Warhammer 40,000: Gladius - Fortification Pack Review

The folks over at Games Workshop are no strangers to lending out the Warhammer 40,000 license to passionate developers. This can be both a blessing and a curse, as the franchise has taken a lot of risks over the years, and not all of them have paid off. Proxy Studios’ Warhammer 40,000: Gladius, however, is one of the rare titles that faithfully adapts the wargaming giant to the TBS format while still being accessible to more casual audiences.

Due to the game’s increasing popularity, the developers have been steadily drip-feeding loyal players with a series of expansions meant to keep multiple playthroughs as fresh as the tabletop version of the game. The latest of these is dubbed the Fortification Pack, which features a half-dozen new defensive units meant to expand your tactical options during these planetwide conflicts.

The pack comprises of one new unit per faction, with most of these being gigantic weapons of war, though the Orks and Tyranids add more versatile solutions to their arsenal. Basically, Space Marines get Aquila Macro-Cannons (meant to fire ridiculously large shells over long distances), the Astra Militarum get Void Shield Generators (which protect certain areas of the battlefield), Chaos Space Marines get Noctilith Crowns (reality-altering constructions that attack and defend as psychic resonators), Necrons get Gauss Pylons (specialized turrets with devastating effects on vehicles and infantry), Orks get Big Meks (an enhanced mech-suit wearing Mek unit with a cult-like following) and Tyranids get Biovores (living clusters of deadly spore-based bombs).

Since we’re only covering the Fortification Pack, there’s no need to go into too much detail about the main game, but here’s a brief rundown. Most campaigns will play out roughly the same way as you choose a faction and begin your expansion on the perilous world of Gladius. Here, you’ll establish a city and compete for resources against bloodthirsty opponents in an ever-escalating quest for power, managing more and more settlements until you amass a sizable military force. No matter which faction you choose, most playthroughs will require quite a bit of research, exploration and resource management before you can get your hands on these new specialized units. Once they do finally show up, however, these advanced tools of war can make a huge difference during your battle for supremacy on this cursed planet.

Nevertheless, these new units aren’t invincible, and the expansion feels very well balanced when compared to the rest of the game. Some of the new additions require more strategy than others to be effective, but as a whole, this seemingly simple bit of DLC has a lot to offer returning players. Of course, you’ll need to have purchased some of the previous Gladius DLC in order to enjoy this pack, though I’d recommend getting it all as a discounted bundle.