Warhammer 40K: Darktide does a fairly good job at not explaining a lot of its mechanics, and passives are no different. Sure, weapon stats may be a tad more egregious, but you tend to need to hunt for details regarding feat definitions and passives. The Psyker is no different, having a ton of extra details to consider because of its Brain Burst ability and the passives you gain from it. Here’s what Warp Charges are in Warhammer 40K: Darktide.
Darktide Warp Charges Explained
As you may have guessed, Warp Charges relate to the Psyker’s Brain Burst ability directly. Each time you get a kill with Brain Burst, you’ll gain a Warp Charge (viewable in the bottom left of your HUD as a passive). You can have up to four of these Warp Charges at any time, with each one giving you 3% damage from any source. These Warp Charges will disappear after 25 seconds, though getting a kill with Brain Burst will refresh the duration of all.
Warp Charges become especially useful when paired with the many feats that synergize with them. The level 15 feat, Psychic Communion, gives a small chance to award a Warp Charge on you or an ally killing an enemy while in Coherency. A much larger effect comes in the way of the level 30 feats Quicken and Ascendant Blaze, which both expend all Warp Charges but provide healthy buffs as a result.
Related: How to Fix Warp Battery Penance Not Working in Warhammer 40K: Darktide
Warp Charges also relate to many of the penances Psyker has. We say this because as of writing, a bug exists with the directly related Warp Battery penance, where you have to hold onto maximum Warp Charges for 300 seconds in a single mission. In case you’re here because of that, you need to complete the challenge on Heresy rather than Malice due to a typo by Fatshark.
That aside, Warp Charges are an incredibly valuable resource and should be managed effectively. Depending on your feat build, keeping maximum Warp Charges as often as possible is an important skill to learn. Those who learn it will become an incredible value to their team in the long run.
