[Update #2]: The Shadow & The Blade DLC and its accompanying update have now arrived, and so far they have been quite amazing!

[Update]: The patch notes for the free update accompanying the DLC have now been released, and apparently the turn-end times will be getting improved by up to 60%!

Total War: Warhammer 2's The Shadow & The Blade DLC is coming next week, bringing with it a variety of improvements to both the Skaven and Dark Elves. However, unlike the past few legendary lords, Malus Darkblade and his counterpart Deathmaster Snikch will not start in one of the currently available provinces, but rather in entirely new ones!

In other words, the southeastern part of the Mortal Empires map will be getting greatly expanded with the addition of the Dragon Isles, Gnoblar Country, Wolf Lands and surrounding territories. And with the presence of both Deathmaster Snikch and Malus Darkblade, this previously tame corner of the map is going to become a lot more competitive, especially now that both Kroq-Gar and Khalida no longer have an impenetrable wall at their back.

Things are bound to become even more exciting in Total War: Warhammer 3 as the Ogre Kingdoms and potential Nagash addition would bring even more legendary lords into the region, which would make it just as much of a glorious bloodbath as the current Lustria. However, even without Total War: Warhammer 3, the newly expanded Mortal Empires map should provide a significantly more diverse and interesting experience for any faction that likes to roam around the Southlands or the Badlands. As such, I can only hope we'll get a few more of these extensions in the future as well since having more choices (as well as enemies to clobber) is always a good thing!

You can read more about the upcoming The Shadow & The Blace DLC, as well as check out the newly updated Mortal Empires map, over at the official website.