Duncan Jones has unveiled the first footage from his much-anticipated Warcraft adaptation.

Comic-Con attendees got a brief but enticing look at the fantasy epic, which isn’t due for release until 2016.

Even so, the teaser shown looked as polished as the shields and swords that featured in its opening shot of an Alliance armoury.

Cue voiceover: “I’ve spent more time protecting my king than my own son… does that make me loyal, or a fool?”

Cut to images of Alliance soldiers, followed by shots of Orcs and more voiceover: “I’ve lead thousands of warriors into battle. Does that make me a leader or a coward?” Next: a montage of battle preparations, and the big question: “Is war the only answer?”

“Yes” seems to be the answer, the teaser signing off with scenes of conflict including a money shot of a man chest-stabbing an Orc.

The grandeur, sweep and photo-realism of the footage evoked two reference points Jones was happy to cop to: “We’re trying to do the set-building and world-building that was done on Lord Of The Rings,” he commented, “but also the technology of Avatar. It’s like making both films at once.”

He also pitched the film as Warcraft Begins, opening up the property to audiences beyond the gaming world. “There’s a lot of films that want to make origin stories,” he said. “But I think in this case it merits an origin story. We want to show how the world of Azarath falls into conflict between Orcs and humans.”

Warcraft opens in the UK on 11 March 2016.