There are a lot of different enemies you’ll come up against in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide. Each one has unique strengths and weaknesses that you’ll need to learn about if you want to survive. From traitor guardsmen and Ogryns to the corrupting influence of Nurgle, there’s a lot to fight and discover down in the depths of Tertium. Yet, among these enemies, there are a select few that have been deemed unyielding.
In this article, we’ll explore what it means for an enemy to be unyielding, which enemies have this trait, and what we need to do to defeat them.
What does Unyielding Mean in Darktide?
Some of these enemies will be marked with the Unyielding trait whenever you damage them in the Meat Grinder. You’ll need to know exactly what this buff means and how that influences their combat prowess.
Unyielding Enemies are highly resistant to being staggered or knocked back by abilities or weapons. Only weapons and skills such as the Ogyrn Skullbreaker’s Bull Rush or a charged attack from a Thunder Hammer will stagger Unyielding Enemies. Shoving or using weapons with a low stagger weapon stat in Darktide won’t affect an Unyielding enemy.
Most Unyielding enemies heavily rely on melee attacks, which makes their flurry of strikes difficult to counter. One notable Unyielding enemy is the Rager. The Rager is a frothing berserker who comes in two different types, an armored and unarmored version. Both dual-wield axes and have long combo chains that cannot be interrupted because they are Unyielding.
What Enemies are Unyielding in Darktide?
In Darktide, Elite and Specialist enemies present different levels of difficulty, but most have unique behaviors or weapons that can disrupt or break your team if you’re unprepared. As you level up your Reject in Darktide, you gain access to the Meat Grinder. This simulation allows players to practice and test combat in Darktide against regular Elite and Specialist enemies, though bosses are unfortunately not included.
Among the Elite and Specialist enemy roster, a handful of enemies are considered Unyielding. Still, the amount of stagger power needed to push around an Unyielding enemy ultimately depends on who you are fighting. Here is a short list of all Unyielding enemies in Darktide:
- Crusher
- Bulwark
- Reaper
- Mutant
- Rager
It’s also worth mentioning that all monstrosities (aka bosses) are Unyielding in Darktide. It’s essential to note that some enemies are less resistant to being staggered despite having the Unyielding status. We will also provide a short comparison and breakdown to showcase the differences.
Also, before we start the comparisons, we need to mention that all Ogryn Skullbreakers have a natural 25% extra stagger power. Hence, all enemies are significantly easier to stagger if you are playing an Ogryn compared to other classes.
Ragers (Both Armored and Unarmored)
We previously talked about the Rager, which has an armored and an unarmored variant. These enemies are the easiest to stagger in comparison to other Unyielding enemies. A heavy attack from an Ogryn can knock aside almost any enemy. Ragers are easier to disrupt when they’re charging at you, so dodging backward during their longer swings and making them rush toward you is the best option to deal with them one-on-one.
Bulwark and Crusher Enemies
Bulwarks and Crushers are harder to stagger if you aren’t an Ogryn Skullbreaker due to their natural size and robustness of being an Ogryn. Crushers are harder since they are arguably the toughest Elite to kill in Darktide, and that carapace armor doesn’t make it easy. Bulwarks are situationally tougher to deal with since you can’t stagger them through their thick shield, but attacking them from the flank will make them buckle.
Reaper-Type Enemies
Reapers are somewhat easy to stagger since they have no melee weapon, and they are the easiest Ogryn to kill once you close the distance. However, it’s difficult to stagger a Reaper from ranged unless you have an explosive weapon or a Psyker.
Staggering Enemies using Brain Burst
Speaking of Psyker builds in Darktide, using Brain Burst will stop an enemy in their tracks and cause them to briefly stumble if they manage to survive. All Ogryn enemies take multiple Brain Bursts to take down, but they cause immense stagger, even to these normally unyielding Darktide enemies.
For example, if a Psyker uses multiple Brain Bursts on a Bulwark or a Reaper, the Bulwark will stumble back and expose themself by dropping their shield, or a Reaper will stop firing their Autogun.
There is the Mutant, a raging monster that is super difficult to stagger. Once a Mutant has grabbed any one of your allies, there’s practically no way to interrupt their attacks without killing them immediately, the good side about this is that they become predictable.
Other Abilities that Will Stagger Unyielding Enemies in Warhammer 40K: Darktide
Using a Stun Grenade or a Bull Rush charge will stagger back all Elites and Special enemies in Darktide, so use your abilities wisely. You may want to save them for when they’re most needed.
When fighting bosses, there are even fewer abilities that can stop their assault. Thunderhammers, Stun Grenades, and Psykenetic’s Wrath won’t knock all bosses back.
There are some expectations, like using Bull Rush during a Plague Ogryn charge will interrupt the attack, but most weapons and abilities (other than Bull Rush) won’t stagger a boss.
Don’t Underestimate the Power of Dodging
If you ever find yourself against an Unyielding enemy in melee range and you don’t have an adequate way to stagger them back, focus on dodging. Blocking and dodging will save your life more than repeatedly keeping your opponents staggered, so never underestimate the power of simply blocking or dodging.
Final Thoughts and Summary
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide is a game that is constantly throwing new challenges your way. Whether it’s an unyielding enemy that seems immune to all of your efforts or a horde of enemies that are just too tough for one person to handle, you’ll need to learn how to adapt quickly and use the strengths of your team to survive.
In this article, we’ve highlighted some of the most unyielding enemies in Darktide and shared some tips on how best to deal with them. Let us know what you think in the comments section below, and be sure to check out our other articles for more helpful tips on how to dominate in Warhammer 40,000: Darktide.
If you enjoyed our short guide and want to learn more about how to do well in-game, check out our comprehensive guide to Curios in Darktide.
Good hunting, Rejects!
