Publisher Sega and developer Creative Assembly today revealed the unit roster of Total War: Warhammer 3’s Grand Cathay faction, painting a clearer picture of just how balanced its armies will be.
Grand Cathay was first shown last month, in a rather impressive trailer which saw it facing off against the daemons of Tzeentch. The massive Terracotta Guardians and the faction’s strange war machines supporting regular infantry already painted a picture of a balanced unit roster, but now that we have the full list of units, it really does look like Total War Warhammer 3’s defensive powerhouse has a solution for just about every problem.
Grand Cathay is lead into battle by Miao Ying, The Storm Dragon and Zhao Ming, The Iron Dragon. Both Legendary Lords have the ability of switching between human and dragon form while fighting and share the Elemental Winds attribute with other spellcasters, increasing the potency of spells for every magic user in the army.
Miao Ying can debuff enemies while having access to the spells from the Lores of Yin and Life. Zhao Ming casts spells belonging to the Lores of Yang and Metal, but can also bolster the defense of surrounding troops.
The concepts of Yin and Yang also tie into Grand Cathay’s Harmony mechanic. Regular melee units favor Yang, while regular ranged units are ascribed to Yin. When close to the opposite, the former gain increased defense harder to kill, while the latter fire faster. Having Lords nearby further increases the effects of these buffs.
Grand Cathay’s unit roster features a bit of everything. Players have access to both melee and ranged solutions from cheap peasant infantry to specialized Celestial Dragon Guard, which excel against armored and large opponents.
Archers and cavalry also have cheap and expensive options, but it’s really the towering Terracotta Sentinels and their flying War Machines that make their armies stand out. Here is the full Total War: Warhammer 3 Grand Cathay unit roster, as shared by the developer on the game’s website:
Grand Cathay Legendary Lord
- Miao Ying, The Storm Dragon
- Zhao Ming, The Iron Dragon
Grand Cathay Lords
- Dragon-blooded Shugengan Lord (Mount: Warhorse or Jade Longma)
- Lord Magistrate (Mounts: Warhorse or Sky Lantern )
Grand Cathay Heroes
- Alchemist (Mount: Warhorse)
- Astromancer (Mounts: Warhorse or Wu Xing War Compass)
Grand Cathay Units
Grand Cathay Infantry
- Peasant Long Spearmen
- Jade Warriors (Variants: Sword & Shield, Halberds)
- Celestial Dragon Guard
Grand Cathay Missile Infantry
- Peasant Archers
- Iron Hail Gunners
- Crane Gunners
- Jade Warrior Crossbowmen (Variants: Crossbow, Crossbow & Shield )
- Celestial Dragon Crossbowmen
Grand Cathay Cavalry & Chariots
- Peasant Horsemen
- Jade Lancers
- Great Longma Riders
Grand Cathay Constructs
- Terracotta Sentinel
Grand Cathay Flying War Machines
- Sky Lantern
- Sky-Junk
Grand Cathay Artillery & War Machines
- Grand Cannon
- Wu-Xing War Compass
- Fire Rain Rocket
Grand Cathay is the third faction in Total War: Warhammer III to have its unit roster detailed, leaving the daemons of Tzeentch, Nurgle, and Slaanesh shrouded in mystery. The Changer of Ways is likely up next, given how his forces battled Cathay in its reveal trailer, and it’ll be interesting to see how they differ from the brutal armies of Khorne.
Total War: Warhammer 3 is slated to launch on PC early next year.
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