Paradox Interactive and Triumph Studios announced another wave of DLC expansion packs for Age of Wonders 4, my favorite modern 4x strategy game. Expansion Pass 3 will feature three major DLC packs launching next year, as well as one minor pack available now.
Expansion Pack 3 includes the following content:
- Cosmic Wanderer
- Thrones of Blood (Nov 11)
- Rise from Ruin (Q1 2026)
- Secrets of the Archmages (Q2 2026)
Cosmic Wanderer is the minor pack available now, and includes some new skins and costumes, a premade ruler, and a new society trait.
Thrones of Blood adds vampire legions to Age of Wonders 4, with the new Elder Vampire ruler, three new blood-soaked Tomes, new undead units, and a new Story Realm. Vampire Rulers replace the Wizard Tower with an appropriately Gothic Castle, and can transform their heroes into vampiric servants. Thrones of Blood will release on November 11.
Rise of Ruin has an apocalyptic theme, with the new Nomad culture, alongside more new tomes, maps, and units. It’s coming early next year, while the more story-focused Secrets of the Archmages will add more events, realms, tomes, units, and more sometime next Spring.
I absolutely adore Age of Wonders 4, and still play it regularly. The 4x features strategic maps with resources and territory, important diplomacy, and critical research paths via magic tomes. The tactical battles are an utter delight with tons of interactions between units, spells, territory, and heroic abilities.
And that’s just the base game! All the various DLC packs add more units, magic tomes, society traits, cultures, ruler types, and campaign maps.
I’ve put over 100 hrs into Age of Wonders 4 since its release, and still haven’t even explored the last Expansion Pass worth of content! Fans of Paradox’s other strategy game series such as the decade-old Stellaris know that supporting games through years and years of expansions is business as usual.
Age of Wonders 4 is available on PC (Steam, Epic, GOG), PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S, and rated T for Teen.
