If you’ve been grinding Dark Elf campaigns in Total War: Warhammer 2 and wondering why your coastal raids feel like they’re missing a major punch, you’re probably looking for info on how to get Black Ark Warhammer 2. These floating fortress behemoths are one of the Dark Elves’ most unique, game-changing units, and most new players sleep on just how much they can shift the tide of both land and sea battles. I’ve put over 300 hours into Dark Elf campaigns alone, and I still get giddy every time I unlock my first Black Ark of a run. This guide will walk you through every step of unlocking, using, and optimizing your Black Ark so you don’t waste hours fumbling through unclear in-game prompts.
How to Get Black Ark Warhammer 2: Exact Unlock Requirements
First, let’s clear up a common misconception: you can’t recruit Black Arks from standard military or port building lines, even at max tier. The unlock process is specific to Dark Elf factions, so you won’t be able to get these units if you’re playing as High Elves, Skaven, or any other non-Dark Elf group. If you’re playing as Lokhir Fellheart, you actually get a free, pre-upgraded Black Ark at the very start of your campaign, so you can skip the rest of this section entirely and jump straight to optimization tips.
For all other Dark Elf factions, you’ll need to hit three clear milestones to unlock your first Black Ark. First, you need to capture or upgrade a coastal settlement to tier 3 or higher. Settlements in Naggaroth, the New World coast, or the Southlands all work, but you’ll get a small upkeep discount if you build in a Dark Elf native region. Second, you’ll need to construct the Black Ark Docks building in that tier 3 coastal settlement. This building costs 2200 gold and takes 3 turns to complete, so make sure you’ve got your economy stable before you start construction.
Once the docks are finished, you’ll see a new recruitment option for Black Ark Admirals in your Lord recruitment panel. Each Admiral costs 5000 gold to recruit, with a base upkeep of 1200 gold per turn, and comes with a fully functional Black Ark attached. You can only field 5 Black Arks per campaign total, so don’t spam recruit them even if you have extra gold lying around. I made the mistake of recruiting three in my first run, and the combined upkeep costs almost crashed my economy before I could get them into profitable raiding routes.
Key Pre-Unlock Tips to Save You Time and Gold
Unlocking a Black Ark is a pretty big resource investment, so there are a few steps you can take before you start construction to make the process way smoother. You don’t want to dump all your gold into a Black Ark right before a surprise enemy invasion hits your core territory, after all. I’ve tested a bunch of different pre-unlock strategies over the years, and these steps cut my unlock time down by almost 10 turns on average.
- Save at least 7000 gold before starting the unlock process to cover recruitment, initial unit garrison, and first 2 turns of upkeep
- Prioritize coastal settlements in regions with high trade resource output to cut Black Ark upkeep costs by 20%
- Clear all nearby pirate naval stacks within 10 turns of unlocking your first Black Ark to avoid surprise attacks
Don’t waste resources building Black Ark Docks in every coastal town you capture – one or two is more than enough, since you can only field 5 total anyway. I also recommend holding off on unlocking your first Black Ark until you’ve secured at least 4 core settlements, so you have enough passive income to cover the upkeep without cutting into your land army recruitment budget. If you’re playing on hard or very hard difficulty, wait until you’ve defeated your first nearby rival faction before unlocking, so you don’t have to split your military focus between land and naval defenses.
How to Optimize Your Black Ark for Maximum Combat Effectiveness
Your first Black Ark will come with basic, low-tier upgrades, so you’ll want to invest a bit of gold into improving it before you send it out on raids. The onboard building tree is separate from your settlement building tree, so you don’t have to worry about taking away resources from your core towns to upgrade your Ark. The first building you should construct is the Slave Pens building, which gives you 30% extra slaves from every raid your Black Ark participates in. Slaves are the backbone of the Dark Elf economy, so this upgrade pays for itself in just 3 or 4 successful raids.
Next, upgrade your onboard artillery platforms before you unlock extra unit garrison slots. A fully upgraded level 3 artillery platform can wipe out half an enemy coastal stack before they even get close to your land units during a siege, and it can sink most mid-tier enemy ships in one or two volleys during naval battles. A lot of new players make the mistake of filling their Ark with as many units as possible first, but the artillery bonuses give way more value for the same gold cost.
One trick most new players miss is that your Black Ark can reinforce any land battle that happens within 1 coastal tile of its current position. If you’re sieging a coastal enemy port, park your Black Ark right next to the settlement, and you’ll get free artillery support and extra garrison units during the battle. I once held a coastal port against 3 full High Elf stacks just by having a fully upgraded Black Ark parked next to it, no extra land reinforcements needed. Always keep at least 2 escort ships attached to your Black Ark when it’s sailing through open waters, enemy navies will target it constantly if it’s unguarded, and it moves too slow to outrun most attack stacks.
Common Black Ark Mistakes to Avoid
Even if you follow all the unlock and optimization steps, it’s easy to fall into common traps that waste the full potential of your Black Ark. I made almost all of these mistakes on my first few Dark Elf runs, so learning them early will save you a ton of frustration. The biggest mistake I see new players make is moving their Black Ark too far away from their core territory early on. If you send it to the other side of the map before you upgrade it, you’ll have no way to reinforce it if it gets attacked, and the supply line costs will double your upkeep almost immediately.
Another common mistake is only using your Black Ark for naval battles. The biggest value of these units isn’t sinking enemy ships, it’s the 50% extra raid income you get from coastal regions, and the free land battle reinforcement. I used to only use mine for naval fights on my first run, and I missed out on almost 30% more slave income every turn just from not using it to raid undefended coastal AI towns. You can also use your Black Ark as a mobile recruitment station for land units, which is super useful if you’re campaigning far away from your core settlements.
Finally, don’t forget to level up your Black Ark Admiral. The Admiral’s skill tree has bonuses that reduce upkeep, increase raid income, and make your onboard artillery way more powerful. Put your first 3 skill points into the Raid Efficiency line to get 25% extra gold and slaves from all raids immediately. Don’t waste skill points on land combat bonuses for the Admiral, those are almost useless compared to the naval and raid bonuses you can unlock first. If your Admiral dies, you don’t lose the Black Ark, but you will have to recruit a new Admiral and re-level all their skills, so try to keep them out of direct combat as much as possible.
Unlocking and using a Black Ark completely changes how you play Dark Elf campaigns, and once you get the hang of it, you’ll never want to play a coastal faction without one again. Whether you’re a new player just figuring out how to get Black Ark Warhammer 2 or a veteran looking to optimize your runs, following these steps will help you get the most out of every single floating fortress you field. Don’t be afraid to experiment with different raid routes and upgrade paths, every campaign is different, and you might find a strategy that works way better for your playstyle than what’s listed here. Happy raiding, and may your slave pens never run empty.