Hello Everyone!
As promised, we are back this week with another dev blog for the next update for Warhammer 40,000: Darktide - Nightmares & Visions, which releases next week on March 25, 2025.
This week, we’re focusing on new content coming to the game in the form of Mortis Trials. This feature has been designed to be a unique, replayable activity whereby players will mash through waves of enemies in visions induced by Sefoni, the Mourningstar’s mysterious Psyker.
With the arrival of Commissar’s Moebian 53rd and the escalation of the Battle for Tertium, Rannick has grudgingly decided that they need to step up the Rejects’ training regime from, well, nothing, to something.
With resources tight and the warband’s operatives more than a little… varied in their approach to combat, he and Morrow have turned the matter over to Sefoni. Which makes sense, given that she’s the creator and maintainer of the Mourningstar’s Meat Grinder - a psychically generated oubliette where Rejects can familiarise themselves with new weaponry.
To make this possible, she’s manifested a new nightmarescape that Morrow calls Sefoni’s Reverie.
What is Mortis Trials?
Unlocked from Trust Level 13, Mortis Trials is a new activity in Darktide where players can experience something they wouldn’t encounter in normal missions, something with crazy wave compositions and roguelike elements. The fickle nature of these psychic manifestations has ensured that no two trials are alike, and only those who adapt will prevail. By accessing Sefoni’s Reverie on the Mourningstar, players will be transported to the Theatres of Mortification. These are the arenas where players will face the challenges Sefoni has created for them.
At the end of a successfully completed trial, players will return to Sefoni’s Reverie.
Havoc is a game mode with multipliers upon multipliers, and stacked mutators; which has been designed for late-game players to face a challenge. The experience of an activity like Mortis Trials is designed to be chaotic, with easy access for immediate fun. That said, players will face horrors in these theatres, where there is no escape or surrender. Only by standing your ground and fighting with unwavering determination will players emerge with victory.
What will the game play loop look like for Mortis Trials?
Unlike some other experiences in Darktide, Mortis Trials offers more modular pacing rather than non-stop action. Pacing is key, with the difficulty increasing over time in a fun and expandable way.
Each trial consists of 12 waves of heretics to clear. These waves will be broken into three waves of three, and then a final set of three heretical-filled waves straight from Sefoni herself.
When launching Mortis Trials, players will first select the difficulty level they wish to try. From there, the players will assemble in a central theatre.
Before facing the initial wave, players will receive a small buff. The buff they receive is based on the “indulgence” that is chosen before this first wave begins.
Each indulgence has a specialization which will define the type of small buffs player will get during the play through. These include:
- Pyrokinetic: This Indulgence Archetype specialises in dealing fire damage, or improving combat effectiveness while attacking burning targets.
- Voltaic: This Indulgence Archetype specialises in dealing electric damage, or improving combat effectiveness while attacking electrocuted targets.
- Fulminator: This Indulgence Archetype combines elements from both Pyrokinetic and Voltaic disciplines. It applies both electric and fire effects on enemies and can improve combat effectiveness when fighting electrocuted or burning enemies.
- Death Dealer: This Indulgence Archetype specialises in close-quarters shooting and melee. Quick swapping between weapons and quicker reloads.
- Colossus: This Indulgence Archetype specialises in survivability, focused on close-quarters melee combat.
Based on the archetype selected, the players will receive another small buff for the second wave. Every third wave, the players will be required to move around the arena and complete a designated task. These are the “objective” waves, which happen on the 3rd, 6th and 9th waves.
Upon completing the objective, Rejects are granted a cache of ammunition and supplies to aid in the trials. Further, players will then pick an additional stronger buff. This buff, along with the others, will continue to stack after each wave is successfully cleared. After each objective wave, players will pick an additional stronger buff. (These buffs are often amplifying player abilities, grenades, etc.) Only the most devout and blessed will survive.
After the last objective wave is completed (i.e. wave number 9), Rejects must endure a final set of three waves surging with enemies. These are the waves where the players are the strongest. We want to give them plenty of time to enjoy their power to the fullest.
After successfully completing one round of the Mortis Trials, players must return the Mortis Relic to Sefoni in her Reverie. The strain of these Trials pushes her to her limit, causing stray thoughts and memories to slip out of her head. Attentive players might glean unintended insights into key members of the Mourningstar crew, so you better pay attention.
Repeated playthroughs of the Mortis Trials promise different play experiences, with new Indulgences to try and new conversations to unlock.
Narrative Focus: Mortis Trials
To learn more about Mortis Trials from a narrative perspective we are handing the dev blog over to our Narrative Lead, Michael Knight and our Lead Writer, Matthew Ward.
Sefoni’s one of the first characters a new Reject meets, but we don’t know much about her. Is that about to change?
Michael Knight: Yes and no. Sefoni’s delighted that she’s got new playthings to torment - the Rejects probably treat her better than most of the rest of the warband - but she’s also very secretive. That said, generating the Trials of Mortification places Sefoni under enormous pressure, and fragments of her past have a tendency to manifest without her knowing.
MW: Not just her past.
MK: I’m pretty sure that we’re not supposed to talk about that. Grendyl wouldn’t like it. Safe to say, the Trials of Mortification offer the Rejects the opportunity to learn a lot more than Rannick intends. That probably won’t end well for Sefoni, but again, I doubt she cares.
How do the Rejects complete a Trial?
MK: Each Trial of Mortification is effectively a beefed-up exercise in a section of the Meat Grinder. The Rejects need to defeat the waves of enemies being projected by Sefoni, accomplishing tasks along the way. If they win, they’ll unlock a relic and get one step closer to being initiated into the Mourningstar’s elite cadre of Mortis Operatives. Fail, and… you can guess the rest.
MW: But Sefoni isn’t entirely heartless. The Meat Grinder’s her world. It follows her rules, so she’s prepared to offer the Rejects a series of indulgences (in-game buffs) that will help them meet the challenge.
MK: Rannick isn't going to like that.
MW: There’s definitely a sense that she’s not answering to Rannick any more, if she ever did.
You said something earlier about the Rejects having a chance to learn things that Rannick doesn’t want them to know. Can you tell us a little more about that?
MK: Well … Sefoni’s a psyker, a pretty rare and formidable one. And she’s been with Grendyl a long time. She’s overheard a lot over the years. Chances are, she knows a lot more about the warband than even Rannick. How far that goes - and how deep it goes - remains to be seen.
MW: One thing’s for sure… As time goes on, she’s going to get bolder.
MK: Unless Rannick catches her.
MW: Unless that, yes.
Hmm…there is a lot to be unpacked there. I’ll leave that for the community theory crafters.
Thank you for reading our dev blog on Mortis Trials, part of the new content coming alongside the Nightmares & Visions update slotted for release next week on March 25, 2025. We’ll be looking out for any questions over the weekend and we’ll make sure we answer them in the patch notes.
Remember, the Emperor protects. But He also demands sacrifice.
We’ll see you on the Mourningstar.
– The Darktide Team