldar), instead hopping back and
forth between the three factions as
you progress. Viewing the narrative
from the perspective of all three
sides is an interesting dynamic,
even though the narrative itself isn’t
terribly interesting or exciting. I’d
say it’s worth playing through, but
it’s far from essential.
Elites are the stars of DoW III.
These heroic units come in a variety
of flavours. Some are specialised
squads of harassment troops.
Others are supporting spellcasters.
36 The OverClocker Issue 41 | 2017
A few are hulking behemoths,
capable of absorbing and dishing
out massive amounts of damage.
Each one sports a range of unique
abilities, and proper use of Elites
can quickly swing the pendulum of
a match in the opposite direction.
There’s a new resource specifically
dedicated to summoning Elites,
and each one has a different cost
associated with it. You’re limited to
selecting three Elites to take with
you into a match, so choosing Elites
that complement one another and
that can help carry you through
the early, mid and late game is
important.
Doctrines work similarly, in that
only three can be equipped before
heading into battle. These are
army-wide special abilities. Some
Doctrines enable the reinforcement
of squads at listening posts built
on strategic points, for example,
while others outfit your standard
units with new, powerful special
abilities. As with Elites, choosing
Doctrines that suit your play style
and augment your preferred troops
will provide a significant boost to
your chance of victory.