In the untamed Pictish Wilderness, the mighty Conan the Barbarian leads a band of Aquilonian soldiers against the primitive Picts. After his men are ambushed and slaughtered, Conan allies with young settler Balthus in escaping pursuit to warn the nearby fort of the Pict war machine – and the dread wizard Zogar Sag who leads them. As war spills out along the savage frontier, Conan and the Aquilonians drive their enemies back across the river but ultimately at great cost.