[Update #2]: Total War: Warhammer 3's release date has been pushed back to early 2022.

[Update]: Total War: Warhammer 3's first gameplay preview has unveiled a brand new battle type featuring Chaos and Kislev!

After a few days of cryptic teasers, Creative Assembly has now finally spilled the beans and announced the next Total War game. Unsurprisingly, it's going to be Total War: Warhammer 3 which will take place in the northeastern parts of the Warhammer world.

What might come as quick a shock, however, is the roster of factions. Instead of the usual four, Total War: Warhammer 3 will launch only with the Daemons of Chaos, Kislev and Grand Cathay! The latter two have barely had any sort of real support or fleshed out lore throughout all of Warhammer Fantasy, so not only will we be getting the heavily armored bear-riders the Warhammer community has been clamoring about for years, but a whole assortment of new and ridiculously over-the-top monsters as well!

For now, allow me to share with you the recently posted cinematic trailer starring the aforementioned bear riders, Tzarina Katrin of Kislev, and a whole bunch of angry Khorne boys. Have a gander:

Most interestingly of all, despite Total War: Warhammer 3 featuring only three distinct factions, there will be nine Legendary Lords to play around with. I'm guessing two will go to Cathay, two to Kislev, four to the various Chaos factions, and one that remains a mystery. I've seen a few theories that the last could be the mysterious Be'lakor, the first and mightiest of all the Demon Princes, serving as a sort of Chaos Undivided faction. Whether that will actually end up being the case, I have no idea, but it's certainly an exciting thought!

The final thing worth mentioning is that much like Total War: Warhammer 2, the finale of the trilogy will arrive alongside an early adopter DLC. This DLC will contain a brand new faction and will be given for free to anyone that pre-orders Total War: Warhammer 3 or decides to buy it within a few weeks after release, which is a pretty neat idea and a great alternative to the usual pre-order nonsense.

Once the pre-order faction itself gets announced, or Creative Assembly spills some more juicy details about Total War: Warhammer 3 in general, I'll make sure to let you know. Until then, you can read a little bit more about it over at the official FAQ.