In the following posts, I'm going to break down the game by version into it's various parts. As the versions progress, hopefully you'll be able see the evolution in the design.
Reading and listening to other board game designers, the design process should be 'agile'. For those who don't work in IT, it basically means you get a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) out on the table as quick as you can and see what works, building iteratively as you go. That way, little time is wasted on a bad idea, and you can move forward developing the good bits.
I didn't do that.
Quite the opposite in fact. I spent a good few months, designed lots of pieces of cards, and boards, and dice, and...well, you'll see...