Fatshark has done a fair bit of fooling around with Darktide’s format offerings lately, with the recent mode expanding the game’s difficulty options and variance. But while Havoc caters to endgame players looking for a challenge, Mortis Trials—laid out in the latest from community manager StrawHat—are described as "chaotic, with easy access for immediate fun."
Available from trust level 13, these missions will see players fight off visions of heretics induced in the Theatres of Mortification over 12 waves of escalating intensity. Most of these will involve the normal hacking agents of chaos to bits, but every third wave will be an "objective" wave wherein players will have to carry out a small task in exchange for supplies and buffs. This wave-based 'kill guys, restock, kill more guys' sort of loop immediately reminds me of my favorite horde game, Killing Floor, but where Mortis Trials gets interesting is in its roguelike-inspired buffs which promise to add a layer to buildcrafting.
The mode should also have some delectable lore nuggets for any Black Library obsessives. All these horrible visions players will be subject to come courtesy [[link]] of Sefoni, a withering psyker players meet [[link]] early on in the game but know relatively little about. As a note [[link]] on the blog post from narrative lead Michael Knight puts it: "Sefoni’s delighted that she’s got new playthings to torment … generating the Trials of Mortification places Sefoni under enormous pressure, and fragments of her past have a tendency to manifest without her knowing."
If all that sounds grimdark enough for you, Mortis Trials will debut early next week on March 25. Darktide may have had a rocky launch, but Fatshark’s to improving it has made it one of the best Warhammer 40,000 games around.
If you’re ready to witness your doom, Darktide is available on .