I took up management of Redwall: Warlords from Boze, who had adapted the Promisance game engine to a Redwall theme. The efficient managment of the code in the engine taught me a lot about good managment, standards, and setting up large projects. As I worked on it, adding refinements like better reporting tools that would do your math for you, and adding more depth to aspects of the game (like attacking). This lead to the Redwall: Warlords Dark Empires Expansion, then the Black Ages Expansion, and then the expansion of that.

As the first large program that I'd ever worked on, Redwall: Warlords is the beginning of my hands-on experience dealing with the issues of standard coding, organization, documentation, security, and real community managment.

As the leader of an Army, your goal is to become the ruler of all other Warlords. Using everything from diplomacy to war, you must strive to build an Army wealthier than all others. Through this all, you will compete against other players all vying to achieve the same goals.

Make Alliances

Alone, you have almost no chance. You can message other players using the in-game system to arrange informal agreements: peace agreements, aid for retaliation, anything that's possible in the game. There is also a formal treaty system: clans, which give attack bonuses against other clans. Your clan-mates armies will also aid in your defense if you are attacked.

Turn a profit

You have no grand vizer cleverly running the nation at your back: this will have to be managed. You must have enough workers, enough farms, the right tax rate, the right spending strategy, to support your army. If it is imbalanced, you will begin to fall into the red, spending more than you make, eating more than you have.

Attack with Armies

Your army is composed of four types of units, each with their own advantages and disadvantages. Some are hard to get, but with great might, others are easy to get, but eat a lot and die easily. You must match your armies against others' in the right way to win, and have your own lands guarded well enough to repel the same sorts of attacks.

Attack with Subterfuge

In addition to your regular army, you can get leaders who can give you a hidden leg up. From poisoning an enemy's stocks to getting extra food from your land, leaders can help out in small ways that make the difference.

Become Emperor, and Keep it

Once you gain the top spot, #1 net-worth in the game, you will struggle to keep it against constant attacks from your peers at the top of the game. It will take all your diplomacy and strength to maintain the spot for long enough to be declared Emperor.