I still remember the first time I encountered a Black Ark while playing as the Lizardmen in my Mortal Empires campaign. I sent a full stack of veteran Saurus warriors to clear what I thought was a standard Dark Elf raiding force, and got completely wiped out in 10 minutes flat. If you’ve ever had that same frustrating experience, you’re probably looking for clear, tested advice on how to fight with black arks in warhammer 2 without throwing your best units away for nothing. This guide pulls from 300+ hours of Total War: Warhammer 2 playtime across every faction, to give you actionable tactics that work on both Normal and Legendary difficulty.
First: Understand What Makes Black Arks So Dangerous
Before you even plan an attack, you need to know exactly what you’re up against. Black Arks aren’t just regular armies or ships – they’re mobile Dark Elf fortresses that function as both naval vessels and forward operating bases on land. They come with a built-in full army garrison that replenishes automatically over time, so you can’t wear them down with small skirmishes. They also grant a permanent 15% damage buff to all Dark Elf units fighting within its range, even when they’re deployed on coastal land.
Another major advantage they have is the long-range artillery emplacements mounted on their decks. These guns have 20% more range than standard faction artillery, and can hit your front line units before you even get close enough to retaliate. They’re also incredibly heavily armored, so standard archer fire or light melee attacks barely scratch their hulls or defenses.
That said, they aren’t unbeatable. Black Arks move 30% slower than regular armies on both land and sea, so you can easily outmaneuver them if you plan ahead. They also have very few defensive emplacements on their rear and side flanks, which is the biggest weakness you can exploit during battle. If you can get units around to their backline, you can take out their artillery in seconds without taking heavy fire.
How to Fight With Black Arks in Warhammer 2: Pre-Battle Prep Steps
90% of Black Ark battles are won or lost before you even hit the start battle button. You can’t just throw a random stack of units at it and expect to win, even if you’re playing on lower difficulty. Follow these prep steps every time to set yourself up for success:
- Bring at least 2 units of long-range artillery (preferably rocket batteries or heavy cannons) to target the Ark’s defensive emplacements first
- Include 3+ fast cavalry or flying units to flank the Ark and take out its backline artillery before it can decimate your front line
- Stack poison or fire damage debuffs on your melee units, as Black Ark garrisons have high base armor but low resistance to DoT effects
- Check the garrison composition before attacking: if it’s stacked with Shades or Cold One Knights, bring extra spearmen or anti-large units to counter
- Avoid attacking during stormy weather: it reduces your artillery accuracy by 30% and gives Dark Elf ranged units a hidden damage buff
One hard rule I never break is never attack a Black Ark with less than a full 20-unit stack. Even if the garrison looks small, the damage buff and defensive guns will make even a half stack hit like a full elite army. You also want to always bring a Lord with anti-infantry or anti-large traits depending on the garrison composition, as they’ll be able to cut through the elite Dark Elf units much faster than regular troops.
You don’t need to bring all elite units to win, either. A mix of basic front line spearmen to hold the line, solid ranged units, and a few fast flankers will work just as well as a full stack of legendary units, as long as you use them correctly. I’ve won multiple Black Ark battles as the Empire with a mix of basic spearmen, handgunners, and a single steam tank, so don’t feel like you need to burn all your rare units to take one down.
Mid-Battle Tactics to Turn the Tide Fast
Once the battle starts, don’t make the common mistake of charging your entire army straight at the front of the Ark. That’s exactly what the Dark Elf defenses are built to counter, and you’ll lose half your units before you even reach the deck. Instead, split your army into three separate flanks instead of one big blob. Your main front line will take position directly in front of the Ark to draw the defensive fire, your artillery will stay back to target the front emplacements, and your fast flankers will move around to the side or rear of the Ark immediately.
Your first priority should always be taking out the defensive artillery emplacements, not attacking the garrison units. Every second those guns are active, they’re tearing through your front line, so focus all your artillery fire on them until they’re destroyed. Once they’re gone, you can shift your artillery fire to the garrison’s ranged units to thin them out before your melee units engage.
For the flank attack, send your flying units first to take out any backline Shades or crossbow units, then follow up with cavalry to destroy the rear artillery emplacements. If you’re fighting a naval battle, send fire ships first to damage the Ark’s hull before your main fleet engages, as this will reduce its damage buff by 10% and make its guns less accurate. Once all defensive guns are down, focus all your fire on the Ark’s command deck to reduce the garrison’s overall morale. Once the command deck takes 50% damage, all garrison units get a 20% morale debuff, which will make them route much faster.
Don’t chase routing units off the Ark unless you’re sure all defensive emplacements are destroyed. It’s tempting to run after routing Shades or Cold One Knights, but you’ll leave your units exposed to artillery fire if you get too far from cover. Wait until the entire garrison is routing, then move in to secure the Ark or destroy it completely, depending on your campaign goals.
Best Faction-Specific Counters for Black Arks
While the general tactics work for every faction, some factions have unique units that make taking down Black Arks much easier. If you’re playing as High Elves, use Sun Dragons or Star Dragons to take out the defensive emplacements first – their fire breath can destroy an artillery emplacement in one pass, and they’re fast enough to avoid taking heavy damage from return fire. Phoenix Guard make perfect front line units too, as their high armor resistance lets them hold the line against Dark Elf attacks far longer than basic infantry.
If you’re playing as Skaven, you have one of the easiest counters in the game. Skaven’s warpfire throwers and weapon teams can melt a Black Ark garrison in under 5 minutes if you get them in range safely. Use skavenslaves as a front line distraction to draw fire, then move your warpfire teams up to the flanks to burn through the garrison units. You can also use plague monks to rush the command deck once the defenses are down, as their poison attacks will decimate the low-poison-resistance Dark Elf units.
For Empire players, steam tanks and rocket batteries are your best friends. Rocket batteries have enough range to take out the front defensive emplacements from a safe distance, and steam tanks can absorb huge amounts of damage while you move your other units into position. If you have a Luminark of Hysh, use it to target the command deck early – its magic damage can take out the command deck’s defenses far faster than regular artillery.
If you’re playing as Dark Elves yourself, the easiest counter is to bring your own Black Ark to the fight. Two Black Arks firing at each other will cancel out each other’s damage buffs, and you can use your own garrison to overwhelm the enemy’s force much faster than a regular army would. Just make sure your Ark has better artillery upgrades than the enemy’s, or you’ll end up on the losing end of the exchange.
Learning how to fight with black arks in warhammer 2 doesn’t have to mean losing half your campaign’s best units every time you run into one. Take the time to prep your army properly, focus on taking out its defensive weapons first, and play to your faction’s unique strengths, and you’ll be clearing these Dark Elf fortresses easily no matter what difficulty you play on. Next time you see a Black Ark raiding your coastal provinces, you won’t panic – you’ll know exactly what to do to take it down for good.