Rituals

Not to be confused with the rituals present in Chaos Cults within Total War: Warhammer III

Rituals are a game mechanic in the Eye of the Vortex campaign, introduced in Total War: Warhammer II. Rituals involve a set of objectives that a faction must follow to win the campaign.

Some playable factions have other objectives instead, and ignore the rituals/vortex. For instance all Tomb Kings and Vampire Counts factions. See Eye of the Vortex#Playable factions for more information.

How they work[]

In the campaign, each of the 4 main races (divided into playable factions) has a set of rituals they can perform to influence the Great Vortex. High Elves' rituals use blue magic trails; Dark Elves' rituals use purple trails; Skaven rituals' magic use green trails; and Lizardmen rituals' magic use orange trails. The Vortex Victory is one method of winning the campaign.

Rituals progress in a linear fashion, one after the other. During a ritual, three of your settlements funnel magic across the map to the Great Vortex. A successful attack on any of these settlements will cause the ritual to fail if the settlement is not retaken before it ends. Rituals take up to 10-20 turns to finish, so the settlements must be protected from Warriors of Chaos, Unknown Skaven Clan, and Norscan Tribes factions who will spawn nearby, and from enemy faction armies.

Each completed ritual will cause an animated cutscene to play, and provide some story mission/content.

Diplomatic relations will permanently be increased between the ritual faction and the other factions of their race, while it will permanently be decreased between all factions of the rival races. After completing the fourth ritual, the ritual faction will be locked into war with their rival ritual factions. Diplomacy will no longer be available between these factions.

Eventually, players will have to complete The Final Battle. The first faction to complete their final ritual must defend The Vortex from the rival factions.

Ritual currency[]

Each ritual has an increasing cost of ritual currency, and has different effects. Ritual currency is generated through settlements, treasure hunts and other dilemmas, winning battles and also through ritual resource sites. The ritual currency is different for each race:

Skaven - Warpstone
Lizardmen - Ancient Plaques
Dark Elves - Scrolls of Hekarti
High Elves - Way-fragments

Interventions[]

Intervention armies can be summoned while another faction is in the middle of performing a ritual. These armies are AI controlled and generally attack the enemy settlements involved in their ritual. Interventions come in 3 levels, which cost different amounts. If you were not already at war with the targeted faction, the game will ask if you want to declare war when summoning an intervention army.

See below for faction pages:

List of rituals[]

Number (Turns)	Ritual currency cost	Lizardmen Cult of Sotek, Hexoatl,^ Itza,* Last Defenders, Tlaqua	High Elves Avelorn, Eataine,^* Knights of Caledor, Nagarythe, Order of Loremasters	Dark Elves The Blessed Dread, Cult of Pleasure, Har Ganeth, Naggarond,^ The Thousand Maws*	Skaven Clan Mors,^ Clan Pestilens,* Clan Rictus, Clan Skryre
#1 (10)	350	Ritual of Prognostication	Ritual of Prophecy	Ritual of the Tortured Oracle	Ritual of Dark Scrying
#2 (10)	1060	Ritual of Rumination	Ritual of the Seafarer	Ritual of the Hated Foe	Ritual of Gnawing
#3 (10)	2040	Ritual of Contemplation	Ritual of the Scholar	Ritual of the Senescent Mentor	Ritual of Decay
#4 (10)	3325	Ritual of Deliberation	Ritual of the Explorer	Ritual of the Unrequited Lover	Ritual of Gestation
#5 (20)	5000	Ritual of Alignment	Ritual of the Defender	Ritual of the Trusted Sibling	Ritual of Noisome Binding

^{* =} AI default ritual faction

Enemy faction spawns[]

These factions will spawn when a faction begins a ritual, and attack that faction:

Norscan Tribes:

Warband of the Crow (Will spawn vs. Skaven)
Warband of the Eagle (Will spawn vs. High Elves)
Warband of the Hound (Will spawn vs. Dark Elves)
Warband of the Serpent (Will spawn vs. Lizardmen) Norscan tribes spawn on the second and third ritual.

Warriors of Chaos:

Followers of Chaos (Will spawn vs. Skaven)
Puppets of Chaos (Will spawn vs. High Elves)
Servants to Chaos (Will spawn vs. Dark Elves)
Vessels of Chaos (Will spawn vs. Lizardmen) Warriors of Chaos spawn on all but the final ritual.

Skaven:

Unknown Skaven Clan (Spawns vs all, but color varies depending on the players faction.) The Unknown Skaven Clan spawn on the third, fourth, and fifth Ritual.

Cutscenes[]

Warning: SPOILERS.

YouTube links: