Revenge for the Laxbrynjungs! Part 9 - Holmgang

The ongoing playtest of Bodil’s Gap continues! In part eight, the party launched their raid against the coastal fortress of Olaf Mangler, a notorious pirate and raider, and the son of their hated enemy Kettil Sea-Strider. Infiltrating the fortress, Hrafn and Mundr found themselves standing alone against Olaf and his men, and challenged Olaf himself to a duel to resolve their differences. Come the morrow, Mundr must fight to the death against the Mangler for the fate of the fortress and all within.

The Cast

Ingvild Scoreslayer, Dýrsark - Ingvild is an old and bitter warrior, cunning but prone to the rage of a berserker. He was brother-in-law to the murdered Þejn, Arnolf, and was once a close advisor to the Laxbrynjung clan's leadership. However, he has since had a falling out with the new Þejn, Trond—Arnolf's younger brother—over the execution of Arnolf's will.

Mundr Ivaldisson, Óttimaðr - Mundr is a promising but untested young man endowed with the strength of giants by a mysterious incident during his travels abroad. A Laxbrynjung by birth, Mundr is the only child of the late Ivaldi, the youngest of Arnolf's brothers. Since Arnolf's death, he has ingratiated himself to his uncle Trond in an effort to keep the family from splitting apart.

Ylva Blood-Cup, Seiðkona - Ylva is a sorceress endowed with the power to see and speak with spirits, and uses her magic to curse her enemies with great misfortune. Though dwelling apart from the clan in the woods, Ylva is an ally of the Laxbrynjungs, having been a close friend and confidant of Arnolf's murderd heir, Steinar.

Hrafn, Skald - Hrafn is a travelling merchant blessed by a drop of the Mead of Poetry. Left with neither trade goods nor coin by an accident on the road that destroyed his cart and belongings, Hrafn has joined the Laxbrynjung raiders to avenge their Þejn and enrich himself.

The Game

Their negotiating done, Mundr and Hrafn must quickly leave the fortress again. Fortunately for them, the party they dispatched to capture one of Olaf's ships was successful, and the skeleton crew aboard are able to bring the longship alongside the fortress for the two PCs. Leaping down from the raised deck of the fort into the ship, they quickly make their way back to shore to report what they've done.

When they reconnect with Ingvild and Ylva ashore, it is to find them tallying the spoils of the raid in one of longhouses that was left intact. As well as a wealth of coin and plundered goods, they also find a parcel of particular interest: taken from Olaf's captured ship, this package contains only a wooden plank with a strange runic inscription, and an oddly constructed torc engraved with images of powerful oxen.

Mundr eyes the torc and at once senses the power of giants upon it. Examining it more closely, he recognizes that the oddities of its construction stem from the fact that it was once a solid ring—likely worn on a giant's finger—and that it was only later converted into a torc for a human neck. Hefting it, he determines that the wearer of the torc will be granted a measure of the giant's physical strength.

Curious about the ring's provenance, the PCs put their heads together to decipher the runes engraved on the plank that the ring was packed with. With their native cunning and Mundr's sense for all things giantish, they soon determine that the text is a description of the place the ring was found. Down the coast, it seems, the ancient barrow of a slain giant has been steadily crumbling into the sea—and with the wall now breached, the way lies open into its depths. The party are awfully tempted by the prospect of plundering a giant's grave goods for anything else that might be of use in their vendetta agaisnt Kettil Sea-Strider, but the matter will have to wait until after they've dealt with the man's son.

As Hrafn and Mundr describe their encounter with Olaf and his wife, the sorceress Torhild, Mundr's cousin Rurik interjects, demanding to stand alongside Mundr as his shield-bearer. It was the murders of Rurik's father and half-brother that sparked this feud with Kettil and his kin, and so it is only appropriate that Rurik be allowed to participate in the duel with Olaf.

Mundr is torn between keeping Rurik safe and honouring his determination to fight. Ultimately he agrees, and offers Rurik his own shield as one of the three allowed to them by the customs of holmgang, the formal duel. This shield is painted with a leaping salmon, the crest of the Laxbrynjung clan, and was given to Mundr as reward from his uncle Trond—Rurik's direct rival for control over their clan after the death of the previous þejn. With Trond likely killed by the kraken, however, such rivalries must be put aside. Rurik accepts, and together the two spend the evening discussing their strategy before settling into a fitful sleep.

While Mundr and Rurik talk, Ylva releases the magic that transformed Olaf's face into that of a spider, fulfilling Mundr's part of the bargain with the Mangler. Her seiðr doesn't end there, however—once Mundr and Rurik settle in to sleep, Ylva slips free of her body to roam as a spirit. Silent and invisible, she creeps through the halls of Olaf's fort, seeking the place he himself lies sleeping.

It seems he and his wife share the upper floor of his hall, where Torhild has turned their chambers into as much a workshop as a bedroom.

The door to the chamber blazes with a rune whose effects Ylva cannot determine, though she recognizes that it will go off if the door is broken open. Fortunately, in spirit form she need only slip through the wall. Within, workbenches line the walls, covered in carpenter's tools and pieces of wood. Sawdust coats the floor. The pillars that hold up the roof are deeply engraved with runes that pulse with power, while bronze lamps smoulder dully here and there, each likewise stamped with runic symbols.

Crossing to the bed, Ylva sees that Olaf has indeed regained the countenance of a man. Strangely, a trickle of blood from within his mouth stains his lower lip, and his face seems bruised. Paying it no mind, she plunges down into Olaf's dreams.

There she discovers the Mangler seated upon the throne of his hall, an array of knives laid out across the floor in front of him. The image of his wife Torhild whispers in his ear, urging him to take up one of the knives and as she advised him, and so doing destroy his enemies. Using her magic, Ylva begins twisting his dream into a nightmare. The knives spring up, sprouting arms and legs, dancing and swarming about, while the wall of the hall becomes Mundr's face, mouth wide to swallow Olaf whole.

Even as horrific images assault Olaf, however, Ylva's magic twists in her grasp, and the dream grows dangerous to her. The swarming knives cut at her legs, and in her efforts to escape into a deeper realm of Olaf's subconscious, she sustains several wounds to her spirit form.

Plunging down, Ylva finds herself in a black abyss over which hangs a vast spider's web. There, Olaf stands facing down a spider that towers over him. Surging forward, he swings his axe, cutting off one of the spider's fangs, which drips cruel venom. As it falls, he catches it in his hand, and the dream dissolves, expelling Ylva. She lingers only long enough to see that Olaf's sleep has become fitful and restless in the grip of the nightmare she crafted, and then returns to her own body for the night.

In the morning, Mundr and Rurik row out to a tiny island nearby, little more than a patch of bare rock jutting from the sea, where they will meet Olaf for the duel. When he arrives, he is accompanied by a shield-bearer of his own. Olaf is haggard, dark circles under his eyes and deep bruises around his jaw, but he stands firm as the duel begins.

At once Olaf's shield-bearer charges into Mundr, keeping him off-balance while Olaf calmly raises his massive two-handed axe and brings it down on Rurik's own shield, absolutely shattering Trond's gift to Mundr. Rurik is left holding nothing more than an iron boss with a few scraps of wood clinging to it, but nevertheless rams it into Olaf's side in a ferocious punch before Mundr can pull him back. Calling a halt, they take up the second of their allotted three shields before joining battle once more.

Moving together more cautiously than before, Mundr and Rurik are able to turn aside a few of Olaf's blows while fending off the interference of his own shield bearer. Seizing an opportunity, Mundr manages to hook the head of his axe over the rim of his enemy's shield and jerk it out of his hands. The shield goes skittering across the rocks, and Olaf's companion calls a halt as well. Both party's are now down to two shields.

During the next exchange, Olaf's shield bearer rushes in again, and Mundr and his enemy exchange blows. Mundr scores a serious wound on Olaf, but Olaf comes in on Mundr's blind side, taking advantage of the eye his wife cursed with sightlessness when Hrafn and Mundr infiltrated the fort. Bringing his massive axe down on Mundr's shoulder, he delivers a terrible blow that cleaves Mundr's arm to the bone. Immediately Mundr's grip goes slack and his arm limp, and he understands how Olaf came to be called the Mangler.

Despite his injury Mundr fights on. Rurik stays close by his wounded side, using his shield to protect his kinsman's vulnerable flank, while from the shore, Hrafn's saga of battle echoes across the water to bolster Mundr's strength. In the next exchange, Mundr delivers a terrible blow of his own, his axe cleaving into Olaf's side.

The Mangler gasps and drops his own axe before hurling himself at Mundr. Rurik cries out in alarm and warns Mundr of the incoming attack, but to Mundr's eye Olaf is unarmed. From the shore, however, the other PCs can see what Rurik saw—that Olaf is now clutching what appears to be a the massive fang of a spider, cut from his own face before his transformation was ended, the stump wrapped in leather cord to provide a grip. Wielding the thing like a knife, he attacks Mundr again, and Mundr is hard pressed to avoid the dangers of a weapon that has apparently been made proof against his sight.

Fortunately Mundr has Rurik to aid him. As his shield-bearer interposes himself between the Mangler and Mundr, Mundr raises his axe in his good hand one last time and brings it crashing down on Olaf, shattering his collar bone and plunging deep into his body. The Mangler falls dead, and at once his shield-bearer surrenders. The duel is won, and the fort belongs the Laxbrynjungs.

Now all that remains is to claim it from Olaf's widow: the dangerous and bereaved mistress of the runes, Torhild.

Behind the Scenes

I had a blast running this part of the adventure. The duel has been a highlight of the campaign for me—the chance to do combat in greater detail between fewer participants is always interesting, and I think it went well enough this time. In retrospect I could have done better, I think, but everyone seemed to enjoy it—even those who didn't actually participate.

We also introduced the first real dungeon crawl-y part of the campaign with the giant's barrow. The attack on the fort was originally intended to play out in a crawl-y kind of way, but that obviously went to the wayside pretty quickly—not that I'm complaining. When the party decided to plunder the giant's tomb, I knew I would get another chance to do some actual delving, something the campaign has so far had very little of.

Revenge for the Laxbrynjungs! Part 8 - The Fortress of the Mangler

The ongoing playtest of Bodil’s Gap continues! In part seven, the party narrowly escaped a catastrophic encounter with the kraken. Now they sail towards the fort held by Olaf Mangler, the son and right hand of the man who murdered their old þejn, Arnolf, and his own soon Steinar.

The Cast

Ingvild Scoreslayer, Dýrsark - Ingvild is an old and bitter warrior, cunning but prone to the rage of a berserker. He was brother-in-law to the murdered Þejn, Arnolf, and was once a close advisor to the Laxbrynjung clan's leadership. However, he has since had a falling out with the new Þejn, Trond—Arnolf's younger brother—over the execution of Arnolf's will.

Mundr Ivaldisson, Óttimaðr - Mundr is a promising but untested young man endowed with the strength of giants by a mysterious incident during his travels abroad. A Laxbrynjung by birth, Mundr is the only child of the late Ivaldi, the youngest of Arnolf's brothers. Since Arnolf's death, he has ingratiated himself to his uncle Trond in an effort to keep the family from splitting apart.

Ylva Blood-Cup, Seiðkona - Ylva is a sorceress endowed with the power to see and speak with spirits, and uses her magic to curse her enemies with great misfortune. Though dwelling apart from the clan in the woods, Ylva is an ally of the Laxbrynjungs, having been a close friend and confidant of Arnolf's murderd heir, Steinar.

Hrafn, Skald - Hrafn is a travelling merchant blessed by a drop of the Mead of Poetry. Left with neither trade goods nor coin by an accident on the road that destroyed his cart and belongings, Hrafn has joined the Laxbrynjung raiders to avenge their Þejn and enrich himself.

The Game

The party arrive at the place where their ally Odd told them Olaf's fort could be found. There they discover the their kinsman Rurik and his crew waiting for them, his ship beached in the cover of a rocky point jutting out from the shore. Beyond and down the coast, the fort can be seen standing up from the water, a massive hall built on a stilted platform rising above the waves.

The causeway used to extend to the shore, but I redrew it when it was destroyed in game

The fort is connected to the shore by a causeway, at the end of which a small settlement stands, bustling with activity.

Reconvening with Rurik and his crew, the party shares what happened to them during the Kraken attack, including the likely loss of Trond's ship and the rescue of his son Finnar from the water. Rurik is of mixed opinion about the fates of his uncle and cousins, but everyone is forced to sideline the affair in favour of more pressing matters—namely, the fort the PCs and their allies are about to attack.

Ingvild, veteran of a thousand battles, takes charge at once as the group begins formulating their plan. The assembled forces will be divided into several teams: one body of warriors will be placed under the command of Rurik, prepared to assault the settlement and the ship beached there. A smaller group, enchanted to breathe underwater for a time by Ylva's seiðr, will stealthily attack the ship tied up near the fort in an attempt to steal or sabotage it, so it can't be used by the defenders to escape their siege. Finally, the PCs will attempt to capture the shore end of the causeway and light it on fire, trapping the defenders of the fort inside.

Their plans laid, the party need wait only until nightfall to begin their raid. As the sun sinks behind the waves they spring into action, sailing swiftly towards shore where they will land alongside Rurik's men. As they race towards land, however, a cry of alarm goes up as some keen-eyed person on the shore chances to spot their sails against the night sky, blotting out the stars.

The party lands in haste and immediately rushes for the place the alarm went up, hacking down half-drunk revelers around the settlement's central bonfire before seizing as many burning logs as they can manage. Laden with the seeds of the fire they intend to start, they rush for the causeway even as all around them chaos descends, Rurik and their crews setting to with axes and swords to slaughter the settlement's defenders.

Arriving at the mouth of the causeway, the party can see the men of the fort already rushing down the boards towards them, alerted by the alarm of moments before. While Ylva and Hrafn jump to setting the causeway aflame, Ingvild and Mundr position themselves in a choke-point created by a pile of cargo left out on the causeway, and prepare to defend their allies.

Hrafn quickly manages to get the cargo to catch fire even as Olaf's men clash with his two comrades. The planks of the causeway, however, are both sturdier and made constantly damp by the spray of the sea below. To help the fire spread, Ylva works her magic, chanting a curse to weaken and make vulnerable the wood of the causeway. As the boards wither and dry out, the flames quickly catch, and soon the fire roars from the pile of cargo down onto the actual causeway itself.

Unfortunately, Mundr and Ingvild are now locked shield to shield with their attackers right where the fire is spreading. Ingvild leaps back to safety on the far side of the flames, but Mundr presses forward, laying out one of his opponents. His triumph leaves him vulnerable, however, as he finds himself outnumbered and with the growing fire at his back. Cursing, Ingvild and Hrafn both leap through the flames to stand at his side, singeing themselves in the process.

The three of them are able to dispatch their enemies, but already more men can be seen massing at the far end of the causeway, where the towering figure of Olaf Mangler can be seen, brandishing a massive axe and shouting orders. Even more concerning, however, is the woman moving down the line of fighters, painting bold runes on the face of every shield she passes.

As the more orderly formation of fighters begins advancing down the causeway towards the shore, the grim runes blaze with power, and a wave of unnatural terror washes across the party, forcing them to shrink back against the growing flames behind them. The line of fighters quickly crashes into their own defense, shields clashing against shields as spears thrust and axes swing.

The PCs rally themselves as best they can. Mundr weathers the assault behind his shield despite taking a few blows, while Ingvild cleaves men with his axe and Hrafn chants a saga of war to bolster his allies, and cunningly cuts at the exposed legs of their enemies from behind the lower rim of Mundr's shield. Ylva, meanwhile, is trapped behind the flames that separate her from her allies, only able to contributes with curses to weaken and befuddle her foes.

The enemies' numbers and the runic enchantments given to them are too great to continue to battle head-on, however. Thankfully, the damage to the causeway is already enough to satisfy the plan Ingvild laid. Retreat is in order, and Ingvild and Hrafn leap once more through the flames to rejoin Ylva on the far side. Mundr retreats more slowly, backing into the blaze with his shield raised to protect his allies as they escape. The power of the Realm of Fire flooding through his veins and protects him from the scorching heat and searing tongues of flame, but not from the continued thrust of his enemies' spears.

Seeing Mundr suffer countless blows as he backs through the fire, Hrafn dives to his friend's aid, leaping into the heart of the fire—not to join the battle, but to bring the both of them crashing through the charred and weakened planks of the causeway in a shower of embers and flaming splinters, plunging into the water below. The flames continue to spread up the causeway, driving the fort's defenders back, but now a massive gap also bars the way back to shore.

As the men retreat and begin hacking through the causeway with axes to protect the fort from the fire, Ylva gives her enemies a parting shot. Locking eyes with Olaf through the flames and the press of warriors, she curses him with a wicked transformation, turning his face into the terrible visage of a spider. His bellowed orders immediately cut off as his men spring back in horror, and at once the Mangler turns on his heel and rushes back into the fort, accompanied by the woman who cast the runes upon their warriors.

Meanwhile, Hrafn and Mundr struggle back to the surface after their plunge into the sea, and begin to swim—not to shore, but to the pilings that hold the fort above the waves. Stealthily circling the platform, they find a place at the back of the fort, and Hrafn tells Mundr his plan to climb up and infiltrate the fort, to see what can be seen.

Together the two make their way up the pilings in a harrowing climb, nearly slipping on the spray-soaked wood and filling their hands with splinters. At last they reach the platform, however, and carefully sneak to the rear door of the hall. Stepping in, they get their first glimpse of the interior.

Olaf Mangler sits on his massive chair, his spider's face now concealed by a closed helmet while his frenzied men gather around to discuss what to do next. The Mangler is silent, but for the soft chittering that sometimes emerges from behind his faceplate. But while Mundr is prepared to observe stealthily, Hrafn steps forward and announces himself.

Olaf's men immediately crowd around, weapons drawn, but an audience is just what Hrafn wants. Addressing everyone gathered in front of him, he begins making his pitch: that all of this bloodshed can be avoided by a simple duel between Olaf and a champion from their side—if Olaf wins, the party will forfeit their ships and plunder, while if he loses, his men will give up the fort.

Hrafn can sense Olaf's eyes heavy upon him, but with the face of a spider, the Mangler cannot respond verbally. Just at that moment, however, a woman's voice rings out demanding to know why her husband should agree to such terms. Turning, Hrafn and Mundr can see the sorceress from the causeway, descending a ladder from the upper floor, who introduces herself as Torhild, spouse of Olaf.

Hrafn immediately attempts to charm her, but she finds fault with his every word, and invokes the runes of her ritual knife to sap his strength, weakening him and bringing him to his knees. Only the timely and sudden fall of the nearby statue of the Hvalarkyn, the Sea God, prevents her from slitting his throat—it seems the offerings the party made during their journey have indeed won them some measure of divine favour from the lord of the waves, who Olaf evidently also worships.

At this sign, Olaf stands, and the sorceress allows Hrafn to get back to his feet, though his magical weakness persists. When Mundr comes to aid his ally, Torhild rounds on him, and the flashing of her runed amulet strikes him blind in one eye. Hrafn turns back to Olaf, and makes his final statement: that if Olaf agrees to the duel, they will return his face to its natural form, and he will have the chance to kill his opponent in holmgang, honourable and legally binding single combat. Torhild attempts to interject, but Olaf silences her with a gesture and nods his agreement.

On the morrow, Olaf Mangler will fight a duel to the death with a champion from among the party. Hrafn immediately, and without consulting his partner, nominates Mundr.

Behind the Scenes

I had set up Olaf's fortress as a kind of dungeon, so was very much not expecting Hrafn and Mundr to waltz in the back door and challenge Olaf to a duel. A lot of the dungeon-crawly aspects of the fort never really got a chance to shine, since the PCs never had to storm the place. I guess that's the nature of Dungeon World, and at least the duel was an interesting angle to pursue.

Hrafn's constant attempts to make Mundr a famous hero are also pretty funny to me. Even though that isn't really what Mundr as a character wants, his player has been a real sport about it, and it's been fun to see that dynamic form within the party. Each of the characters has a very different relationship with each of their party members, and all of them are interesting—but this one has definitely been the most consistently surprising.

Revenge for the Laxbrynjungs! Part 7 - The Kraken Wakes

The ongoing playtest of Bodil’s Gap continues! In part six the party sailed from their home fjord to raid the lands to the north, where the murderer of their dead þejn and his son dwell. Unfortunately, on the way their convoy was interrupted by the arrival of the kraken from the ocean's depths.

The Cast

Ingvild Scoreslayer, Dýrsark - Ingvild is an old and bitter warrior, cunning but prone to the rage of a berserker. He was brother-in-law to the murdered Þejn, Arnolf, and was once a close advisor to the Laxbrynjung clan's leadership. However, he has since had a falling out with the new Þejn, Trond—Arnolf's younger brother—over the execution of Arnolf's will.

Mundr Ivaldisson, Óttimaðr - Mundr is a promising but untested young man endowed with the strength of giants by a mysterious incident during his travels abroad. A Laxbrynjung by birth, Mundr is the only child of the late Ivaldi, the youngest of Arnolf's brothers. Since Arnolf's death, he has ingratiated himself to his uncle Trond in an effort to keep the family from splitting apart.

Ylva Blood-Cup, Seiðkona - Ylva is a sorceress endowed with the power to see and speak with spirits, and uses her magic to curse her enemies with great misfortune. Though dwelling apart from the clan in the woods, Ylva is an ally of the Laxbrynjungs, having been a close friend and confidant of Arnolf's murderd heir, Steinar.

Hrafn, Skald - Hrafn is a travelling merchant blessed by a drop of the Mead of Poetry. Left with neither trade goods nor coin by an accident on the road that destroyed his cart and belongings, Hrafn has joined the Laxbrynjung raiders to avenge their Þejn and enrich himself.

The Game

The sea under the party's ship is churned into foam as the kraken rises from the deep. The overpowering reek of brine and seaweed and rotting fish pours from the frothing waters as the beast emerges, sickening almost everyone on board—crewmen start vomiting their guts out, while the PCs' vision swims and their hands grow shaky. At the same time, great waves start pounding against the side of their ship, threatening to overturn the vessel and hurling unlucky crewmen into the water.

The toughest members of the party steel themselves agaisnt the smell through sheer grit while others hastily tie strips of fabric torn from their cloaks around their faces as makeshift masks. Rallying the crew, they quickly set to turning their ship agaisnt the waves and hurling lines towards those in the water. Ylva works her magic to transform one man into a pufferfish, able to float upon the waves, while the others fish more men out with ropes and oars.

The heaving force of the kraken's arrival has swollen the sea with battering waves and an upwelling of detritus from the ocean floor, and the formation of the raiding party is now scattered by its ascent in their midst. When the PCs are able to turn their attention from rescuing their own men towards the monster itself, it is to discover that hardly any of the other ships are still in sight—and worse, that the kraken is moving towards them, the swell of water pressed forward by its massive bulk only serving to push their ship even further off course as it draws nearer

Acting quickly, Ylva cracks open the raw scab that's formed over the mouth of her magical goblet of endlessly overflowing whale's blood, and hurls the artifact into the sea. As the cup sinks out of sight, trailing growing plumes of crimson through the water as it plummets, the kraken dives to follow it—and the cataclysmic maelstrom that forms as water rushes in to fill in the massive wake of its sudden, vanishing descent almost destroys the PCs' ship.

When the sea calms again, the party looks out over the waves to see what remains. On the horizon, a lone sail stands unidentifiable against the sky, while in the middle distance nothing but floating wreckage can be seen. Most notably, the sail of Trond's ship flutters on the foam, draped over a broken off section of mast. Of the other ships, there is no knowing whether they fled, were scattered, or were simply dragged down by the kraken.

Deciding to investigate, the party steers their ship back towards the visible wreck. Coming up alongside it, they begin to pull the sail in, hoping to salvage it, and discover their kinsman Finnar lying underneath, unconscious but sill clinging to the mast. Sail and cousin are both taken aboard, but Finnar's presence is something of a mystery—though Trond's son, he and his brother Gunnar were captains of their own ship, not crew aboard Trond's. Perhaps more concerning, Finnar is bleeding profusely from a visible wound to sharp and clean to have been made by anything other than a sword or other blade.

An argument quickly breaks out among the PCs as to Finnar's fate. Ylva believes that her curse on Trond that his sons should be killed by their own men is coming to pass, and doesn't wish to interfere with a fate she herself wove. Ingvild, meanwhile, merely sees this as an opportunity to be rid of one of Trond's supporters. Arguing agaisnt them is Mundr, who doesn't wish to lose any more of his family. Though not a Laxbrynjung himself, Hrafn is moved by Mundr's plea that they aid his cousin, and offers up a rare healing potion from his pack.

As the others look on in disapproval, Mundr pours the concoction on Finnar's wound and into his mouth, and rejoices as the bloody cut starts to close and colour returns to his cousin's cheeks. Leaving the still-unconscious Finnar in the care of the men who used to sail under him on the very ship that now belongs to the party, Mundr turns to Hrafn and swears to repay him a debt that Mundr values equal to a person's life.

With the raiding party scattered and potentially even destroyed, the party must now decide what to do next. Without knowing the fate of the other ships, it seems their best course of action is to continue on to the site of Olaf Mangler's fort, there to confront Kettil Sea-Strider's son. With luck, they can reconvene en route with Rurik and his crew, who know to travel to the same location, and decide afterward what to do about the rest of the expedition.

Behind the Scenes

Mundr's continued efforts to preserve the unity of his family have been a really interesting throughline for the campaign. When I set up the conflict with Trond, I wasn't sure where it would go, but I think maybe I expect it to be resolved with some kind of major confrontation between him and the PCs' faction. Mundr has consistently played peacemaker among his family, however, and with Trond's disappearance in the kraken debacle, it almost makes the clan's internal conflict moot.

The destruction of Trond's ship isn't something I had entirely planned either; when the Kraken emerged, I determined randomly who it would attack. I think I'm pleased it went for Trond, though; having the family feud almost defused by this outside-context problem makes the world a lot bigger than the provincial problems of the PCs' family, while also leaving an even more tangled succession question. If Trond is dead, who is the þejn? Who can claim to be, and make it stick?

Revenge for the Laxbrynjungs! Part 6 - The Launch of the Raid

The ongoing playtest of Bodil’s Gap continues! In part five the party sailed home to Ymafjord only to discover that, because of the delays they suffered in transit, the raid they had been preparing for was on the verge of launching without them. Hastily preparing to sail again, they await only the tide before launching on their quest to bring vengeance down on Kettil Sea-Strider, who murdered Þejn Arnolf and his son Steinar.

The Cast

Ingvild Scoreslayer, Dýrsark - Ingvild is an old and bitter warrior, cunning but prone to the rage of a berserker. He was brother-in-law to the murdered Þejn, Arnolf, and was once a close advisor to the Laxbrynjung clan's leadership. However, he has since had a falling out with the new Þejn, Trond—Arnolf's younger brother—over the execution of Arnolf's will.

Mundr Ivaldisson, Óttimaðr - Mundr is a promising but untested young man endowed with the strength of giants by a mysterious incident during his travels abroad. A Laxbrynjung by birth, Mundr is the only child of the late Ivaldi, the youngest of Arnolf's brothers. Since Arnolf's death, he has ingratiated himself to his uncle Trond in an effort to keep the family from splitting apart.

Ylva Blood-Cup, Seiðkona - Ylva is a sorceress endowed with the power to see and speak with spirits, and uses her magic to curse her enemies with great misfortune. Though dwelling apart from the clan in the woods, Ylva is an ally of the Laxbrynjungs, having been a close friend and confidant of Arnolf's murderd heir, Steinar.

Hrafn, Skald - Hrafn is a travelling merchant blessed by a drop of the Mead of Poetry. Left with neither trade goods nor coin by an accident on the road that destroyed his cart and belongings, Hrafn has joined the Laxbrynjung raiders to avenge their Þejn and enrich himself.

The Game

On the shore at Ymafjord, the PCs are greeted by their allies Rurik, the old Þejn's surviving son, and Odd, the local raid-planner. They have some good news—Rurik has managed to secure a small ship, and can bring some of his supporters on the raid. Odd starts to suggest that he has a plan to win Rurik and their faction some glory and influence to rival his uncle—Trond, the self-declared current þejn—but is forced to hold off on explaining as Trond catches up with the welcoming party, his arrival slowed by his bad leg.

Trond is effusively glad to see Mundr and company return with his wife's cousins, the Askarfjorders, and makes a show of rewarding every sailor of the crew with silver. The PCs are forced to grit their teeth as Trond's show of generosity only reinforces his command over the men, but Mundr is put in an even trickier position when Trond sees that Mundr's shield is missing and makes a gift of his own to the young man. Unable to refuse his uncle, Mundr feels his loyalties being pulled in too many directions.

There's little time to brood about it, however, as all those assembled are set to sail with the morning tide. As the sailors load fresh supplies into the party's longship, the PCs make the rounds of the shore investigating how many ships and fighters will accompany them on the morrow before bedding down for the night.

The size of the raid seems to have grown in their absence. From their own faction—those that support Rurik for the þejnship—there are three ships: Odd's, crewed by his children and fellow veterans; Rurik's, with a small crew of loyal partizans; and the party's own, crewed by men as loyal to Trond as to the party.

Trond's faction likewise boast three ships: Trond's own, crewed by his men; Vágarhlaupna, Arnolf's prized ship, now captained by Trond's sons; and the ship of a trading partner of Trond's, crewed by mercenaries.

Finally, two additional ships fit somewhere between. The Askarfjorders are kin of Trond's wife but not overfond of the man himself, and are indebted to the party for their previous aid. The last ship, meanwhile, is crewed by Radulf Sigridsson, the husband of Rurik's older half-sister. Radulf is not of the clan, and Rurik's relationship with his sister Ranveig is tense—how she and her family-by-marriage will act is hard to predict.

In the morning, all of these ships sail for the region of Hvalarsnes, far to the north, where Kettil Sea-Strider is known to frequent the city of Egil's Landing. It is a trip of five days' sailing, with a single stop at some islands along the way. The first two days of travel are uneventful, and as they draw to a close, the islands come into view. A wave of grim recognition passes over the party and their crew, for these are the same islands where Arnolf and Steinar's ships were beached for the night when Kettil and his men set upon and murdered them.

When ships are beached on the two islands for the night, the party find a good camping spot on the smaller of the two. Rurik and Odd join them, and Odd is finally able to impart the plan he spoke of earlier. The location of the Sea-Strider's home is unknown—finding him in Egil's Landing when he arrives to trade is the best chance of catching him, but by no means a sure thing—but Odd knows the location of a fort where Kettil's son Olaf dwells. This information is unknown to Trond, and Odd suggests that Rurik and the PCs should separate from the larger raiding party to strike at this fort. Bringing back Olaf's head while Trond's expedition searches potentially in vain for Kettil himself would go a long way to winning Rurik the kind of prestige he needs to claim his rightful þejnship from Trond.

The PCs are agreeable to this plan, but separating from the larger expedition is a matter for tomorrow. In the meantime, they have their own idea for winning some recognition; they plan to cross over to the larger island, find the old campsite where Arnolf and Steinar were slain, and raise a cairn or other memorial for their fallen kinsmen.

Finding where Arnolf and Steinar camped takes some searching, but soon they spot where the rocks were blackened by campfires and begin to search around for any traces of their kin. While searching, Mundr spots a glint of light amid the rocks, and discovers what seems to the tip of a steel sword, snapped off between two stones and still stained by the dried blood of the thrust that likely broke it.

Steel is rare and expensive, and so the party realizes that this sword must have belonged to either Kettil himself or one of his closest comrades. Ylva takes charge of it and works her seiðr to link sword tip and blade together once more. Spinning in her hand, the broken sword point begins to point north across the sea, drawn toward the place the rest of the blade lies—a compass to guide the party very near to their ultimate goal, Kettil. Ylva is cautious, however, for she recognizes something else: that this fragment of blood-stained steel used to murder a Laxbrynjung kinsman is in itself an omen of death and a token of bad luck—bad luck that will accompany the party as long as they carry the thing.

Sobered by their discovery, the party decide to hold a sacrifice to the sea god on the nearby cliff, hoping to counteract this bad luck through the goodwill of the gods. They recall a place on the smaller island where they saw evidence of seals gathering, and return their campsite to try catching some for their sacrifice. With night well and truly falling, they and their crew arrive in time to see the seals emerging from the water to sleep on the black rocks of the shore, which still retain the heat of the sun.

Ingvild and Mundr, the two strongest party members, prepare to wade in among the seals and wrestle one into a net, but just as they set foot onto the rocks a voice calls out from the water, commanding them to stop. Turning, they recognize the face of Froda, the old steersman of their ship, emerging from the waves with seaweed braided into his hair and beard.

When last they saw Froda he had been mortally wounded by a monstrous crab, and the party traded their favour with the selkie they had aided in exchange for her help healing him. She took him away beneath the waves and promised he would be returned to his home when he had recovered. Now the party is faced with him striding out of the water, his torn chainmail shirt patched with glittering new rings carved from mother of pearl, his sword resting in a scabbard of driftwood instead of leather, and his cloak dyed the green of the sea. Standing up to his knees in the water he calls up onto the shore, forbidding any man from harming the seals, which are under the protection of his bride.

At once the party's crew erupts into shouting. Some of them think that Froda has been bewitched by the selkie and must be rescued, others that he should be envied for apparently marrying one of the legendary seal-women. Yet others think that Froda has died and that this is his ghost come to haunt them.

While Ingvild turns his steely and menacing gaze upon the crew to quell them, and Mundr and Hrafn prepare to wrestle Froda to the ground if the need arises, Ylva looks Froda over from the shore. Immediately she can tell that Froda is not a ghost, having encountered such spirits previously, but it's equally clear to her that the man is now touched by the spirit world, and has certainly been enchanted in some way—at the very least, to the extent that allows him to survive in the Selkie's watery domain. If his mind has also been clouded, or whether he has married the spirit of his own free will, is harder to determine.

Mundr begins questioning Froda about what happened to him while he was away, and why he was not returned home as promised, and Froda answers. He describes his time healing in the selkie's care; how beautiful and kind she was; her many gifts to him, like his repaired armour; and the sense of purpose he found defending her domain. He speaks of how, when the time came to be returned to his home, it seemed that home was below the waves where he already was.

Hearing his story, Ylva determines that there is little to be done if Froda does not wish to return to land with them. Though the man is indeed enchanted and his love of the selkie was facilitated and by enchantment, it seems to have naturally arisen under unnatural circumstances, rather than to have been imposed upon him. There is no curse to dispel that would return him to his old self, and undoing the enchantments upon him would simply leave him unable to survive below the sea where he clearly wishes to remain.

This leaves the party conflicted and at something of an impasse, for Froda currently stands between them and the seals they need for their sacrifice and none of them wish to fight their former comrade over the matter. Mundr rallies himself to make a plea that they be allowed to take one seal to honour the sea god and the memory of their former þejn, and his speech is enough to give Froda pause. Finally he agrees to allow them one seal, but insists that he be the one to swing the sword when the time comes.

Returning to the site of the slaughter with Froda and their seal in tow—the creature oddly docile in Froda's presence—the party stand on the cliff and make their declarations to the sea god. Ylva promises to see the true Þejn of the Laxbrynjungs ascend to leadership, Mundr promises to see Kettil Sea-Strider and his son Olaf thrown into the sea in sacrifice just like this seal, and Hrafn asks for the sea god's blessing on Froda's marriage to the selkie. Ingvild abstains.

Their declarations made, Froda's sword falls on the seal's neck, and the best is hurled off the cliff and into the waves below. Froda embraces his former companions and makes his goodbyes, and then descends down to the water himself, vanishing into the waves. The next day, buoyed by their faith in the sea god's favour, the party sails alongside the rest of their warband, setting out for the remaining three days of their trip to Hvalarsnes.

And on the second day out, the curse of ill luck tied to their seið-compass hits home as the sea erupts beneath their convoy, churned to a raging foam by the surfacing of the kraken.

Behind the Scenes

The interactions with Froda were my favourite part of this session. I didn't anticipate him becoming as dear to the PCs as he did, but they had a lot of early interactions with him and then bargained to save his life instead of asking for a boon for their own sake. As soon as the selkie took him below the waves, I had in mind a later meeting with a Froda who didn't actually want to return to shore, and was very gratified by the players' concern when he wasn't already waiting for them on their return to Askarfjord. This trip across the sea was the perfect opportunity to have him resurface, and I'm glad it worked out the way it did.

I'm also kind of glad the kraken made an appearance, despite not having planned for it all. When the party was crossing the sea I rolled on my random encounter table, and got the highest result possible—the kraken. This thing showing up has drastically altered how I expected the raid and its aftermath might play out by derailing things really before they had started, and it's been very interesting working from there.

Next time, the party will have to deal the the beast's surprise arrival and still make it to the northern coast so they can raid the fortress of Olaf Mangler, the son of their þejn's murderer.