One with just physical and mental stats seems very doable if it's either materialistic or considers spirit stuff and mental stuff to be one and the same. Really primitive systems like the Foemen's, might be in the latter category (ie: if everything mental is spiritual then you only have two stats: Body and Spirit).
Ones that separate out different parts of the stats and just have more of them is also plausible (ie: having twice as many stats with more divisions)
One that just has different arrangements of the existing stuff is also possible (ie: one that has one stat for physical strength and durability, physical and mental speed and perception as a second stat, and memory, willpower, and luck together as a third, or one that has strength and all kinds of speed as one stat, willpower and physical durability as one stat, perception and memory as a third, spiritual stuff and luck as a fourth).
[X] 10oz per man
[X] Give the Thanes a choice between thralldom and Alfred's justice
[X] Thoroughly loot the sea-fort
[X] Go get to know your Kinsman
0~0~0 Looting Normally
As your men haul out fancy furniture and shiny silverware from the tower, you find yourself in Belanger's study. It's a small place, though it still is filled to the brim with wealth. However, despite the golden candlesticks and velvet-padded chairs littering the room, it's what's on the desk that captures your attention.
Sitting there, neat as can be, is a stack of unmarked, ready-to-use parchment paper. Thumbing through, you count under your breath as you come to a total of fifty pages of fresh paper. This will be very useful for the book project of yours...
Picking the stack up, you deposit it in your fylgja before your men start to tear the room apart in search of wealth and worldly treasures. Looting Thoroughly
As you make to leave the room, you stop before the archway serving as the study's entrance. You eye the stone bricks and how they're cut into exact shapes—ideas already sparking in your mind. It would surely be impressive to have a home of brick and finely-cut stone!
However, there's one more thing that catches your eye as you stand in the archway. Specifically, it's the arch of it and how it's built. Cutting arches of soil from the ground is a common method of testing the truthfulness of someone's words. If the man can walk under it before it collapses, he speaks truth. If it falls before he can, he speaks falsehoods. The arch always falls eventually, though.
But this one doesn't. As your eye lingers on the wedge-shaped stone at the arch's peak, you reckon you know why it's still standing.
Now that would be an impressive feature on a house!
0~0~0 Talking to Kinsman
Your Kinsman sits on a large piece of rubble with his elbows on his knees and that curious sword of his leaning against his shoulder. Its bronze guard is an odd one, with one three-armed side curling down to connect with the pommel. The guard isn't the only curved part of the sword either, as the blade itself has a sweeping edge—and only one at that!
"Nice sword," regardless of how strange you find his sword, it does makes for a decent conversation starter. "Never seen anything like it before."
His eyes flick to yours, a carefully cautious glint in his tired gaze. Heavy bags permanently hang from his half-lidded eyes, the result of one too many sleepless nights, "It's called a saber, and thanks."
You offer him your hand, barging on past the attempted conversation-stopper with all the grace of an army on the march, "My name's Halla Skyfire, what's yours?"
He stares at your hand for a long, drawn-out moment before an arm snakes up meet you, "Hallvar Songbird."
"Hallvar, eh? How'd you get Songbird as a kenning?" You quirk your head to the side, nobly resisting the awkward tension in the air.
"I have a good singing voice," this entire conversation is giving you some serious deja vu. From the flatness of his stare to the way he doesn't seem to blink, it's like you're talking to a smaller version of Modgudr. "How'd you get Skyfire?"
You grin, "I exploded a Threaded Elephant while flying around."
That manages to draw a reaction from him—if one could call it that. His heavy brows twitch upwards for a moment before resuming the glare-stare combo that stubbornly clings to his mien. "A Threaded... Elephant?"
"That's right!" You nod as he stares.
"...I don't know what an elephant is." He listens as you describe what an elephant looks like, how the tusks hang low and the ears are big and flappy. You note the sheer size of the thing and the long, arm-like thing dangling from its face that it uses to grab stuff. By the end of it, Hallvar's eyes turned from staring to squinting. Eventually, he gives his thoughts on the matter, "That doesn't sound real."
"It is!" You shoot a glare his way as you wave a hand at your surroundings, "There's a whole world of weird-looking monsters out that and this is what you doubt?"
He offers a bob of the head, "Fair enough. I suppose it's not that outlandish." It's as he nods, though, that you catch sight of silver chain shining on his neck. It trails down under his shirt, hiding whatever the necklace is away from the world. Hallvar catches your gaze and his lips thin, "I think I've heard of a Halla Skyfire before. You ever fight someone called 'Hroi Hooknails'?"
This time, it's your turn to squint, "I have, yes."
A small smile forms on his face, which does little to lighten the ever-present glare-stare, "Good job kicking his ass, guy needed a humbling."
"You know him?"
"He's my brother-in-law, unfortunately." You wince in sympathy as he pulls the necklace from his shirt collar. Carved from a dark-colored gemstone, a well-polished raven-figure dangles from the end of the chain, "A gift from Hrefna, my wife." His expression softens as he speaks Hrefna's name, "It's actually... Well," he tucks the raven away, "it's not really important."
"If you say so," you nod as you glance towards where your men finish up sorting out the loot. You would've asked after it, but you're running out of time as it is. "It was nice meeting you, Hallvar. I hope we meet again under better circumstances."
"We'll have to see," he says as you turn to leave, but it's his next words that stop you dead in your tracks. "But, you really should leave Agder while you still can. Heljarskinn is out for blood."
You swallow the dryness in your throat. "I... I'll think about it."
0~0~0
The Thanes universally decided to go with their King's Justice, so they're loaded onto the ships as your men bring you your share of the loot.
While that was happening, Farbjorn re-emerged from the forest—a flat look on his face and a tightness to his jaw. He refused to talk about his fight with Serge, except for the fact that it was inconclusive. Odd, very odd.
Speaking of oddities, you never did find that Priest...
Well, regardless, you've got your loot to admire!
(+80oz Silver, 5oz Gold)
(+1 Suit of Knightly Armor)
(+1 Strange Ice Sword)
(+50 Pieces of Blank Paper)
(+38 Orthstirr)
(Feat: Lead a Successful Assault: +3 Orthstirr a Year)
(+2 Progress to Knightslayer)
(+2 Progress to Speaking Out of Law)
Pick 1 as a general reward:
[ ] +1 Hamingja
[ ] Unlock Fortify as a Vague Trick
Pick 1 as something else you found in the study:
[ ] A Treatise on Frisian Cultivation, by Archibald Lachapelle
[ ] A Treatise on Bulgarian Cultivation, by Archibald Lachapelle
0~0~0
AN: I hope that those are good rewards. If you're confused about the low silver and gold rewards, remember that this is being split 70 ways.
Also, I'll be rolling to see if Vagn Wheel-Drifter and/or Harold Hugehands suffer True Death (35% chance each for them to Truly Die). If you'd like to spend Reward Dice to improve the odds of survival, now is the time to do so.
No moratorium, this'll be the only update for today.
[X] Unlock Fortify as a Vague Trick
[X] A Treatise on Bulgarian Cultivation, by Archibald Lachapelle
Very good! An excellent expedition where everyone is wealthier!
Anyway, just heads up, 7 Reward Dice to guarantee each survivor. Vagn especially we want to live, but it'd probably be better for our Rep to have Harold make it through as well.
EDIT: Deadman committed 1 and Skippy committed 3 to Vagn, he needs 3 more to Guarantee Survival and is at present dead on a 15 or lower. Hugehands is still unhelped as of this edit.
EDIT 2: Shard has committed 3 more Reward Dice to Vagn. Vagn Is Safe! Hugehands is not safe but if anyone has points to burn, helping him survive would probably look really good for us.
EDIT 3: I reached down and whipped a Negaverse out of my arse, Hugehands has 3 dice committed to rig for him, and needs 4 more to eliminate all risk.
[X] Unlock Fortify as a Vague Trick
[X] A Treatise on Frisian Cultivation, by Archibald Lachapelle
Fortify would be real good to have, and we're more likely to run into Frisians than Bulgarians, In think? I could easily be convinced to do the Bulgarian thing instead.
I will be spending 1 Reward Die to ensure Vagn's survival, and Skippy said he'd invest 3 into making our crew survive as well, so those would likely also go to Vagn.
We are researching the shit out of that, that's our avenue to Nordic Plate.
Even if we can't make something identical, we've got the skills needed to turn develop our own version of it in our own paradigm, and it's fucking cool.
"We'll have to see," he says as you turn to leave, but it's his next words that stop you dead in your tracks. "But, you really should leave Agder while you still can. Heljarskinn is out for blood."
We'll also have more opportunities to learn about them and it would come in handy if we knew more about Bulgarian Cultivation when we go to Constantinople in a later life
I think Ottar's odds of survival are real bad. The trick is to not get killed or have our friends killed while that occurs and make looting us prersonally a losing proposition even for a winning army.
[X] Unlock Fortify as a Vague Trick
[X] A Treatise on Frisian Cultivation, by Archibald Lachapelle
what is our plan next? return to Agder? or head somewhere else first?
whats going to happen in Adger? who is Heljarskin?
I think Ottar's odds of survival are real bad. The trick is to not get killed or have our friends killed while that occurs and make looting us prersonally a losing proposition even for a winning army.
The impression I'm getting is that the other guy is straight up going to try and Scorched Earth this shit. "Your mistake was being born on the wrong side of the border" and all.
Even people who'd normally be neutral are fucking off, like Gary.
I mean, we stop off in Winchester for some shopping and then...plans depend. I bet we can buy more Food there, in which case we head home, but if we're still down Food we may need to go elsewhere for more.
The impression I'm getting is that the other guy is straight up going to try and Scorched Earth this shit. "Your mistake was being born on the wrong side of the border" and all.
Even people who'd normally be neutral are fucking off, like Gary.
Nah, his whole grudge is that the previous king was his friend. I don't think he wants to burn down the country...he's just willing to if it's needed to kill Ottar.
Side note the Frisian Treaty should help us with Nordic plate but the Bulgarian treaty could help us refine promotion tracks for our lodge and stuff. At least in my opinion.
