NorseQuest (A Norse Xianxia)

AN: Just to let you know, I've added in the rolls and chosen options as invisitext so as to make it as unobtrusive as possible.

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[X]The sheep need to be moved to higher ground, so that any potential vikingar coming by don't have as easy as a time getting to them.
Most of the snow is gone by now, but some straggling patches crunch underneath your shoes as you, Eric, and Steinarr all work together to herd the sheep towards the highland. In a few weeks, you'll be doing this with the cattle and the goats too, but for now you simply enjoy the feeling of wind in your hair as you walk through the hills.

Steinarr stands off to the side, watching over you and Eric as you guide the baa-ing herd along. There are seventeen ewes and six rams in your family's herd, a little over eight ounces of silver. It's not the biggest of herds, but you'd probably start struggling with anything more than that, especially now that Njall was freed by Steinarr. Which means that, unless help can be hired from Asvir or one of the other farms, one of you will be stuck watching over the sheep till late summer.

One of the men, rather. You shudder, for once thankful for your womanhood.

And then you look to your spindly beanpole of an older brother and that brief thankful feeling is dashed yet again. Eric never had the broadest of shoulders and, if he wasn't your brother, you might have described him as fearful. Yet, like always, Steinarr and Eric both carry weapons and shields while you're stuck with a staff. Frankly, it makes you jealous. Why can't you have a weapon?

You scowl and kick up a patch of dirt. A nearby ewe shuffles away nervously.

Because you're a woman. Because you're a girl. Because you're weak.

Because because because.

Honestly, if they'd just let you have a weapon, you'd be fine staying in one of the pasture dwellings. At least then you'd be able to get some practice in without somebody stopping you!
(Hamingja: 6) 1 Super-Success
And then a glimmer of something glinting from the ground catches your eye and you pause. Glancing around, you make sure that neither Steinarr nor Eric were looking your way. With the coast clear, you bend over and scoop up the mud-covered object.

Later that day, when the sheep had been moved, you stole away from where Steinarr and Eric were talking and took out the object and a rag. You began to clean and realization lit up your eyes. The more you cleaned, the more it shined until you found yourself in possession of a silver penny, all the way from the Danelaw. A little over half-an-ounce, if you had to make a guess.

Was it dropped by some wandering warrior after the Great Army was disbanded? Was it from a trader? You suppose that it doesn't really matter as its yours now. Your lucky penny.
(Hugr: 3, 5) 1 Success
This... this a coin, which is a part of managing finances.

As a woman, it will one day be your job to manage your future family's finances. That includes the buying and selling of things. Things like weapons.

You've had your lessons, you know the value of a sword and you know that it would take a long time to afford one of those. Twelve milk cows, twenty-four ounces of silver, for a sword of middling quality. That's enough silver to buy a herd of sheep three times the size of your family's!

An axe or spear or even a sax like Abjorn has, however? You're already a third of the way to affording a spear and a fourth to an axe. Thor's breath, you're halfway to a sax!

Nobody's going to suspect a thing if you buy a weapon. If you can get all the silver yourself, then Steinarr and the rest will never need to know a thing. And they won't be able to take it away from you if you bought it with your own money, because that's thieving. From family no less!

The only other option is taking a weapon from a barrow, but...

Draugar lurk in barrows.

You shudder.

You're not scared, you're not. It's just that... That draugar are simply too much for you right now! You'll raid all the barrows you can find once you're strong, but right now you need to focus on being not-weak.

And this penny is the first step in doing that.

What a lucky find!

(+1 to hamingja for the rest of the year)

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[x] Stigr says that he's found something weird in the woods, but you and Abjorn aren't certain on that one
"You're not gonna believe me unless I show it to you," that's what the twelve-year-old had said with spear in hand and shield on back.

With the only other thing to do being helping Asva and Asveig with the cooking, you immediately took Stigr up on his offer. After Stigr renewed his promise to keep you safe — like you couldn't do that yourself — the pair of you set off.

Along the way, you bumped into Abjorn, who'd been gathering firewood. After a short explanation, the large boy agreed to come along and soon you had both of your best friends — both of them carrying an assortment of weapons — on either side of you as you ventured deeper into the woods.

You steadily ignore the sax on Abjorn's belt and the spear leaning against Stigr's shoulder. Soon, you rub the penny between thumb and forefinger, soon you'll have a weapon of your own. It'll only take time, time and money.

Deeper and deeper into the woods you go, far past the firewood trees. Not many people venture this deep into the Hading. But then again, there's not many people around to begin with. If you were one of those stricken with wanderlust, you're sure that your heart would be racing from excitement as you stroll through seldom-trod paths.

"Did Stigr say anything about where we're going?" Abjorn peers into the shadow-filled woods, a meaty hand on his sax and his blue-green painted shield held at the ready. He's only thirteen years-old yet he already stands taller and broader than your father, who is not a small man by any means. That's probably part of why he's allowed to be by himself all the time.

"No, for once he's keeping his mouth shut." You grumble as you step over a twig that would've gotten caught in your dress. Oh how you wish for pants.

"The gods finally answer my prayers and it's to spite me."

Stigr rolls his eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yak it up. You'll be changing your tune once you see what I've found!"

"What were you even doing back here, anyways?" You quirk a brow as Stigr shrugs unconvincingly.

"Oh, well, I was..." He trails off, searching around for a convenient excuse. "Y'know, it really doesn't matter why I was back here."

"Stigandr," Abjorn's deep voice carries a stern warning, "every step we take leads us deeper into the Hading. It isn't safe here."

"Maybe not for you, but I'm safe no matter where I go!" Stigr responds with a level of bravado common in boys his age.

"It's not safe for Halla."

You stifle a curse by clenching your jaw, the bickering boys failing to realize that you've fallen half-a-step behind. Sighing, you let it go and relax your jaw before catching up. Abjorn didn't mean anything by it, he's just thinking of the promises he made to keep you safe. That's all.

Besides, he's not entirely incorrect, as much as it may pain you to admit. You don't have a weapon, nor have you had the near-daily training that all the boys get. Not that you've ever been invited to the practice battles that the local boys put together every once in a while, but that's never stopped you from watching Abjorn lay waste nor from cheering Stigr on during archery contests — Stigr's probably one of the best shots in the entire valley!

"But, if you must know, I was chasing a valkyrja," Stigr eventually admits, his voice drawing you back to the present.

Abjorn blinks, long and slow. "A valkyrja. The choosers of the slain."

"She was in the form of a raven!"

"And how would you know that?"

"She spoke to me, that's how."

You shake your head as Abjorn simply keeps staring at Stigr. He lets out a heavy sigh and lets it go.

"Sure, whatever you say." He takes another long look into the forest. "How far is it to wherever you're leading us? Surely you can tell us that much."

"Why would I need to tell you anything," you squint at the smirking boy as he stops walking, "when I can show you right now!"

You and Abjorn share a look as Stigr gestures at an old, dried up riverbed. Tree roots diving in and out keep the riverbed from collapsing in on itself.
(Hamr: 2) Failure
"Are we supposed to be impressed?" You frown, not seeing anything of note in the riverbed.

"There." Abjorn points at a part in the river, one covered in thick roots and leafy branches. Wait, leafy branches? From where?

"Oh," you say as realization dawns. No plant grew that way, the branches were put there, by someone wanting to hide something.

"I found this little number while I was following that valkyrja," Stigr says as he hops down. He pulls back the branches, revealing a shallow, empty dugout. "I don't know who made this, but they haven't been back since I've started watching it."
(Hugr: 3, 4) 2 Successes
You climb down after Stigr, Abjorn close behind. There's a frown on your face as you think back to when you tried to make a hideout with leaves and sticks. It hadn't lasted long before the leaves turned brown and ruined the hideaway.

"How long did you say you had been watching, again?" The frown deepens as you rub a green leaf between thumb and forefinger.

"Couple weeks, why?" Stigr's grin falls away from his face as he sees the look on your own. "Halla? Is something wrong?"

Your lips thin, the leaf falling from your hand. "These are fresh, Stigr. Two days old at most."

"Oh."

You, Stigr, and Abjorn all know what this means; there's an outlaw in the Hading Woods.

Why else would someone build such a hideout if they didn't expect to need it soon? Hiding is a coward's act. A real man stands out in the open and lets the world know his deeds. That's what Steinarr said when found your hideout.

This... could be an opportunity.

(Mysterious Hideout added to Journal)

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(Hamr Training: 1, 6, 5) 2 Successes and 1 Failure
You've been running around the farm every day for the past few months in an attempt to improve your hamr.

When you started, your lungs burned and struggled for air, not used to this level of effort. Daggers stabbed into your side and your legs ached.

But now?

You run wild and free, wind kissing your laughing face as you run your fifth lap around the farm in half-as-many minutes.

(Hamr Rank Up. Endurance Increased. 4 Successes till next Rank Up)

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Does it want to be friends? (Hugr (Silver-Tongue): 1, 1, 3) 2 Failures, 1 Success
The dog — puppy, really — is a shaggy brown thing with patchy, matted fur. It's small, likely the runt of the litter that somehow managed to survive. It lays in the shadow of the smithy, its body pressed up tight against the wall as it stares suspiciously at the world around it.

You've been thinking about it since it arrived. You've seen how thin it is, the ribs visible through the skin. So you've brought it some dried meat from the storehouse (which you'll replace with some fish).

It growls as you get close, so you stop and carefully, slowly, set the small bundle of meat on the ground. After unwrapping it, you slowly back away and watch as the dog sniffs the air.

It doesn't seem to take the hint and lays its head back down.

You frown, looks like you'll have to try again, on your own time.

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Seasonal:
[ ] (Seasonal) You've run out of the firewood from last winter, time to go get some more.
[ ] (Seasonal) The fields need to be furrowed and seeded.
[ ] (Seasonal) Check and reset the animal traps.
[ ] (Seasonal) Help out with the animals.
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Personal:
[ ] (Mysterious Hideout) That hideout has you concerned. What will you do about it?
-[ ] Tell your father and let him handle it
-[ ] See if there's any tracks nearby
-[ ] Search for more hideouts in the Hading
-[ ] Try an ambush
[ ] (Dog) Try to win the dog's trust
[ ] (Personal) You've heard about the nearby village of Asvir for many years now, but have never been. Lets see if you can't wring a promise out of your father to take you some time.
[ ] (Personal) Ask Randi to tell you some stories
[ ] (Personal) Pick a fight or spar with...
-[ ] Eric, your older brother
-[ ] One of the local boys (Optional Write In)
-[ ] Asva (You doubt she'd be willing to fight you, but maybe you can needle her enough?)
[ ] (Personal) Spend time with... (Write in)
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Training: You have 3d6 training dice to spend as you see fit.
[ ] (Training) Hamr (4 successes to rank up)
-[ ] (Optional) Train a hamr skill or trick (Write in)
[ ] (Training) Hugr (2 successes to rank up)
-[ ] (Optional) Train a hugr skill or trick (Write in)
[ ] (Training) What in the heck is a 'fylgja'?
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Orthstirr Available: 2
How do you want to use your orthstirr?
[ ] (Orthstirr Usage) (Write in)
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Random Event: (1, 1st Reroll: 6)

Under a cloudy night sky, a bundled up wanderer knocks on the door to your longhouse. Steinarr opens the door and welcomes him into his home. He offers the traveler a change of clothes, a warm meal, and a place to stay the night.

The wanderer is so wowed by Steinarr's hospitality that, when he made his goodbyes the next morning, he promised to spread the word of Steinarr and his family's generosity.

(+1 orthstirr)
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AN: I've added in a planning section for how you want to use your orthstirr for the next turn. You get spent orthstirr back at the end of the turn.

Also, please vote by plan in the future. It just makes things easier.

Also also, there will be an hour-and-a-half moratorium before voting is opened, so as to let you think properly and to make your cases.

Both of these will be added to the mechanics page. Please feel free to ask for clarification or any other questions you may have.