Battle at the Eyes of the Prismatikon

Greetings!

Prophet Wozoc Squinteye is now leading his Sunsplitterz tribe on a series of attacks to claim more land on the Flamescar Plateau. The first of these assaults is launched against the forces of Chaos massing around their sacred altar at Eyes of the Prismatikon.

We used Battleplan: The Ritual from the Age of Sigmar -app, in which the ritualists (Chaos) tried to accumulate 20 ritual points whereas the disruptors (Destruction) were seeking to shatter the altar upon which the ritual was happening. The General of he disrupting army could accomplish this goal by rolling a 2+ on a hero phase in which he stood within 3" of the altar. Wizards on both sides could either speed up or slow down the ritual.

On with the story!


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This was the place. A pillar of multicoloured light shot up into the skies from somewhere ahead of Prophet Squinteye and his mob of warriors. They were close.

Ever since he'd re-emerged from the depth of that damnable unstable realmgate back at the Razorfang Sprawl, Squinteye had searched for his tribe in the Flamescar Plateau. The Sunsplitterz were all over the place: some mobs were hunting merrily in the Vitriolic Swamps, while others roamed the wilds all across the region just looking for a good scrap. Wozoc had been making his way back to where the majority of his tribe resided: the Magebane Dungeons. He hadn't gotten further than the Sporehollow Mountains before running into Big Boss Grom the Punch of the Shifty Mountain, leading a band of Sunsplitterz in search of their Prophet.

Thus united with his kin once more, Squinteye led this merry lot of loyal followers into the Eyes of the Prismatikon, a range of sky-high towers topped with gigantic crystal lenses. Something inside Wozoc's head told him that these towers were a formidable weapon and could speed his quest of bringing down the sun. Too bad the region already housed a Chaos altar upon which Cult Hu and their nefarious Magister Zhik'Akoot-Cot were attempting a ritual of some kind.

"Oh well, a scrap is a scrap!"

The evil Magister had assembled an entourage of Nurglings and Beastmen, led by a Great Unclean One and a Chaos Champion known to friend and foe alike as Slambo. This mixed bunch had the guts to occupy this place that Prophet Squinteye desperately needed for his life's quest!

Surging out of the scarce woods, the Sunsplitterz let out a terrible war cry that shook the ground:
"Waaaaaaaagh!"

They had to reach the altar behind this sea of foes, Wozoc realized. He urged his followers on, Big Boss Grom leading the boyz and the Big Stabbas straight into the ranks of the enemy with a smile on his ugly face.

The Arrowboys spewed forth a volley of arrows from their hunting bows, the crude shafts striking home in the herd of beastmen just ahead. The first two ranks of the mutated beastkin toppled, weepwood arrows sticking out of their bare torsos as death shrieks filled the air.

The Savage Orruks stampeded into a swarm of Nurglings, kicking and hacking their way through the masses of small, screaming fatties. Yet no matter how many they stomped and kicked and smacked, there were always three more to take the place of the fallen. The green swarm showed no signs of wavering and surrounded the orruks, their filth-encrusted teeth and claws blackening skin wherever they touched. As their kin fell around them, spasming on the ground with teeth-marks on their thighs, the orruks began to realize that perhaps these small creatures weren't as easy an opponent as they first seemed.

Big Boss Grom spun into the fray, his massive choppa severing heads and limbs with every strike. Three beastmen fell with the first swoop, the fourth got bisected by a downwards blow and the fifth got its skull cracked by an improvised headbutt. By the time the Big Stabbas has charged in, the remainder of the beastherd was already running for their lives, braying pathetically as they raced for the safety of the forests. Grom was still grappling one of the goatmen on the ground, holding its horns and twisting brutally until there was a wet snap and the mutant fell limp.

"Oi, come back! 'Tis no fun if ya run roight away!" the orruk boss kept yelling at the receding backs of the beastmen in the distance.

Seemingly unamused by the flight of his beastly followers, the Magister wove a set of intricate gestures and the winds seemed to rise. Suddenly the mage bounced of the ground, carried into the heights atop a Balewind Vortex. From this vantage point the cult leader cast his gaze upon the battlefield, trying to take in the numbers and direction of the orruk assault.

A Khornate Slaughterpriest strode forth from behind a large rock, chanting maniacally with a grin on his face. Big Boss Grom the Punch of the Shifty Mountain out in pain as his ears and eyes began weeping blood, his veins dancing to the unholy rhythm of the priest's chant. The Great Unclean One bellowed something the orruks couldn't understand, sending out out a foul wind that swept across the Big Stabbas, making their muscles wither and skin grow pale. Into this weakened pair of spear-carriers the Magister hurled a bolt of coruscating energy, blasting the two Sunsplitterz off their feet.

The Slaughterpriest charged into the remaining Big Stabba waving a great axe, while the Nurglings swarmed around the feet of the orruks nearby. Slambo, the champion of Chaos Undivided, waded into the masses of orange bodies and laid about him with his twin axes. The first Sunsplitter to meet him got an axe to the flank, driving it to its knees while the weapon's twin lopped off the orruk's head.

Slaughterpriest Vorax Hackmaster brought his axe down in a diagonal swing, cutting open the guts of one of the spear-carriers. Big Boss Grom ran to the aid of his mob, launching a series of furious hacks and slashes at the Khornate priest. Vorax Hackmaster met Grom's axe head-on with his own, the weapons impacting in the mid-air and bouncing off repeatedly as the two warriors lashed out at each other again and again. One of Grom's swings cut into the priest's leg, drawing blood from under all the red plate armour by crushing throught it with sheer force.

Slambo and his accompanying Nurglings laid waste to the orruk mob, the filthy teeth of the small creatures crippling many even as the Champion of Chaos severed yet another head from orange shoulders with his trusty axes.

The Sunsplitter advance was grinding to a gory halt. The mob of orruks had managed to swat aside almost a third of the Nurgling horde but had sustained heavier casualties itself, with only a half of the boyz yet remaining.

The Great Unclean one gargled and sent forth a stream of stinking bile which struck square into the remaining Big Stabba, collapsing both of the spear-carriers under the impact of the giant gob of puke. 

Big Boss Grom continued trading swings with Slaughterpriest Vorax, both towering warriors circling around and dodging each other's blows. Finally the Khronate Priest locked axes with the orruk, staring into the brute's yellow eyes and uttering a prayer to the Blood God. Gore poured from Grom's ears as his entire body spasmed and the Big Boss fell to the ground face-first. He did not rise again.

The boyz fighting the Nurglings were losing their zeal. With the Big Stabbas and the Big Boss dead, their chances of breaking through this endless mire of foes seemed slim indeed.

Prophet Squinteye decided to take matters into his own gnarled hands. With a mutter the summoned a great green spectral hand to speed his way as he made for the enemy flank, his leathery cloak flapping in the wind.

The Arrowboys surged forward with a cry of "waaaagh!" and let fly from their hunting bows. A cloud of shafts swept over Vorax Hackmaster, punching him full of arrows just as he turned to regard the screaming newcomers after slaying their Big Boss. Through clenched teeth the Slaughterpriest gave a muffled grunt before sinking on to his knees next to his recent kill.

Cackling maniacally, the Nurglings held fast onto the legs of the orruks as Slambo stepped in once more, severing an arm from one orange brute before embedding an axe into the forehead of the next.

From atop his perch at the head of the swirling vortex, Magister Zhik'Akoot-Cot conjured forth another bolt of multicoloured energy and sent it towards the running Prophet. The bolt struck Wozoc in the shoulder, making him fall and roll on the ground before getting up again to continue his run for the altar.

Finally the strength and stamina of the boyz failed and they fell under an avalanche of Nurglings and Slambo's axes.The Arrowboys sent a volley of crude arrows at the Magister atop the vortex, but most of their missiles merely fell from their trajectories as the power of the magical apparition swept them aside. Things were looking quite grim for the Sunsplitterz. 

Ignoring the peril of his followers, Wozoc kept on running around the enemy flank to reach the altar. His efforts didn't go unnoticed, though, as the Great Unclean One began lumbering towards him.

The pillar of light shooting up into the skies from the altar was growing stronger by the moment. The ritual was nearing its completion. Prophet Squinteye ran for the altar, speeding his way with yet another spectral hand that swept him up from the ground and carried him to his target.

Once there, Wozoc lifted his ju-ju staff high into the air, chanting under his breath to gather magical strength for the blow that would end it all. Before he had the time to deliver this telling strike, however, a gob of bile and a bolt of purple lightning struck him in the chest, throwing him back.

The Prophet of the Sunsplitterz was now separated from his last remaining followers. Both the Nurglings and Slambo moved to intercept the Arrowboys as they tried to run to the aid of their leader, leaving the bow-armed orruks only one option. They let off a cloud of arrows and then melted away into the forests behind them. The rain of shafts struck the summit of the vortex, once again bouncing off harmlessly as the swirling magical winds protected their summoner. One arrow still slipped through and struck the Magister in between the shoulderblades, the crudely crafted weepwood tip only just punching through enchanted armour and drawing blood.

Having been casting a spell when the arrow struck, the Magister grunted in pain and unleashed the magical energies prematurely. A wall of sparkly energy burst forward from the fingertips of the mage, engulfing the Sunsplitter Prophet and making him disappear in a flash of blue light.

With the orruks scattered and the altar unshattered, Magister Zhik'Akoot-Cot had all the time in the world to complete his mystical ritual.

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A victory for Cult Hu!

It was a close one! My Prophet nearly managed to get close enough to shatter the altar, but my opponent's final turn proved to be decisive.

The Eyes of the Prismatikon now boast a Chaos Altar, a Chaos Control Marker and a Chaos Garrison. Things are starting to look very chaotic on the Flamescar Plateau indeed.

Be sure to check out the state of the overall war on the campaign landing page.

If you'd like to learn more about the armies and characters themselves, head over to the faction gallery.

Until next time!