Total War: Warhammer 40,000 — everything we know
Total War: Warhammer 40,000 is Creative Assembly's first march into the 41st Millennium — the grand-strategy series' debut in the grimdark future, and its first release on consoles. Announced at The Game Awards in December 2025, it wraps the usual turn-based campaign around real-time battles, scaled up this time to galactic conquest and fleet warfare. Four factions are confirmed for launch: Space Marines, Astra Militarum, Orks and Aeldari. There's no release date yet — a closed beta is open for sign-ups. Everything here is what Creative Assembly and SEGA have actually said. No leaks, no guesswork.
Last updated 23 July 2026
The latest look
Where things stand
Updates
SEGA confirmed its gamescom 2026 line-up: Total War: Warhammer 40,000 will be playable at the SEGA booth in Hall 7 of Cologne’s Koelnmesse from 26 to 30 August, making what SEGA calls its “hands-on debut”. Players take command of the Space Marines across three gameplay scenarios, in a booth built to look like the war-torn setting. This is the first time the public gets hands on the game. Still no release date, and no word on the closed beta start.
Creative Assembly brought roughly six minutes of fresh gameplay to Bilibili World 2026 in Shanghai: Astra Militarum holding a river line against an Ork assault, heavy tanks, an Ork Stompa, destructible terrain and a battle-ending orbital lance strike called down from a ship in orbit. It is the most recent official footage of the game.
At the PC Gaming Show, Creative Assembly showed in-development gameplay of the Astra Militarum against the Orks on a war-torn Imperial world, and confirmed the first two named characters: Commissar Yarrick for the Astra Militarum and the Ork warboss Ghazghkull Thraka, set to clash over Armageddon. The studio also detailed the planet-creation system — climate and surface conditions reshape each world, so an arid planet pits more craters while a temperate one builds up ice and rock around settlements. Closed-beta sign-ups are now open, with the beta itself set for later in 2026.
Register for the closed beta →A short cinematic teaser at Warhammer Skulls 2026 — no gameplay, just an in-fiction audio log — set the campaign's early focus on the Armageddon Sector "under xenos incursion." The grizzled narrator turns out to be Commissar Yarrick, naming his long-running war against the Ork megaboss Ghazghkull. It's the second trailer so far.
Creative Assembly's "Show & Tell" livestream gave the first detailed look at how worlds are built — star systems holding several planets across different biomes and civilisation types — plus three in-development battle maps. Deliberately rough, mostly UI-free footage, and still no date.
A small developer roundtable wrapped up the announcement week before the studio's year-end break. Creative Assembly flagged that in-depth campaign and battle deep dives would follow in 2026.
Revealed on stage by actor and 40K fan David Harbour: the first Total War set in Warhammer 40,000, built on the new Warcore engine, with four launch factions and Steam Workshop modding. It's also the series' first console release — PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S — closing out Total War's 25th-anniversary year. No release date.
What we know
4
Launch factions
M41
Era Indomitus
1st
Total War on console
2026
Closed beta
The setting — the Era Indomitus
The game is set in the 41st Millennium during the Era Indomitus, with the Imperium of Man besieged across a galaxy locked in endless war. It's the first time Total War has stepped into the far future after the fantasy Warhammer trilogy, and SEGA pitches it as the franchise's move "into the 41st Millennium" on a galactic scale. The campaign's early focus is the Armageddon Sector — the war-torn world at the heart of the Imperium's endless fight against the Orks.
A galactic-scale campaign
The Total War structure carries over — a turn-based campaign wrapped around real-time battles — but the campaign layer expands to planetary conquest and fleet management across the stars. Creative Assembly has talked up planet-destroying fleets and a scope that goes beyond anything the series has tried, which has fans expecting the franchise's first proper space combat.
Four factions at launch
You can command four factions at launch: the Space Marines, the Astra Militarum, the Orks and the Aeldari. Each is described as radically distinct, built around lore-inspired mechanics, unique weaponry and faction-specific war machines. Per Creative Assembly's developer roundtable, the Space Marines are an elite, deliberately small force that doesn't expand like a normal Total War army, while the Aeldari aren't built for massed combat at all — lead designer Simon Mann frames them around hit-and-run raids through the Webway, where "every soul lost is a soul not returned, so you have to really pick your fights."
The first named characters
Two named characters are confirmed, both tied to Armageddon: Commissar Yarrick for the Astra Militarum and the Ork warboss Ghazghkull Mag Uruk Thraka — lore rivals who can finally face off on the campaign map. They're the first named leaders shown beyond generic faction commanders; Creative Assembly hasn't yet detailed how they work mechanically.
Build your own army
Armies are customisable down to name, colour scheme and heraldry, plus traits and tactics — so you can match a tabletop collection or invent a new scheme. Game director Attila Mohacsi calls 40K "a science-fantasy setting without equal" and frames the goal as "the definitive Warhammer 40,000 strategy experience," leaning on Creative Assembly's 15-plus years working with Games Workshop.
A new engine, and the first console Total War
It runs on Warcore, a new proprietary engine purpose-built for this project's scale, and it's the first Total War to launch on consoles — PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S alongside PC. Modding is supported through Steam Workshop from launch, and the announcement key art was painted by Games Workshop artist Paul Dainton.
Planets you can reshape
Battles play out on worlds generated by a planet-creation system, where climate and conditions change a planet's terrain. Maps include destructible elements — as Creative Assembly put it, a forest you don't like is a forest you don't have to keep — with architecture and verticality factoring into the fighting.
The quick version
Everything Creative Assembly and SEGA have locked down, side by side with the big questions still open ahead of the closed beta.
Locked in
- Turn-based galactic campaign + real-time battles
- 4 factions: Space Marines, Astra Militarum, Orks, Aeldari
- Yarrick vs Ghazghkull, clashing over Armageddon
- PC, PS5 & Xbox Series — first console Total War
- New proprietary Warcore engine
- Steam Workshop modding at launch
Not confirmed yet
- Release date or window
- Closed-beta date & platforms
- Chaos Space Marines (later, no date)
- Pre-order bonuses (no DLC, no Blood Pack)
- Final PC specs & age rating
- David Harbour's character
Sources: Creative Assembly's announcement and official FAQ · the Steam page · The Game Awards reveal and the 2026 dev updates. Anything not on this list is still a question mark.
FAQ
When is the Total War: Warhammer 40,000 release date?
There's no date or release window. Creative Assembly and SEGA say only that there's "more to talk about later in 2026," and the footage shown so far is pre-alpha. Read the silence how you like — nothing past that is official.
What platforms is Total War: Warhammer 40,000 on?
PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S. It's the first Total War to launch on consoles in the series' 25-year history. The Steam page is live and wishlist-able now.
What factions are in Total War: Warhammer 40,000?
Four at launch: Space Marines, Astra Militarum, Orks and Aeldari. Each is built around its own lore-inspired mechanics, weaponry and war machines.
Which characters are in Total War: Warhammer 40,000?
Two named characters are confirmed so far: Commissar Yarrick (Astra Militarum) and the Ork warboss Ghazghkull Thraka, set to clash over Armageddon. David Harbour also voices a character, but who he plays hasn't been revealed.
Are Chaos Space Marines in the game?
Not at launch. Creative Assembly has said they'll "absolutely" be part of the plans later, along with other iconic 40K factions — but they aren't on the confirmed launch roster.
Is there a beta, and how do I sign up?
Yes — a closed beta is confirmed for later in 2026, and sign-ups are open now via the official Total War site. It's a "register your interest" form, so a place isn't guaranteed, and no exact date or platform list has been given yet.
Is Total War: Warhammer 40,000 turn-based or real-time?
Both, like every Total War: a turn-based campaign — here at galactic scale, with planets and fleets — wrapped around real-time battles. Expect a heavier emphasis on ranged firepower than the fantasy games.
When and where is Total War: Warhammer 40,000 set?
In the 41st Millennium, during the Era Indomitus — the galaxy aflame with endless war and the Imperium besieged on every front.
Is there pre-order DLC or a Blood Pack?
No pre-order DLC — Creative Assembly confirmed that outright — and no Blood Pack at launch. Pre-order bonus details are due later in 2026.