From their desert fastnesses, the dread Tomb Kings of Khemri had travelled to the Old World for their own secret ends.
Using a World Gate - a forgotten relic of the Old Ones - they arrived in force in Greywater. From the gaping portal of blackness that yawned open in the ruins of Castle Heinholm, flocks of carrion emerged, borne aloft on rotting wings to reconnoitre the land.
Yet their motives were not unknown to the ever-vigilant eyes of Dulan, Slaan Lord of the pyramid temple of Tzulanz, who had sensed disturbances in the primordial ley lines caused by their use of the Old One's teleportation magic
Sending forth great numbers of his own skink scouts through a portal powered by his own magic, he hoped to learn the whereabouts of the undead interlopers and prevent them from further disturbing the world's geomantic web.
Hampered by the obfuscating sorceries of Hierophant Imhotep, many Skinks fell prey to the voracious undead predators, who swooped down upon them from above.
Terrified by their horrifying appearance - and awful smell no doubt - a number of Skinks leg it.
Snipe for your life!
Yet what they lack in brute strength, the race of Skinks more than make up for with determination, and Dulan gleaned from their minds the whereabouts of the Undead host.
When push comes to shove, you never sell a Skink with a sharp stick short.
The Red Dawn
At daybreak, Lord Dulan gathered his warhost about him and marched on the Undead camp, seeking to rout the foe using the element of surprise.
But the Tomb Kings of Khemri are meticulous planners who have witnessed an age of warfare and destruction, and had prepared well in advance for a hostile reception.
As the Lizardman army formed up to attack, they found the Undead standing ready, a hundred grinning skulls staring at them through sightless eyes. It seems long-dead warriors who need neither rest nor sustenance are hard to catch unawares.
Anchored by an unyielding centre of spearmen, Ramses seized the initiative and waved his massed Chariots and Skeletal Heavy Cavalry forward in a grand pincer movement.
Get them! As the Lizardmen march onto the field, the Undead surge forward.
The charge of the bony brigade.
Cackling missiles hurled from a Screaming Skull catapult culled several unlucky Skinks and Saurus; in response, the Lizardman host returned fire in earnest, sending a handful of Skeleton Warriors back to eternal rest.
Help! It's raining burning craniums!
As the Children of the Old Ones moved to meet their foe however, an ominous rumbling echoed from deep beneath the earth.
With a spray of earth and an unearthly scream, a pair of Tomb Scorpions burst from the ground to charge Chief Xialan, whose Terradon mount shied away from the beasts and fled.
Seizing the chance to rid himself of a problematic opponent, Setep propelled his Light Skeleton Horsemen into the fleeing chief, driving him from the field.
Steeling himself, Laolan the Skink Priest led his Skink Cohort in brave charge into the rear of the Scorpions. Though their short blades could do little to the calcified chitin of the Scorpions, the beasts themselves struggled to turn to face their foes and soon collapsed from their determined assault.
And THAT'S for scaring Xialan away...
On the other flank, Ramses and Prince Seti thundered into the Kroxigor on their resplendent Chariots, routing the huge Lizardmen with cleaving swings of their ensorcelled weapons.
Simultaneously, the towering Ushabti broke into a loping run, huge ceremonial blades levelled at Lord Dulan's own Temple Guard. Unbowed by the sight of their attackers, the tough veterans locked shields and held firm against their charge.
Then disaster struck as Laolan, flushed with success, attempted a difficult spell. With a ripping noise that clawed at the senses, a daemonic claw tore its way into reality, sending the Skink Priest reeling into unconsciousness.
Stemming The Tide
Sensing the strands of fate turning against him, Lord Dulan quieted his mind, rousing himself into action with a mighty magical fusillade.
Tracing arcane symbols in the air with dextrous, many-jointed hands, he first sent a flock of spectral crows into the carrion, tearing apart the abominations with beak and claw.
Turning, Dulan infused Bokalan, leader of his Temple Guard, with the rage of a wild beast. Wreathed in a crackling corona of arcane energy, he tore into the Ushabti with renewed vigour, scattering their remains to the wind with broad sweeps of his ponderous halberd.
Finally, exerting his will, he halted Ramses's Chariots with an arcane barrier that froze them in place, preventing them taking further part in the battle.
"Oh no you don't". It's amazing what a frog can achieve when it's angry enough.
Spurred by their Lord's power, the Skink cohorts rallied around their mighty Kroxigor cousins and drove into Ramses's Heavy Cavalry, destroying them in a swirling melee.
After dirty big Scorpions, what's a couple of skellies, eh?
Both armies having suffered telling damage, the battle slowed to an exchange of missiles as the sun sank into the horizon.
Come nightfall, both forces pulled back to regroup and fight anew at dawn.
Result:
Draw
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