User blog:Ilniaj/The Armies of the Pharaoh Queendoms

Like the undead kingdoms, the Pharaoh Queendoms have undergone great changes between ages, though since their burial and preservation techniques were more advanced than that used by necromancers from other lands, the changes in mentality are considerably lesser. While the Pharaoh Queendoms of the previous age were content to stay sheltered in their ruins, only being animated to defend against invaders and to take back things stolen from them, the new age and the change in forms that has come with it has caused the many Queendoms to take more active interactions with the wider world, sometimes in conflict and sometimes in friendship. In previous ages, the mummies and pharaohs had free-will, but required a Hierophant reasonably close to maintain the magical animus that animated them. With the changes to Necromancy, this weakness is gone, which is part of the reason that the undead Pharaohs are able to have a more active role in the world.

The military of the Pharaoh Queendoms is a powerful defensive force like that of the Dwarves but in a different way. Their military is based on hordes of hardy but offensively weak infantry meant to hold enemies in place for a long time whilst more powerful and faster units strike down their enemies flanks. Their forces are further enhanced through the heavy use of magic support for their units. Unlike the more well known undead of the various Undead Kingdoms, the Pharaoh Queendoms make extensive use of ranged firepower, possessing many effective archers and decent, if primitive artillery support. Their skill at magic means that every arrow used by archers in their armies is enchanted. This powerful enchantment makes their arrows swerve in mid-air towards their targets, maneuvering around obstacles and causing aiming at a target 60 yards away to be no different than aiming at a target 6 yards away. Various animated constructs made of stone support their armies, providing the brute force needed to break enemy units.

The Pharaoh's are the ancient undead queens of their lands and there have been countless numbers of them during the history of their ancient lands. In times long ago, they all shared the same ambition to defy death, and so founded the Mortuary Cult to awaken them after death. This Mortuary Cult developed the burial techniques that allowed the undead of the desert region to preserve their minds despite the age of their bodies. Each Pharaoh has a powerful curse hanging over their bodies, striking down those who manage to slay a Pharaoh and such is their will that those they lead fight with impressive skill beyond their station. Many different generations of Pharaohs have been awakened, Pharaohs are now able to give birth, males have entered their hierarchy due to being turned into Incubi by Khepri beetles and some Pharaohs were greater or lesser than others. This has caused a re-ordering of the hierarchies among the Pharaohs. The greater ones are known as Pharaoh Queens/Kings and the lesser ones are known as Pharaoh Princesses/Princes. The Queens/Kings lead armies in a role analogous to a General and delegate tasks to the lesser Princesses/Princes who function in a similar manner to lesser officers like captains.

The magic users of the Pharaoh Queendoms are called Preistesses and each is a member of the Mortuary cult. Though they are called Priestesses, they do not use divine magic, instead using the arcane magic lores of light and death or a secret lore that involves weaving these two lores together. The reason they are called Priestesses is that their ancient culture believes that the winds of magic are the breath of the gods. Priestesses have been known to be a variety of species such as Anubis, Sphinxes or Apophis. The Anubis and Sphinxes are known to be eternally loyal to the Pharaohs while an Apophis in a Pharaohs court has supplanted her rule, addicting the Pharaoh to her nethertoxin.

The personal champions, trusted bodyguards, eternal lovers and father of the Pharaohs children are great warriors known as Tomb Heralds or Tomb Champions. It is considered a great honor to marry a Pharaoh and every candidate first has to pass numerous trials of bravery and loyalty to prove worthy of the honor. Such was the stringency of these demands that many of the lesser Pharaohs would never find a suitable man to be her husband. Anyone wishing to harm a wedded Pharaoh must first get past her husband. A Tomb Herald/Champion also has many duties besides the protection of his queen. Disputes between Pharaohs would often be settled with a ritual dual between nominated champions, battles that were often fought to first blood. Tomb Heralds/Champions are also charged with bearing their wives commands to distant parts of their realm, which is the only time they would leave their wives side. In addition, Tomb Heralds/Champions are often charged with carrying their Pharaohs personal banner into combat, each a priceless heirloom crafted by master artisans and imbued with powerful magic. The Pharaoh Kings/Princes that are created by Khepri beetles follow the same traditions of who is their Herald/Champion, their primary wife being a powerful warrior woman.

The architects and designers of the many constructs of the desert region are known as Necrotects, undead designers whose ambitions to build have outpaced what could be achieved in a mortal lifespan. In death, none of their drive has been lost. A Necrotect is a combination of petty spellcaster and architect, designing everything from petty statues to grand cities. In their unlife, they constantly repair their work. When the armies of the Pharaoh Queendoms marches to war, they tirelessly restore the great war statues that stride to battle, renewing the hieroglyphs that keep such things animated. Their incantations influence their creations to fight with increased vigor and the stone flows to repair itself as it is damaged.

The backbone and bulk of the armies are Mummy Warriors. Such were the advancement of the rites of the ancient desert lands that every citizen (and even honorable enemy) who committed no crimes was mummified in the same manner. However, since a lot more care was taken in the preservation of their lords and better, the mummies have no recollection of their former lives (pharaohs were best preserved and even they have only dim recollections). As disciplined in undeath as they are in life, the foot soldiers fight in highly organized ranks, advancing in perfect unison upon the enemy. Mummy warriors are always equipped with shields, wielding them alongside curved swords or spears. Generous Pharaohs would sometimes equip them with boiled leather and padded cloth armor, while such protection is only considered light by the standards of today it does give a small boost in survivability for these basic troops.

Supporting the warriors with withering volleys of arrow fire are regiments of archers, the Pharaohs understanding the importance of slaying the foe from afar. Hunting is a strong tradition and a popular sport among young Pharaohs. Mummy Archers are unencumbered by shields, only bringing a bow and hand weapon into battle. Sometimes they are lightly armored. Though this means they have little protection against the strikes of their enemies, any foe wishing to harm them must pass a hailstorm of lethal arrows. Only the most heavily armored of foes can withstand such salvos while less protected foes will turn and run.

Horses enjoyed a respected position as beasts of burden, and such, were buried with their masters. In today's age, mummy horsemen and women race across the sandy plains upon the skeletons of their steeds. These gallant riders fight with spear and shield, driving them into the enemy with bone-jarring force. These vanguard warriors are not heavily armored shock cavalry like the knights of the rest of the world but fearless raiders who attack where the enemy is weakest.

The Horse Archers of the queendoms while they were still alive were not like the other living warriors in the Pharaohs army. They were not soldiers raised and trained within the vast cities but nomadic travellers that dwelt in the deep desert. Such warriors knew the ways of the parched plain better than any city born and could traverse the shifting dunes without fear of getting lost. The Pharaohs had great need of such warriors and guides and would pay much gold to hire their services as mercenaries. It was not until the reign of Rakaph III that horse archers became a permanent feature in the armies of the queendoms. The tribes were granted the freedom of the desert, the protections of her armies and a lot of gold in exchange for an annual tithe of warriors that would swear to fight eternally for her armies. Ever since then, the Pharaohs have maintained strong contingents of horse archers. These Horse Archers are the outriders and scouts of the army, hindering enemy movements and harass their flanks in fleeting and bloody skirmishes, pinning them down while the rest of the army maneuvers into position.

The pride of a Pharaohs army is her charioteer legions. The queendoms were the oldest known great civilization of man and where they first used horse and chariot in battle. These fought in massed units and were the elite of the army, only the nobility were permitted to fight as charioteers. The ancient armies of the queendoms included vast forces of swift, lightly built chariots, each drawn by a pair of horses and the riders wielding javelins, bows and spears. To fight from such an armored platform was considered the height of civilized warfare. The fighting power of a Pharaohs charioteers was a reflection of her power and martial prowess. Ever since their invention, chariots have been the chosen means of transport for the Pharaoh queens, their armored carriage protecting them from harm and providing an elevated platform for viewing the battlefield. It took time for the adoption of the horse and chariot to take place and as time went on, people started to prefer riding a horse rather than a chariot for the maneuverability. The oldest of Pharaohs have few horsewoman and chariots in her legions as the technology was in its infancy. The middle-aged ones have more chariots and less horsewoman. The youngest have more horsewoman and less chariots.

The Tomb Guard are the elite guard of the Pharaohs, hand-picked in order to ensure that only the bravest and most formidable warriors comprise their number. Elevation into these ranks is one of the few official ways for a warrior that is not of noble birth to enter the royal palaces. Tomb Guard live in relative luxury, each with a servant to attend to their wargear so that they could keep their attentions on the preservation of their Pharaoh's life and dominion. If the Mummy Warriors are a sign of a Pharaohs expected discipline and skill, the Tomb Guard are proof. Tomb Guard are in effect, greater and more powerful Mummy Warriors. They are tougher, faster and deadlier, equipped with the finest armor and weapons and decorated with jewelry. When the Pharaoh is roused to war, they are the honor guard at her side. Tomb Guard who lived in the time before the Pharaoh's went to sleep retain more of their memories. While still hazy, they maintain memories of heroic deeds and bloody victories, and above all, the memories to protect their queen from harm above all else. As befitting of their station, Tomb Guard are gifted with finely crafted suits of boiled leather armor and bronze scale and lavishly crafted swords and shields or polearms. Like a Wight, they can drain the energy of their foes, laying low the most resilient and/or armored of warriors.

When the legions of the Pharaohs march to war, bone-ribbed barques sail above them in mockery of the laws of nature, banks of oars stirring in the dry air. Built in the likeliness of the many vessels that once sailed up and down the bountiful river Vitae and provided every city and village along its banks with goods from near and far, the war-barques serve a very different purpose. In the old myths, it is believed that when a soul embarks on its journey into the afterlife, they will come across The River of Souls and should a soul fall in the river, it will be lost in the depths. There are large barques for the common people transporting several hundreds of souls with each crossing but such mundane transports are beneath the Pharaohs. Thus, they had barques of their own built in their lifetimes so that they would not just cross the river, but do so atop lavishly decorated decks and protected by warriors. To protect them from the horrors of the sea of souls, the barques were inscribed with mighty hieroglyphs of protection and enchanted with wards. Even the Barques were outfitted with means of protecting themselves, either by enhancing the warriors upon it or unleashing swarms or beetles to attack intruders. When the Pharaohs were awoken to unlife, they ordered the Priestesses to bring forth their Barques from out of the burial pits, for they no longer serve their intended purpose. Now, they lazily drift along the winds of magic, imbuing the endless ranks with the same power meant to protect the pharaohs in the afterlife.

Within the tombs of the mightiest of pharaohs lies a casket sealed with pitch and inscribed with hieroglyphs of malediction and warning. These Casket of Spirit are not physically carried into battle but are summoned by their keeper whose sole responsibility is the custodianship of these potent weapons. As a Keeper of the Casket intones the proper chants, a fountain of skulls bursts from the ground below. These gush forth, forming into a mound that spills over revealing the Casket of Spirit atop a dais of bone, with a nimbus of sorcerous energy swirling around its infernal form, and two Undead guardians by its side. The power surrounding it is such that any Priestess can infuse their incantations with a portion of its energy. If the seals are broken and the lid opened, the casket suck the spirit energy of nearby enemies into it. Those of strong will can resist this but most are rendered unconscious or dead, and ready for resurrection.

The catapults of the Pharaoh Queendoms are akin to the catapults used by others but rather than flinging a mundane stone, they fling an enchanted one carved into the shape of a skull. A terrible curse is cast on each projectile so that it bursts into ethereal flames and screams hideously as it is hurled through the air. Those not slain by the skulls impact into their formation risk breaking under the screams, allowing the undead to run them down and capture them. The Pharaohs also field ballistas in their armies. Unlike their catapults, the ballista is relatively mundane, the only magical part of it is that the ammunition is blessed in the same manner as the arrows.

Flying high above the armies of the Pharaohs are undead scavengers called Carrion, their living version long extinct. Carrion resemble desert vultures but are more dangerous, standing taller than a man with vast wingspans and putrefied ropes of muscle hanging from their skeletal frames. Once they were awakened from the slumbers of death by an enterprising priestess, they are embued with magical essence and take to the skies, serving to hunt isolated and outnumbered enemies. Carrion only hunt in service to their masters, after slaying someone, rather than try to eat the corpse they lift it back to the Priestesses who revives it as a mummy.

The ruins of the desert region are infested with the dried husks of scorpions, scarabs and countless other poisonous creatures of the desert. Though long dead, the Priestesses and Pharaohs presence fills their empty shells with animation and they scuttle from their hiding places beneath the sands. The Priestesses have long since gained mastery over such creatures, summoning them forth at will to guard against intruders. When Pharaoh legions stride to war, they are accompanied by scuttling swarms of undead insects, killing those who stand against them with poisoned bites and stings, leaving the bodies ready for reanimation.

The cut above the Tomb Guard, and the elite of the elite are the Necropolis Knights who ride atop snake-shaped statues. The Necroserpents they ride are vast in stature, even coiled they stand at least twice the height of a man. They are capable of traveling beneath the ground at a relentless pace, emerging from the depths with sand cascading from their forms, warriors standing proudly atop their backs with spears and shields ready, ready to fight. Serpentine bodies weave through the battlefield, leaving a trail of carnage in their wake. There are few who can stand before the charge of a Necropolis Knight and her mount for they are incredibly powerful and difficult to destroy.

Ushabti are guardian statues carved into the likeness of various gods and goddesses. Each one stands three times the height of a man and is carved from a single block of stone. Under most circumstances, and Ushabti is just an imposing statue but in times of need, the priestesses imbue the statues with tremendous power, bringing them to life. Ushabti wield ritualistic weapons identical to the ones wielded by the deity their appearance is based on, from large bladed staffs that require three men to lift, to enormous swords, to a pair of weapon, to great bows that fire arrows the size of javelins.

The Girtablilu have been nicknamed "The Assassin of the Desert", and their skills have made them very sought out by Pharaohs for their armies, often promising tribes of them both material wealth and first pick of captured men in return for servitude. Girtablilu are excellent scouts and assassins, picking off isolated opponents and launching ambushes. A single sting of their tail leaves a man paralyzed and they often equip themselves with both bows and dual knives to fight with and extract their venom to poison their weapons.

The mighty Sandworm is a rare monster to appear in a Pharaoh's army but worth it when they appear. Their ability to tunnel beneath the ground allows a powerful fighter to appear wherever their Pharaoh commander wishes, able to strike war machines, ranged units or the backs of the main line as they require. As gentle as a Sandworm is, when properly motivated to fight they are quite a terror, able to collapse walls, break gates and tunnel under any obstacle.

Khemrian Warsphinxes are giant leonine statues able to crush foes underfoot as if they were nothing but bothersome insects. They are almost impervious to harm, their stone hides protecting against all but the truest of strikes, anything less than a direct hit from a war machine likely to glance harmlessly away. Atop each Warsphinx is a howdah ridden by several Tomb Guard, laying into their foes with great spears. Warsphinxes were first created to guard the entranceways to their Pharaoh's inner sanctums. Some even had one constructed to stand watch over their own resting place, and these were especially lavish and ornate. Upon awakening, a Pharaoh would ride her Warsphinx into battle. No two are alike, the Necrotects ever seeking to build more impressive structures. Some have scorpion tails full of potent venom while others breathe fire. It is rare for new ones to be constructed, most have been in existence for millenia and should one somehow be destroyed, its pieces are dragged back to be restored. Warsphinxes are terrifying foes to face and enemies that do not flee are smashed aside. However, this is just a fraction of their destructive power. When a Warsphinx rears up above its prey, it smashes its boulder sized paws into the ground with tremendous force. The resultant shockwave scatters foes aside and crushing whoever is underneath the point of impact.

A Necrosphinx is a nightmarish amalgation of the beasts that inhabit the realm of the dead, gliding along the air in bounding leaps before falling among its prey. A Necrosphinx has the head and torso of a man, with gigantic scything blades that can sever the neck of a dragon in a single slice, a scorpion-like tail and the ornate wings of a falcon. The original Necrotect designer believed that by combining all of these forms, they can create the ultimate warrior. So dreadful was such a creation that the Mortuary Cult considered it an abomination but could not risk their wrath destroying them and tried to have them buried and forgotten. They were never reawakened until a millennia later, when an Orc horde swept down from the badlands with a score of Wyvern riders. With the devastation they wrought, the Necrosphinxes were ordered awakened, slaughtering the orcs. Not even the Wyvern riders could stop them, their blades slicing through their necks. All Necrosphinxes have since been reclaimed to stand proudly in the sun once more, bringing death and destruction wherever they travel. It is unknown what pacts the Mortuary Cult made to animate these but something sinister that they fear.

Towering over the Pharaoh's undead legions, mighty statues of venerated heroes and ancient queens stride to battle, clad in armor and wielding weapon on a mighty scale, carrying vast bows or giant swords. These giants of stone, bone and wood are the Necrolith Colossi, and none can stand against them. A Necrolith Colossus is not the animated skeleton of a single creature, but a massive warrior built from the bones of mighty desert creatures, bound together with wood and metal by the magic of the Priestesses. Every necropolis is watched over by at least one of these imposing figures. Outside of the ancient cities Bone Giants stand as motionless sentinels, guarding important valley entrances and gateways from rampaging monsters and enemy warbands for aeons at a time. Such power is instilled in the Bone Giants that they do not need the incantations of the Priestesses to prompt them into wakefulness, and will react immediately to the presence of unwelcome strangers, striding relentlessly towards them, smashing them into the sand with their heavy weapons. Outside of war and guardianship, these Colossi are used for heavy lifting.

A Hierotitan is a gigantic animated statue whose face is carved in the likeness of a deity of death. These idols radiate an aura of magic, acting as magical loci for priestesses. Hierotitans were constructed to stand within the uppermost chambers of the Pharaoh's burial pyramids. It was believed that they would act as spirit guides for the souls of deceased queens, responsible for ushering the eternal spirits of monarchs between the mortal world and the Realm of Souls. In one hand, a Hierotitan carries an elaborate staff, which bears the hieroglyph of the sun god and lights the Hierotitan's path as it walks in the abyss that separates the mortal world from the Realm of Souls. The Hierotitan's other hand grasps a giant pair of scales. According to legends, it is upon these scales that the king's soul is judged by the god of the Underworld to see if it is worthy enough to enter the realm of the honoured dead, or whether it is to be cast into the fiery pits of the Netherworld. In battle, the Hierotitan can infuse his staff with the light of the sun god, causing those caught in the dazzling rays to burst into flames. Likewise, the Hierotitan can unleash the power contained within its foreboding scales, and ethereal claws will stretch out and rip their foes' life from their bodies.

Beneath the shifting and endless sands of the deserts dwell age-old secrets and timeless horrors to freeze the soul of any who dare disturb their slumber, and many are the legends and whispered tales that are gathered about them. Of these one of the most fabled and feared is that of the gigantic scarabs and carrion-beetles said to dwell beneath the sands. Known to loremasters as Khemric Titans, these giant arcane constructs of stone and onyx, bejeweled and enameled with the wealth and glory of a bygone age, tower above even the dreaded Necrosphinx in size, animated by the mightiest incantations of the fallen glory of the south. It is unknown how many were fashioned in ancient days, and how many even of those few have survived, but it is known they were set to slumber as guardians far away from the funeral armies of their queens of old, set to stand watch over sites of terrible evil and the haunts of foul monsters from the dawning of the world, and there are few forces of creatures able to contest them in battle. Should the Khemric Titan be slain it shatters apart, unleashing the potent incantations and magics bound within its frame in a deathly blast of power.