01 Jan 2006
This is for the (hopefully) coming soon inter-forum campaign of Ogrestronghold vs hand of Hashut. Hope you enjoy it!
Part 1
The gates of the Black Fortress swung open, allowing Imgrazzathar to enter. Mounted on a great taurus, the giant beast walked in, totally ignoring the many eyes upon it and it's rider. Imgrazzathar kicked the beast's flank and it knelt down, allowing the Dawi Zharr lord to dismount. Several nervous hobgoblins with long poles guided the beast towards a stable, while Imgrazzathar began to walk down a long corridor.
Taking a turn halfway down the corridor, Imgrazzathar began to climb a large spiral staircase. There were many, many stairs but the dwarf seemed unbothered by it. For what seemed like an eternity he climbed, but he eventually reched the highest level of the fortress and entered a small, poorly lit chamber. The screams of slaves could be clearly heard but little heed was paid to them by the other Dawi Zharr who were gathered around a large table.
"You're late Imgrazzathar." It was Uzkul Werit, lord of Gash Kadrak. The Dawi Zharr was very punctual and had a cruelty to match it. "Were you under my command you'd be sent right to the pits- my garrison at Gash Kadrak certainly doesn't tolerate your behaviour!"
"Take your garrison and shove it!" Imgrazzathar thought. "I have reasons for being late Uzkul! You do not need to lecture me like some beardling!"
"Shut up and sit down!" It was Lord Zarkov, a sorceror lord. Imgrazzathar sat down with indignation and began to address the group.
"The town of Pigbarter is a hovel. The River Ruin flows under the houses which are built on wooden stilts, the acidic water rptting the town's buildings. Debris litters the ground, in which gnoblars live. Why anything would live there is beyond me. However, as we all know it is a trading post and point of relative safety for the pathetic western manlings. Our timing is good, as a Great Caravan on it's way to Ind. has arrived there. So not only will we have a bit of fun, but we will have the oppurtunity to plunder it. These caravans can sustain a tribe of ogres for a month, and should provide us with an abundance of slaves and the necessary resources to rebuild Urugash."
But onto our battle plan. Minimal effort will be required to take the town. Great Caravans are mile long trains with hellbalster volley guns on every cart, though after a few days in the city they won't be working properly. Our earthshaker cannons will cause immense damage to the rotten buildings, and under cover of hundreds of hobgoblins taking the town will be little challenge.
We will strike from the northeast with our main strike force, while a force of hobgoblin wolfriders will attack the southwest. As stated previously, minimal forces will be used. For this reason no golems, hellcannons or immortals will be present at this battle. In the name of Hashut we shall enslave every last gnoblar and raze the city to the ground! Never again shall a caravan reach the sentinels!
Now, have you any questions?"
"Who will claim lordship of Urugash?" Uzkul asked.
Zarkov cut in. "That is the decision of us priests. I can see that you desire the fortress, but we have deemed that your lordship over the Vale of Woe is enough. Lord Imgrazzathar will likely receive the prize, though there are several others who show promise."
No others had comments, and the meeting was adjourned. Imgrazzathar headed for his bedchamber, resting up for a long days march tomorrow. He was ready to prove himself to the council. He would prove he was worthy to rule Urugash!
Part 2
Imgrazzathar looked down on his army. He was flying several metres in the air on his great taurus, Lord Zarkov next to him riding a Lammasu. He looked down at his assembled army, escpecially the hobgoblins. He couldn't afford to have them start bickering now, if anyone was to warn the people of Pigbarter the element of surprise would be lost and he couldn't afford to waste time.
The army consisted of about five hundred Dawi Zharr, half of them armed with blunderbusses. There was a single battery of death rockets and four batteries of earthshakers, along with thousands of hobgoblins and slaves. He was sure that this was enough, the unprepared humans would stand no chance.
For hours they marched on, any bickering in the greenskin ranks broken up with a quick fireball from Zarkov. The sun was setting now, and they were almost within sight of Pigbarter. Imgrazzathar flew ahead, checking if the wolfriders were in position to strike at the town's rear. He pulled out a telescope and saw no sign of them. "Damned hobgoblins!" He cursed. "They'll be getting a good flogging when this is over!"
Returning to his army, he saw them approaching the city, setting up the artillery. He landed, kicking his taurus to let him kneel and dismount. Hobgoblin attendants rushed over to care for the beast. Imgrazzathar met up with Zarkov again. Zarkov was an old priest, and the Stone Curse had spread up to his torso, only giving him movement of his arms and head, and for that reason had to be carried on a palanquin.
Imgrazzathar inspected the army, a swift punch to anyone not perfectly in line. Once everything was in line, he moved to the front of the army.
"Give some water to the slaves!" He yelled. Hobgoblins rushed out, carrying troughs of water to the thirsty slaves, who immediately began sucking back the liquid. What they didn't know was that the water was spiked. The slaves would soon go crazy and begin screaming for blood. They made a perfect first wave of attack as they were highly expendable, distracting the enemy while artillery pounds them.
The humans were rushing to set up crude barricades, moving shoddy cannons forward in a vain attempt to defend the town. Gnoblars were panicing, either scurrying about screaming loudly, or trying to flee the city only to become lunch of the eagle owls that patrol the town.
"Release the slaves!" Imgrazzathar yelled. There was a loud yell from the slaves, and they ran towards the city, arms flailing as they bolted towards Pigbarter. No resistance was put up at first, but soon the humans realized that they were drugged and if not killed would kill them. Cannons and hellblasters fired with loud booms, while arrows and crossbow bolts cut down rank upon rank of the slaves. Scores of hellblasters caused immense damage to the slaves, who pressed on. The damage was immene, the first wave of shots left several hundred dead in a disorienting wave of explosions, and only seconds later it came again. The slaves managed to crash into the human ranks, though like an egg an a wall. Completely unarmed, they grabbed and punched and kicked and bit, but even their best efforts did nothing to penetrate armour, while the swords and spears of the humans cut them down in droves.
Imgrazzathar shouted orders at the army. "Burn the town! Show them the Fires of Hashut! Enslave their children and end their miserable lives! Hashut! Vorgund! Zharr-Naggrund!"
The artillery fired. Rockets soared over the slaves, impacting on houses, which esploded in a dazzling display of fire and rained rotten wood upon the humans. Earthshaker shells dug into the ground, joining an explosion with a rumbling in the earth. Men stumbled and fell as slaves pushed forward ond trampled them and cannons exploded as the shaking disrupted their shots. Wave after wave of the mighty artillery rained upon the town, fires spreading from house to house. Chaos spread and the humans were forced to retreat into the inner city.
"CHAARGE!!!" Imgrazzathar yelled. Hobgoblins charged in an attampt to catch up to the slaves, while Dawi Zharr wariors slowly advanced; eager to sink their axes into manflesh. Mounting his taurus, he soared above the city and watched the battle. Tapping his mount's flank with his foot, the fiery bull dove into a formation of gnoblar fighters crushing scores under it's massive hooves and scorching others with it's flaming breath. Imgrazzathar swung his obsidian hammer, crushing skulls and cracking ribs. The pathetic greenskins fled in all directions, and the slaves caught up with Imgrazzathar. The slaves didn't carewho they fought, so Imgrazzathar ordered his taurus up, and landed on a rooftop. He pulled out his blunderbuss pistols and picked off several more gnoblars, and then began directing the battle again.
The humans had barricaded themselves in their buildings. They fired their handguns and crossbows as hobgoblins and slaves passed by, but the rotten stilts that held the buildings above the river were easily cut down. The Dawi Zharr warriors entered the fray, blunderbusses blasting holes in the houses and goring the unfortunate individuals behind the crude defences. Well balanced Dawi Zharr axes cut humans in two with a single swipe while the finely crafted scale mail proved an impenetrable defence from human swords. Victory was ineviatble, it was only a matter of taking as many slaves as possible now.
Lord Zarkov flew overhead, magically enhancing his voice so the whole town could hear. "Surrender now or you shall all die!" He demonstrated his point by launhing a fireball into one of the few remaining human formations, annihalating them entirely. Aware of what the Dawi Zharr do to their captives, they fled, desperately trying to escape the city. Blunerbuss shots followed their fotsteps, cutting down the slow ones. Many escaped at the southern part of the town, but as they left a cry of woe shot up.
Howling wolves stood ahead of them, nearly a thousand hobgoblins mounted on them. They were armed with spears and nets, laughing maniacally as the humans lost ass hope. They fell to their knees and allowed themselves to be chained and shackled, knowing that their lives were essentially over and their gods had abandoned them. Pigbarter had fallen, an The War of the Ogre had begun.
Part 1
The gates of the Black Fortress swung open, allowing Imgrazzathar to enter. Mounted on a great taurus, the giant beast walked in, totally ignoring the many eyes upon it and it's rider. Imgrazzathar kicked the beast's flank and it knelt down, allowing the Dawi Zharr lord to dismount. Several nervous hobgoblins with long poles guided the beast towards a stable, while Imgrazzathar began to walk down a long corridor.
Taking a turn halfway down the corridor, Imgrazzathar began to climb a large spiral staircase. There were many, many stairs but the dwarf seemed unbothered by it. For what seemed like an eternity he climbed, but he eventually reched the highest level of the fortress and entered a small, poorly lit chamber. The screams of slaves could be clearly heard but little heed was paid to them by the other Dawi Zharr who were gathered around a large table.
"You're late Imgrazzathar." It was Uzkul Werit, lord of Gash Kadrak. The Dawi Zharr was very punctual and had a cruelty to match it. "Were you under my command you'd be sent right to the pits- my garrison at Gash Kadrak certainly doesn't tolerate your behaviour!"
"Take your garrison and shove it!" Imgrazzathar thought. "I have reasons for being late Uzkul! You do not need to lecture me like some beardling!"
"Shut up and sit down!" It was Lord Zarkov, a sorceror lord. Imgrazzathar sat down with indignation and began to address the group.
"The town of Pigbarter is a hovel. The River Ruin flows under the houses which are built on wooden stilts, the acidic water rptting the town's buildings. Debris litters the ground, in which gnoblars live. Why anything would live there is beyond me. However, as we all know it is a trading post and point of relative safety for the pathetic western manlings. Our timing is good, as a Great Caravan on it's way to Ind. has arrived there. So not only will we have a bit of fun, but we will have the oppurtunity to plunder it. These caravans can sustain a tribe of ogres for a month, and should provide us with an abundance of slaves and the necessary resources to rebuild Urugash."
But onto our battle plan. Minimal effort will be required to take the town. Great Caravans are mile long trains with hellbalster volley guns on every cart, though after a few days in the city they won't be working properly. Our earthshaker cannons will cause immense damage to the rotten buildings, and under cover of hundreds of hobgoblins taking the town will be little challenge.
We will strike from the northeast with our main strike force, while a force of hobgoblin wolfriders will attack the southwest. As stated previously, minimal forces will be used. For this reason no golems, hellcannons or immortals will be present at this battle. In the name of Hashut we shall enslave every last gnoblar and raze the city to the ground! Never again shall a caravan reach the sentinels!
Now, have you any questions?"
"Who will claim lordship of Urugash?" Uzkul asked.
Zarkov cut in. "That is the decision of us priests. I can see that you desire the fortress, but we have deemed that your lordship over the Vale of Woe is enough. Lord Imgrazzathar will likely receive the prize, though there are several others who show promise."
No others had comments, and the meeting was adjourned. Imgrazzathar headed for his bedchamber, resting up for a long days march tomorrow. He was ready to prove himself to the council. He would prove he was worthy to rule Urugash!
Part 2
Imgrazzathar looked down on his army. He was flying several metres in the air on his great taurus, Lord Zarkov next to him riding a Lammasu. He looked down at his assembled army, escpecially the hobgoblins. He couldn't afford to have them start bickering now, if anyone was to warn the people of Pigbarter the element of surprise would be lost and he couldn't afford to waste time.
The army consisted of about five hundred Dawi Zharr, half of them armed with blunderbusses. There was a single battery of death rockets and four batteries of earthshakers, along with thousands of hobgoblins and slaves. He was sure that this was enough, the unprepared humans would stand no chance.
For hours they marched on, any bickering in the greenskin ranks broken up with a quick fireball from Zarkov. The sun was setting now, and they were almost within sight of Pigbarter. Imgrazzathar flew ahead, checking if the wolfriders were in position to strike at the town's rear. He pulled out a telescope and saw no sign of them. "Damned hobgoblins!" He cursed. "They'll be getting a good flogging when this is over!"
Returning to his army, he saw them approaching the city, setting up the artillery. He landed, kicking his taurus to let him kneel and dismount. Hobgoblin attendants rushed over to care for the beast. Imgrazzathar met up with Zarkov again. Zarkov was an old priest, and the Stone Curse had spread up to his torso, only giving him movement of his arms and head, and for that reason had to be carried on a palanquin.
Imgrazzathar inspected the army, a swift punch to anyone not perfectly in line. Once everything was in line, he moved to the front of the army.
"Give some water to the slaves!" He yelled. Hobgoblins rushed out, carrying troughs of water to the thirsty slaves, who immediately began sucking back the liquid. What they didn't know was that the water was spiked. The slaves would soon go crazy and begin screaming for blood. They made a perfect first wave of attack as they were highly expendable, distracting the enemy while artillery pounds them.
The humans were rushing to set up crude barricades, moving shoddy cannons forward in a vain attempt to defend the town. Gnoblars were panicing, either scurrying about screaming loudly, or trying to flee the city only to become lunch of the eagle owls that patrol the town.
"Release the slaves!" Imgrazzathar yelled. There was a loud yell from the slaves, and they ran towards the city, arms flailing as they bolted towards Pigbarter. No resistance was put up at first, but soon the humans realized that they were drugged and if not killed would kill them. Cannons and hellblasters fired with loud booms, while arrows and crossbow bolts cut down rank upon rank of the slaves. Scores of hellblasters caused immense damage to the slaves, who pressed on. The damage was immene, the first wave of shots left several hundred dead in a disorienting wave of explosions, and only seconds later it came again. The slaves managed to crash into the human ranks, though like an egg an a wall. Completely unarmed, they grabbed and punched and kicked and bit, but even their best efforts did nothing to penetrate armour, while the swords and spears of the humans cut them down in droves.
Imgrazzathar shouted orders at the army. "Burn the town! Show them the Fires of Hashut! Enslave their children and end their miserable lives! Hashut! Vorgund! Zharr-Naggrund!"
The artillery fired. Rockets soared over the slaves, impacting on houses, which esploded in a dazzling display of fire and rained rotten wood upon the humans. Earthshaker shells dug into the ground, joining an explosion with a rumbling in the earth. Men stumbled and fell as slaves pushed forward ond trampled them and cannons exploded as the shaking disrupted their shots. Wave after wave of the mighty artillery rained upon the town, fires spreading from house to house. Chaos spread and the humans were forced to retreat into the inner city.
"CHAARGE!!!" Imgrazzathar yelled. Hobgoblins charged in an attampt to catch up to the slaves, while Dawi Zharr wariors slowly advanced; eager to sink their axes into manflesh. Mounting his taurus, he soared above the city and watched the battle. Tapping his mount's flank with his foot, the fiery bull dove into a formation of gnoblar fighters crushing scores under it's massive hooves and scorching others with it's flaming breath. Imgrazzathar swung his obsidian hammer, crushing skulls and cracking ribs. The pathetic greenskins fled in all directions, and the slaves caught up with Imgrazzathar. The slaves didn't carewho they fought, so Imgrazzathar ordered his taurus up, and landed on a rooftop. He pulled out his blunderbuss pistols and picked off several more gnoblars, and then began directing the battle again.
The humans had barricaded themselves in their buildings. They fired their handguns and crossbows as hobgoblins and slaves passed by, but the rotten stilts that held the buildings above the river were easily cut down. The Dawi Zharr warriors entered the fray, blunderbusses blasting holes in the houses and goring the unfortunate individuals behind the crude defences. Well balanced Dawi Zharr axes cut humans in two with a single swipe while the finely crafted scale mail proved an impenetrable defence from human swords. Victory was ineviatble, it was only a matter of taking as many slaves as possible now.
Lord Zarkov flew overhead, magically enhancing his voice so the whole town could hear. "Surrender now or you shall all die!" He demonstrated his point by launhing a fireball into one of the few remaining human formations, annihalating them entirely. Aware of what the Dawi Zharr do to their captives, they fled, desperately trying to escape the city. Blunerbuss shots followed their fotsteps, cutting down the slow ones. Many escaped at the southern part of the town, but as they left a cry of woe shot up.
Howling wolves stood ahead of them, nearly a thousand hobgoblins mounted on them. They were armed with spears and nets, laughing maniacally as the humans lost ass hope. They fell to their knees and allowed themselves to be chained and shackled, knowing that their lives were essentially over and their gods had abandoned them. Pigbarter had fallen, an The War of the Ogre had begun.
FREE SHINY STUFF HERE!!
and something else at the end when Zarkov orders them to surrender. I reckon the people of Pigbarter would have at least heard tales about what happens to the captives of the Chaos Dwarves, and would probably die fighting. An explantion of them being too cowardly would cover up that little detail 