All matter of evil walks across the Old World, those who wish to save it or see it burned. Hordes of Skaven burrow underground, Chaos worshipers spread the gifts of Nurgle, and now Beastmen have come to wage war. There are over a dozen enemies the Ubersreik five face in Vermintide 2, but we will focus on one enemy category today: the Special enemy variants.
Special enemies have a plethora of unique abilities which serve to either disrupt your team or give support to Elite enemies and other infantry units. Every Special enemy serves a different role and can affect the outcome of a fight if they aren’t dealt with.
We will go over all the Special enemies in Vermintide, how they influence combat encounters, and how to defeat them.
What is the Difference between Elite & Special Enemies in Darktide?
Both Elite and Special enemies serve vastly different roles in combat. Elites are designed to get into the thick of a fight and act as highly armored or dangerous melee threats. Elites break your formation and demand immediate attention because of their overwhelming melee power. They are harder to kill, damage, and stagger in comparison to your typical cannon fodder units.
Elites can be highly armored like the Shield Vermin or Chaos Warrior, but Elites can also be unarmored but deadly melee fighters like Plague Monks or Savages.
Special enemies in Vermintide, aside from the Packmaster, Gutter Runner, or Life Leech, like remaining in the backline or fighting in mid-ranged combat to support any melee units. Special enemies act as reinforcers or disruptors that can separate players from your team or act as ranged threats. Specials typically have average HP like the Gutter Runner or the Poison Wind Globadier, but they can deal tons of damage to your team if they aren’t immediately dealt with.
Players can ping both enemy types to alert the team to their presence, and most Specials and Elites in Vermintide have voice lines or callouts that give players a warning before they enter the fray.
All Special Enemies in Vermintide 2
1. Packmaster
- Range: Melee
- Weapon: Barbed Polearm
- Warning: Rattling Skulls
- Armor: Unarmored
The Packmaster, also known as a “Hook Rat,” is likely one of the first Special enemies you will encounter in Vermintide 2. Packmasters originate from the Skaven Clan Moulder, who are specialized in controlling packs of ravenous beasts into battle. However, the Packmaster has no animal companion and seeks to restrain players and drag them away from their team with a bared polearm that snatches around your neck.
You can hear a Packmaster approaching from the skulls rattling on the back of their shoulders. This little rat has no armor and minimal health, so one well-placed shot to the head will bring them down with no issue. However, if a Packmaster gets too close, they can grab one of your teammates by the neck and will slowly drag them away.
This grab isn’t too threatening if Packmaster spawns outside of a horde, but if there are enough clanrats to keep players busy, they can easily drag you several yards away. If a Packmaster pulls a player too far, they will slowly plant the polearm into the ground and hang the player by the neck, choking them to death while other rats continuously beat them.
If you plan on dodging a Packmaster, remember to dodge to the left or the right while walking into them. Never dodge backward, or else their grabber will still catch your neck. Their grab can be evaded with one well-timed dodge, interrupted by stagger effects, or simply killing the Packmaster.
2. How to Defeat the Warpfire Thrower Special Enemy Easily in Vermintide 2
- Range: Mid Range
- Weapon: Flamethrower
- Warning: Maniacal Laughter/Taunts Involving Fire.
- Armor: Armored
The Warpfire Thrower, also known as a “Fire Rat,” is an armored special that wields a giant flamethrower fueled by Warpstone. These rats originate from Clan Skryre, who make twisted and vile mechanical weapons. The Warpfire Thrower works as you would expect a typical flamethrower, but its flames knock you back and slow you briefly after touching the fire.
Warpfire Throwers are armored, making them difficult to take out in melee unless you strike their head before they can spout a cone of flame at you or during their reload animation. Using ranged weapons to take them out is highly advised, especially since the green glowing Warpstone in their tank also counts as a weak spot.
When a Warpfire Thrower dies, it also can explode, especially if you damage the Warpstone or take multiple strikes or arrows to kill them. Severing their head won’t cause the rat to explode, but the explosion can hurt other rats, so aim carefully. Also, shields cannot block or guard against the damage or knockback of the flames unless you are playing as the Grail Knight.
3. Ratling Gunner Specialist
- Range: Ranged
- Weapon: Large Gatling Gun
- Warning: Metallic Clanking
- Armor: Armored
Ratling Gunners, also known as “Gun Rats,” are another dangerous Skaven from Clan Skryre who bring an enormous Gatling gun to rain down a hellfire of green bullets. Unlike the WarpFire Thrower, the Ratling Gunners can fire at longer ranges, even if they aren’t accurate. These special enemies become especially deadly at medium or close range in Vermintide 2 and nearly impossible to approach during their barrage.
To kill Ratling Gunner, open fire on them before they can spin up their Gatling gun. If you are being targeted or are under fire by a Ratling Gunner, it’s better to stay in cover and wait until they have to reload or their weapon jams. These Rats are also slower than Warpfire throwers, making them easier to pick off or rush down between barrages.
Unlike the Warpfire Thrower, their barrage can be blocked by Shields, but it’s difficult to push forward when with a lot of Stamina. Ratling Gunners also damage their allies just like Warpfire Throwers, allowing them to mow down their other allies while focusing on one player.
4. Poison Wind Globadier
- Range: Ranged
- Weapon: Glass Gas Bombs
- Warning: Raspy Breathing & Gas Pumping
- Armor: Unarmored
The Poison Wind Globadier, also known as “Gas Rats,” is one of the more twisted and vile Skaven you can come across in Vermintide 2. The Globadier is a Special enemy who excels in area denial. Globadiers love to stay in the backline and toss one or two gas globes at the players, giving them the dilemma of staying in the area, taking constant damage, or evacuating the area.
Globadiers do not care for other Skaven and are responsible for poisoning dozens of their lesser brethren to bring down one target. These Gas Rats have no armor and are relatively weak in health, but they are an absolute annoyance for their cycle of throwing poison gas and repositioning.
One well-placed shot or melee swing will bring down a Globadier, but they also have a chance of exploding when they die. Additionally, if you wound a Globadier and don’t kill them, they will aim a detonation device and run at their nearest player, attempting to take them out with a close-range explosion.
Related Article: Does Warhammer: Vermintide 2 Support Crossplay?
5. Gutter Runner
- Range: Melee
- Weapon: Warpstone Claws
- Warning: Whispering/Skittering
- Armor: Unarmored
Gutter Runners, also known as “Assassin Rats,” are Clan Eshin members who wield two Warpstone claws that thrive at ambushes. These special enemies are assassins in Vermintide 2 who pounce on their prey and maul them to death. Typically assassins from Clan Eshin are more stealthy in lore, but for the sake of Vermintide’s gameplay, they are easier to detect.
Gutter Runners can climb up and around the environment faster than other enemies, along with performing some acrobatics like backflips to avoid ranged attacks. They are slippery and hard to pin down but become far more deadly when they crouch down and prepare to pounce. When they pounce and make contact with a player, they pin them to the ground and begin wildly stabbing them.
While the Gutter Runner is pinning a player, they are incapacitated and require help from other players to kill or stagger the rat off the player. If the Gutter Runner misses their pounce or is knocked off, there’s a chance they will vanish in a cloud of smoke. Gutter Runners sometimes pounce off edges or call off cliffs, which is always hilarious to watch.
If you don’t have a reliable ranged weapon to deal with Gutter Runners, you can sidestep their pounce and attempt to follow up with a melee attack. However, this is always risky since Gutter Runners will start to backflip and retreat or pounce again if there’s enough space.
These assassins are one of the deadliest Special enemies in Vermintide and will punish players who fall behind or stray away from the team.
6. Blight Stormer Special Enemies in Vermintide 2
- Range: Ranged
- Weapon: Blight Storm
- Warning: Chanting
- Armor: Unarmored
Blight Stormers are our first Special enemy that’s part of the Chaos faction. The Blight Stormer is a worshiper of Nurgle and uses their tainted powers to conjure up small storms of rot and singing plague. The Blight Stormer is very easy to spot due to their bloated and pale white appearance. They are also one of the only enemies in the game that spawns and moves around the battlefield before repositioning and then beginning a chant.
Therefore, this can lead to finding Blight Stormers nearby before they vanish and begin to chant, but if you fail to kill them in one or two strikes, they will teleport away early. Blight Stormers are another area denial Specialist. If these Sorcerers aren’t dealt with, they will form a small circle that grows larger after several seconds.
This storm sucks nearby players in and disables their actions for several seconds before tossing them in a random direction. Blight Stormers are very dangerous if they aren’t dealt with, or else they will continue to trap your team in an endless cycle of plague winds, which gets even worse when in tight areas.
Blight Stormers have a massive casting range and will sometimes stay in previous areas despite the fact that their storms will spawn next to you. When you find the sorcerer, they will die in one or two strikes to the head, so aim well before they vanish.
7. Life Leech
- Range: Melee
- Weapon: Drain Life Spell
- Warning: Whispering
- Armor: Unarmored
Life Leeches are similar to their brothers, who undoubtedly serve Nurgle and manipulate lesser men by whispering dark thoughts into their ears. The Life Leech has a similar physic as the Blight Stormer, but they enjoy preying on your group’s weak or isolated members.
Life Leeches also have the large, bloated body of a Chaos sorcerer, but they will lurk some distance away from the party until they teleport behind a player and attempt to use a drain life spell.
This special enemy’s attack revolves around launching a small projectile that pulls players toward them, draining their life essence and teleporting away. This projectile can be dodged, resulting in the Life Leech vanishing briefly before trying again. If a player is caught by their spell, others can kill the Life Leech before the player is pulled in, avoiding potential damage.
During the Drain, the Life Leech will remain still, making eliminating them easily with a projectile. This special doesn’t deal as much damage as a Gutter Runner, but they are a close second. Life Leeches also don’t drag the player as far as a Packmaster can, so there’s a balance between the three Special enemies.
8. Standard Bearer
- Range: Melee
- Weapon: Standard
- Warning: Chanting For Blood
- Armor: Fully Armored
The Standard Bearer is the only Special enemy from the Beastmen faction. Yet, they provide something no other enemy has in Vermintide 2. The Standard Bearer spawns with a small group of typical Beastmen, but once they spot a player nearby, they will place a Standard into the ground, granting a buff to all nearby enemies. The dropped standard increases max health and heals all Beastmen in a large radius.
This banner can be destroyed, but the Standard Bearer will stand by and guard it. If a player wants to end the Standards buff, they need to strike it to destroy it, but they will have to deal with its guardian. The Standard Bearer is equipped with full armor, making it almost as tanky as a Chaos Warrior, but it lacks a helmet, so aim for the head.
If the party retreats and doesn’t deal with the Standard Bearer, they will remove the banner from the ground and follow the party to support the horde. Standard Bearers don’t deal significant damage, but they act as bulwarks to defend their banner, so it can be difficult to take them out if you can’t aim at their head.
Related Guide: How to Build the Warrior Priest in Vermintide 2
9. How to Get Extra Supplies from the Sack Rat Special Enemy in Vermintide 2
- Range: Melee
- Weapon: None
- Warning: Mine!
- Armor: Unarmored
The last Special enemy on our list is the Sack Rat, otherwise known as the “Loot Rat.” This greedy little rat serves no combat purpose yet is still under the Special enemy category. The Sack Rat sometimes spawns in missions and can be heard exclaiming “Mine!” repeatedly.
Killing the Sack Rat will yield extra supplies for your team, including Potions, Healing items, Bombs, and Loot Dice. We recommend trying to eliminate them with a ranged weapon, or else they will run away or through a horde of enemies. They are unarmored, so one precise shot to the head will drop them easily.
Conclusion on Defeating all Special Enemies in Vermintide 2
That’s our guide to defeating every Special enemy in Vermintide 2. Elites are always imposing in melee, but Special enemies are exceptionally good at disrupting your team if you’re unprepared. Never underestimate the power of a Special enemy because you fought one outside of a horde. They can cause some severe damage to your team in the right circ*mstance.
Overall, Vermintide 2’s enemy roster is very unique and memorable, even if they sound simple on paper. If you enjoyed our look into the game’s enemy roster and want to learn more about how to play the game, check out our ranked Vermintide 2 classes tier list to see which are the best and most fun to play at the moment!
For now, happy hunting!
