| “ | Betrayed and outcast by their peers, they bring savage vengeance to any who cross them. | „ |
Shades are a 
Dark Elves missile infantry unit introduced in Total War: Warhammer II.
Recruitment[]
Unlocked with: Den of Outlaws or Den of Outlaws (Black Ark)
Description[]
The ancestors of the Shades once ruled Clar Karond but were betrayed and exiled by their peers. Now the outcast clans have become utterly at home in the wilderness of the Blackspine Mountains, moving as silently as ghosts through petrified forests and razor-sharp rocks. Their lives are vicious, even by the harsh standards of Dark Elves. Every day is a battle for survival with the dread beasts of the mountains; every night a gauntlet of drum-driven king-sacrifice and death duelling. The Shades' hardiness makes them valued additions to any raiding fleet, and many Dreadlords expend much wealth in enticing them to their cause. When the army attacks, the Shades infiltrate the enemy battleline. From this position, they can harass the foe with volleys of dark-fletched bolts, or strike out and slay war machine crews with glinting blades.
Attributes[]
- Missile Infantry
- ▲ Armour-Piercing Missiles: The damage of armour-piercing weapons mostly ignores the armour of the target, making them the ideal choice against heavily-armoured enemies. They are often heavier and attack at a slower rate though, making them less efficient against poorly-armoured targets.
- ▲ Vanguard Deployment: This unit can deploy in an expanded deployment area, allowing it to start the battle within striking distance of the enemy - or somewhere unexpected.
- ▲ Stalk: This unit can move hidden in any terrain.
Unit Abilities[]
Passive Abilities[]
Strategy[]
Shades are an incredibly versatile unit and a core strength of the Dark Elf early game, continuing to be useful throughout the campaign thanks to their passives and the many upgrades available to them. With Stalk and Vanguard Deployment, Shades can hit the enemy formation wherever and whenever you like, enabling you to take out or distract key targets at the right time. Crucially Shades are pretty handy in melee combat, meaning that unlike with most ambush-type missile units the enemy cannot throw a fast unit or summon at them and hope to forget about them.
In comparison to Shielded Darkshards, also available from a Tier 2 building, they have much better melee stats and employ a loose formation which makes them less vulnerable to missile fire, mitigating the lack of shields. Darkshards will dish out more damage for you as a dedicated missile unit particularly with the extra armor-piercing, but are a significantly less flexible unit.
In comparison to the other Shades unit, the main benefit of the vanilla variant is being able to recruit them in one turn from a Tier 2 building, which helps a lot in the precarious early game. They can be phased out for the other variants if money and time allows.
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