I think it's necessary at this early juncture to sell the idea of where within the Realmgate storyline this Campaign begins.
'Having successfully opened the Realmgate leading back to Azyr, it was now possible for Vandus Hammerhand and his Thunderstrike Brotherhood to begin in earnest to reclaim the Fire Realm of Aqshy. Five more Brotherhoods were teleported directly to key locations, each Lord-Celestant was given the task of assisting Vandus in removing Khul's dominion from the land.
Though each of the brotherhoods sent from the heavens had it's own mission it was Vandus Hammerhand who faced the hardest challenge of all. The Lord-Celestant had excelled in his task, opening the vital gateway back to Azyr. The initial conflict to open the gate was brutal and bloody, Khul fortuitously managing to escape his own destruction in the process.
By virtue of this previous conflict Vandus bacame privy to a unique vision. Vandus learnt of the existence of another Realmgate close to Khul's stronghold, linking directly into the Realm of Chaos itself. Unless this portal is closed the StormCasts will forever be fighting a losing battle of attrition as Khorne indefinitely replenishes its forces at will. The task ahead became clear; Close the gate as soon as possible or lose Aqshy forever.'
One of the first things to think about was how the 6 StormCast forces and untold Khorne warbands would move about the Realm of Aqshy.
The map is organically laid out largely defined by the River Magmus carving it in two across the middle. Realising that I wanted to try and work with the map unchanged I began to look at a standard hexagon based grid. It didnt take long to realise that unless the map lost it's organic nature it simply wasn't going to fit.
Instead I began to look at a linked node based system whereby the campaign tiles were not arranged like a grid but instead had a number of entry and exit points which could be tailored specifically around the map and how it might change dynamically during the campaign.
As armies moved into nodes, the next set of nodes that linked from it would become available. Achieving a Fog of War style gameplay whereby the options for heading down certain paths were not instantly visible from the start. I also made the decision not to show the enemy forces on the map, unless the Stormcast discovered a means of tracking them, or making them visible (initially they wouldnt).
As long as I secretly made all my moves before Noah got to choose the tiles the Stormcast move to it will guarantee I won't gain an unfair advantage by being secretive about my choices.
Till next time.
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