Revision 3

The Necrons are one of the four launch Factions in Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War IV. They are ancient, deathless beings who awaken to the unwelcome intrusion on Planet Kronus and move to reclaim the world as their own.

Who the Necrons Are

According to the game's official faction description, the Necrons long ago traded their mortal bodies for mechanical supremacy, paying for that power with their souls. Now they are stirring from a 60-million-year slumber and seeking to reclaim their lost galactic empire, beginning with the world they find occupied. As an awakening force they enter the conflict not as newcomers but as something that was already there, rising again to drive intruders out.

Role in the Story

Their awakening is tied directly to the game's central mystery. The Necrons stir in response to what an Adeptus Mechanicus expedition uncovers buried on Kronus, which is what draws every faction to the planet. See Story and Setting for how that thread runs through the Campaign.

Thothmek the Chronomancer

The Necrons' named figure is Thothmek the Chronomancer, a time-bending Chronomancer revealed as the leader of the Necron host on Planet Kronus. A Chronomancer is a Necron schemer who bends the flow of time, and Thothmek is described as warping time around nearby Necrons to shield them while loosing raw energy to suppress enemies that close on him. It is his stirring that rouses the long-undisturbed tombs beneath Kronus, setting the Necrons against the Adeptus Mechanicus expedition that is hunting the same buried technology.

Limited Details

Beyond Thothmek, the Necrons remain the least-detailed of the four launch factions. Official faction art previews a Necron roster, but their individual units, mechanics, and Thothmek's full battlefield kit have not been detailed, and more is expected closer to launch.