Black Tide

Category	Empires
World	Bal-Kriav
Region	Necrocrypt
Alias	Black Tide of Thasmudyan
Government	Dead Council
Capital	Phanêthil 1554 - present Zayr 1464 - 1554
Population	200,000+
Types	skeleton 60% zombie 20% ghoul 3% wight 2% other 15%
Deity	Thasmudyan
Enemies	Divine Empire, Malacost, Ivory Asylum
Established	12 Witchrite 1464
Map	Nithlurik

In the Second Epoch, a religious war was waged in the southeastern regions of Hells Womb. This conflict occurred between the minions of Hades and those of Thasmudyan. During the final battle of the Grim Harvest Crusade ( 1462 - 1464 ) , the heroes of Black Banner triumphed over the Dead Guard.

Ravenous for more, and heeding the dictates of Thasmudyan, on 12 Witchrite 1464, amidst the smoldering ruins of Gravestone Gates, once a renowned Church of Hades, the leaders of Black Banner establish the Black Tide of Thasmudyan. Black Banner's political opportunists and power brokers constitute the government of this empire, the Dead Council.

On 6 Hollow 1465, Black Tide forces stormed Pyramid of Merioss. After this venerable Lith-Crillion wonder was subdued, the pyramid's custodians, a Pyrmidian Ghoul legion, allied with their conquerors. Their objective was replenishment. Struggling to sustain their ranks, they went to war gathering those deemed worthy to join their ranks.

Later in the same month, work commenced on reconstructing Zayr, the empire's eastern capital. Situated in close proximity to the coastlines and safeguarded by a Pyramid of Power, it evolved into an imposing stronghold.

Over the ensuing decades, the faith of Thasmudyan proliferated like a contagion, with bandits and mercenaries from various realms flocking to our triumphant ranks. As anticipated, our most dreaded divisions are the undead. It is a straightforward process - after serving among the living, the fallen are resurrected to perpetuate the will of Thasmudyan.

Dax

The Black Tide War ( 1465 - 1486 ) commenced three months after the empire's establishment. The objectives were manifold, with some seeking battle, others aiming to expand their numbers of adherents, and the devout carrying out Thasmudyan's designs. For the latter, this entailed bestowing the Ultimate Gift upon the living. For Thasmudyan's necromancers and death priests, this involved transforming others into the undead, and ultimately becoming undead themselves. At the highest level, the goal was the complete subjugation of the Lands of Purity. This region was vulnerable, whereas Hells Womb would be impregnable with their current forces, but once they had the masses of the Lands of Purity, dozens of undead armies, they could eradicate the living from Hells Womb.

This was Thasmudyan's plan, his devoted adherents carrying it out. While the desire for its implementation was present, the actual execution proved a distinct challenge. Reliable sources indicate that Thasmudyan confessed to harboring limited confidence in the plan's success, his primary aspiration merely to have his name reach distant realms. A mere four-century-old deity, seeking to establish his renown. To his pleasant surprise, our efforts met with success, eliciting exuberant delight upon learning of the undead legions wreaking havoc across the land and the Admiral's spectral vessels prowling the seas.

Svern Mourn, wight attendant to Rax - "Pawns"

The early stages of the war witnessed a proliferation in the goblin population of Othrangad. As the conflict progressed, the empire's undead soldiers swelled in number, with their ranks exceeding 200,000 at the height of their strength, as more soldiers and civilians perished in the battles.

The Black Tide War concluded in 1486, at which point it commanded a series of fortresses and cities stretching from Bathor to Vraga Moltus. The Black Tide reigned over this expansive territory for 42 years ( 1486 - 1546 ) . It was a harrowing dominion, with undead wandering freely throughout the land. During this occupation, the Grey-Nil labored diligently to plant spies across the holds of the Lands of Purity and Hells Womb.

In the year 1539, the commencement of the Athenian Crusade ( 1539 - 1551 ) occurred, as forces in the Lands of Purity united under the Holy Quinary, initiating the drive to purge the lands of Thasmyudyan's pawns.

In 1546, with the Athenian Crusade still ongoing in the Lands of Purity, the Black Tide faced a growing number of adversaries. In the region east of the Lands of Purity, known as Hells Womb, the Council of Bile, Paradomea, and Surticon initiated their assault on the Black Tide. With the Black Tide's armies already strained by the first conflict, this Artery War (1546 - 1554) would mark the end of their presence on Brucrumus. The two wars scattered the Black Tide's legions of darkness. Those who could escape fled to Necrocrypt, while others retreated north into Grashakh or east into the Aerie of Dragons. Some even abandoned the Black Tide altogether, becoming citizens or soldiers of the Orchish Empire, the Tormoran Federation, and Ag Envok. Numerous wandering undead were hunted down and destroyed across the lands.

The conflicts of the Athenian Crusade and the Artery War exacted a devastating toll on the Black Tide of Thasmudyan. While they posed little threat for an extended period thereafter, their defeat on Brucrumus did not mark their demise.

Four centuries after the Chaos War, the catastrophic casualties of this conflict led to a dramatic surge in the undead population of the Black Tide.

In the dead of night, the ominous Harvesters, ghastly skyships shaped like ribcages, would glide over the battlefields, casting a pale, ghostly radiance over the fallen. The corpses would stir, greeted by the long, sinuous tendrils descending from the ships' undersides, which would then draw the newly reanimated undead into the vessels' cavernous holds.

The Black Tide's resurgence is not a matter of if, but rather a question of when.

Acktan, Khazarkar scout

In the year 1832, the Black Tide and the Tormoran Federation established the Sekbire Pact, becoming signatories to the Chaos War. Their battlefield became known as the Lich Front.