The grim and dying world of Darkest Dungeon 2 has been expanded with a new DLC. The Binding Blade DLC introduces The Warlord mini-boss, two heroes (the new Duelist and the returning Crusader), a handful of new enemies and encounters, a Crusader unlock questline, assorted trinkets, and fully voiced backstories.
The Duelist is the more exciting of the two new heroes, with a new “stance” mechanic that allows her to pivot as the sea of battle changes. In her offensive stance, she charges toward the enemy and lays on heavy hits with attack bonuses, but when the competition grows fierce, she can retreat behind an armoured ally with her defensive stance.
The Crusader returns to his former glory with skills new and old. His unwavering faith and skills as a paladin make him a bright light in the darkness of a world fallen to madness. Use him as a bulwark against the minions and abominations you may face and your party may live to see another fight. But to find the Crusader and convert him to your cause, you will have to complete his questline and best the new miniboss: The Warlord.
Wandering the bloodsoaked battlefields, laying seige to all he can, The Warlord, is a fearsome crusader that has fallen to madness. He is followed by his retinue of errant knights who have fallen to the depths of thievery an depravity. These knights are new foes to find on your travels and present a threat second only to The Warlord himself. See the necklace of enemy ears hanging on his chest and know of his ferocity. Slaying him will not be easy, and it is only a faint, guttering candle that might see you do it.
In addition to these fine and fearsome additions, both new heroes have a line of items and upgrades to buy with Candles of Hope, and histories to learn of and wrestle with. For newcomers and fans alike, The Binding Blade is a DLC worth buying early, as it fills out the game with new challenges, horrors, and hope.
The main additions that the DLC have made can be found below:
- Added new military barricade route encounters
- Added party and hero loadout saving at the crossroads
- Added the ability to remove positive quirks at the Hospital
- Added rank highlight to indicate which monster is guarding the selected target
- Added achievement List to the profile summary UI
- Updated icons seen in the Travelogue for certain deliverable items
- Added New Crossroads UI
- Updated Stagecoach UI and repositioned the equipment slots and move Pet naming to it
- Added “Warrior of Light” quirk, to assist with canon Reynauld creation
And the full changelog can be found on Red Hook Studios’ Website.
For the holiday season, and to celebrate the DLC’s release, Darkest Dungeon 2 is now on sale for 25% on both Steam, and on the Epic Games Store. The tough-as-nails roguelike offers five strange reigons, twisted by malice and cosmic horror to explore, a metagame hub to grow between battles, 14 playable heroes, and various difficulty modifiers. The game is also coming to physical release on PC, but it is unknown when the game will land on consoles. Based on the releases of the original game, it is unlikely to make the jump to PS5 and XSX until Red Hook has finished its DLC plans and has offered an ultimate edition.
For more information on Darkest Dungeon 2, visit darkestdungeon.com/darkest–dungeon-2. Follow the game on Twitter.
And if your interested in more grimdark adventures among bloodsoaked battlefields and wartorn wastes, see our list of the best viking games here on Game Pro.
