A new blog post on the Relic Dawn of War blog details every ability and piece of wargear that the new Tau Commander Last Stand hero will unlock on his quest to reach level 20. It looks like Relic have not only nailed what the Tau are about, but have created a high-risk, mobile, ranged devastator that should provide new challenge for anyone who thinks they've mastered Dawn of War 2's superb three-man survival mode. This is a character who does ZERO damage in melee, but has access to a plasma gun and jump jets from the start, and abilities with names like "sky ray barrage."

Listing every upgrade and wargear unlock will be a bit spoilery for some, but if you're eager to see some of the slightly terrifying upgrades on offer, including heavy assault drones and nano-bots, you'll find the full list on the Dawn of War 2 blog. According to IGN the Tau Commander is set to hit Steam later today, and will cost $9.99.

Relic are also releasing some new chapter packs for Dawn of War 2's armies, including the Death Korps of Krieg for the Imperial Guard, and Word Bearers for Chaos.

Dawn of War 2's fantastic Last Stand mode will get a new hero later this month. The Tau Commander is the imperious leader of Warhammer 40,000's race of technologically advanced space-communists, the Tau. They stomp around in huge, customisable mech suits, which makes them perfect for Last Stand's loot driven progression system. With every level, new wargear is unlocked, opening up new build options that can completely change each warrior's role in the three-man team. See one in action in the trailer above, spotted on Reddit.

Going by the video above, it looks as thought the Tau Commander will play as a devastating artillery specialist, with some area of effect support abilities thrown in to keep team mates happy. It's fitting. In 40k lore, the Tau are one of the few races still making new tech, and the Crisis Battlesuit the Commander hides inside carries some of the best. Expect jump jets, drones and great big energy beams.

The trailer says that the Tau Commander will "be available for purchase at the end of October." There's no price yet. The Last Stand mode is available as a standalone purchase now on Steam and is on sale now as part of the tail end of a weekend Steam deal.

Dawn of War 2 made a bold shift away from the scale of the first game. It dropped base building and huge armies and replaced them with a cluster of upgradeable units with skill trees and armour slots. If you felt that the Dawn of War 2 format failed to capture the enormous armies and planet-sized scraps of the Warhammer 40K universe, then you might want to keep a close eye on Dawn of War 3. Relic marketing manager James McDermott told Eurogamer that the sequel will let you "build your own custom mega army," and aims to capture the sense of a "war that rages eternal." Oh my.

"Looking at what we had real success with with Dawn of War II – Retribution, with the DLC, and with customisation and building their armies and collecting being a big part of what 40k fans really love, we want to make that a big part of DOW3," said McDermott. "There's going to be lots of opportunities to expand and build your own custom mega army. That's definitely an area we want to invest in."

"With the 40k universe, the tagline is: there is only war. We want to give you that greater sense of the war. The battle. The war that rages eternal, and make that feel like that's really imposing and all around you, and you have your own personal, custom army in there."

"Your army and my army should feel very different. That's where we would like to get to."

There are no solid Dawn of War 3 details just yet, but Relic have said that they're planning a big announcement at Gamescom this year. What would you like to see them announce?

THQ core games boss Danny Bilson has told Eurogamer that development on Dawn of War 3 is well underway at Relic. Eurogamer understand that the third game in the series will take elements from the first and second games and "add something new." Bilson previously told EG that Dawn of War 3 will "have a much larger strategic component to it, more of a global battle going on with little tactical things, sort of MMO-like."

Bilson gave a rough estimate for a release date, too, saying the game will likely ship sometime between August 2012 and February 2013. Yesterday, Bilson teased a big new Relic RTS announcement for this year's Gamescom. "This one's built to announce at that place," he said. "I feel like an ass saying it's fantastic, but it is. And we're going to do something with it you haven't seen before."

Bilson originally said that Dawn of War 3 might end up being "a more digital free-to-play experience," depending on the success of Company of Heroes Online. CoHO closed down earlier this year, suggesting the new Dawn of War game won't be free to play, but we could still see features cross over from Relic's Company of Heroes experiment.

CoHO featured persistent hero units that could be levelled up between multiplayer encounters, unlocking new battlefield abilities in the process. The game also featured a player avatar that could be upgraded to unlock powerful, limited use battlefield abilities like air-strikes. It will be interesting to see if Relic bring any of these multiplayer RPG elements into Dawn of War 3's multiplayer mode to make it a more "MMO-like" experience.

Relic might also be looking closely at the success of the Last Stand mode, which replaces Dawn of War's armies with a single hero. Last Stand was released as a standalone game on Steam earlier this year.

Either way, another Dawn of War game is cause for excitement. We'll know more when the reveal happens at Gamescom in August.

The Last Stand has been one of the most enduring parts of Dawn of War 2 and Retribution has only expanded it with a new hero and map. The characters have completely new sets of wargear too, making it pretty daunting if you're not a Dawn Of War veteran.

We've combed through the community looking for the most efficient builds that the power gamers have been using to rack up the best scores. Follow our guide and you should break wave 20 in no time.

1. Space Marine Captain


The starting race for most Warhammer 40,000 players, the Space Marine is a tough but versatile hero, able to fight in melee or at range, call in minions, or maneuver with his jump pack.

Support Gunner

Weapon - Plasma Gun (armour piercing, grants hellfire grenades ability)
Armour - Armour of Resilience (immunity to knockback)
Accessory 1 - Oath of Merciless Rage/Jump Pack/Terror of Xenos (something to keep him out of melee)
Accessory 2 - Rite of Fortitude (+75 health)
Accessory 3 - Rite of the Tireless Crusader (ranged resurrection ability)
Commander - Larraman's Blessing (healing aura)

This selfless Marine sits back from the main battle and uses his healing aura and resurrection abilities to aid his allies. Never use the revive ability on Bloody Colosseum, your duplicates are tough enough without the ability to raise each other from the dead at will.


Assault Marine

Weapon - Power Axe & Plasma Pistol (armour Piercing, +30% damage)
Armour - Armour of Vengeance (damages attackers)
Accessory 1 - Jump Pack (can jump across map)
Accessory 2 - Parable of the Stalwart Brother (+1.5 health regeneration)
Accessory 3 - Rite of Fortitude (+75 health)
Commander - Dreadnought Drop Pod (grants dreadnought minion)

Simple but effective, this build is tough, does a lot of damage, and has a dreadnought for a pet. In battle his main concern is using his jump pack to stay mobile and harass ranged units.
2. Farseer:


Snooty space elf Eldar are quick and like to kill people with their brains, their lack of giant shoulder pads however makes them fragile.

Confuseer


Weapon - Witchblade of Isha & Pistol of the Warseer (+30% damage, increased speed, +0.3 energy regeneration, +25 energy)
Armour - Armour of Vaul (immunity to suppression)
Accessory 1 - Runes of the Harlequin (grants confuse ability)
Accessory 2 - Runes of Deception (grants conceal ability)
Accessory 3 - Runes of the Warp (grants group teleport ability)
Commander - Spirit Stone of Vigour (energy regeneration aura)

A classic Farseer build, this the emphasis here is on support. Speed, teleportation and a cloak keep you and your allies safe, while you uase confuse as much as possible. If you still find yourself low on energy switch to one of the other armours instead.

Warseer

Weapon - Witchblade of the Crone and Pistol of the Warseer  (+30% damage, increased speed)
Armour - Armour of Vaul (immunity to suppression)
Accessory 1 - Runes of War (+40% damage)
Accessory 2 - Runes of Wrath (makes a second, follow up, attack)
Accessory 3 - Runes of Fortune/Runes of Evasion (reduce damage)
Commander - Spirit Stone of Eldritch Might (large area attack)

It's a well kept secret that the Farseer can handle herself pretty well in battle. With combat expert, combat master and a bonus attack this build does a whole load of damage, while Fortune or Evasion helps keep her safe. In an emergency she can blanket an area with mind lightning.
3. Ork Mekboy:


Unpredictable and unreliable, Ork machines only work because Orks think they should, so if you think these builds are brilliant, they probably will be...

Teleshoota


Weapon - Big Shoota
Armour - Teleporta Pack (grants teleport ability)
Accessory 1 - Cybork Parts (+66 armour)
Accessory 2 - Sturdy Bitz (immunity to knockback)
Accessory 3 - Choose One
Commander - Trophy Rack/Boss Poll (reduces incoming damage/increases health)

Most people will start with something like this Mekboy. The cybork parts compensate for the terrible Teleporta Armour as he uses mobility to strafe his enemies. The final accessory slot affects the build very little, so it has been left open to choose from.

Rok Tank

Weapon - Big Choppa (+2.0 health regeneration, gain +5 energy per melee kill)
Armour - 'Eavy Armour (+75 health)
Accessory 1 - Cybork Parts (+66 armour)
Accessory 2 - Sturdy Bitz (immunity to knockback)
Accessory 3 - Dok's Tools (heals Mekboy and allies when he is hit)
Commander - Roks (large area attack)

An unorthodox yet popular build that uses the choppa to swiftly regain energy to fuel the devastating Roks attack. Counts on massive amounts of armour and health to stay alive.



Dakka Turret

Weapon - Dakka Deffgun (suppresses enemies, requires setup time)
Armour - 'Eavy Armour (+75 health)
Accessory 1 - Cybork Parts (+66 armour)
Accessory 2 - Sturdy Bitz (immunity to knockback)
Accessory 3 - Bubble Shield (gives the ability to knock enemies back if they try and attack the Mekboy)
Commander - Trophy Rack/Boss Poll (reduces damage/increases health)

This build is even tougher than the last, with a trophy rack or boss poll (both have merits) adding to the durability. The idea is to set up in one corner and lay down suppressive fire for your teammates, turning on the spot but rarely moving.

Bubble Burna

Weapon - Burna (area attack, ignores cover)
Armour - 'Eavy Armour (+75 health)
Accessory 1 - Cybork Parts (+66 Armour)
Accessory 2 - Sturdy Bitz (immunity to knockback)
Accessory 3 - Bubble Shield (gives the ability to knock enemies back if they try and attack the Mekboy)
Commander - Trophy Rack/Boss Poll (reduces damage/increases health)

Another tough Ork, this one cheekily uses a bubble shield to bounce enemies out of melee and into his flamer radius. Very strong against swarms of enemies.

4. Hive Tyrant:


The Hive Tyrant is one of the best of the Last Stand characters. It's as tough as a Space Marine, and comes complete with minions. Just try not to let the voice of the hive mind creep you out too much.

Minion Bomber

Weapon - Crushing Talons (+1 minion heath regeneration, minions attacks heal Tyrant)
Armour - Poison Cysts (+25 Health, immunity to knockback and suppression, can create toxic miasma cloud)
Accessory 1 - Explosive Decomposition (minions explode into miasma cloud when they die)
Accessory 2 - Bio Feedback (Tyrant becomes briefly invulnerable when minions die)
Accessory 3 - Genestealer Nest (grants Genestealer minions)
Commander - Synapse (50% reduction to all ability energy costs)

This is considered one of the most powerful builds in Last Stand. The secret is feedback invulnerability and explosive decomposition. Whenever your minions die they explode and you get a burst of invulnerability. This can be manually triggered by summoning new ones. Synapse means you can do this really often too.

Ravener Master

Weapon - Venom Cannon (armour piercing)
Armour - Bonded Exoskeleton (+75 health, +50 minion health, +2 minion health regeneration, immunity to knockback and suppression)
Accessory 1 - Ravener Nest (grants Ravener minion)
Accessory 2 - Toxin Sacs (+20 minion health, minions do damage over time)
Accessory 3 - Implant Attacks (+20 minion Health, +30% damage, +30% minion damage)
Commander - Evolution (+2 health regeneration, +20 minion Health, +2 minion Health regeneration, increased minion Speed, +25% minion damage)

Another strong Tyrant build, here the massive ranged damage of the Ravener minion is exploited, backed up by the handy armour piercing Venom Cannon.
5. Chaos Sorcerer:


The Chaos Sorcerer has two main modes, make nigh invincible clones of his allies, and set everything on fire while cackling with glee. When he was first released a party of three Sorcerers could clone each other infinitely until the game crashed from the strain.

Minion master

Weapon - Staff of Tzeentch (grants teleport ability)
Armour - Armour of Eternal War (+40% damage, +40% Minion damage, grants ability to clone enemies)
Accessory 1 - Demonic Gift of Retaliation (clones damage enemies who attack them)
Accessory 2 - Demonic Gift of Sustenance (clone gains +2 Energy per kill, Gains Health equal to damage caused)
Accessory 3 - Sigil of Greater Sorcery (improves Sorcerer abilities)
Commander - Icon of Greater Summoning (allows Sorcerer to clone heroic units)

This build is all about maximising the potential of the Sorcerer's duplicate ability, meanwhile Teleportation will keep you alive to cloneeven more. On Bloody Colosseum clone your toughest ally and kill your own doppleganger before he does the same (we recommend a sniper round to the head). Never clone yourself, it just gets confusing.

Guerrilla Doombolter

Weapon - Staff of Tzeentch (grants teleport ability)
Armour - Armour of Might Undivided (immunity to knockback and suppression, all clone bonuses apply to the Sorcerer instead)
Accessory 1 - Sigil of Greater Sorcery (improves Sorcerer abilities)
Accessory 2 - Daemonic Gift of Sustenance (Sorcerer gains +2 energy per kill, gains health equal to damage caused)
Accessory 3 - Tome of Doom (grants Doombolt ability)
Commander - Icon of Summoning (+125 health)

Built along the same lines as the Mekboy Teleporter, this Sorcerer moves quickly around the battlefield performing hit and run Doombolt attacks. Doombolt is inaccurate at long range but you can hit at short to medium range and use teleport to escape.

Galactic Burner

Weapon - Staff of Demonic Flame (grants let the galaxy burn ability)
Armour - Armour of Might Undivided (immunity to knockback and suppression, all clone bonuses apply to the Sorcerer instead)
Accessory 1 - Sigil of Greater Sorcery (improves Sorcerer abilities)
Accessory 2 - Sigil of Master Sorcery (improves Sorcerer abilities)
Accessory 3 - Daemonic Gift of Sustenance (Sorcerer gains +2 energy per kill, gains health equal to damage caused)
Commander - Icon of Summoning (+125 Health)

Let the Galaxy Burn is one of the most potent (and best named) area attacks in the game, this build pushes up it's damage creating a durable and potent Sorcerer.
6. Lord General


Sadly the Lord General both lacks a tank to drive him closer, and is fairly poor at hitting things with his sword. He does however have some interesting minion choices, a handy turret and a sniper rifle that makes other ranged characters weep with envy.

Pyro

Weapon - Flamer (area attack, ignores cover, Guardsmen also get flamers)
Armour - Master Crafted Carapace Armour (immunity to suppression, grants ability to deploy Heavy Bolter turret)
Accessory 1 - Medallion Crimson (+30% damage)
Accessory 2 - Honorifica Imperialis (+25 armour, +2 health regeneration)
Accessory 3 - Commissar (+30% minion damage)
Commander - Guardsmen (can carry flamers)

A strong anti-infantry build, the Turret suppresses enemies while you and your Guardsmen burn everything in sight. Choose either a sergeant or medallion depending on if you value your men or yourself.

Big Game Hunter

Weapon - Deadly Sniper Rifle (+1 energy regeneration, grants high powered shot ability)
Armour -  Artificer Carapace Armour (immunity to knockback, grants ability to deploy Missile Turret)
Accessory 1 - Medallion Crimson (+30% damage)
Accessory 2 - Sergeant (+100 minion armour, +2 minion health regeneration)
Accessory 3 - Commissar (+30% minion damage)
Commander - Ogryns (have more health than other minions)

The classic sniper General, with the medallion crimson he is capable of taking out annoying Zoanthropes in a single shot, meanwhile Ogyrns with both a sergeant and a commissar are fully capable of decimating enemies alone.



Can Opener

Weapon - Plasma Rifle (armour piercing, guardsmen also get plasma rifles)
Armour - Artificer Carapace Armour (immunity to knockback, grants ability to deploy Missile Turret)
Accessory 1 - Medallion Crimson (+30% damage)
Accessory 2 - Sergeant (+100 minion armour, +2 minion health regeneration)
Accessory 3 - Commissar (+30% minion damage)
Commander - Guardsmen (can carry plasma rifles)

The Plasma Rifle is a deadly tool, and this build is about getting them on the field and keeping them there. Very strong against armoured enemies.

Rocketeer

Weapon - Deadly Sniper Rifle (+1 energy regeneration, grants high powered shot ability)
Armour - Cadia Pattern Carapace Armour (+0.2 energy regeneration)
Accessory 1 - Medallion Crimson (+30% damage)
Accessory 2 - Honorifica Imperialis (+25 armour, +2 health regeneration)
Accessory 3 - Rocket Run (large area attack)
Commander - Storm Troopers (grants ability to fast retreat if in danger, Reduces cooldown on all abilities by 25%)

An unorthodox late-game build, the Stormtrooper's cooldown ability allows the General to cover an area with rockets, while strong armour protects him (and keeps his energy up). Some people don't even bother summoning the Stormtroopers when things start getting hard; the bonus abilities they bestow are enough.

These are the best builds we've found out there, but they're certainly not the only ones. What do you like to play as? Have you beaten wave 20 already? Honestly?