Background

Throughout the early decades of the 24th century (Imperial Calendar), Don Diego Estragon, Estalian merchant and explorer, worked to acquire a vast amount of wealth. He owned a fleet of ships that sailed the globe and regularly traded with Araban and Cathayan merchants and occasionally even the people and other races of Lustria. His mansion in Magritta rivaled that of the local Prince, and it is said that the man attracted as many enemies as he did sycophants and lovers. He survived many assassination attempts and many slanderous attacks on his character, including some that stated that he was secretly a mage who practiced the Dark Arts. Estragon seemed to weather all of these attacks – be they with words or swords – with grace and good humor. Though many envied his wealth, prestige, and success, few could deny that he was an affable, charismatic man whose boldness and bravado were admirable.

In 2348, Estragon set off with a great fleet of ships, each loaded to the gunwales with trade goods from all over the Old World. Estragon planned to circumnavigate the globe and trade with merchants, craftsmen, and artisans of all kinds. If the trip had proved successful, Estragon would have returned with more than a king's ransom in exotic goods and could well have become the richest man in the Old World. Neither Estragon nor any of his ships or crews, however, returned from the voyage.

Little is known about Estragon's disappearance. Some say his armada went down in a massive gale that struck the Great Ocean some weeks after Estragon's departure. Others say that Estragon took a Cathayan wife and settled as lord of a large province in an eastern kingdom. Others claim that Estragon became corrupted by the power of Chaos and that he and his fleet now serve the Dark Gods. Still others claim that Estragon's trading mission failed and that he and his sailors settled on a small island where Estragon ruled as a pirate king. Hack writers in the Old World have seized upon and embellished Estragon's tale, and many an imaginative "penny dreadful" circulates among the literate of the Old World. These works of popular fiction detail the imagined exploits of this romantic Estalian figure.

Sailors of the Old World have since reported sightings of what they call Estragon's Island, a magical, dangerous place that, if it exists, seems to shift its location from time to time. Most believe that the stories of Estragon's Island are little more than sailors' superstitions, but those who claim to have seen it report a lush, exotic, tropical island that hides many treasures, artifacts, and monsters. Whatever the case may be, Estragon is certainly long dead, as he was born over 200 years ago. Until recently, most rational observers would have concluded that his fate was likely to have remained a mystery forever.

Over the past few weeks, however, more reliable accounts of Estragon's Island have come to the fore. Respected merchants and hardened military captains and admirals have reported sighting a heretofore uncharted island in the Great Ocean some 400 miles southwest of the shores of Estalia. Rumors have begun to circulate. Could it be the fabled Estragon's Island of song and story? If so, are ancient treasures and relics to be found there? Both the opportunity and the mystery are too good for your lords and masters to pass up. As general of a considerable armed force, you have been dispatched to explore the island and bring back as much wealth and as many Items of Power as you can manage. You will be provided with a map of Estragon's Island, which has been brought forth from a dusty and largely forgotten part of an infrequently used library. You will also begin your journey armed with several rumors that the ships' crews have passed along to your superiors. Use this information as you see fit.

As you and your forces will quickly learn, the island in question is indeed Estragon's Island. In order to return to your superiors with honor, you and your forces must collect the Items of Power that are rumored to have found their way to the island. They are the Crown of Estragon, a magical crown rumored to increase the air of authority of he who wears it; the Cursed Chest, a Cathayan box that holds treasures so valuable that they could feed a nation for a year if only the curse could be lifted; the Rod of Pharakh, which is said to bestow upon its bearer power over the dead; the Scythe of Change, a weapon rumored to be tainted with the touch of one of the Gods of Chaos; and the Cathayan Robe, an enchanted garment said to increase the power of wizards who wear it. If you and your forces can return home with three of these five Items of Power, you will win the campaign.

Like most Games-Mastered campaigns, Estragon's Island allows the players to try out creative strategies not necessarily covered by the standard Warhammer rules. Care to draft an allied contingent into your force? Have an idea in mind for a crazy new engine of war? Want to build a watchtower on top of a mountain to spy on your opponents? Such things are possible, as long as the GM permits them, and you can work out the rules with him.

Another exciting feature of this campaign is the element of secrecy and surprise. Players do not know what other armies they might face, where their enemies are located, and perhaps even who else is playing in the campaign (though members of small gaming clubs should be able to figure out this much). Though this campaign is map-based, only the GM will keep a copy of the master map and know every banner's position thereupon. Players must play largely "blind" and make discoveries as they go. Thus, part of your force could be a fraction of a mile away from your most hated foe and not know it!

As the campaign progresses, each banner will fight battles against enemy banners and other GM-controlled forces or monsters, forge allegiances, and hopefully, collect enough of Estragon's relics to win the campaign. Thus, players have to do more than simply out-fight their foes in each battle. Players have to out-think and out-maneuver their opponents on a grand scale as well.

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