Four armies, one war-torn planet, and a whole lot of ways to crush your enemy. Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV is bringing the RTS series back to its classic roots, and picking the right faction is where your journey to conquering Kronus really starts. Here’s a breakdown of every confirmed Dawn of War IV faction, how each one plays, and which army might be your perfect match.
Meet the Battlefield: Planet Kronus
Dawn of War IV takes place on Kronus, the same planet from Dawn of War: Dark Crusade, roughly two hundred years later. The story unfolds across more than 70 campaign missions, playable solo or in co-op, with each faction getting its own dedicated storyline that ties into the bigger war for the planet. Four armies are confirmed at launch, and each one plays completely differently, so this is not a game where you just pick whoever looks coolest and hope for the best.
Space Marines (Blood Ravens)
The Blood Ravens are back and leading the charge as the signature faction of the series. This is a generalist elite infantry army, meaning you field fewer units, but every single one matters. Space Marines are tough, flexible in both melee and ranged combat, and can be reinforced right on the field instead of pulled back to base.
One of the coolest mechanical twists here is how they build. Space Marines do not rely on worker units at all. Buildings drop straight from orbit and can be placed almost anywhere on the map, though construction slows down the further you build from your headquarters. That gives you real freedom to expand aggressively, but it comes with a real cost if you overextend.
Captain Cyrus and Chief Librarian Jonah Orion lead the Blood Ravens campaign, and the Dark Angels chapter shows up mid story fighting alongside them, adding some welcome variety to the Space Marine roster. Since Space Marines cannot easily replace losses, this faction rewards players who play tight and tactical rather than throwing squads into a meat grinder hoping numbers will save them.
Best for: Players who like careful positioning, tactical decision making, and elite unit management over sheer volume.
Orks
If Space Marines are about precision, Orks are about pure, unrelenting chaos. This is a cheap, fast expanding horde faction built around sheer numbers and momentum. Warboss Gorgutz of the Bad Moons clan returns to lead the Ork campaign, and the roster includes classics like Flash Gitz, Squighog Riders, and the genuinely hilarious Bomb Squigs, suicide bomber units that get produced automatically from a dedicated static structure.
The Waaagh! mechanic is the heart of how Orks play. It’s a collective buff that amplifies your offensive power the more momentum you’re building. Where Space Marines count every single casualty, Orks shrug off losses and keep pushing. The catch is that this faction lives and dies by tempo. An Ork army that slows down gets outpaced fast, since their whole economy is built around constant expansion rather than sitting back and turtling.
Best for: Players who want an accessible, aggressive playstyle built around volume and never letting off the gas.
Adeptus Mechanicus
Making their full series debut for the first time ever, the Adeptus Mechanicus bring something Dawn of War has never really had before, a fast, high damage, ranged glass cannon faction built around technology and precision rather than brute force. Their units hit hard, but they are fragile under sustained fire, so positioning and support matter a lot here.
The standout mechanic is the Noosphere Network, which links Adeptus Mechanicus buildings and units together across your base. The bigger this network grows, the cheaper your unit production gets and the stronger your defensive turrets become. It also reveals enemy movement through the fog of war, giving you an information edge most other factions don’t have.
On the unit side, expect Ruststalkers to bait enemies into deadly close range melee, paired with precise Skitarii Rangers for ranged support. Magos Dominus Nulpherus-1 leads their campaign, which follows an expedition on Kronus that accidentally breaches a dormant Necron Tomb, setting up a pretty grim chain of events for the rest of the story.
Best for: Methodical players who enjoy building up systems and infrastructure before going on the offensive.
Necrons
The Necrons are the ancient, mechanical menace of Kronus, and their playstyle reflects it perfectly. This is a durable, slow, and relentless faction built around attrition rather than speed. Their signature mechanic is the Power Matrix, which spreads a circuit board-style field around Necron structures. Units fighting on their own Power Matrix regenerate health faster, giving them a serious home field advantage the longer a fight drags on.
What really sets Necrons apart is resurrection. Where Space Marines lose units permanently and Orks just throw more bodies at the problem, Necrons can bring their forces back from the brink, methodically grinding down opponents who can’t match that kind of staying power. It’s a faction built for patient players who want every inch of ground they take to actually stay taken.
Best for: Defensive-minded players who prefer to win the long game through pressure and resilience rather than early aggression.
Which Dawn of War IV Faction Should You Pick?
If you’re still deciding, here’s the short version. Go Space Marines if you like tactical, elite unit management. Go Orks if you want fast, aggressive, no-brakes gameplay. Go Adeptus Mechanicus if you enjoy building up strong systems before striking. Go Necrons if you’d rather grind opponents down through sheer resilience. Each faction has its own campaign too, so you’re not locked into just one story depending on your pick, you get a genuinely different narrative experience with every army you try.
Ready to Command Your Army?
Whichever faction speaks to you, the fight for Kronus is coming. Grab your copy of Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV on Driffle and get ready to lead the Blood Ravens, the Orks, the Adeptus Mechanicus, or the Necrons into battle. Driffle offers verified sellers, prices that beat retail, and instant delivery, so you can spend less time worrying about checkout and more time planning your next push.
