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Outlaw (A Norse Xianxia)

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You have been outlawed for a crime you did not commit. Clear your name or die trying.


(Summerfest '24 Storytelling Showdown Finalist)
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Introduction, Preamble, and Character Creation
  • Threadmarks
    • I.F. Ister

    I.F. Ister

    Fortifying The Thread
    Pronouns
    He/They
    To be outlawed in Norse society is a terrible, terrible thing. To the Norse, being a person means being subject to the Law—that all-encompassing set of rules and regulations that governs the lives of all beholden to it. If you are not subject to the Law, you are not a person. Anyone, king or thrall, may kill you and not only will they be right to do so, but they will also be celebrated!

    Killing an outlaw is always a noble deed, for outlaws are beasts and monsters. They are men of the forest, animals in human skin—and you are one of them.

    In Norse society, your social standing—your worth as a person—is the single most important aspect of one's being. Norsemen must constantly prove and reprove themselves as fit to receive and keep their status in society. One surefire way to improve one's standing is by the killing of outlaws—not to mention the wealth that often follows from bounties and the like.

    The life of an outlaw is often short and always harsh. To live among the animals, to sleep beneath the trees, it does things to a man. It makes him mean and cruel and beastly.

    But you are in luck, for you were outlawed for a crime you did not commit. If you can clear your name, your life will be yours once again.

    A task far easier said than done.

    0~0~0

    I give my greetings to you all and bid you welcome to Outlaw (A Norse Xianxia). My name is I.F. Ister and I am the QM for this quest. You may know me from my other works in the same setting—NorseQuest and NorseQuest: Collective Edition. If you do, welcome back! If you don't, be welcomed regardless!

    The first part of this quest is the initial outlawing of our protagonist, Barki Gunnvaldsson. The choices you make here will determine how poor the starting situation is in Part 2, where the setting opens up considerably and the rest of the mechanics are introduced.

    With the preamble out of the way, shall we move on to character creation?

    0~0~0

    You are Barki Gunnvaldsson and you were born in Norway. Your parents, Gunnvald Strong and Elga Stasdottir, were good people and raised you well before unfortunately dying during Fairhair's rise. With your parents' death, you decided to move to Iceland.

    When did you arrive in Iceland?
    [ ] With the first settlers
    The land is harsh and untamed and will be difficult to survive in, but you will face far fewer human adversaries.
    [ ] In the second wave
    The land is still rough and won't be easy to survive, but large swathes have been tamed. You will also face more regular human adversaries.
    [ ] Alongside the latecomers
    The hospitable land has nearly been completely settled and there are a large amount of people eager to improve their social standing by whatever means necessary.

    Growing up in Norway, you found that you are talented in swordplay and bear the sword Sunning, a sword passed down your father's line for generations. Beyond the norm of Norse society, you find that you are also skilled in:
    [ ] Write in two skills

    Through your veins, just as it did for your father, runs blood of potent strength. You hold a bloodline deep within, granting you additional capabilities beyond the typical.

    What is your bloodline?
    [ ] Steady Grip
    You may walk, crawl, run, or any other movement method on any surface as if it were solid ground, including up walls and sheer cliffs. This also gives you improved balance and a very strong resistance to being knocked down—though being grappled to the ground is still a concern. Things you touch are very difficult to remove from you unless you will it.

    You may also suggest your own ideas for bloodlines. However, I will only accept them if they capture my imagination enough. Full disclosure, I am quite enamored with Steady Grip so I will likely go with that unless something you come up with manages to out-enamor it.

    Please vote by plan. Please allow me to make a character sheet post and another post for something before you start posting.

    I'm going to be a bit busy for some parts of today, so I may not be able to answer your questions as quickly as you may otherwise desire. You will have two days to make your vote, but this may change as the situation develops.
     
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    Character Sheet
  • Informational
    • Barki Gunnvaldsson
    Ordstirr Reserves: 7/7
    Aspects:
    Frami ( ) | Saemd ( ) | Virthing ( )

    Overview Journal Attributes Items and Equipment
    • You are a minor landowner in the South Quarter of Iceland, and your godi is Sterki Godi. You are married to Bestla Red-cheeks, who you love dearly. You have a loyal dog named Keld, who accompanies you everywhere.
      You are 22-years-old.

      Current Bounty: 0oz Silver
      (Note: This bounty is not reliable, as it is only updated when Barki is made aware of changes)

      Status
      You are currently healthy
      You are currently rested
      You are currently well-fed
    • 0~0~0
      Notes
      0~0~0
      An Outlaw's Vengeance
      Somebody has it out for you in particular. Their name, motives, and reasoning behind it are all a mystery. What you do know is that they won't rest until they have something. As long as they live, you won't be able to ever get a good night's rest again.

      Clues
      -Sterki Godi was paid three pounds of gold to let this mockery of the law occur. Surely, he must know the name of the man who paid him.
      -Modolfr Jarnsson was the proxy the unknown party used in the case. He must know who is behind this!


      The Comb's Craftsman
      Someone must have made the comb that started this all, but who? Would they be able to help you in your quest?

      Clues
      -Modolfr Jarnsson produced a box full of very similar pieces, claiming that they were made by the same man. Would he know who made them?


      Coming Clean (Time Limited) (COMPLETE)
      One way or another, Bestla is going to learn of your outlawing. She's going to be very angry with you, but if you tell her of it yourself, perhaps she'll forgive you of it?

      Besides, you're going to need food, tools, and other useful supplies and Sunningskeld is a good source for them.
      ---
      Having survived an... interesting encounter with Harald Ice-walker, you arrived at Sunningskeld to find Bestla waiting for you. After soothing her anxious mind with food and cuddles, you bid farewell to your wife of three years and set out with a pack laden with supplies.
      0~0~0
      Relations
      0~0~0

      Bestla Red-cheeks - Your wife. A strong, beautiful woman who you somehow managed to win the love of, Bestla is your staunchest ally in this world.

      Keld - Your dog. An ever-loyal companion, Keld's gray fur, wet nose, and ferocious tail are always by your side.

      Sterki Godi - Your Godi. He helped you get your feet under you when you arrived in Iceland and you decided to support him as godi as thanks.

      Dumvald Strong-rider - Your good friend and neighbor. He has many horses and is said to be a beast in the saddle--both for good and ill.

      Harald Ice-walker - Regrettably, he, by virtue of being Bestla's half-brother, is your brother-in-law. He was against you marrying Bestla and has it out for you as a result.

      Styrkarr Glornirsson - One of Harald's friends and your former rival for Bestla's hand. He is skilled with the sword and once said that he would duel you over Bestla before backing down.

      Modolfr Jarnsson - An expert tanner who served as a proxy in your trial. You have a grudge to settle with him, one way or another.
    • You are skilled in:
      Swordplay
      Woodworking
      Cooking

      You are:
      Durable

      You have:
      Upgraded Healing Factor

      You have the Sure Grip Bloodline:
      You may walk, crawl, run, or any other movement method on any surface as if it were solid ground, including up walls and sheer cliffs. This also gives you improved balance and a very strong resistance to being knocked down—though being grappled to the ground is still a concern. Things you touch are very difficult to remove from you unless you will it.

      Trick Repertoire:
      -Echo Layer: A trick that allows one to make multiple strikes in a single blow. Skilled users are able to apply certain deviations to the echoes, such as speed or positioning.
      --False Tell: A descendant of the Echo Layer trick, this trick sends forth a false image of a blow before the actual swing.
      -Quick Shield: A trick that provides a shield with a burst of speed, allowing it to find the proper position with ease.
      -Hard Flicker: A trick devised by Barki, this trick sharply enhances the strength of his fingers.
      -Firm Brace: A defensive trick used to withstand massive damage. Has the drawback of rooting the user in place.
      -Recall: A simple trick that allows the user to call unfixed objects to their hand with a flick of the wrist.
      -Splinter Strike: Using his knowledge of woodworking, Barki devised this trick to sunder shields. As this trick is still in the early stages of development, Barki has yet to use it in battle.
    • You can wear something on your head, your face, your back, your body, your arms, and your legs. You have three weapon slots (one for each hand and one easily accessible.

      You may easily store up to five items on your person. This includes such things as pouches and bags, which can be used to stow smaller items as well as food without taking up a full item slot. Going over this limit makes everything more difficult as Barki finds his motions hindered by their presence.
      0~0~0
      Equipment
      0~0~0
      Sunning, Sword - A sword of fine make, Sunning has been in your family for generations. Its blade has an odd blue tinge that seems to wave in the light of the sun. Its edge has always stayed true and never has it needed sharpening.
      Work Knife - This work knife was given to you by your father when you turned four, you have carried it ever since. Though well-suited towards everyday tasks, felling a full-grown tree is a bridge too far.
      Shield - An above-average affair of birch planks, a woolen cover, and a rim of rawhide. It's served you well, though you fear it may not be enough for the coming troubles. Still, your skill in working the wood has seen the shield survive more than it has any right to given the materials of its make.
      Bow - A Yuletide gift from Dumvald, this bow is of fine make and threaded with spun horse hair. You reckon it's probably got about 400 or so shots left in it before it needs re-stringing.

      Woolen Cloak
      Red Woolen Overtunic, Braid Trim
      Undyed Linen Undertunic
      Green Trousers, Leather Belt, Pouches
      Undyed Linen Underpants
      Woolen Socks
      Leather Shoes
      0~0~0
      Items (Capacity: 5/5)
      0~0~0
      Ration Pouch (6/8 Rations)
      -Firestarter
      -3oz Silver
      -The Comb
      Quiver (24/24 Arrows | Arrowheads: 8 Sharp, 14 Blunt, 2 Broad)
      Carving Axe
      Whetstone

      0~0~0
      Olfossa + Saddlebags (Capacity: 6/6)
      0~0~0
      Tarp
      Bedroll
      Shield
      Rope
      Saddle + Saddle-blanket
      -Linen Undertunic
      -Linen Underpants
      -Woolen Cloak
      -Woolen Socks
      -Sewing Needle + String (1/3)
      -Grooming Kit (Comb, Nail file, Teeth-scrubber)
      -Bandages (2/3)
      -Medicinal Herbs (2/3)
      -Valuable Spices
      -Valuable Seasonings
      -
      -
      -
     
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  • Informational
    • Mundane Mechanics
  • Informational
    • This is an informational detailing the non-cultivation mechanics that you will interact with in this story. Cultivation mechanics are explored through the story.

    Survival
    Health
    You do not have a health bar so much as the general state of your body determines what manner of health you are in. Though Norsemen are able to weather terrible injuries with little complaint, doing so takes its toll on one's health regardless. As long as your body is relatively intact, you will make a full recovery given enough food and rest. The more food and rest one has recently had, the more damage they can grit their teeth and bear.

    Rest
    Sleeping is a very important activity to do, for having ill-rest reduces the effectiveness of everything. Your skills degrade, your willpower flags, and your health begins to fail. Going without sleep for extended periods of time can even drive a man to madness. Having well-rested slumber is vitally important to being able to heal. Low levels of rest increase the time it takes to do anything.

    Food
    A Norseman eats two meals a day--dagverdr, the mid-morning meal, and nattverdr in the evening. One meal is all a Norseman needs to survive, but he will not be able to grow any stronger nor will he be able to heal. Thus, food is tracked in meals on your character sheet to allow you to ration it out as you see fit.


    Time
    Time is tracked in hours. Everything requires time to do, from travel, sleeping, crafting, hunting, and so on. In order to do things, you must dedicate time to it in your plan.

    Training
    During your travels, you are allowed to spend time training. You will not receive indications beyond descriptive for how said training is progressing, though I will keep track of hours spent in my notes. You may train most anything, as long as it would logically be allowed. You cannot, for example, train your height or weight, but you can train your swordplay or archery.
     
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  • Informational
    • [X] Plan: I Know this Looks Bad. First Wave Version.
    -[X] Skills - Wilderness Survival, Fleinns
    -[X] With the first settlers
    -[X] Loki Bloodline - Monstrous Shapeshifting. Your heritage is, for better or worse, traceable to the father of Fenris and Jormungandr and the mother of Sleipnir. You can alter your form more than a normal Norseman, but the cosmetic effects are always monstrous or animalistic, with scales, claws, fangs, disturbing eye colors and fur being common themes.


    [x] Plan: I Know this Looks Bad
    -[x] Skills - Wilderness Survival, Fleinns
    -[x] In the second wave
    -[x] Loki Bloodline - Monstrous Shapeshifting. Your heritage is, for better or worse, traceable to the father of Fenris and Jormungandr and the mother of Sleipnir. You can alter your form more than a normal Norseman, but the cosmetic effects are always monstrous or animalistic, with scales, claws, fangs, disturbing eye colors and fur being common themes.


    [X] Plan Wrestling In The Wilds
    -[X] In the second wave
    -[X] Skilled in Wrestling and Wilderness Survival
    -[X] Steady Grip
     
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    alexthealright said:
    [X] With the first settlers
    The land is harsh and untamed and will be difficult to survive in, but you will face far fewer human adversaries.
    [X] In the second wave
    The land is still rough and won't be easy to survive, but large swathes have been tamed. You will also face more regular human adversaries.
    [X] Write in two skills: Wilderness survival, Stealth.
    [X] Earth Diving
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Needs to be a plan, sadly. I'll be posting a full description of Earth Diving in a second, though.
     
    Okay, so, I have two plans:

    [X] Plan Welcome to the Wilderness
    -[X] With the first settlers
    -[X] Skilled in Wilderness Survival and Stealth
    -[X] Write in: Earth Diving - Can swim through earth as if it was water, allowing diving down, coming up behind people, and so on. Cannot inherently see while down there, but various abilities can compensate, and must hold his breath (though the Norse can do that a long time).

    This one is straight up just 'survive in the wilderness', with a Bloodline I personally find super neat.

    [X] Plan Mixed Wilderness
    -[X] In the second wave
    -[X] Skilled in Hunting and Wrestling
    -[X] Write in: Earth Diving - Can swim through earth as if it was water, allowing diving down, coming up behind people, and so on. Cannot inherently see while down there, but various abilities can compensate, and must hold his breath (though the Norse can do that a long time).

    This one is a bit more mixed, with a set of abilities for a combination of wilderness survival and dealing with human foes, which seems maybe more fun? Same bloodline, though.

    EDIT: Bloodline vetoed, ah well.
     
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    alexthealright said:
    -[X] Write in: Earth Diving - Can swim through earth as if it was water, allowing diving down, coming up behind people, and so on. Cannot inherently see while down there, but various abilities can compensate, and must hold his breath (though the Norse can do that a long time).
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    DeadmanwalkingXI said:
    -[X] Write in: Earth Diving - Can swim through earth as if it was water, allowing diving down, coming up behind people, and so on. Cannot inherently see while down there, but various abilities can compensate, and must hold his breath (though the Norse can do that a long time).
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...
    I don't think I will enjoy writing this bloodline very much, unfortunately.

    It is very interesting, but I think that describing it will get repetitive very fast.
     
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    [x] Plan: I Know this Looks Bad
    -[x] Skills - Wilderness Survival, Fleinns
    -[x] In the second wave
    -[x] Loki Bloodline - Monstrous Shapeshifting. Your heritage is, for better or worse, traceable to the father of Fenris and Jormungandr and the mother of Sleipnir. You can alter your form more than a normal Norseman, but the cosmetic effects are always monstrous or animalistic, with scales, claws, fangs, disturbing eye colors and fur being common themes.

    This other plan sounds good.
     
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    I'm thinking of a bloodline of "Monstrous Blood" based on a Loki bloodline and Loki's tendency to sire monsters. The idea would be improved shapeshifting, but with a cost of producing monstrous features.

    [x] Plan: I Know this Looks Bad
    -[x] Skills - Wilderness Survival, Fleinns
    -[x] In the second wave
    -[x] Loki Bloodline - Monstrous Shapeshifting. Your heritage is, for better or worse, traceable to the father of Fenris and Jormungandr and the mother of Sleipnir. You can alter your form more than a normal Norseman, but the cosmetic effects are always monstrous or animalistic, with scales, claws, fangs, disturbing eye colors and fur being common themes.

    A Loki bloodline would certainly explain outlawry, and I went with fleinns as a combat skill for leaning into that connection even further.

    Edit: It looks like the QM has decided on Sure Grip as the bloodline. I guess people can keep voting for I Know this Looks Bad if they want Fleinss + Wilderness Survival and Second Wave.
     
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    [X] Survivalist
    -[X] With the first settlers
    -[X] Wilderness Survival and Hunting
    -[X] Steady Grip

    The idea for this plan is simply be able to survive in the wilderness with hunting and wilderness survival, also hoping some stealth is rolled into hunting. Steady Grip seems cool to me since you get creative with it in either a melee fight or traversing difficult terrain. The first settlers option seems to have the least people coming after us while also having the most dangerous land, which should let the 2 skills shine more.

    Approval voting the loki bloodline one since it looks cool

    [x] Plan: I Know this Looks Bad
    -[x] Skills - Wilderness Survival, Fleinns
    -[x] In the second wave
    -[x] Loki Bloodline - Monstrous Shapeshifting. Your heritage is, for better or worse, traceable to the father of Fenris and Jormungandr and the mother of Sleipnir. You can alter your form more than a normal Norseman, but the cosmetic effects are always monstrous or animalistic, with scales, claws, fangs, disturbing eye colors and fur being common themes.
     
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    [X] Plan Beastmaster
    -[X] With the first settlers
    -[X] Skilled in Hunting and Animal Taming.
    -[X] Write in: Beast-Friend - Can talk to all animals and understand all their languages, and is respected by them as one of them. This doesn't guarantee the ability to command or bend them to his will, but it does make taming and training them incredibly easier. It also allows you to give more complex instructions to trained animals than is normally possible. You can also persuade animals to give you information or do you a favor, but typically they will want something in return.

    If we are living in the wilds and most humans are our enemies, then animals are our best possibility to have allies and companions.

    Birds can be our spies and messengers, wolves and bears our warriors, snakes our killers. There are endless possibilities!

    If we are rejected from civilization, then we are going to make a new one with all our furry, feathery and scaly friends!
     
    []- Plan Grab em and stick to em
    -[]With the first settlers
    -[] Write in two skills: Wrestling(Glima on turn one, style shifts to Dirty Survival after)
    -[] Write in two skills: Carving
    -[] Steady Grip



    Yall Wrestling +Steady Grip is good.



    Carving added because we NEED something to do alone to stay sane.
    Edit: Plan consolidated with HMDM's Plan Wrestling In The wilderness.
     
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    My idea is Barki as someone who is at home with the world outside farming and stuff. A true hunting man, stalking through forests and felling beasts. At one point in time he came to Iceland to use his trade to help tame the land; but now he is using it to survive. A real rugged survivalist type.

    [X] Plan: Barki the Hunter
    -[X] With the first settlers
    -[X] Skilled at: Hunting, Overland/Travel
    -[X] Bloodline: Steady Grip

    [X] Plan: Into the Frontier

    My other Bloodline idea is straight ripped from CE, where i thought it was rhe coolest thing anyone picked up, even though no one used it; so I'll propose it;

    [X] Bloodline: Spatial Sense - Barki has a perfect awareness of aradius around them, even when their other senses are blinded, allowing them to see without sight and similar.
     
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    You know.....

    I judged that Outlaw in NQ1 for stealing an axe from a God(or at least an Immortal cultivator, it was unclear) and having the temerity, the stones, the absolute gall to try and use it to fight Steinarr...

    But if he didn't have a weapon and he came across it in front of a cabin stuck in a wood chopping block...what was he supposed to do?

    Keep being unarmed and subject to county wide mobs?
     
    Full disclosure, I am very enamored with Steady Grip so it is unlikely any suggestion tops it for me.
     
    Wrestling + Sure Grip is good, but I'm dubious of not having wilderness survival, and prefer the second wave if we're taking wrestling (more humans to wrestle) thus this plan:

    [X] Plan Wrestling In The Wilds
    -[X] In the second wave
    -[X] Skilled in Wrestling and Wilderness Survival
    -[X] Steady Grip
     
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    Yeah, I'll give this a go methinks.

    [X] Plan: Into the Frontier
    -[X] With the first settlers
    -[X] Woodworking, Cooking
    -[X] Steady Grip

    A dude who came up here with the folks, went "WOW COOL LAND" and proceeded to fight things, eat well, and make things. Then things got Difficult. Woodworking when you're in the Frontier is good because it lets you prepare the tools you need based on stuff you can gather, and Cooking likely includes a degree of "Knowing what's poisonous and what isn't" as well, might also be handy at chatting with any of the local Fauna.

    TBH though, Steady Grip is just... Really decent, you know? Let's stick with it. I'm not necessarily trying to make a character who's Perfectly Optimal for Solo Wilderness Survival, but someone who might actually have existed before Things Happened.
     
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