Coriantumr is a dissenter from among the Nephites and a descendent of Zarahemla of Mulekite heritage (see verse 15). The Lamanite king Tubaloth, son of Ammoron (a Zoramite), has placed Coriantumr in charge of the Lamanite armies, reasoning that Coriantumr’s mighty stature and wisdom will serve as a decisive advantage over the Nephites. In this, Tubaloth is both right and wrong: right in that Coriantumr indeed plunges so precipitously into the heart of Nephite territories that his massive army takes unexpected control of the capital city Zarahemla in the year 51 BC; wrong in that Coriantumr’s strategy soon leaves the overconfident Lamanite army in a position of being surrounded by the powerful Nephite forces stationed around the borders of the land. Coriantumr’s brazen blitzkrieg into the heart of the country leaves his forces vulnerable to the immediate counterattacks carried out by generals Moronihah and Lehi. The Lamanites are soundly defeated, and Coriantumr is killed (see verses 30, 32). All of this takes place as the secret combinations of the Gadianton robbers emerge as powerful and insidious forces acting against the liberty of the people. The chief judge, Pahoran II, has been assassinated by Kishkumen the year before in 52 BC (see verse 9), and Pahoran’s brother and successor, Pacumeni, is killed during the assault on Zarahemla (see verse 21). The following year, Helaman, son of Helaman, the next in line to be chief judge, narrowly escapes being killed on the judgment seat by Kishkumen. Helaman’s decisive response forces the Gadianton robbers to flee into the wilderness. Thereafter the Nephites enjoy a short respite from their tribulations, and Coriantumr’s daring but suicidal seizure of Zarahemla, with the slaying of countless innocent citizens, becomes a nightmare of the past.