When the high-born Nippur returns to Babylon following a long stay in Persia, he rescues slave-girl Tamira from the soldiers of the evil usurper, Balthazar. Nippur then pays a courtesy visit to Balthazar's court where he meets the high-priestess Ura who has ambitions to become queen and who casts a lustful eye on this new visitor. Later, shocked by the cruelty of Balthazar's reign and influenced by a group of rebels, Nippur interrupts a fiery sacrifice of virgins. Forced to flee Babylon, Nippur -- wounded by an arrow in the back -- is restored to health by the forces of the Persian king, Cyrus, who are marching toward Babylon. Nippur slips back into Babylon where he's captured and chained to a wall inside a dungeon. Using his great strength, Nippur breaks free, rescues Tamira before she can be sacrificed, and engages Balthazar in a to-the-death sword fight.