Third enemy faction pitch: Nurgle Genestealers; The Wretched - update
TL;DR: Nurgle infected genestealers are canon (Cult Tenebrous), and would fit well with the Dregs and the Scabs against us.
The dust have settled from the latest Skulls event, and people have started to wonder what's next in Darktide. Some hoping for a new set of enemies, and now seems like a good time to update a pitch I made a while ago.
I've been holding off on posting about the Wretched because I couldn't think of something that made them mechanically (as a faction), feel different from the Dregs and Scabs.
But I think I have now:
Note: In the previous post I dubbed them Wretch/Wretched, and I'll be using that again.
Wretched flesh <trait>: "The Wretched are a horrid fusion of xenoflesh and the foul powers of one of the archenemies. As such they seem to drawn on a reserve of health to recover unnaturally fast unless prevented, either by continuous damage or killing them outright."
Mechanically the units have hidden pool that activates:
- If they're at less then full health.
- There's still points in the pool.
- They've not taken damage for a short amount of time. (Ongoing Damage over Time effects will also count)
Which is converted to health, so weapons with rapid fire, DoT effects, or so massive amount of damage that it outright kills them counters this trait.
This pool is NOT infinite. So it's possible to take them out by draining the pool, and then their health.
Consideration on the amount they spawn in should reflect this, since not every group will have means to shut down their regeneration.
For clarification: This trait is just a suggestion on how to make them mechanically different from the other two groups. But I have no idea if the game engine can handle it, and it's hard to predict if this trait would be fun to fight against or not.
Faction units:
Name: Kissed (suggested by u/Heretical_Cactus)
Role: Poxwalker/Groaner equivalent mixed in with the masses
Mechanics: Nothing special, they're civilians that are infected by the Genestealer kiss. They act much the same way as the poxwalkers, expect that they'll scream and beg the warband not to harm their beautiful children.
Name: Neophyte hybrids
Role: The rank and file of the Wretched
Mechanics: Nothing special.
Name: Wretch Acolytes
Role: Elite Gunner
Mechanics: Acolytes have tree arms, and swap much faster between range and close combat than most other enemies in the same category.
Name: Hybrid Metamorph
Role: Elite Melee
Mechanics: These behave similar to the Rages, if the Wretched Flesh is also included should be enough to differentiate them from the other Ragers.
Name: Clamavus
Role: Specialist - Buff and Debuff
Sound cue: <Vox buzzing with static glitch> They shall be made to listen!
Mechanics: These specialists will work much the same as banner-bearer from VT2, they will stand still and buff their allies around them by preaching on their Vox casters. In the lore they also harm enemies with their destabilising influence, so could also perhaps add a slight suppressing effect on the Rejects or make it harder to hear sound cues.
Name: Kelermorph
Role: Specialist - Soft disabler
Sound cue: <The click of the pistol hammer being drawn> I'll bring you down!
Mechanics: With erratic leaps and bounds, these gunmen quickly dart around at medium range of their victims. Locking onto a target with indicator similar to the Scab Sniper, unlike the sniper, the shots don't deal massive damage. Instead, each shot will slow movement or drain stamina. With the third knocking the Reject down to their knees, giving the other enemies plenty of chances to swarm them as the Reject catch their footing.
Name: Reductus Saboteur
Role: Specialist - Area denial
Sound cue: <High energetic voice> E-he he he, better watch your step!
Mechanics: Once the Saboteur enters the battle, mines will periodically appear around the players, but not directly under them. These are similar to the mines Rodin Karnak used, both in size and time delay before detonating. If gas makes them too akin to Dreg Tox bomber, perhaps it can be small explosions that deal damage and knock the players back.
Name: Benefictus
Role: Specialist - Damage dealer or disruptor/disabler
Sound cue: <The clank of their staff as they move around>
Mechanics: These could spawn a swarm of slow flying buzzing insects that follows a target, like the locust swarms in VT2. Giving us something many in the community have been wanting for a while; Aerial threats we have to deal with.
One shot and they dissipate, but until the Benefictus is dealt with, more of them will come.
Sidenote: In Ninja Scroll (1993), Mushizō (an antagonist in the movie) is a hunchback with a beehive inside their back. Would fit with the grimdark if the head of Benefictus acted as the hive for the swarm they launch at us.
Name: Wretch Aberrant (Suggested by u/Liternal to have them be elites instead of bosses, using Abominant instead)
Role: Crushers equivalent
Sound cue: <About as much sound as the sneaky crusher makes /j>
Mechanics: Perhaps a bit quicker, but not much else mechanical difference from Crushers. They don't have carapace armour, but would make up for it with the Wretched Flesh trait.
Name: Wretch Abominant
Role: Boss monster
Sound cue: <The sound of their melee weapon being dragged, before roaring and entering the fight.>
Mechanics: These are the monsters that can sometimes appear when fighting the Wretched instead of Plague Ogryn and Beast of Nurgle.
The Abominant will go prone and start regenerating a chunk of their health back after taking a set amount of damage, like the Plague Troll in VT2.
And if knocked off a ledge, it will hang on it for a while before climbing up. Giving players about the same amount of time to wail on it as if it had gone prone due to damage.
Official sources on Cult Tenebrou:
Source: Codex: Genestealer Cults (7th Edition) — The Hidden Dynasties
https://wh40k.lexicanum.com/wiki/Cult_Tenebrous
Source: Codex: Genestealer Cults (8th Edition), pg. 37, "Infestation and Plague"
https://warhammer40k.fandom.com/wiki/Cult_Tenebrous
Last notes:
Disclaimer: This is so people can get a rough idea on how a this third faction could function, and what new threats and game play they could add. For those who seen my other posts, this is more or less a solo project. And without any possibility to play-test, it's likely some elements might not work in game or be perfectly balanced.
I'm open for discussions regarding alternative mobs and mechanics for the different stuff presented here.
Also, I chose not to mention several other possible genestealer units in the main text as to not make the post too big.
Posted Jun 4, 2026, 1:01 AM UTC