The Vision Behind Warhost

Warhost is a narrative-driven fantasy skirmish game built on decades of experience in tabletop design, miniature sculpting, and world development.

It exists to deliver grounded, commander-led battles determined by leadership, momentum, and meaningful decisions. Warhost is not a mass-battle system or a tournament-first ruleset. It is a game about command, courage, and the story that unfolds when steel and magic meet on the tabletop.

The Vision

The idea behind Warhost began with a desire to build a fantasy world that feels believable, dangerous, and alive.

As Andy Hobday explains:

I built Warhost because I believe fantasy wargaming works best when it feels grounded, and when leadership and morale truly matters.

I have always been drawn to the tension of medieval warfare, where leadership, courage, and timing decide outcomes as much as numbers. I wanted to bring that weight into a fantasy setting without losing its grounding. Magic should feel rare and powerful. Commanders should matter. Battles should feel personal.

I did not want excess complexity. I did not want armies so large that individual decisions disappear. I wanted small warbands, meaningful command actions, and battles that feel tense from the first activation to the last.

Warhost is built to respect your time while demanding your attention. It is designed to let the narrative emerge from the decisions you make at the table, not from bookkeeping systems layered on afterwards.

This is the kind of game I want to play. So I built it.

At its heart, the project is about atmosphere and tension. It is about the moment when a leader commits to action and the entire battle shifts because of it.

The long-term aim has always been to create something cohesive and deliberate, a world and system worth investing in, one that grows steadily without losing its identity.

 

The World

The setting unfolds in an entirely original fantasy realm shaped by fractured crowns, proud elven houses, rising human kingdoms, disciplined orc warhosts, and dwarven strongholds bound to craft and trade.

Conflict defines this world.

Its cultures, magic system, and political tensions exist to support tabletop play. Every faction is built with the battlefield in mind. This is not lore for its own sake. The world exists to give context and weight to the clashes fought across the table.

Design Note

Warhost is written within the long tradition of fantasy wargaming. It uses familiar ideas because they provide a shared language, enabling readers and players to step into the world quickly and focus on story, strategy, and consequence.

The world itself is entirely original. Its history, cultures, magic, and conflicts were created specifically to serve narrative play and grounded warfare. Familiar forms provide the framework. What happens within them belongs to Warhost alone.

The Creators

Behind Warhost are Andy Hobday and Paul Hicks.

Andy Hobday is a tabletop game designer best known for The Barons’ War, as well as his work on Test of Honour, Gangs of Rome and Mortal Gods. His design philosophy centres on narrative tension and meaningful decision-making on the tabletop.

Paul Hicks is one of the most respected traditional sculptors in the historical and fantasy miniature industry. His work with companies such as Empress Miniatures, Footsore Miniatures, and Brigade Games is recognised for its storytelling detail and grounded realism. His sculpting style defines the visual identity of Warhost.

Together, they bring over 60 years of combined experience in game design and miniature sculpting to Warhost.

The Miniatures

A growing range of 28mm fantasy miniatures supports the game, each sculpt designed to reflect its grounded tone.

These are not exaggerated spectacle pieces. They are warriors, commanders, and creatures built to feel believable and cohesive on the tabletop. Every sculpt serves the grounded identity of the world.

Warhost also embraces hobby freedom. Players are encouraged to use miniatures they love. The system is flexible in spirit, even as the official range continues to expand.

Terrain and the Table

Compact battlefields and meaningful terrain are central to the experience.

Ruins, villages, forests, and fortified positions are not decorative afterthoughts. They define movement, risk, and opportunity. The terrain STL files offered through Warhost are built to support this style of play: practical, immersive, and grounded.

The battlefield is never just scenery. It is part of the story being told.

The Direction

This is not a one-off release. It is an evolving game system and world with a deliberate direction.

Future expansions will deepen the setting, bring in new factions and conflicts, expand the miniature range, and provide new battle scenarios for players to explore. Growth will be measured and consistent with the identity established from the beginning.

Through the Warhost blog, the world continues to develop with design insights, new lore, and evolving ideas for play. It is a living record of the setting as it grows, and a place where players can engage with Warhost beyond the rulebook.

Warhost is here to stay.