Suit up your Space Marines and blast those Orks! Relic Entertainment is officially working on a full sequel to their awesome RTS series, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War.

Dawn of War 2 will run on an enhanced version of the Essence Engine 2.0, which was used for Company of Heroes and Opposing Fronts.

Furthermore, gamers who purchased the most recent expansion pack Soulstorm will get access to the upcoming multiplayer-only beta of Dawn of War 2.

The future looks good for Warhammer with this and Warhammer Online coming. Let's just hope Relic can release it before StarCraft II... for their sake.

Full release below:

IT’S OFFICIAL – WARHAMMER 40,000: DAWN OF WAR II IS ON ITS WAY

Welcome to a new dawn…

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II, the highly anticipated sequel from one of the industry’s premiere Real-Time Strategy developers, Relic Entertainment, is set to bring the 41st Millennium’s savage warfare to life like never before in spring 2009. Powered by an enhanced version of Relic’s proprietary Essence Engine 2.0, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II will take players to the brutal frontlines of war where they’ll experience intense action and visceral combat through a non-linear single player experience and a fully co-operative multiplayer campaign. 

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II is set in the grim, war-ravaged world of Games Workshop’s Warhammer 40,000 universe – a dark, futuristic, science-fiction setting where armies of technologically advanced warriors, fighting machines and hordes of implacable aliens wage constant war. Dawn of War II ushers in a new chapter in the acclaimed RTS series, as ancient races – including the dauntless Space Marines and savage Orks - clash with ferocious melee and ranged combat across fully destructible environments in what will be the most visually-stunning Warhammer 40,000 setting ever created. 

Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II is being developed exclusively for Windows PC, and THQ is pleased to announce that owners of the recently released Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War – Soulstorm will be able to participate in an invitation-only multiplayer beta program for Dawn of War II, set to take place at a future date.