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Deathmaster Snikch and Malus Darkblade are coming to Total War: Warhammer 2

Sneaky.

Total War: Warhammer 2 (which, according to this press release is still not called Total Warhammer 2) is set for a campaign pack that adds two big names from the Warhammer fantasy.

The Shadow and The Blade, due out on 12th December for Creative Assembly's wonderful strategy game priced £6.99 / $8.99 / €8.99, adds two playable factions in both the Eye of The Vortex and Mortal Empire campaigns: Clan Eshin (Skaven) and Hag Graef (Dark Elves). With them come two big names in the lore as legendary lords: Deathmaster Snikch and Malus Darkblade.

For the uninitiated, Deathmaster Snikch is the head of Clan Eshin, who are basically the assassin/ninja clan in the Warhammer lore. He's got his own model in the tabletop and while he's not one of the biggest names, he's got a cult following.

Malus, on the other hand, is one of the most popular names in Warhammer. He's a fan favourite and has appeared in the Black Library novels.

Here's the official blurb:

"Tz'arkan, the Drinker of Worlds has escaped from his eternal prison within the Realm of Chaos and latched himself onto the soul of Malus Darkblade, forging a deadly partnership that reverberates throughout the New World. Sensing the potential of this daemonic entity, the Nightlord of Clan Eshin has dispatched his most trusted assassin, Deathmaster Snikch, to investigate the true power of the daemon."

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Meanwhile, 12 units, including the Highbeast Master, Bloodwrack Medusa, Master Assassins and Eshin Triads, are coming to the game, as well as the Lore of Stealth Skaven magic.

The Shadow and The Blade is paid-for DLC, but there's also a free content update that adds legendary lord Rapanse de Lyonesse (Bretonnia), and legendary hero - Henri Le Massif (Bretonnia).

And finally, quality of life improvements have been made to enemy turn time durations. Players can now expect to see up to a 60 per cent decrease in wait times between turns, depending on their current game state and PC specifications, Creative Assembly said.