My own self-insert chapter to the Enemy Within Campaign, the Blackheart chapter, has finished. Phew. If I had not finished it by the end of the year, I think I’d be in a bit of a midlife crisis. I usually take a break around this time of year and having it hang on a cliffhanger would not have been ideal.

It is time to reflect a little on the past year.

If I was to sit down and write a fan-made Enemy Within Campaign (there’s a few already out there), chapter-by-chapter series of books, I would not include the Blackheart chapter. Not because it was more standalone than anything else, but because it came about as a desire to try something different after finishing the Middenheim chapter, which is a very personal feeling that would not be mutual at a different table. If you know your group well (as I claim to do), you can kind of get a sense for where the vibe is going. A party wipe (which happened after PbtT) tends to give you room to try new things. The Blackheart chapter was my answer to Something Rotten In Kislev (Essenberg was an appetizer epilogue for PbtT) which is known for being only loosely connected with the rest of the overarching plot. One could say the same for Death on the Reik and Shadows Over Bogenhafen, fairly loose adventures with little hooks thrown about.

Every chapter so far has been great. I’ve ran Mistaken Identity/Bogenhafen/ as written in the 1st edition campaign books, with fond memories of Shadows over Bogenhafen. Death on the Reik was more loose but aligned with the same goal. PbtT I ran with some self-inserts, edits but largely stayed close as possible to the theme of the book and it still remains as my favourite. Essenberg & and now Blackhearts were my own chapters. Blackhearts was simply pure fun because I did delve into some high fantasy that I normally wouldn’t, and that was a nice break from the norm.

Empire on Edge will be the final chapter of the campaign. There is not a single book of the last chapter out there, official or otherwise, that can account for all the changes my group has made over the course of each chapter. It’s always my belief regardless that campaign books should be a guideline for the GM, and you decide how close you want to stick to that guideline. Every group is different. In this case, I’m attempting to stick close to the direction that my warhammer universe is going and incorporate the narrative flow that has resulted from the previous 6 chapters and player actions. I will be scouring the official and one unofficial book (Alfred Nunez’s one) to draw inspiration for the general theme and maybe see what snippets I can incorporate, but for the most part, it’s going to be mostly creative from my end.

What Happens After The Enemy Within Campaign Finishes?

Wait, that’s possible? I can actually finish this fucken thing?!? Please let it be so!

My purpose for existing might cease and maybe I’ll simply leave the Matrix. Or something.

But seriously, running it for this long (it truly has been a long time) and seeing it coming close to the finishing end is going to be a strange feeling. As for what I have planned, well, I sorta set myself up for more misery after it finishes…

When I devised and concepted the Blackheart campaign, I wanted the possibility of an epic conclusion but also something that could hint at a possible future campaign, completely entirely separate from Enemy Within. I’ve been stuck in gritty medieval ‘grounded’ fantasy for the past 10 years or so; which has been great and still is, but something different is on the horizon for a future campaign.

Galrauch, aka Fateclaw has escaped his prison that was the Nemesis Crown; his essence free, and his form born-anew, he is reinvigorated and desires dominion over everything, starting with The Old World. That to me sounds like another epic campaign once Enemy Within finishes. Just, you know… hopefully not a decade! Galrauch will not feature at all in the Empire on Edge, and his absence is easily enough to explain; his reign of terror will come to fruition but it will take time; he ain’t no dummy. His presence will be felt in other ways such as fluctuating Winds of Magic, strange omens and some rumors along with odd sightings. However the Empire on Edge chapter will be solely concentrated and focused on the Purple Hand; which in itself, is high stakes and will determine what sort of world the campaign after it takes place in. If the Purple Hand prove victorious, well, well shit…

As for who is playing what in the Empire on Edge campaign:

Chris will be playing a Halfling Investigator caught up in the conspiracy.

Keos will be playing a priest of Morr who discovers a dark truth when he witnesses to the embalming process of the alleged body of the Emperor (who is in fact his son, Luitpold).

Kurt will be playing a Knight of Bretonnia, on a mission to avenge the death of Ser Gado Duvall, his brother, who died at the hands of the cult’s agent.

Jack will be playing an Ice Witch from the court of the Tzarina, sent to the Empire on a diplomatic mission along with an emissary to seek out the truth of the ‘Enemy Within’ the Empire.

Courtney (Tez) will be playing the role of a Sigmarite Priest, who journeys to Altdorf with great concerns about the direction of the faith in all of this. He stumbles upon Purple Hand agents trying to kill Valkana of Lionoak and saves her life.

Bringing them all together is Valkana, the High Elf who has journeyed (with blessings from Ulthuan) to root out this conspiracy. Valkan was a previous PC played by Tez who was involved in the Middenheim/Essenberg campaign and one of the few survivors of that whole ordeal; she is keenly aware of the cult and is gathering intelligence to root them out, for a weak empire will not serve Ulthuan’s interests. Valkana will be a NPC.

A Merry Something!

So that is it from me for the year. I do not know when I’ll be starting Empire on Edge, but I’m hoping late January/February; once prep is finished that is. 2 games a month for WFRP, with Cyberpunk Red taking the remainder with the odd week off now and again.

Wishing everyone a Merry Xmas and a good New Year!