Are the Dawn of War games worth getting if you've never played Warhammer before in your life?

yes

I was curious about this too. Never got into the series and the price is nice. What's the gameplay like?

Very much so.

Yes they are. never played it. but when i did i was amazed of how cool the game is ^.^

Sure, why not. It'll be a nice introduction into the Warhammer 40k universe for you.

Dawn of War I is the better of the series. Hated DWII. Waste of good money.

Yes.

Get em all!

Dawn of War Anthology is what you should get. Don't even bother with Dawn of War 2, unless you have spare money.

yes

Heresy!

there is bigger story arc which start from first dawn of war and it is ending on dawn of war 2 retribution and i really like all of those games

taken from other site

The Dawn of War series has evolved pretty drastically over the years—from the linear story-driven campaign in the 2004 original to the “Risk” style conquest campaign in 2006’s Dark Crusade, plus the addition of customizable heroes and the removal of base building in 2009’s Dawn of War II. Retribution represents a throwback to Dark Crusade, arguably the highlight of the series, with a more customizable campaign and larger scale overall.

For those who have never played a Dawn of War game, the setting is Games Workshop’s hugely popular Warhammer 40,000 Universe. In the 41st Millennium, mankind has colonized planets across the Galaxy and together form the Imperium of Man. They are beset on all sides by various Aliens and from within by the taint of Chaos. Mankinds greatest warriors are the Space Marines, genetically modified super-humans and the futuristic equivalent of questing knights. The Dawn of War series has always focused on one Chapter of these warriors, the Blood Ravens, whether the story centers on them or just involves them. Retribution brings the story arc that was started six games ago, in the original Dawn of War, to its end.

Sub-Sector Aurelia, home to the Blood Ravens, is in chaos. Most of the population, Space Marines included, is being seduced by the promises of Dark Gods and Daemons. The Ordo Malleus, Holy Inquisition, see only one response: Exterminatus, the complete destruction of all life in the sector, guilty …

Dawn of war 1 is a RTS with somre building and concentrates on gathering resources through controling certain key points.
-the base game has 4 races and a good SP story. winter assault follows the story of the base game and add a new race.

• in dark crusade you have a risk map with lots of skirmish battles. this makes the story worse but gives the ability to choose which race you want to play. it also adds 2 new races. soulstorm is basecally equal to dark crusade except it has a bigger map and 2 more new races.

Dawn of war 2 is a squad based shooter. this means that instead of armies you will have to micromanage your army. this games fuses strategy with RPG with an awesome storyline. Chaos rissing will continue the storyline and add 1 more race.
-retribuition is similar to dark crusade since it adds a campaign for each race, thus the story takes a hit but you can choose which race you want to play.

in my opinion both games are awesome and if you like RTS this is one of the best. if you like company of heroes then you will like dawn of war.

They are. DoW1 is more like traditional RTS (base building + capturing points for resources) and DoW2 is focused more on your units (basically you don't build any base here) which you can upgrade their armor/guns/abilities. Personally, I would recommend both of them (if you don't mind slightly outdated graphic in DoW1).