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Welcome
to the Khemri
an unofficial supplement to Mordheim
These pages contain information
for playing skirmish battles,
using Games Workshop's Mordheim rules, in Khemri and Araby.
There are few in the Old World who have herd of Nehekhara. Fewer still remember the names of the cities of old. Khemri, Lahmia and Numas. The Crusaders came, but when they left few would talk of what they saw. Legends persist of fabulous treasures.
Are you brave enough to go in search of gold where dead men walk?
The Land of NehekharaThe ancient nation of Nehekhara lies to the east, in the area now better known as the Land of the Dead. This ancient civilisation fell many years ago in a brutal civil war. In lost pyramids buried beneath the desert sands the Liche Lords and Mummy Tomb Kings rule over legions of corpses, their servants in death as they were in life. In musty crypts of dead noblemen, tomb robbers freeze in terror when they hear the clink of silver rings and movement behind them.
Today the Land of the Dead is a wilderness of sand. The great river is poisonous and blood-coloured, providing no relief to the thirst of adventurers and tomb raiders. The cities are empty of life, crumbled ruins on the edge of the great necropolises. The roads have long been buried by the shifting sands, leaving only a few toppled statues and wind-eroded monuments to mark their presence. It has been said that the ancient tombs contain many riches and treasures, however the dead walk these tombs. Despite theses dire rumours adventurers dare these dangers in search of the treasure.
At the heart of this vast deserted realm lies the cursed city of Khemri, in the centre of which rise two of the mightiest structures ever created by man. One is the awesome Great Pyramid of Khemri, which rises a hundred times the height of a man above the ancient ruins. The other dwarfs even this mighty edifice; the famed Black Pyramid of Nagash – a wonder and terror to all who behold it. Scattered about the feet of these structures are the tombs and crypts of kings and lesser nobles that make up the city of Khemri.
The ruling king, his family and trusted advisors were entombed in great sarcophagi and huge pyramids. As each generation passed larger and more elaborate tombs were built until in the deserts beyond each city stood a necropolis - a city of the dead, and as the years passed these cities became bigger than the towns of the living. The tombs guarded by titanic statues and fortified like great keeps, built to keep their inhabitants secure through all eternity. Bridges spanned the gaps between the doorways on the pyramid tops and cities grew into a vast interlined jumble of structures. Unquiet spirits who perform ancient rituals in worship to the Great Necromancer stalk the streets of this grotesque version of a city.
With the coming of Nagash and his great ritual the inhabitants of the Necropolises were brought back to the land of the living. The Kings and Lords once more command their legions, but they are now undead automatons. On certain dark nights the corpses of the dead stir from their homes and go about their business in a grim parody of their former lives. They repair the time-eroded tombs and patrol the boundaries of their necropolis.
Wonderful ThingsWhen the Tomb Kings and their courtiers were interred in the magnificent necropolises they were buried with the fabulous wealth and goods they would require when they were re-wakened. They surrounded themselves with all of the luxuries to equip themselves in their future existence. Slaves and warrior were put to death to provide their armies.
When Nagash re-animated them prematurely they found themselves imprisoned in their dead mummified bodies. Despite having no use for their treasure they guard it with a ferocity born of an eternal frustration and hatred.
The stories of the treasures of the Tomb Kings have persisted down the ages. Generations of thieves and tomb robbers have tried their luck at finding the valuables. Not all of the treasure is gold or jewels. The Liche Priests of ancient Khemri were masters of the necromantic arts. Their secret writings and papyri are eagerly sought by modern day necromancers, mages and seekers after forbidden knowledge. The ultimate prize for a necromancer would be one of the volumes of the Book of Nagash - the feared Liber Mortis. Even a single page from one of those evil books has been known to drive lesser willed men to insanity.
The modern day inhabitants are the Araby Nomads. They mainly keep themselves to the less inhospitable margins of the desert. Every now and again a bold Sheikh of Araby will rouse his Bedouins to raid the crumbling necropolises. They know full well the horrors they may encounter. The tales of old are kept alive by their storytelling traditions.
WarbandsKhemri - The Land of the Dead is written with a specific theme in mind and while you an use any warband in this setting some of them are not appropriate. The humans are well known to be greedy and all too willing to risk their lives in search of treasure. Norse and Pirate warbands may be a stretch in the Land of the Dead as they prefer the open seas or coastal raids. Halfling warbands are more at home in the Old World. While the Lustrian warbands, such as the Amazons, won't leave their rainforest for a desolate desert. There will of course be the mummy prince's Tomb Guardians and their arch enemies the Crusaders. In addition there are the treacherous Hobgoblin Raiders and Araby Nomads hailing from the desert fringes. There will only be room for so many warbands in this series of articles. We have many more such as the Necromancers and Mages warbands which will be published on the Khemri - Land of the Dead website.
Introduction By Tommy Punk, Brian Coggin & Terry Maltman