Total War: Warhammer 3 Removes the Shitty Siege Ladders, but the Real Problem Is Much Bigger
Siege ladders, finally the right way up
Total War: Warhammer 3 just got a major update fixing one of the series’ most frustrating problems: siege ladders. For years, players had to endure urban battles where units climbed up and down walls like drunk monkeys, with wonky animations and an AI that seemed to have forgotten how gravity works. Creative Assembly finally listened to the complaints and reworked the system. Ladders are now more stable, units climb in a logical way, and high-ground combat is less chaotic. Walls are no longer giant slides where soldiers tumble down in cascades, and defenses finally feel credible. It’s a welcome change, but it raises a question: why did it take so long?
A deeper problem: the AI still acting up
If the ladders are finally fixed, the real problem with Total War: Warhammer 3 remains whole: the artificial intelligence. Whether in campaign or battle, the AI sometimes has incomprehensible behaviors. In sieges, it keeps making questionable choices, like sending its best units to get slaughtered by defense towers or completely ignoring strategic points. In campaign, it’s worse. AI-controlled factions make erratic moves, declare war for no reason, and manage their economies like kids with a piggy bank. Diplomacy is often illogical, and alliances break without explanation. Creative Assembly has made progress, but the AI remains the series’ weak link.
Siege battles, still an organized mess
Even with improved ladders, siege battles in Total War: Warhammer 3 remain a headache. Maps are sometimes poorly designed, with narrow choke points that turn fights into giant traffic jams. Units get stuck in each other, and the AI struggles to adapt to terrain changes. Worst of all? Performance. Despite optimizations, siege battles remain resource-hungry, especially when hundreds of units clash in a confined space. Slowdowns and graphical bugs still too often spoil the experience.
The real challenge: balance between strategy and spectacle
Total War: Warhammer 3 is a game that wants to do everything: be a deep strategy game and a breathtaking visual spectacle. But sometimes these two aspects clash. Battles are gorgeous, but the strategy mechanics lack polish. Factions are varied, but some are clearly disadvantaged. Players have long been asking for better race balance, more dynamic campaigns and a smarter AI. Siege ladders were a visible problem, but far from the only one. Creative Assembly now needs to tackle the real challenges: making the game as strategic as it is spectacular.
Conclusion: a step forward, but not enough
Removing the shitty siege ladders is good news, but it’s just a detail in a game that still has a lot of work ahead of it. Total War: Warhammer 3 remains an excellent title, but it could be much better with a smarter AI, better-optimized siege battles and finer faction balance. Players deserve more than cosmetic fixes. They want a game where strategy trumps bugs, where battles are as smooth as they are epic. Creative Assembly has taken a step in the right direction, but the road is still long.
See also
- Total War: Warhammer 3 Update 9.0: End Times, Glottkin and Vampire Counts — what changes for Immortal Empires
- Total War: Warhammer 3 — Bhashiva and the full Grand Cathay rework (Update 8.0)
- Total War: Warhammer 3: Nagash and the Lords of the End Times arrive this summer
- All RTS articles