Malign Portents

[Captain Marius]

On the contrary, all my dudes went through a realmgate to Shyish in week one, then fought under a big old moon there in week two. Now theyre supposed to take a detour back to Aqshy for week 3? I dont think so!

Weve skipped this week, hopefully GW has something more engaging on the cards for week 4!

[shinros]

Bloodbound claim the orb infernia. Khul lead a host to it and took over. Looking at the choices it's out of drake and skull I don't think the community are going to pick eye lol. 

2 hours ago, Captain Marius said:

On the contrary, all my dudes went through a realmgate to Shyish in week one, then fought under a big old moon there in week two. Now theyre supposed to take a detour back to Aqshy for week 3? I dont think so!

Weve skipped this week, hopefully GW has something more engaging on the cards for week 4!

Ah yes headcanon, but in the wider narrative everyone chose to ignore/kill your guides. It's cool that's what you are doing for your personal narrative but that's not what is happening in the wider setting. 

Now orb infernia from godbeasts. 

[AthlorianStoners]

That’s some cool as ******, skull seems to be the coolest option.

[Kamose]

I've no doubt that this story will come together in the end.  I think choosing skull in the first week was very interesting and, from the point of view of the inhabitants of the Mortal Realms, disastrous.  We had fore warnings of a terrible disaster from omens and prophets and we just ignored them and silenced them.  In truth I think it makes perfect sense that the narrative moves away from Shyish.  The majority of peoples and nations and gods in the Mortal Realms are just ignoring what's happening.  They have no reason to go to Shyish so they all just stayed home!

It makes sense the the narrative would have to move to another realm to see what's happening to the people who chose to ignore the warnings.  None of us are trying to stop Nagash and so bad things are going down at home now.  The only other option for the narrative would be to stay in Shyish and sit around doing nothing while Nagash does what he wants.  None of us are there! 

The characters in the stories they release are going to Shyish to try and mess with Nagash but we're not.  I really like that we're writing our own (disastrous) story separate from the main characters that GW created.  This really is OUR story.  We're not just tagging along behind Khul, or Arkhan, or Vandus. We're doing our own thing (and probably all gonna die because of it)!

[Bloodmaster]

hm, I somehow have the feeling that you guys - and certainly me too - have a bit misread what Malign portants will be and what the campaign has to offer. It is not, and in retrospective never was advertised, a campaign solely focused on what Nagash is planing and how Mr. Boneyface Pointyhead could be stoped or aided. It rather is a campaing that leads to mayor changes in all realms, the cause of some or most, is the Great necromancers dooing, but not all can be directly atributed to his evil plans but are sheer luck and coinsidence or the wrong (or right) doings of others. Thus, the change in location in stage two, offering an active participation in the future fate of the realm of fire. Instead of leting us fight in the realm of dead, stoping nagash there or being beaten by him and coming back home just to find stuff gone FUBA there, you get a glimps at what is happening elsewere and the chance to change at least some events.

In the end, I am quite positive that we will see what Nagash planed and have a say in whether he succeds or fails, but it won't offer a direct intervention, as was the case in both storm of Chaos campaings in the early 2000s.

P.S.: And also what @Kamose and others said. The democatric majority descided to ignor and slay the guys warning us about a brewing evil in Shyish, so now we are in the dark dealing with local problems rather than facing the Evil Dead - damn, where is Ash Williams, when you need him - oh right, you guys burned him at a stake!

[shinros]

8 minutes ago, Bloodmaster said:

hm, I somehow have the feeling that you guys - and certainly me too - have a bit misread what Malign portants will be and what the campaign has to offer. It is not, and in retrospective never was advertised, a campaign solely focused on what Nagash is planing and how Mr. Boneyface Pointyhead could be stoped or aided. It rather is a campaing that leads to mayor changes in all realms, the cause of some or most, is the Great necromancers dooing, but not all can be directly atributed to his evil plans but are sheer luck and coinsidence or the wrong (or right) doings of others. Thus, the change in location in stage two, offering an active participation in the future fate of the realm of fire. Instead of leting us fight in the realm of dead, stoping nagash there or being beaten by him and coming back home just to find stuff gone FUBA there, you get a glimps at what is happening elsewere and the chance to change at least some events.

In the end, I am quite positive that we will see what Nagash planed and have a say in whether he succeds or fails, but it won't offer a direct intervention, as was the case in both storm of Chaos campaings in the early 2000s.

P.S.: And also what @Kamose and others said. The democatric majority descided to ignor and slay the guys warning us about a brewing evil in Shyish, so now we are in the dark dealing with local problems rather than facing the Evil Dead - damn, where is Ash Williams, when you need him - oh right, you guys burned him at a stake!

Yup, I suspect that in the narrative when they write it up if people voted drake first week Morathi would of had more support for whatever she is doing. 

[HorticulusTGA]

Wow ! Didn't expected to see lore directly drawn from the RGW : Godbeast and SOW : Firestorm ! 

That's really cool. 

EDIT : ah but they mixed up Flamescar Plateau (in the campaign set called Firestorm) and called it Firestorm Plateau. Well..

[Guest]

3 hours ago, Bloodmaster said:

hm, I somehow have the feeling that you guys - and certainly me too - have a bit misread what Malign portants will be and what the campaign has to offer. It is not, and in retrospective never was advertised, a campaign solely focused on what Nagash is planing and how Mr. Boneyface Pointyhead could be stoped or aided.

Oh, come on! This whole thing is ultimately based around a book that is exclusively focused on events in Shyish, with a load of rules and other gaming content specifically designed for battles in that realm. The whole Malign Portents website through which the campaign is being run is Death themed. The vast majority of the short stories they've released are linked in some way to Shyish and Nagash's plan. GW might never have explicitly said 'this is a campaign about Nagash's plan that's focused on Shyish', but only a raving lunatic would have assumed otherwise.

For me, the whole 'but you voted to kill the prophets' argument doesn't in any way justify the complete shift in focus away from Shyish. If you're designing a branching narrative campaign to support a Death-themed marketing drive (which is fundamentally what this is) then you don't design it to take focus away from the story you want to tell and the products you're trying to promote. Not only does that not support GW's objectives, but it's a total bait-and-switch for the players who are invested in the Death/Shyish/Nagash story. Killing the prophets could still have led to something Death themed - it didn't have to take us off on an incongruous tangent. We're now into a second week where owning a copy of the shiny new Malign Portents book and a harbinger model is irrelevant. And the justification for that is 'but you voted for something without knowing what the consequences would be so now GW have to tear up the whole theme of Malign Portents and go somewhere completely different'? That's weak.

[chord]

People wanted a campaign where they had more impact on the narrative, and now people are upset they had an impact on the narrative?

 

[Guest]

3 minutes ago, chord said:

People wanted a campaign where they had more impact on the narrative, and now people are upset they had an impact on the narrative?

 

 

That's a really flippant straw-man comment. No-one is upset that players have had an impact on the narrative, people are just baffled by the consequences and narrative direction that GW have chosen to serve up. Players are being given choices, but GW is ultimately in control of what choices they offer and what the consequences will be. Nobody voted to go to Aqshy. GW could have created a campaign where everyone has an impact on the narrative, but the narrative ultimately remains focused on Shyish. The fact that they've chosen not to is bewildering from a variety of different angles, and is fair game for criticism in my opinion.

[chord]

6 minutes ago, Jamie the Jasper said:

 

That's a really flippant straw-man comment. No-one is upset that players have had an impact on the narrative, people are just baffled by the consequences and narrative direction that GW have chosen to serve up. Players are being given choices, but GW is ultimately in control of what choices they offer and what the consequences will be. Nobody voted to go to Aqshy. GW could have created a campaign where everyone has an impact on the narrative, but the narrative ultimately remains focused on Shyish. The fact that they've chosen not to is bewildering from a variety of different angles, and is fair game for criticism in my opinion.

Maybe once it's all complete it will make sense.   It's jumping around now but like movies that do that, we should wait till the end to judge.  

[Captain Marius]

Khul rocking up on Orb Infernia is awesome. Would've been more awesome if it was in Shyish though

Also what has this guy been doing for the couple of centuries since we last saw him...?

[chord]

Just now, Captain Marius said:

Khul rocking up on Orb Infernia is awesome. Would've been more awesome if it was in Shyish though

Also what has this guy been doing for the couple of centuries since we last saw him...?

Collecting skulls?

[Sennyo]

So i was just rereading how Gw said the campaign was going to work over (https://www.warhammer-community.com/2018/02/11/the-dawn-of-the-dread-solsticegw-homepage-post-1/) and ive come to the conclusion that the story is not meant to be one liner story where each week affect the outcome of the next week but 3 seperate stories hence why they split the campaign into 3 chapters.

In chapter one we reacted to the profect and the portents and killed everyone, which led us to the moon and unlocking new magical energies but ultimatly let nagash contiue his plans unhindered.Now we are on chapter two which is a completly differnt story revoling around the red mist and we have let chaos (mainly khorne) summon his new deathstar to ashry and we have been gven 3 new outcomes on how to deal with this threat. Because of this i have no doubt chapter 3 wont invole the red mist at all and go onto a completely new storyline

[shinros]

1 hour ago, Jamie the Jasper said:

Oh, come on! This whole thing is ultimately based around a book that is exclusively focused on events in Shyish, with a load of rules and other gaming content specifically designed for battles in that realm. The whole Malign Portents website through which the campaign is being run is Death themed. The vast majority of the short stories they've released are linked in some way to Shyish and Nagash's plan. GW might never have explicitly said 'this is a campaign about Nagash's plan that's focused on Shyish', but only a raving lunatic would have assumed otherwise.

For me, the whole 'but you voted to kill the prophets' argument doesn't in any way justify the complete shift in focus away from Shyish. If you're designing a branching narrative campaign to support a Death-themed marketing drive (which is fundamentally what this is) then you don't design it to take focus away from the story you want to tell and the products you're trying to promote. Not only does that not support GW's objectives, but it's a total bait-and-switch for the players who are invested in the Death/Shyish/Nagash story. Killing the prophets could still have led to something Death themed - it didn't have to take us off on an incongruous tangent. We're now into a second week where owning a copy of the shiny new Malign Portents book and a harbinger model is irrelevant. And the justification for that is 'but you voted for something without knowing what the consequences would be so now GW have to tear up the whole theme of Malign Portents and go somewhere completely different'? That's weak.

Well yes, people had the guide telling them to go to shyish and people voted to turn in the other direction or plug their head in the sand. It's that simple, people did not read the book properly. I had a WHOLE argument in the dread solstice thread on the second page with people telling me. "oh you don't know skull will benefit death! etc etc" I provided a clear extract showing that Nagash would kill his own seers if they spoke even a WORD. Telling people skull will help death, then when the week came and I was proven right largely a lot of people were shocked going by facebook and the community article. 

Even people on BOLS were confused on why people voted skull week 1. The community LITERALLY killed the guides/messangers.

Gw put it in plain words. 

https://www.warhammer-community.com/2018/02/22/dread-solstice-week-1-the-moon-of-dark-secretsgw-homepage-post-1/

The fates have been woven, and your decisions have borne gruesome fruit! Last Thursday saw the Dread Solstice kick off with a bang, and since then, thousands of results have been registered in stores across the world in this crucial opening chapter of the Global Campaign. With week 1’s results now tallied, we can confirm that, rather than heeding the Malign Portents or taking advantage of them, you voted to destroy the naysayers. Perhaps unsurprisingly, this will be good news for Nagash and his legions. Turns out that getting rid of those who are spreading word of the portents isn’t going to make the momentous ripples emanating from Shyish go away…

There is several parts in the book even a 1 to 1 with Sigmar and Vandus where they say to look into what nagash is doing. Sigmar was like the player base who thought the portents did not mean much, plus seers are spouting nonsense until Vandus pushed him. 

This outcome displays HOW many people don't read the AOS lore properly, I am sorry but don't throw a strop when the wider community voted to ignore the MAIN CRUCIAL portent according to GW. 

Plus this event we are dealing with now it's clear enough the warqueen is trying to guide Khul to shyish via the orb infernia. If we go by the guide book. 

Honestly we had a discussion on the death grand alliance facebook and largely on week 2 someone made a clear case that Death really has nothing to worry about because it's the other GA's reacting to their "poor" choice. 

edit:Also I think sennyo is on the money right now we are just reacting to the portents, Nagash is doing his work unhindered and it's only through Morathi literally putting her foot down to get people moving. She would of had much more support if people voted Drake like they were "meant" to. It's a "choose your adventure" sort of campaign and people chose to go the "dark" route. 

[ledha]

I decided to ignore the portent because it will advantage Nagash, and i really want to see the world being shaked off with a Nagash victory.

By the way, the new special rules from this week actually make the Darkoath Warqueen a powerful character. I love it !

[Guest]

40 minutes ago, shinros said:

Well yes, people had the guide telling them to go to shyish and people voted to turn in the other direction or plug their head in the sand.

You're acting very authoritative for someone who's argument is built on a completely bogus starting premise. The prophets were not 'telling us to go to Shyish' - all they were doing was warning us about the portents. The dilemma for week one gave no indication that killing the prophets would take the focus of the campaign away from Shyish. That's a huge assumption on your part that isn't supported by the text. I assumed that the focus would stay on Shyish, with matters simply becoming worse within that setting because Nagash is being left unchecked - and that interpretation is at least as valid as yours.

 

40 minutes ago, shinros said:

It's that simple, people did not read the book properly.

Whether or not people have read the book is irrelevant to the fact that GW have designed a campaign with the potential to shift focus away from the very themes and setting it's supposed to promote. The only outcomes here are the ones that GW have written. Blaming the people who are voting for a complete shift in focus away from everything in the Malign Portents book is totally misguided. Ultimately the shift to Aqshy is GW's choice - they didn't have to write a dilemma, a choice and an outcome that screws the theme of the campaign. Blaming the players is nonsense. You're actually coming across as being quite snobbish about your supposedly superior understanding of the lore here, and frankly it has nothing to do with the case I'm making.

 

40 minutes ago, shinros said:

It's a "choose your adventure" sort of campaign and people chose to go the "dark" route. 

Yes, it's just like a Fighting Fantasy book - if you're half way through reading Warlock of Firetop Mountain and then your adventure suddenly changes to The Citadel of Chaos instead for no apparent reason.

Book: 'Go to page 8 to sneak away and avoid confronting the Warlock directly.'

Me: *Turns to page 8*

Book: 'You chose not to confront the Warlock, so I guess you're done with that now. Here's a different story instead. Enjoy!'

Me: Wait, what??

 

[shinros]

You know what then don't enjoy the campaign, people had the option to divine the portents that would lead them to shyish to get what you want I bet even eye would of got what you wanted. But people chose another route. That's the point of the hero characters they are divining the portents and telling people to go to shyish. People did not do that. That's it, Nagash's work is moving unhindered until Morathi get's there going by the short story. Phil kelly did confirm these choices will matter in the wider narrative. 

It's a simple fact people messed up on the first important choice. If you see me as snobbish fine but there are others who feel the same going by various posts in this thread. Kamose just put it in "Nicer" terms. 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, shinros said:

You know what then don't enjoy the campaign, people had the option to divine the portents that would lead them to shyish to get what you want I bet even eye would of got what you wanted. But people chose another route. That's the point of the hero characters they are divining the portents and telling people to go to shyish. People did not do that. That's it, Nagash's work is moving unhindered until Morathi get's there going the short story. Phil kelly did confirm these choices will matter in the wider narrative. 

It's a simple fact people messed up on the first important choice. If you see me as snobbish fine but there are others who feel the same going by various posts. Kamose just put it in "Nicer" terms. 

You're not listening to what I'm saying! There shouldn't be an option to 'mess up'! Why have GW written a campaign that can be messed up? And if that option is there, and we aren't told explicitly what the consequences of our choices will be, how can that be the players' fault?! Why are you defending this??

[chord]

49 minutes ago, shinros said:

. It's that simple, people did not read the book properly. 

So....business as usual then.   (see the , there is no lore for anything although its in the realmgate wars campaign books..)

[shinros]

9 minutes ago, Jamie the Jasper said:

You're not listening to what I'm saying! There shouldn't be an option to 'mess up'! Why have GW written a campaign that can be messed up? And if that option is there, and we aren't told explicitly what the consequences of our choices will be, how can that be the players' fault?! Why are you defending this??

Now this is just speculation I am going to explain from a meta stand point the reason why GW did the campaign in this format is to provide all the GA's "equal" chance. The last campaign was a popularity contest the other GA's had no chance to topple the order behemoth, this way they can provide "victories" to certain GA's through opaque portents. This allows the players some measure of choice, but at the same time allows GW to have control over the narrative. 

For example I don't think Nagash is going to succeed but due to player choices in the campaign he is going to have some measure of success to actually be a threat the realms. Look at this week, people had the choice to stop the mist, they chose to embrace it so in turn it gave Khul the means to actually be a threat to the setting via the orb Infernia. Oh and yes there SHOULD be an option to mess up, since in terms of the narrative the general's in the setting don't know what the players know. Now in context as a death player I don't think skull was a mess up, I am extremely happy for that outcome. All the GA's are going to relevant in this event. 

For example it's highly likely skull this week is going to buff the lord ordinator giving him his chance to shine in the narrative and I am eager to see how he might possibily halt the orb infernia. Still him stopping it might at the same time benefit death because the orb infernia is likely heading to shyish hence why the warqueen helped Khul. 

[Guest]

1 minute ago, shinros said:

Now this is just speculation I am going to explain from a meta stand point the reason why GW did the campaign in this format is to provide all the GA's "equal" chance. The last campaign was a popularity contest the other GA's had no chance to topple the order behemoth, this way they can provide "victories" to certain GA's through opaque portents. This allows the players some measure of choice, but at the same time allows GW to have control over the narrative. 

For example I don't think Nagash is going to succeed but due to player choices in the campaign he is going to have some measure of success to actually be a threat the realms. Look at this week, people had the choice to stop the mist, they chose to embrace it so in turn it gave Khul the means to actually be a threat to the setting via the orb Infernia. Oh and yes there SHOULD be an option to mess up, since in terms of the narrative the general's in the setting don't know what the players know. Now in context as a death player I don't think skull was a mess up, I am extremely happy for that outcome. All the GA's are going to relevant in this event. 

For example it's highly likely skull this week is going to buff the lord ordinator giving him his chance to shine in the narrative and I am eager to see how he might possibily halt the orb infernia. 

I accept and appreciate everything you've said here. But, I still contend that everything you've described could have been achieved whilst maintaining a focus on Death/Shyish/Nagash and setting out a more coherent and satisfying story arc. At no point have I meant to give the impression that I think the campaign is awful - just disappointingly perfunctory. I just feel that it could have easily been so much more.

[shinros]

2 minutes ago, Jamie the Jasper said:

I accept and appreciate everything you've said here. But, I still contend that everything you've described could have been achieved whilst maintaining a focus on Death/Shyish/Nagash and setting out a more coherent and satisfying story arc. At no point have I meant to give the impression that I think the campaign is awful - just disappointingly perfunctory. I just feel that it could have easily been so much more.

Oh, apologies then things got a bit heated I do apologise if I appeared "elitist" etc(I can get like that sometimes)  It's just I prefer this sort of campaign because it gives all the GA's a chance to shine. I still hold the stance that the outcome we are seeing now is from week 1 choice. 

[Bloodmaster]

Jamie, there never was a clear focus on Nagash. Yes, he is the guy that does strange things in his own realm, causing the Malign portents and thus kicking of the unfolding events. He is just a simple stating point - and to be fair will be a probable end point as well, but the nature of which still remains to be seen. The events between both points are completely open and up to the community and thier reactions. And as the majority decided to ****** the seers no one will oppose Nagash. We play the cards we were delt not the cards we would like or even the dealer would have liked. 

From a story point, including and fighting in other reals opens up the picture showing things get messy all over the place and highligts the grater danger of Nagashs plans. Fighting in just one place limits the view reducing the scale significantly, especially since there are eight damn realms. 

 

ye, it might mean, that your hopes are betrayed, but at the same time opens up a more diverse playing - or better - battlefield. Have a little faith in GW, that they have planed beforehand for "failures" of the community and that the narrative will come to full circle.

P.S.: that MP wouldn't be all about Mrs. nagash should have been obvious to you as well, the moment that deaths big book was followed on the heels by DoK, they basically stole the Great Necromancers thunder from under his nose.

[Kamose]

11 hours ago, Bloodmaster said:

...damn, where is Ash Williams, when you need him - oh right, you guys burned him at a stake!

For what's it's worth, Ash is hanging out with my Imperial Guard army in 40k.

I sincerely hope that this really is like a "Choose Your Own Adventure" book. I don't know how many of you have read one of those books recently but I did, last year. They are brutal!

The one I read was about a car race across Africa. I had to read through it 4 times before I completed the race. I died horribly the first 3 times. 

First time, I drowned driving across a river. Second time, I was kidnapped by guerillas and shot in the head. Third time, I neglected car maintenance, my engine exploded, and I literally burned to death in the flaming wreckage of my car!!

I hope GW did their research and make this just like that. But if they did, folks, we're all screwed! We are all gonna die brutally! We picked wrong on week 1 and we're doomed!!! ?

?