Fatshark just deployed patch 1.12.0 for Warhammer 40,000: Darktide on Tuesday, pairing a broad free system update with the launch of the new $11.99 Skitarii class DLC. The drop brings the heavily augmented cyborg Skitarii from the Adeptus Mechanicus into the playable roster. It also unleashes two new melee-focused human enemies—the Scab and Dreg Vanguards—who push back against players with breakable shields. You can see the full breakdown of the Vanguard enemies in the core release details.
The Skitarii DLC completely upends Darktide’s established progression structure. Rather than forcing a traditional top-down unlock path, players get the game’s first circular talent tree, building their combat builds outward from the center. The class leans heavily on unique blitz abilities like Arc Grenades, support Servo Skulls, and an Integrated Refraction Emitter for shielding. It also includes highly specific character customization options like numeric naming and a deep voice modulator to tweak your character’s pitch and delay.
On the free side of the update, the Expeditions mode received a serious mechanical overhaul. The developers added a new Dawn time of day, electric environmental hazards, and the Deadsider Sanctuary, while slightly turning down the dial on Bulwark enemy spawn rates. More importantly, they changed how Tech-Remnants work. Players no longer keep personal remnant pools. Everything goes into a shared team stash, and any individual player death instantly drains that stash by 25%, according to the official patch notes.
To tie the drop together, a live event titled Heretical Artifacts is currently running. Players have to recover specific relics and trade them to Sire Melk for Ordo Dockets, combat buffs, and a new Portrait Frame. The Skitarii release follows the 2025 Arbites class drop and the extensive 2023 skill tree revamp, continuing the game’s steady live-service recovery after a rocky PC launch in 2022. Players are responding well to the new class mechanics, but the community is already looking ahead, actively petitioning Fatshark on forums to add Daemonic enemies like Plaguebearers or a Genestealer Cult faction in the next major escalation.