The Grots were sent out in front of the lines. The Ikrath Herdstone rose out of the forest and was visible for miles around. Tumerlak Giantbreaker was hungry and where there was a herdstone there were bound to be Beastmen. But Beastmen were tricky and knew their way through the forest. That is why the Grots were sent out in front of the lines.
Whoever cared about a dead Grot?
The shrills sounds of the Grots screaming came through the trees and the Ogres quickened their pace. They could hear the grunting of the Beastmen now and could smell them on the wind.
The two forces moved towards each other, one like a river flowing around the trees among which they lived, the other like a boulder knocking the trees out of the way.
Tumerlak had put enough Grots together that they would at least stall anything they met for long enough.
They stalled the Beastmen like champs. With tree limbs snapping, Tumerlak himself hove into view of the melee. The Grots danced around and stabbed wildly while the Beastmen brought their savage axes or mauls down occasionally braining one of the small but spry greenskins.
The Ogre tyrant felt the saliva flow from the corners of his mouth as he bellowed and charged. He caught the Ungors by surprise. They barely had a chance to whirl around before he was upon them. Two were skewered on the massive horns affixed to his gut plate.
His massive weapons fell among them next. The blade was dull and crushed more than cut but it broke beings into smaller pieces all the same.
As the remainder of the Ungors scattered Tumerlak paused to take a bite out of one of the creatures that was stuff on his gut tusks as he pulled it off.
He was just about to wade into the Gors when Melandrut Meatslicer tapped him on the shoulder.
"Smell that, boss? That there is Bullgor."
He was right, they were not even 40 yards away. He looked up to see the Iron Guts moving in that direction. Smelled like there were a lot of the Bullgors. He'd let the Iron Guts go in first, there would be plenty of meat to go around.
Tumerlak could hear fighting on the other side of the Herdstone. He heard the savage laughter of Ogres and the shrieks of wounded or dying Beastmen.
He could see his giant. The dumb thing was visible through the blight in the forest that was around the Herdstone.
It was swinging its club and with each stroke Beastmen bodies flew up into the air. Some were braying as they went up, others were silent, already completely broken.
The floor of the forest reverberated with the sound of hundreds of hooves moving towards them. It was going to be a fine feats tonight.
The tyrant moved towards the stench of the Bullgors. When he caught site of the melee there were four of the creatures dead already, although two of his Iron Guts were also stretched out on the ground.
Gors and Ungors jumped into the fray.
Melandrut tore an arm from one of the dead Ungors as he had dragged along as he moved behind his leader. He jammed the piece down his throat as he chanted his strange prayers to the Great Maw. There was a choking sound and the tyrant looked around at his butcher who seemed to have got something stuck in his massive gob.
AS he looked back at the combat a mouth opened up in the ground and started biting at the Beastmen that were piling on the last of the Iron Guts.
He charged again, this time the Gors were protected by the age old ruins they were climbing over to attack the Iron Gut. His attacks only brought down a few of the creatures. They managed to drive their axes deep into the last of the Ogor bodyguard and the Iron Gut collapses, loud sounds wheezing out of his chest where a pick had penetrated into his lung.
Apparently Melandrut was recovered from his choking because he waded in next to Tumerlak with his cleavers, sending parts flying.
That is when the two Ogors saw it. A gorger. It lay still on the ground, a number of wounds still seeping blood, piles of dead Ungors around it.
The Beast men fled, their herdstone firmly in the enemy hands. Tumerlak started moving towards the other end of the battle line where he heard the sound of cannons. The Leadbelchers were over there. They would have some fire. There was plenty of dead wood around the herstone and the trophies that typically were piled around it would make a great fire to cook all this fresh meat.
plunges back into the underdark.
