Vampire Coast


 * This page is about the race of vampire coast. If you were looking for something else, see Vampire Coast (disambiguation).


 * This race requires the Curse of the Vampire Coast DLC to play.

The Vampire Coast is a race introduced in Total War: Warhammer II with the Curse of the Vampire Coast DLC. They have four playable factions, each led by a different Legendary Lord.

The Vampire Coast is a race of undead who ply the coastline of Lustria in search of plunder. Their armies consist of zombified pirates armed with dirty cutlasses, soggy muskets and rusty cannons, backed up by giant crabs and other undead horrors.

How they play

 * Units: Large focus on large masses of lightly armed and armored undead troops, supported by artillery units, flying units, and strong monster units. Advanced armies will consist of regiments much fewer in number but many times greater in strength and utility.
 * Upgradeable Ships: Legendary Lords may build up their flagship to give great boons both in battle and on the campaign map.
 * Pirate Coves: Successfully besiege a settlement or use a Hero to establish a Cove that will generate Income and Infamy.
 * Infamy: Starting at the bottom of the list, win battles, draw out rivals, and kill those Rivals to recover the Lost Sea Shanty.
 * Verses of the Ancient Sea Shanty: An ancient song that has not been sung as a whole in countless years. Combine all three Verses to summon a terrifying leviathan.
 * Loyalty: Manage the Loyalty of your Lords by giving them Plunder and letting them do what pirates do, lest they see you as the more profitable target.
 * Treasure Maps: Search for Gold, Treasure, and Infamy by solving Riddles found in abandoned Settlements and buried in the sands.
 * Pieces of Eight: Defeat Pirate crews who have been possessed by cursed gold, take their piece from them to summon Regiments of Renown to plunder the seas with little resistance.

Background
"Fortune favours the infamous!"

Night falls on Lustria. As you stand on the dock and peer seawards through the gathering mists, strain your ears. The jungle sounds behind you fade, and in their place comes a wet thudding, as of rotten rigging against a mouldy mast. The sound multiplies, and with it, the groan of a thousand breathless voices, joined in something part-shanty, part-dirge. Dread prows pierce the gloom ahead, and the ghastly truth is laid bare: upon the ghoul-winds come the swollen hulks and decaying vessels of the Vampire Coast! Run now – run hard and fast. For it is all you can do.

It was the undying lord Luthor Harkon that laid claim to a stretch of Lustria’s east coast. Ever since, it has been a domain where the dead stir, leading expeditions into the jungle interior or setting sail across the Great Ocean to commit wanton acts of piracy. But the insane Arch-Commodore Harkon is not the only unliving admiral who takes to the seas with pistol-armed crews of zombies, vampiric depth guard, syreens and mournguls… there are other pirate lords who command dreadfleets of their own, packed to the gunwales with crews press-ganged into eternal service.

These tyrants ply the seas seeking plunder of blood and gold. However, now that the vortex of Ulthuan weakens, the captains search for more than mere treasure… for the Star-Metal Harpoon lies in the deeps, a weapon powerful enough to bring the greatest Merwyrm of them all to heel!

Unit Roster

 * Main article: Vampire Coast unit roster

The armies of the Vampire Coast consist of zombified pirates armed with cutlasses, muskets and cannons, backed up by giant crabs, and other undead horrors. The Pirates of Sartosa have access to living units. Like other undead factions all Vampire Coast units never rout, and are subject to the crumbling and disintegrating special rules, which causes the unit's health to start rapidly depleting as leadership falls. They are unique in being the only undead faction with a heavy emphasis on missile superiority. Missile troops represent a large portion of their roster and come in many varieties.

Vampire Coast spellcasters can use the Lore of the Deep.

Every missile unit on the roster has access to a unique ability Extra Powder (Vampire Coast).

Regiments of Renown
There are eight Regiments of Renown available to the Vampire Coast. Instead of unlocking them by leveling up your lords, you must instead collect Pieces of Eight to unlock each of them.

In the Campaign
The Vampire Coast factions are non-horde factions that occupy settlements and control provinces. However they also have the added benefit of pirate ships, which work somewhat like a horde army.

Playable Subfactions
There are the following playable subfactions:

NPCs

 * Cymbals the Monkey

Objectives
The great Merwyrm Amanar has been awoken from its slumber by the vacillations of the Great Vortex. It terrorizes the sea lanes, summoning vast storms and attacking coastal ports on a whim. Only one who wields the Star-Metal Harpoon will tame the beast and become immune to its ravenous hungers. However, the Harpoon must first be found and invigorated using the three verses of a secret and ancient sea-shanty.

Each playable Legendary Lord must grow their dread reputation to become the most Infamous pirate on the seas. Certain opposing Pirate Captains know the three verses of the ancient shanty and, as your Infamy rivals theirs, they will seek you out in attempt to destroy you. If you best each in battle, you’ll learn each of these verses, all three of which are required to magically charge the Star-Metal Harpoon.

Only with the fully-powered Star-Metal Harpoon in hand can you embark on the final, fateful battle, bend Amanar to your will, and become the greatest sea-scourge the world has ever seen!

Infamy

 * Main article: Infamy

As your faction wins battles, takes territory and establishes Pirate Coves (see Pirate Coves below), your Legendary Lord’s Infamy grows amongst the ranks of pirate lords and ladies. This is the route by which you reach ultimate victory in a Vampire Coast campaign.

Players begin at Rank 14 and work their way towards Rank 1 as they best other pirate factions. As your rank improves, a pirate army will spawn for you to defeat and earn one of the three verses of the Sea Shanty.

Pirate Coves

 * Main article: Pirate Coves.

After a victorious port-settlement battle, Vampire Coast factions may choose a new post-battle option. Instead of taking, sacking or razing the port, the faction may choose to establish a Pirate Cove in the vicinity. These secret sub-settlements can siphon a steady flow of income from the main settlement, and bring other benefits related to any upgrades the player chooses to build in the Cove. Vampire Fleet Admiral heroes can also establish Coves as a hero action, with no limitation on whether or not the Player is at war with the target. The Cove can only be destroyed if the settlement itself is razed. In addition, a competing Vampire Coast faction which conquers the settlement may commandeer the Cove for itself.

Upgradeable Ships and Building Trees

 * Main article: Flagships.

Legendary Lords sail in their own unique ships. Details of these ship are accessed via the Lord in the same fashion as Horde Buildings for Horde Factions, and contain many powerful upgrades for the Lord and his army. This does not make them a standard Horde faction however. Vampire Coast lords may also occupy settlements like any other non-horde faction, and may develop it using the unique new Vampire Coast building tree. In short, they benefit from the best features of both Horde factions and Settled factions.

Fleet Office Roles

 * Main article: Fleet Offices

Similar to the Wood Elves you can assign your lords to offices for various bonuses.

Loyalty

 * Main article: Loyalty

Loyalty affects whether Vampire Coast lords are likely to rebel against you in campaign mode. The four Legendary Lords acquired from the Technology Tree are not affected by Loyalty. This mechanic is shared with the Dark Elves and Skaven.

Pieces of Eight

 * Main article: Pieces of Eight

Carefully hidden around the world are eight unique golden tokens. Locating each and defeating its powerful guardian army will grant access to the Vampire Coast Regiments of Renown, powerful elite variants of units in the terrifying Vampire Coast roster.

Raise Dead

 * Main article: Raise Dead

Like the Vampire Counts, the Vampire Coast also has access to the Raise Dead mechanic so they can replenish their troops with freshly risen ones. Despite this, they do still have access to Global Recruitment, unlike the Vampire Counts.

Treasure Maps

 * Main article: Treasure maps

Pirates of folklore buried great treasures around the world. As you win battles at land and sea, you may find the treasure maps marking their rough location. Solve the riddles that shroud them, and they can be yours for the taking...

Vampiric Corruption

 * Main article: Vampiric corruption

Vampire Coast factions spread vampiric corruption with their armies, heroes, settlements, buildings and commandments.

Inventory

 * Vampire Coast items
 * Vampire Coast followers
 * Vampire Coast banners

Rites

 * Main article: Vampire Coast rites.

Vampire Coast factions have 4 unique rites, and can even add a giant cannon to their recruitment pool.
 * Curse of the Bountiful Treasure
 * Curse of the Sea Mist
 * Curse of the Queen's Cannon
 * Curse of the Eternal Service

Technologies

 * Main article: Vampire Coast tech tree.

The Vampire Coast also has access to four Legendary Admirals, accessible through their Technology tree, similar to how the Tomb Kings could unlock some Dynasty Lords. Each will cost you 2,000 Infamy to unlock.
 * Disreputable Admiral: Trusty Montford
 * Infamous Admiral: O'Bones Macdonald
 * Notorious Admiral: Burke Black
 * Dreadful Admiral: Two-Toes Adley

Unlike regular Vampire Coast lords, these Legendary Admirals are able to have their own upgradeable ship like a Legendary Lord. They also are not subject to Loyalty, unlike regular Vampire Fleet Admiral lords.

Buildings

 * Main article: Vampire Coast buildings.

Stances

 * Default
 * March
 * Encamp
 * Raiding
 * Dig for Treasure

Post-Battle Options

 * See Post-battle options

Settlement Options

 * See Settlement options

Commandments

 * See Commandments

Climate Preferences

 * Habitable: Temperate, Frozen, Ocean, Savannah, Desert, Jungle, Island
 * Unpleasant: Mountain, Wasteland
 * Uninhabitable: Chaotic Wasteland, Magical Forest

Victory conditions
For victory conditions, see each of the Vampire Coast factions.

Minor Factions
There is only a single minor Vampire Coast faction.


 * Vampire Coast Mutineers

In addition to regular minor factions, there are also new types of pirate-themed Rogue Armies (which use a blue stripe in their crest instead of red) whom you will be competing against on the Infamy leaderboard, as well as for Pieces of Eight:

In addition to one more who holds the Star-Metal Harpoon: Additionally, as your Infamy Rank improves, you will be challenged by three addition Rogue Pirate armies (which have a teal stripe instead of blue or red):
 * Bleak Coast Buccaneers
 * Freebooters of Port Royale
 * Grey Point Scuttlers
 * The Boyz of the Forbidden Coast
 * The Churning Gulf Raiders
 * The Terrors of the Dark Straits
 * The Tyrants of the Black Ocean
 * The Sunken Land Corsairs
 * Middle Sea Brigands: Spawn when you reach Rank 7
 * Dragon Spine Privateers: Spawn when you reach Rank 4
 * Shark Strait Seadogs: Spawn when you reach Rank 1



Trivia

 * The design for their crest comes from the reverse side of the Wind Gauge (also referred to as the Vortex Marker) in the Games Workshop game Dreadfleet. In most scenarios, the Wind Gauge was used to determine the direction of the wind. However, in the final scenario (called "The Maelstrom", which was set in the heart of Galleon's Graveyard) you would flip the Wind Gauge over and place it in the center of the map to mark the location of the vortex.
 * Prior to the release of the Curse of the Vampire Coast, the faction used Vampire Counts units and was led by a generic lord named Waldakir Helsnicht. They controlled the entire Vampire Coast province in both the Eye of the Vortex and the Mortal Empires campaigns.
 * The "main" Vampire Coast faction, The Awakened, used to have the generic name "Vampire Coast", sharing the name with their race. This was changed with the Potion of Speed Update for Total War: Warhammer II.