Look, picking a starting point in Warhammer 3 is a nightmare. I’m not talking about technical bugs or UI issues—those have mostly been ironed out since the rocky 2022 launch. I’m talking about the sheer, paralyzing volume of Warhammer Total War 3 factions staring you in the face. If you own the previous games and the massive Immortal Empires map, you’re looking at nearly 100 legendary lords.
It’s overwhelming. Honestly.
Most people just click on Karl Franz because they like the idea of a guy with a hammer, but that’s often a fast track to getting frustrated by turn 30. The game has changed. Power creep is real. What worked in the first two games often feels like a struggle in the third.
The Chaos Monogods: Not Just Different Colors
When Creative Assembly first announced that the four Chaos gods—Khorne, Nurgle, Tzeentch, and Slaanesh—would be separate Warhammer Total War 3 factions, the community was skeptical. We thought they’d just be reskins. We were wrong.
Skarbrand (Khorne) plays like a heavy metal album cover. You don't have an economy. You don't trade. You just kill. If you stop fighting for more than a few turns, your momentum dies. It's high-octane and surprisingly easy for beginners who just want to smash things. But then you look at Nurgle, specifically Ku'gath Plaguefather. It’s a slog. You’re dealing with cyclical buildings that grow and die like actual infections. It’s slow. It’s tanky. It’s gross. If you don't like waiting for your enemies to slowly rot to death while your HP bar barely moves, you’ll hate it.
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Tzeentch is where things get weird. Kairos Fateweaver is basically playing a different game. You can literally force other factions to hand over settlements through the "Changing of the Ways" mechanic. It feels like cheating. It is cheating, narratively speaking. Slaanesh, led by N'Kari, is all about speed and glass cannons. You're seductive. You corrupt other factions until they become your vassals. It’s a delicate dance that usually ends with a cavalry charge into the enemy’s rear.
The Problem With the Chaos Undivided (Daemon Prince)
I need to be blunt: the Daemon Prince (Daniel, as the community calls him) is a bit of a letdown for many. The idea is cool—you customize your lord with body parts like an RPG character. A tail that gives poison attacks? Sure. Wings that buff magic? Why not. But in practice, he lacks the focused power of the specialized gods. He’s a jack of all trades and a master of none. In the current 2026 meta, he still feels like he's missing that "oomph" you get from the more modern DLC lords.
Grand Cathay and the Balance of Power
Cathay was the big surprise. Most of us expected them to be a boring "human" faction to counter the demons. Instead, they brought the Harmony system. This isn't just flavor text. If your army isn't balanced between Yin (ranged) and Yang (melee), you lose massive buffs.
Miao Ying and Zhao Ming are incredibly strong. They can turn into dragons. Literally. You’re fighting a siege, your front line is buckling, and suddenly your general turns into a massive flying lizard and breathes lightning on everyone. It’s satisfying. The Great Bastion mechanic also provides a "tower defense" vibe that none of the other Warhammer Total War 3 factions really offer. You’re the shield of the world, and there’s a genuine sense of pressure as the Kurgan warbands keep battering your gates.
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Why Everyone Still Loves (and Hates) the Empire
The Empire is the "main character" of the Warhammer world. They’re just regular guys with floppy hats and black powder. In a world of literal gods and dinosaurs, that's a vibe. But playing Karl Franz in Immortal Empires is basically "Stress: The Video Game."
You are surrounded.
Vampires to the east.
Orcs in the mountains.
Festus the Leechlord (Nurgle) literally rotting your heartlands from within.
Drycha hating your guts for existing near trees.
The Elector Counts system is clunky. You’re constantly spending "Prestige" to stop your own subordinates from fighting each other while a literal apocalypse is happening. It’s thematic, sure. It’s also exhausting. If you’re a newcomer looking at Warhammer Total War 3 factions, maybe don’t start here unless you want a "Very Hard" experience on "Normal" difficulty.
The DLC Powerhouses: Chaos Dwarfs and Beyond
If you want to feel powerful, you play the Chaos Dwarfs. The Forge of the Chaos Dwarfs DLC changed the game's economic ceiling. You’re managing labor, raw materials, and armament production. It’s basically Factorio inside a wargame. Their artillery, like the Dreadquake Mortar, is arguably the most satisfying unit to fire in the entire trilogy. Watching a single shell delete an entire unit of infantry is... well, it’s why we play.
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But they have a limited "unit cap" system. You can’t just spam elite units. You have to earn the right to recruit more by spending armaments. This forces you to use "hobgoblins"—cheap, disposable trash—to fill out your ranks. It creates a great narrative arc for your campaign: starting as a struggling slaver and ending as an industrial god.
The Most Underrated Factions You’re Ignoring
Kislev is hard. Let’s get that out of the way. Katarin and Kostaltyn start in the middle of a frozen hellscape. But Mother Ostankya, added later, is fascinating. She’s the "Baba Yaga" of the setting, using hexes and spirits. She doesn't even start in Kislev in the Immortal Empires map; she's over in Naggaroth, fighting Dark Elves.
Then there’s the Ogre Kingdoms.
They’re hungry.
That’s their whole thing.
You need "Meat" to keep your armies functioning. If you run out, they start eating each other. It’s a fun, quirky mechanic, but their "Camp" system is still a bit polarizing. Camps are stationary hubs that you can't move, which feels counter-intuitive for a nomadic race of giant gluttons.
Dealing with the "Power Creep"
Let's talk about the elephant in the room: the older factions often feel "basic" compared to the new ones. If you compare the Skaven (from Game 2) to the Chaos Dwarfs (from Game 3), the level of complexity is night and day. Creative Assembly has been doing "Legacy Updates" to bring the old dogs up to speed.
The Dwarfs (the regular ones, the Dawi) recently got a massive rework. They have the "Great Book of Grudges" now, which is a dynamic system that actually rewards you for seeking revenge. Before, it was just a list of chores. Now, if someone raids your lands, the grudge builds up, and fulfilling it gives you access to "Grudge Settler" units—insanely buffed versions of standard troops. It finally makes them feel as stubborn and dangerous as the lore suggests.
How to Actually Choose Your First Faction
If you’re new, or if you’re returning after a long break, don't just pick based on who looks coolest. Pick based on how you want to spend your Sunday afternoon.
- You want a power trip? Khorne or Chaos Dwarfs.
- You want to play a grand strategy game with lots of math? Cathay or Chaos Dwarfs.
- You want a survival horror game? Kislev or Empire (Karl Franz).
- You want to feel like a tactical genius using magic? Tzeentch or High Elves (Eltharion).
- You just want to have a laugh? Greenskins. Grimgor Ironhide is still a beast, and the "Waaagh!" mechanic is the simplest, most effective "I win" button in the game.
Actionable Steps for Your Next Campaign
- Check the "Short Campaign Victory" conditions. Some factions have goals that take 40 turns; others take 150. If you have "campaign fatigue," pick someone like Belakor who can teleport across the map and finish objectives quickly.
- Download the "UI Modding Starter Pack" from the Steam Workshop. Even in 2026, the vanilla UI can be a bit cluttered. Mods that clear up the settlement icons make managing a 50-settlement empire much easier.
- Don't ignore the Diplomacy screen. In Warhammer 3, you can build "Outposts" in your allies' cities. This lets you recruit their units. Ever wanted to see Empire Handgunners supported by Dwarven Ironbreakers? Outposts make it happen. It bridges the gap between different Warhammer Total War 3 factions and makes alliances actually matter.
- Learn the "Corner Camp" but don't rely on it. Putting your troops in the corner of the map prevents you from being flanked, which is great for Skaven or Dwarfs. But against Chaos factions with heavy magic, you’re just making yourself a giant target for a stationary vortex spell.
- Focus on your Economy first. It’s tempting to build recruitment buildings everywhere. Don't. You only need one "recruitment province." Everything else should be gold production. You can’t win a war with elite knights if you can’t pay their wages.