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Soulstorm is the third and last expansion to the original Dawn of War, released in March 2008 and made by Iron Lore Entertainment, not Relic. It adds Sisters of Battle and Dark Eldar for nine armies, sets the campaign across the Kaurava system, and has the series' lowest Metascore, 73.
Soulstorm is the third and last expansion to the original Dawn of War, released on Mar 4, 2008, and the only game of the Relic era developed by Iron Lore Entertainment instead. It adds the Sisters of Battle and Dark Eldar for nine armies and stretches Dark Crusade's conquest map across a whole star system. Its Metascore of 73 is the series' lowest, yet it is the ruleset the modern Definitive Edition uses for multiplayer. The clip is an IGN feature with Jonathan Dowdeswell, an executive producer.
Quick facts
| Released | Mar 4, 2008 (Metacritic); Mar 5, 2008 (Steam) |
| Developer | Iron Lore Entertainment |
| Publisher | THQ |
| New armies | Sisters of Battle, Dark Eldar |
| Armies in all | 9 |
| Setting | Kaurava system: four planets, three moons |
| Maps | 34 |
| Metascore | 73 from 37 critics (18 positive, 19 mixed) |
| User score | 8.1 |
Sources: Metacritic; Steam; VideoGamer, updated Jun 6, 2021.
The Kaurava campaign
The expansion is set in the Imperial-held Kaurava system, where a Warpstorm brings a Chaos invasion and Ancient Gates are the only way between worlds. The meta-map covers four planets and three moons, and conquering a race's home stronghold eliminates it and hands you its racial powers. Game Over Online calls the campaign very close to Dark Crusade's. Relic lists it as non-linear and playable as any of nine factions.
As the Blood Ravens, your commander is Indrick Boreale. How the campaign is meant to end in the setting's history, and what became of him, is not stated in the press or maker sources used here.
New armies and air units
Sisters of Battle spend Faith on Acts of Faith; Dark Eldar spend Souls. At launch a bug let Sisters make infinite resources online. Each army also gains an air unit, which Game Over calls a "wasted opportunity" because they cannot strafe or bomb.
Were Necrons playable in Soulstorm?
The sources conflict. KING Art says the Necrons "haven't been playable in the series since Dark Crusade". Relic and Steam describe Soulstorm's campaign as playable as any of nine factions, and those nine are Dark Crusade's seven, Necrons among them, plus the two new armies.
Reception
Critics split evenly, with 18 positive and 19 mixed on Metacritic. Game Over Online gave 77%; VideoGamer gave 8/10 while saying the meta-game gets in the way of the combat. Players are kinder than the Metascore, at 8.1.
GameWatcher still calls it "a very divisive expansion", but the Definitive Edition's nine factions, skirmish and multiplayer all use the Soulstorm ruleset. PC Gamer says it "received the most love from modders", some of whom removed the unit cap.
How to play it today
The Steam page still loads but offers no purchase. Soulstorm comes in the Definitive Edition and the Anniversary Edition. Hot fix 2.10.3 on Sep 17, 2026 fixed Soulstorm campaign errors in the Definitive Edition. Whether Soulstorm could run without earlier games at retail could not be confirmed from the sources read.
Sisters of Battle and Dark Eldar are not among Dawn of War 4's four factions.
Frequently asked questions
Who made Dawn of War Soulstorm? Iron Lore Entertainment developed Soulstorm and THQ published it. It is the only Dawn of War release of the Relic era made by another studio.
What factions are in Dawn of War Soulstorm? Soulstorm has nine: Space Marines, Orks, Chaos, Eldar, Imperial Guard, Tau, Necrons, Sisters of Battle and Dark Eldar. The last two are new.
Is Dawn of War Soulstorm good? Dawn of War Soulstorm is the series' most divisive entry, with the lowest Metascore at 73 and a user score of 8.1. Its ruleset still drives the Definitive Edition's multiplayer, and modders favor it.
When did Dawn of War Soulstorm come out? Dawn of War Soulstorm came out in early March 2008: Metacritic gives Mar 4, Steam Mar 5.
Sources
- Soulstorm, Metacritic
- Soulstorm, Steam
- Dawn of War Anniversary Edition, Steam
- 2.10.3 Hot Fix, Relic, Sep 17, 2026
- The best Warhammer 40K games ranked, PC Gamer, Apr 15, 2026
- Crafting an epic Dawn of War IV story, KING Art, Nov 20, 2025
- Gabriel Angelos won't be in Dawn of War 4, PC Gamer, Sep 1, 2025
- Definitive Edition review, GameWatcher, Aug 19, 2025
- Definitive Edition Out Now, Relic, Aug 14, 2025
- Soulstorm review, VideoGamer, Jun 6, 2021
- Soulstorm review, Game Over Online, Mar 17, 2008
- Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War -- Soulstorm PC Games Gameplay, IGN, Jun 23, 2011 (video)
Moments
Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War -- Soulstorm PC Games Gameplay
IGN
Related
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Dawn of War 2Dawn of War 2 is Relic's 2009 sequel, which dropped base building for a small squad of leveling Space Marines, cover, loot and a co-op campaign, and added the Last Stand mode that returns in Dawn of War 4. It is sold today as the Anniversary Edition.
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Dawn of War 3Dawn of War 3 came out on Apr 27, 2017. Critics gave it a respectable 77, but its mix of real-time strategy and MOBA ideas lost players, Relic stopped major content within a year, and Dawn of War 4 returned to the first game as its model.
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Dawn of War Games in OrderThe Dawn of War series runs Dawn of War (2004), Winter Assault, Dark Crusade, Soulstorm, Dawn of War 2 (2009), Chaos Rising, Retribution, Dawn of War 3 (2017) and Dawn of War 4 (Dec 3, 2026), plus the 2025 Definitive Edition of the first game. None of them is required before Dawn of War 4, which KING Art calls a new story.
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RetributionRetribution is the standalone 2011 expansion to Dawn of War 2, with campaigns for six races and the return of an army and resources in single-player. It was the last Dawn of War game before THQ collapsed and Sega bought Relic, six years ahead of Dawn of War 3.
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Winter AssaultWinter Assault is the first expansion to the original Dawn of War, released Sep 21, 2005 by Relic and THQ. It adds the Imperial Guard and two campaigns, Order and Disorder, fought over a Titan on Lorn V, and is sold today inside the Definitive and Anniversary Editions.
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Adeptus Mechanicus CampaignDawn of War 4's Adeptus Mechanicus campaign centers on an expedition into a Necron tomb on Kronus and a choice between siding with Magos Dominus Nulpherus-1 as Marshal Sek-Ix-23 or breaking ranks with the Technoarcheologist Potentia Delta-9. It was in the Oct 2026 preview build in full; its mission count is unpublished.
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See also
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Dawn of War 2004The original Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War came out on Sep 20, 2004, made by Relic Entertainment and published by THQ, with four armies and a Space Marine campaign on the planet Tartarus. Today it is sold as the Definitive Edition or the Anniversary Edition.
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Dark CrusadeDark Crusade is the 2006 Dawn of War expansion set on Kronus, which added the Tau and Necrons for seven armies and a turn-based conquest map. It is the highest-scored game in the series, and Dawn of War 4 returns to Kronus about 200 years later, treating a Space Marine victory as canon.
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Definitive EditionWarhammer 40,000 Dawn of War: Definitive Edition is Relic's remaster of the first game and its three expansions, released Aug 14, 2025 on Steam and GOG at $29.99. It adds 4K, 64-bit and a mod manager but does not rebalance the game; the cheaper Anniversary Edition is the unremastered bundle.
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Chaos RisingChaos Rising is the 2010 expansion to Dawn of War 2, set a year later in Sub-Sector Aurelia, where the Blood Ravens fight the Black Legion and traitors in their own Chapter while their squads slowly fall to Chaos. It also introduced Jonah Orion, a Commander in Dawn of War 4.