The initial migration of the Sea Peoples through the Levant differs greatly than their engagements compared to when the Hittites ruled the region. Those slow-building attacks whether by battlefield or sea piracy, largely endured by the indigenous Hittite allies, were not a forced march that Egypt had to later contend with in the aftermath of Hatta's fall. The Bryges, inhabitants of the Balkan Peninsula, first invaded Thrace, and later crossed the Dardanelles to carve out a piece of Anatolia, and upon doing so, renamed themselves as "Phrygians".
This is how Egypt believed the kingdom of the Hittites fell.
Next, the Philistines fell to the newly renamed Phrygians, and Egypt began to suffer direct attacks from this new opposition, the same conquerors of Thrace and Hatta. Yet, there was one key difference: Egypt was aware of this pending invasion well in advance. This foresight allowed Egypt to prepare for war, but the opposition she faced was a challenge unlike any the Empire of the Nile had ever contended with before.
Since the dawn of the Middle Kingdom's inception, this New Kingdom of Egypt's wars of the past all dealt with her own foreign excursions and military adventurism of her day. She recognized the ripe lands of the Fertile Crescent and the lands beyond the Levant and fought many rival kingdoms over these interests. But no foreign entity ever struck precisely at the heart of Egypt, and with the Phrygians marching southward along the coasts of Cilicia, with many other allied tribes joining the ranks, the Migrant Army aimed to do just that.
Soon, Egypt stared across the lines upon an enemy horde.
Preparation for war is always difficult. This not due to any actor being inept of their own duties that necessarily leads to the folly of ill decision-making, but rather the challenge of utilizing a short window of opportunity that quickly closes. Does one strike while the iron is hot? Or shall he rest in patient vigilance within the safety of his walls, waiting for a better development? Big talk is cheap when the battle is over with all critique now bearing the benefit of hindsight, and Egypt held no such benefit then against the continuing existential threats that plagued her kingdom's people.
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