Part 1, The Players' Packet Article by Eric Sarlin

With disgust, Bürgermeister Geltmacher scowled at the wet wood hissing in the fireplace of the great hall. He had ordered the lamps lit and the fire stoked to make his hall look as inviting and prosperous as possible. The man he was about to meet had something of a reputation, and Geltmacher had wanted to make an impression. Instead of a warm, roaring fire, however, the mercenary would be greeted by nothing more than steam and wet smoke.

The Bürgermeister's Chamberlain disturbed Geltmacher's concerned meditations by announcing, "Captain von Schädel, sir." A man, thin but hard, entered the hall warily and made a quick bow – a bow not quite low enough to meet the courtly standards of the day, but one that demonstrated a perfect economy of motion, a warrior's bow.

Geltmacher wasted little time with pleasantries. "I want to hire you and your men, von Schädel. An uncharted island has been discovered southwest of Magritta. There are rumors - rumors of beasts, treasures, and artifacts of terrible power. Rumors do me no good. I need answers, and I need to keep my enemies away from any wealth or weapons that might be on that island. I need you to go to the island, explore it, and bring back any treasure and anything that might be of value to our military or my court wizard."

Von Schädel said nothing, but a greedy, piratical gleam came into his eye. Geltmacher glared contemptuously at the mercenary and continued. "I've arranged for four of my fastest ships to carry you and your men to the island. For your services, you will receive 2,000 crowns plus a tenth of whatever you bring back." Geltmacher paused. "And know that Commodore Waechter has been instructed to keep you honest."

Von Schädel smiled a wry smile. "When do we leave?"

Estragon's Island is a Games-Mastered, map-based Warhammer campaign inspired in part by the campaign guidelines in The General's Compendium. The campaign can be played by two to five players, plus a neutral Games Master (GM). The campaign is a quest-style game in which armies land on the island, explore it, and try to find Items of Power. Each player begins with a large army, which he divides into a number of smaller banners. These banners become the player's "pawns" on the overall map. When two enemy banners are proximate, a battle may take place. The ultimate goal of the campaign is to retrieve a number of magic items, relics of great power that perhaps once belonged to the fabled Don Diego Estragon.

Players and GMs alike should begin by scanning Chapters 2 and 4 of The General's Compendium to get a general idea of how map-based and GM campaigns work. Then, both players and GMs should read the Players' Packet by following the links below. The Player's Packet contains all the information players will need to know to participate in the campaign. GMs, too, will find the information essential and will also need to read the second part of this campaign, the GM's Packet, which will be published in White Dwarf 297. Players should not read the GM's Packet. Also, players should not follow the link to download a printable copy of the campaign map. The GM will supply all players with a copy of the campaign map when the time comes for the campaign to begin.