What sort of interludes would you like to see next? Besides the ones that were already available to choose, of course.
If you're taking ideas
  • Halla's favorite stories from Randi
  • Asveig and Minna gossiping with other local moms
  • Halla and Abjorn's moving shenanigans
  • Flekkr's outdoor adventures
  • Whatever Asva gets up to
  • Fabvir's hair care routine
 
If you're taking ideas
  • Halla's favorite stories from Randi
  • Asveig and Minna gossiping with other local moms
  • Halla and Abjorn's moving shenanigans
  • Flekkr's outdoor adventures
  • Whatever Asva gets up to
  • Fabvir's hair care routine
If you're reading this and you want to write omakes, these are some excellent prompts to launch off of. Reward Dice will be given out even if someone beats you to the punch.
 
surrounded by soldiers who are basically chaff,

I'd like to also point out that there's a decent amount of men-at-arms backing up the militia. By themselves, it'd be light work to kill them. They know that, too, so they (presumably) brought every single soldier they had left. I'd argue that even without the priest, they'd have a decent chance at killing us. I do agree with you that the priest is likely to have some buffs - which would turn a challenging fight into a death sentence.

Although, the priest seems to be taking us on by himself and without the help of the mortals behind him. So he is likely to have decent prowess on top of his buffs, rather than having little to no prowess at all.
 
I wonder why all these people aren't cultivators.

If Norseman can earn power by being an ideal Norseman/ Norsewoman, why can't Christians earn power by being a virtuous Christian?

Why is it restricted like that?

Is it because the Ten Commandments and the New Testament are too hard or something? Or is it to do with their feudalism? But if so, why is that, and what's stopping you from having Christians with a slightly altered version of our own cultivation system who otherwise have a similar social structure to us?
 
[X] Plan Knee A Priest In The Groin

[X] Plan Knee A Priest In The Groin
-[X] Stoke Virthing (+33 Orthstirr)
-[X] 25d6 Attack (all tricks)
-[X] 12d6 Defense
-[X] 0d6 Intercept
-[X] Use Ember-Wing-Cloak (-12 Orthstirr) to close with Father Gerrit near instantly and make a 9d6 Knee-Groin-Trick (-1 Orthstirr) against him, make two 4d6 (5d6 w/Hugareida) Firebomb-Strikes (-8 Orthstirr, hoping to hit additional enemies) against him while he's dealing with the results of that, then two 5d6 Honed Power Chop attacks (-4 Orthstirr) to try and finish him off
-[X] In response to any melee Trick Attack first use Contested Movement (-3 Orthstirr) and if that doesn't work use Halting Vortex (-4 Orthstirr). In response to any ranged trick attack just use Halting Vortex (-4 Orthstirr). If we are attacked with a non-Trick attack use Reinforced Honed Defenses using our Defense dice (-2 Orthstirr each, 3d6 each). If we are out of Defense dice and it's a melee attack, use Contested Movement (-3 Orthstirr) on normal attacks, and if we are also out of Reinforce Shield and Armor and that doesn't work for any reason (including it being a ranged attack) use Halting Vortex (-4 Orthstirr) even on normal attacks to prevent Endurance loss.
-[X] Tactics – I mean, why mess with what works? Get into melee with the priest and go to town on him after a crotch shot.
Maybe throw a Kindle Spinner at the archers so they don't get to be annoying mosquitos?
 
I wonder why all these people aren't cultivators.
I imagine it takes a level of dedication and training that isn't easily available. I imagine, seeing how the system around Jarls work is that is has something to do with the feudal system set up. commoners don't cultivate and rely on the knights for protection, who get land from lords and lords kneel to kings. Meanwhile the church teaches only those of the knight class and above plus their own priests? We just don't know until Halla somehow gets someone to explain to her. I imagine she'd be relatively curious.
 
I wonder why all these people aren't cultivators.

If Norseman can earn power by being an ideal Norseman/ Norsewoman, why can't Christians earn power by being a virtuous Christian?

Why is it restricted like that?

Is it because the Ten Commandments and the New Testament are too hard or something? Or is it to do with their feudalism? But if so, why is that, and what's stopping you from having Christians with a slightly altered version of our own cultivation system who otherwise have a similar social structure to us?

Well, I think evidence suggests that it's the Norse system that's the odd one out in everyone being cultivators, not the Christian one for most people not being. Every non-Norse system we've heard of is more like the Christian one in that regard, requiring active (and often difficult) formal training to become a cultivator rather than it just happening like it does for the Norse. Which means that this is the wrong question to be asking. The question is not why all Christians aren't cultivators, but why all Norsemen are cultivators.

Which is a very good question, mind you. A few theories floated have been that it has something to do with their propensity for violence (conflict as a power source), their high death toll (death as a power source), their low population compared to the volume of land they possess (the land generates power passively), the inefficient nature of their cultivation releasing more energy back into the environment, the external nature of their cultivation power source (Christians aren't dinged by reputation hits like the Norse are...only their own acts can effect their cultivation), or something else entirely.

We don't actually know, but all the theories are definitely interesting.

Maybe throw a Kindle Spinner at the archers so they don't get to be annoying mosquitos?

I think we can rely on our fellow raiders to target the archers. We called fighting the cultivator and thus need to focus on our own target. Trying to do everything will result in us doing none of it well.
 
I wonder why all these people aren't cultivators.

If Norseman can earn power by being an ideal Norseman/ Norsewoman, why can't Christians earn power by being a virtuous Christian?

Why is it restricted like that?

Is it because the Ten Commandments and the New Testament are too hard or something? Or is it to do with their feudalism? But if so, why is that, and what's stopping you from having Christians with a slightly altered version of our own cultivation system who otherwise have a similar social structure to us?

Perhaps only those that dedicate their entire life to God actually end up as cultivators? People like monks, priests, knights, etc. Or maybe you need to be ordained/consecrated? It would explain why ordinary people aren't cultivators, since even if they are religious, they're still not devoting their 'entire life' to God.
 
There's also the question of why their cultivators aren't better than ours, pound for pound. Norsemen have to like farm and stuff, these cultivators can clearly spend most of their time training their combat or priestly capability on top of large community support.
 
There's also the question of why their cultivators aren't better than ours, pound for pound. Norsemen have to like farm and stuff, these cultivators can clearly spend most of their time training their combat or priestly capability on top of large community support.

They probably are better than ours pound for pound. Not better than Halla, but she's well above average and Gabriel, even restricted by the thrall-bands, was nearly her match in a straight fight even sans armor...and he claims in his interlude to be a mediocre squire at best. She's advanced since then, but was already above average even during said fight, which means an average squire is definitely significantly better than an average Norseman of the same age. Actual Knights can pretty clearly wreck most random Norsemen one on one.

Now, that may not be as true for Priests as it is for Knights, but it's worth keeping in mind.
 
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"That..." Folkmarr begins, a happy smile on his face, "is utterly adorable."

There's a hint of something in his eyes, something that's quickly hidden by learned skill. It wasn't around long enough for you to identify it, but it reminded you of... jealousy? Envy? What does he have to be envious of? He's a Jarl!
Jealous of the childhood friend turned marriage partner?
Its supposedly rare?

Not much to say about the town....
Crowd sourcing the cultivation can give you doom stacks, but it does make your population base extremely vulnerable....
Crimson orthstirr screamed as a spike of iron tore its guts to rags and plunged deep into the rock wall behind it.
Iron mina/hugreida? Nice....
Does it enable infinite iron production?
Steinarr could rip troll-men to shreds with his bare hands while Sten needed his sword and his Ironbloom to even attempt keeping up.
.....how many dice does he has?
Crowfeeder left the scabbard.

Seventy-three heads hit the ground.

Crowfeeder returned to the scabbard.
...flying slash/sword wave?
"Gods, I'm out of shape."

"If that's you out of shape," Sten coughed, leaning on his sword, "then I'm not sure I want to see you in shape."
Good thing he isn't rusted huh? Guess the thief wasa wake up call for him.

And yeah I agree with Sten.
"Good thinking like that will guarantee you a long and happy life."
Curiosity killed the cat, huh?
Guess if Steinar leans into wildfire he turns off friendly fire protection.
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention this but this interlude also contains a small reference relating to the naming scheme of Halla's family

Forgefire wasn't used in this interlude.
Naming scheme?
Wasn't it first son/daughter named after father/mother?
 
So... I had a thought.

Halla is about to go nutcracker on the biggest threat in the room, in front of most of a warband of fellow vikings, all of them male, in a really splashy way. That's the sort of thing that gets noticed, especially if it's highly successful.

Based on the pregnancy rolls we've seen thus far, Halla is... aggressive in bed. Let's call it "aggressive".

Is there any chance she gets a kenning for her ungentle ways with respect to male genitalia?

If she does, does Abjorn get orthstirr for it?

If nothing else, it might make Folkmarr feel a bit less jealous about the whole thing.
 
Based on the pregnancy rolls we've seen thus far, Halla is... aggressive in bed. Let's call it "aggressive".

I mean, the phrase that leaps to mind is more 'insatiable' than anything else, at least from what we've seen. That would match up with Hallr's own history (the man had, I believe it was 26 children with, uh, well, we know a minimum of two women but as one of them only had two children with him, I suspect a significantly higher number than that).

Is there any chance she gets a kenning for her ungentle ways with respect to male genitalia?

A kenning based on her nascent Nutcracker trait has been mentioned previously and seems plausible, yes.

If she does, does Abjorn get orthstirr for it?

Not for that, I don't think...but reflected glory is definitely a thing. When Steinarr had a particularly successful raid (the one he brought Gabriel and Jerasmus back from), everyone in the household gained +3 orthstirr (including Halla...she actually got an additional +1 due to drengskapr if I recall correctly), and that kind of reflected glory has been mentioned as pretty much the only way for thralls to gain orthstirr, so it's definitely a thing. Which means it's very possible for Halla's achievements to grant Abjorn orthstirr and vice versa.

If nothing else, it might make Folkmarr feel a bit less jealous about the whole thing.

You assume things about his preferences. Maybe his jealousy only increases.
 
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Not for that, I don't think...but reflected glory is definitely a thing. When Steinarr had a particularly successful raid (the one he brought Gabriel and Jerasmus back from), everyone in the household gained +3 orthstirr (including Halla...she actually got an additional +1 due to drengskapr if I recall correctly), and that kind of reflected glory has been mentioned as pretty much the only way for thralls to gain orthstirr, so it's definitely a thing. Which means it's very possible for Halla's achievements to grant Abjorn orthstirr and vice versa.
Well, duh. My point was more that he might gain some respect for what it would imply about his fortitude.
 
I wonder why all these people aren't cultivators.

Because cultivation is, at its heart, improvement to overcome hardship. As Norse, we fight a fuckload of monsters in the dark corners of the world that haven't been properly plumbed yet. The Greeks and Romans did the same, and built empires from it. The Carolingians did the same. The Umayyads, the Timurids, all the other empires emerged out of the assholes of the world and kicked ass assimilating the chaff before something broke them from the inside.

These Frisians? This place has had thousands of years of fertile fields and easy rivers. The danger is from their fellow man, and nowadays they're followers of the White Christ: a religion dedicated to creating hierarchies of power and using the top to slaughter the bottom. Charles Martel could probably yeet a hammer over the horizon and nuke our entire ship and everyone on it from Paris if he knew we were here: but he doesn't, so he can't. And until he learns, we feast.
 
Well, duh. My point was more that he might gain some respect for what it would imply about his fortitude.

I, uh, don't think their private activities of this sort are well known enough for that to occur. And don't think they will be.

He might well get respect over time for 'taming' her despite how untrue that is, simply because that sort of thing is more governed by assumptions than reality and we are gonna settle down a tiny bit to have a kid in the near future. Dunno if that's orthstirr-worthy, though.
 
I think we can rely on our fellow raiders to target the archers. We called fighting the cultivator and thus need to focus on our own target. Trying to do everything will result in us doing none of it well.
Throwing one ranged attack before charging =/= trying to do everything.
Jealous of the childhood friend turned marriage partner?
Its supposedly rare?
Jealous of marriage for love (rather than political/practical) or jealous for Abjorn finding a Jarl grade wide. Would be my guess.
Iron mina/hugreida? Nice....
Does it enable infinite iron production?
If it did Steinarr wouldn't have bought a buttload of iron for him.

I, uh, don't think their private activities of this sort are well known enough for that to occur. And don't think they will be.

He might well get respect over time for 'taming' her despite how untrue that is, simply because that sort of thing is more governed by assumptions than reality and we are gonna settle down a tiny bit to have a kid in the near future. Dunno if that's orthstirr-worthy, though.
Ah,
Halla Jeweltaker and Abjorn Liontamer, the Norse powercouple.
 
Throwing one ranged attack before charging =/= trying to do everything.

No, but it's a step closer, and gives the Priest time to start doing things to our compatriots, or to us before we attack him, or to buff his allies. Seizing the initiative and stopping all that if possible is our friend.

I'm also not at all confident the current plan will actually be enough to finish off the Priest, and I'd much rather be an action closer to doing that than throw an attack at the archers.

Ah,
Halla Jeweltaker and Abjorn Liontamer, the Norse powercouple.

Something like that seems plausible, yeah.
 
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I imagine it takes a level of dedication and training that isn't easily available. I imagine, seeing how the system around Jarls work is that is has something to do with the feudal system set up. commoners don't cultivate and rely on the knights for protection, who get land from lords and lords kneel to kings. Meanwhile the church teaches only those of the knight class and above plus their own priests? We just don't know until Halla somehow gets someone to explain to her. I imagine she'd be relatively curious.
Norse Qi is obtained by deeds and actions befitting of an upstanding memeber of a society. Christian Qi is obtained by faith and most bibles at this time were written in Latin a dead language.
 
Halla mentioned that the 'Qi' (Using Qi as reference to Orthsirr-like resources) was similar to what she felt during a Blot (IIRC a Viking religious ceremony where you sacrifice stuff to the gods).

If we structure our Blots or religious offerings properly, could we get a supplementary 'Faith Qi' resource to tap on in addition to Orthsirr?
 
If we structure our Blots or religious offerings properly, could we get a supplementary 'Faith Qi' resource to tap on in addition to Orthsirr?

I doubt it. Your cultivation is tied to your culture; the Norse's cultivation has no version of 'Faith Qi', which means that religious offerings would do nothing for us. Since, y'know, you can't receive glory or fame that way. Nor does it conform to society's idea of an ideal Norseman (a drengskapr). The 'Faith Qi' you speak of is unique to Christians alone. Unless some other culture has their own version.

Not sure if someone has already brought this up, @Imperial Fister - if so, then my bad - but we should have 25 training dice instead of 24.

By the way, who owns the farm in the eyes of the law? Does Abjorn have full ownership over it? Or do we also have official ownership of it, too?
 
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Not sure if someone has already brought this up, @Imperial Fister - if so, then my bad - but we should have 25 training dice instead of 24.
i think it was brought up earlier cause i remember 24 and 25 being mentioned
By the way, who owns the farm in the eyes of the law? Does Abjorn have full ownership over it? Or do we also have official ownership of it, too?
google says this, which matter since the farm is what our family gave and the cattle is what our in laws gave
"If the husband was the one demanding the divorce, his wife would receive the bride's price, the dowry, the morning gift and a third of any common property. If the woman decided to separate, she only received her dowry and the morning gift."
 
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