OOC: Format of campaign has changed a fair bit due to unfortunate circumstances; please see https://eu.forums.blizzard.com/en/wow/en/wow/t/sort-of-back-on-track-the-mana-war-full-scale-rp-pve-campaign/335938/65 post for info! 
“Lighten up, rookie boy-!”
The bulky orcish warrior bellowed, his voice booming over even the roar of the rotary engines keeping their dropship airborne – punctuated by a heavy thud as his armoured hand slapped playfully against the young troll’s back.
“Just a routine bandit clear out, nothing to break a sweat over!”.
He continued; his tone jovial and reassuring – but still bringing precious little confidence to the shivering troll.
By now, he was more than sweating; his whole life was flashing before his eyes, each regrettable moment playing back to him in agonising clarity even as his hands fastened around the chair, clinging onto it with force enough to leave finger shaped dents in the metal. His jaw clenched, his knuckles whitened – the poor thing already looked to be on death’s door, if only due to an apparently imminent stress related seizure.
Sure, he’d known he might face war eventually when he signed up for the military; but he was a mage! Surely he’d be better placed miles away from the front lines, blasting the Horde’s enemies from a safe distance?! Being sent into the thick of battle – well, it was simply stupid! There was no call for it! What if he accidentally hit his comrades with a blast of ice magic?! What if in the chaos, he’d no room to fling his arms about to create the complex movements needed to summon the elements?! What if he was shot mid-way through a spell, and-
No, enough, he thought to himself! This entire situation was entirely ludicrous, and he was going to make his thoughts well and truly clear to all around him. A mage had no place on the front lines, and so –
Naturally, the sudden sound of an alarm blaring through the aircraft did his aching nerves no favours. His fright must have been apparent to his comrades; who promptly erupted with laughter as he all but leapt through the roof in fright.
“Easy there, Jack-in-a-Box!”
A voice called out above the snickering, even as the aforementioned orcish warrior stood, making his unsteady way to the pilot’s cabin to make sense of the fuss.
“Ain’t no missile – damn thing’s alive-?!?”
Before any among them had the time to react, the aircraft’s walls ruptured – the armoured metallic framework torn like wet paper by the sudden intrusion of an array of giant, serrated teeth.
“What in the -!”.
Cries erupted; the wind howled; startled gunshots cracked over the carnage. Most of those aboard were already dead by the time the orc was flung from his feet and dragged screaming through a hole in the roof by a slithering insectoid appendage.
Behind them, accompanying Horde aircraft were rapidly plucked from the skies: one obliterated by a lazer-focused blast of green energy, another devoured by a sickly, grey goop – while still a third was torn apart by cackling figures, their razor-sharp nails digging through metal and flesh. Another simply vanished from thin air; appearing hours later, utterly desecrated.
Hours passed.
By the time the young troll came around, his back lay flat upon the sand in the midst of a vast expanse of broken men and burning wreckage. His fingers still clutched around the base of his chair; only a well timed ejection he now barely remembered had spared him from instant destruction.
His bleary gaze adjusting as consciousness gradually returned, he picked out strange, dark figures floating above his eyes. Slowly, but surely, they came better into focus, their fuzzy outlines hardening, into recognisably humanoid figures; stood now, he realised, above him, surrounding his person in an almost perfect circle.
Survivors, perhaps-?!
His eyes flickered from person to person, grasping flashing images of each. One stood with tendril like appendages dangling from a shrouded face, while another clad all in white smothered their visage with a pristine surgical mask. A a third seemed to have assembled their attire from a theatrical costume box, while a fourth wore an elaborate robes of golden thread. Here, a woman slathered and gibbered, purple ooze dripping down her chin – there, a second female stood upright, hands behind her back, clad in finely pressed military garb. More and more figures appeared; the troll soon lost count, but each glared down at him with wicked intent.
“Now now, my friends, let’s not swamp the poor boy”.
Came the voice; the assembled figures immediately withdrew, giving the troll a moment’s space – a brief instant gazing at the brilliant blue sky – before things darkened once more, and a new figure leaned into view.
Towering above the rest, this new intruder studied the boy with cruel intelligence, a wry smirk crawling about her thin lips.
“After all, he’s about to become our finest tactical asset…”
The attacks came within a week.
All across Azeroth, from the smallest outposts to the largest towns - frantic messages streamed their way back to the capitals of Horde and Alliance; desperate radio broadcasts, their hosts barely audible over streaks of explosions and gunfire, screaming of incoming bands of assailants, of crumbling defences, of soldiers cut down in their droves.
Those on the receiving end tried their best to make sense of the onslaught - emergency relief teams were immediately dispatched, with orders to reach the assailed outposts and drive the enemy back into the abyss.
Yet upon arrival, from wherever they came, to wherever they went, they found naught but burning ruins and dead men.
Strangely, however, as Horde and Alliance soldiers both counted their dead; fallen warriors and rogues, hunters and monks - not a single body belonging to any class of magic user was ever found…
BACK.
BIGGER.
BETTER (badder?) THAN EVER.
If you saw this place before the demolition crew arrived, you’ll know this campaign used to be about a fanatical cult of light loving zombies – but due to unforeseen, yet entirely understandable circumstances behind the scenes, I decided to change plans.
But where to go now, I thought? Who to use as the badguys for this revamped campaign?!
“How about all of them?”, spoke a voice in the back of my head.
And there in lay all the encouragement I needed.
That’s right folks; how about a campaign involving EVERY SINGLE villain on the Dust Devils roster, all working together for nothing less than TOTAL world domination?!
From Sylvanas Loyalists to Sckrink, the Grey Choir to the Carnevil, the entire alphabet of villainy from Azero-Dex Incorporated all the way through to the Wandering Village (listen even I couldn’t think of a catchy name starting with Z), if they’re on the list, they’re appearing in this campaign. Yes, even the light fanatics who previously took centre stage.
They’re all united under one banner, they’re armed to the teeth, and they’re coming to crush Azeroth under their iron heel - UNLESS we unite to stop them!
I’m thinking two WHOLE WEEKS of campaigning; one out and about in the world, the other united to take the fight to the badguys, mid to late April, all comers welcome!
Alliance, Horde, Neutral or miscellaneous – it’ll take ALL of us to hold back the forces of evil, and face down the greatest badguy yet!
It’ll be all the explosive Kaitylinn event energy you know and love, without the organisational chaos of the first one I did – sound like your cup of tea?!
Then you’re more than welcome to sign up in the comments below!
Hope to see you there gamers!
Peace!
(Also there’s a campaign discord up nice and early: get in gamers! https://discord.gg/QEjPMsSdvn )
GUILDS SIGNED UP:
Dust Devils
Iron Maiden Syndicate
Dust Scavengers
Stormwind Investigations
Alliance Salvaging
Serpent Sisterhood
House Darkheart
Glaivewings
Brotherhood of Ash
Eyes of the Earth Mother
INDIVIDUALS SIGNED UP:
Laey
Dreadflare
Malunara
Thesalese
Silvrin
Thoren
Valdegar
Simetra
(we will ask other guildmates today ofc 
