Zhatan the Black is a new Legendary Lord for the Total War: Warhammer 3 Chaos Dwarfs update. If you are wondering how to play his campaign, this guide will walk you through it.
Zhatan the Black is a powerful melee hero and part of the Chaos Dwarfs update who leads The Warhost of Zharr army. With powerful army buffs, durable defense and armor, and crowd control ability, Sadistic Snare, Zhatan is one of the more powerful additions to the Total War: Warhammer 3 Legendary Lord roster.
Zhatan the Black Faction and Lord Effects
Zhatan has a good mixture of faction-wide, and Lord effects that buff his army. His faction effects benefit War Machines, which can be upgraded at the Manufactory in The Hell-Forge. As a leader, he is durable and capable in the heat of battle but suffers some weakness against large units. His +1 to local recruitment capacity means you can field larger armies quicker.
Faction Effects
Zhatan the Black has the following faction effects:
- The maximum number of active Convoys is +1.
- Recruitment cost -50% for Artillery and War Machine Units
Lord Effects
Zhatan the Black’s Legendary Lord effects include:
- Casualties captured post-battle: +15%
- Local recruitment capacity +1
- Ability: Sadistic Snare
Zhatan the Black Starting Army
Zhatan the Black’s starting army includes the following units:
- Hobgoblin Cutthroats
- Chaos Dwarf Warriors
- Hobgoblin Wolf Raiders (Bows)
- Deathstrieker Rocket Launcher
- Chaos Dwarf Blunderbusses
Zhatan the Black has a nice and diverse starting roster that includes ranged units and a unit of Wolf Raiders that can be used to antagonize the enemy into attacking.
Early — players should focus on taking out clumps of infantry with the Deathstrieker Rocket Launcher and recruit Orc or Goblin Labourers as a meatshield for your more expensive and powerful units.
Later on, you’ll gain access to much more powerful units through your army production chains and via The Hell-Forge. We suggest upgrading the first tier of Dwarf units first.
How to Play Zhatan the Black Campaign
Like other Chaos Dwarf Factions, playing Zhatan the Black will rely on your production output of Labour, Raw Materials, and Armaments. This will enable you to unlock powerful upgrades via the Manufactory and the ability to field more units via The Hell-Forge.
For an in-depth walkthrough of how those mechanics work, see our comprehensive Chaos Dwarfs guide.
Players should secure the nearest port city, which can be obtainable by heading southeast on the maps starting location.
Zhatan’s main settlements and province aren’t that well-defended, though; there are a few chokepoints that will help narrow things down from the north and southwest of the map.
Start with securing the Stonesky Foothills province and the Eastern Steppes first. Unlocking a port city will enable you to create a port that can connect you to other factions and increase your income from trading.
In the late game, you’ll want to rely on your higher-tier infantry and large and flying units. The Chaos Dwarfs roster is powerful but not invincible, and you may have to use more hit-and-run tactics against armies with powerful melee capabilities.
What Skills to Get as Zhatan the Black
Zhatan the Black’s skill tree contains powerful army buffs and individual hero enhancements. We suggest obtaining Route Marcher first to benefit from the additional campaign movement, then transition into his melee buffs with the Survivalist skill, which increases hitpoints by +5%.
Once Zhatan hits level 12, players should begin investing in Brutality of Zharr, which will help Zhatan’s weakness against Large units by providing a +15 attack bonus vs. Large units. At rank 7 and 11, Zhatan will gain the Great Taurus and Lammasu mount, vastly improving his speed and mobility at the expense of Armour and Melee Attack. If you’d rather use him in melee battle, we suggest toggling the mount option off in his Skills tab.
Zhatan the Black is a great new addition to the Total War: Warhammer 3 Chaos Dwarfs update. Like other Chaos Dwarf factions, he’s pretty well-rounded and can field a diverse army that plays into whatever playstyle you prefer.
For more guides like this, see our Warhammer 3 section.
