The Northlands Saga - Spears in the Ice IC

[Ghostfoot]

THE NORTHLANDS SAGA - SPEARS IN THE ICE

The Northlanders have many words for a woman who practices the dark arts: fiend-woman, aglæcwif, sorceress, galdricge, seiðkona, or often simply witch. Unlike the mysterious, but respected, cunning women who are accepted into Northlander society for the wisdom they bring and their connection to world’s unseen, a witch-wife exists on the very fringes of society. She lurks in the shadows, universally reviled, subsisting on what little she can find, ever wary of an angry mob or vengeful jarl who holds her responsible for a bad crop, a blighted crop, or simply bad luck on a voyage. Despite all of these disadvantages, there are always those willing to make whatever sacrifice is necessary to embrace the unnatural power had by trafficking in such things. And sometimes, if a Northlander is desperate enough, he might be willing to have dealings with such matters himself. But there is always a price, for no one can dabble in the dark arts and hope to escape without at least some small taint of the shadow clinging to him...

You have been ordered to appear before your jarl, Olaf Henrikson, Jarl of Halfstead, greatest city of the Northlands. For young members in service to his household or visitors who have wintered to the south here at Silvermeade Hall but have no immediate plans for pursuing their wyrd, this is a moment of both hope and fear. Hope that he assigns you a glorious task that allows you to prove your mettle, but tinged with fear of his wrath should you fail. Your jarl is a good man, strong and battle-tested, with many famed heroic deeds to his name. Most importantly, he is a ring-giver, one who is generous to those in his service who prove themselves deserving.

After making yourself presentable, you and a few of his other retainers and guests walk through the gates of the great hall’s stockade and present yourselves to the guards at the carved wooden doors that mark the main entrance. After exchanging a few jests with these household warriors that you have known for as long as you’ve been a part of the jarl’s household, Ari Hrokson, your jarl’s herald, comes for you.

“I needn’t remind you to keep polite and let the jarl speak first. And do not keep too much of his time, this is a busy day,” the old skald states. He then announces you to the jarl, holding to accepted traditions of status with the careful order in which you are called forward, "Gunnar Hallvard...Skorri Erlensen...Freyja Skirlaug...Dark Dreams Wanderer...Signy Stone-Eye".

The hall is dimly lit, for this is a normal day and not a cause for feasting. Only a few huscarls stand about the room, but several thralls busy themselves putting up garlands of flowers and green boughs, preparations for the upcoming Feast of Freyja. The jarl is seated at the end of the feasting table in his chair, an ornate piece of work carved from the trunk of an oak. He is leaning in and talking with a stranger, a well dressed man with the bearing of an envoy. As you approach, you hear the jarl say, “… and thirty-five cattle, that’s all her dowry will be.”

The jarl turns to you. “Good, you have come quickly and well comported. This speaks kindly of you and your kin. Sit and partake of an early meal; you will need it, for I have a task for you. My three daughters, Inga, Fastvi, and Runa, wish to go out this afternoon and gather flowers for the feast. As this is a rightful thing for young girls to do, I am allowing it. They need to be guarded, and this is the task I set before you."

“I know you have longed for a chance to prove yourselves and rise in my favor as well as allow your mind’s-worth to shine, but there is no spear-din today and no chance to shed battle-dew. All I have is this task: Spend a spring afternoon watching young girls as they pick flowers in the meadows. When you have your own halls and have seen the ravens sip on many a foeman’s lifeblood, such a day as this will be a boon beyond naming. So remember it well and pray that you have many more like it. Now, let us eat. But before that, allow me to introduce our bread-brother this morning, Ottar Gundrikson, skald and herald to the Jarl Ref Solumundson of the Vale."

The conversation between the two men immediately turns to tales of battles and adventures past, and you find it difficult to get a word in.

Spoiler: Info

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DC 10 Diplomacy check required if you wish to attempt to get a polite word in between the two older men’s telling of tales of battles and adventures past.

Spoiler: Knowledge (Nobility) check - Skorri:

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Knowledge (Nobility) DC10 (1d20+5)[21]

Jarl Ref Solumundson of the Vale is a landholder of middling importance in the Storstrøm Vale but more importantly is joined by blood though his wife to the powerful Gat family, one of the two most-powerful clans in the Northlands. The Jarl has three sons of marrying age, all well accomplished in deed. Considering that Jarl Henrikson’s eldest daughter is sixteen, and thus of marrying age, you realize that you have likely stumbled into a discussion over her dowry.

Knowledge (Local/Nobility) DC15 (1d20+5)[17]

An alliance between Halfstead and the Gats would be beneficial but would also put the rival Hrolf clan at a disadvantage. Hordaland’s køenig recently passed away, leaving a child (Køenig Leif Ragison) on the throne. As Jarl Olaf supports the child king, he needs allies in the event of a civil war.

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