14 DAY TRIAL // Execution Force is just the second content DLC for Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters, a tactical turn-based RPG that I reviewed when it launched last year. I wasn’t impressed with the game’s first DLC, Eternal Duty, but I decided to give the game another chance and see if the new DLC actually brings something fun to the table.
Unlike the previous DLC, Execution Force brings four extremely useful and fun to play classes. These are all part of Officio Assassinorum and become available early in the campaign, so you’ll have time to get acquainted with their powerful skills and customize them to fit your playstyle.
Out of the four new agents that you can start recruiting from around Day 80 onward, I found the Vindicare Assassin the strongest, but I believe that each new unit is great for a certain composition. Obviously, some will be better than others in certain scenarios, so my advice is to try them all and see which is more suitable for your squad of Grey Knights.
The Vindicare Assassin specializes in taking out enemies from afar. They use a long-range sniper rifle with just two shots, which is why they also carry a secondary pistol with unlimited ammo. The Exitus pistol has slightly shorter range, but it’s perfect to take out weaker targets that you don’t want to kill with your more important units.
The unit’s stealth ability allows it to become invisible for one turn, a very useful ability considering the assassin’s low HP. The unit’s best ability, Deadshot, allows the assassin to completely obliterate an organic target regardless of HP or armor. It’s Vindicare’s ultimate ability that has a very high 15 turns cooldown, yet it’s unlocked at level 2.
For a more “hands-on” approach, I’d recommend the Eversor Assassin, a new unit that can take out entire groups of enemies. Its main drawback is that it can’t handle powerful enemies with high HP pools, so it’s preferable to take the Eversor in missions where the quality of enemy units is lower.
Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters lacked a scouting unit at launch, but that’s no longer the case. The Callidus is the ultimate scouting unit that allows you to prepare before an enemy encounter starts. Its abilities make it a strong support unit too since the Callidus can distract enemy units and let your Grey Knights take a breather when they need it most. As you level up the assassin, other useful abilities get unlocked, including one that lets you completely stun an enemy unit.
Last but not least, the Culexus is the perfect unit for squads that heavily rely on psychic powers. The Culexus not only adds 1 point of damage to your Grey Knights’ shooting abilities, but the assassin comes with a passive ability that offers a 25% chance to reduce the warp surge meter by 25% every time he kills a unit, which is huge.
Along with four assassins, the Execution Force DLC introduces a new type of mission called Tentarus Hive. Frankly, it felt pretty frustrating to me because every turn the main hive shoots at you, so it’s pretty hard to keep your Grey Knights topped up without an Apothecary, which means that you’ll have to give up on a powerful unit, thus your squad will be weaker.
The main objective in the Tentarus Hive missions is to destroy the main hive, but not before killing the five secondary hive that guard it. The best approach is to be as aggressive as possible because the more time passes, the harder will be to keep your Grey Knights healthy.
But wait, there’s more! Those who played the original campaign probably remember their encounters with the Death Guard cruisers, which presented them with several choices that more often than not led to some of your Grey Knights being injured.
Well, the new Execution Force DLC brings so-called boarding missions where you’ll be able to board a Death Guard Cruiser to avoid anything bad happening to your vessel or Grey Knights. They’re fun to play and a very refreshing new piece of content.
Conclusion
The Tentarus Hive missions offers a different type of challenge that requires a more aggressive approach and deep knowledge of the game’s systems. I found them frustrating rather than hard. On the other hand, the new boarding missions are quite fun and moderately challenging.
I still like Warhammer 40,000: Chaos Gate – Daemonhunters and I’d certainly play a sequel if the folks at Complex Games plan to continue the series. Until then, play Execution Force, it’s a doozy.
DLC key provided by the publisher.
