The ongoing playtest of Bodil’s Gap continues! In the previous installment, Mundr agreed to marry Gudrun, the illegitimate daughter of Jarl Arvid of Songheim, only to discover that like him she is touched by the power of other worlds—thanks to her tutelage under the frost giantess Hvít-Rán. Now Mundr must negotiate the tangle of otherworldly influence encroaching upon his upcoming nuptials in order to make it back home to Ymafjord and determine who is Þejn of the Laxbrynjungs.
The Cast
Ingvild Scoreslayer, Dýrsark - Ingvild is an old and bitter warrior, cunning but prone to the rage of a berserker. Having fallen in combat with the ancient ghost of a long-dead giant, Ingvild now lives only by the grace of his bargain with that giant's spectral kin, and his soul bears the giant's mark as evidence of the deal they struck.
Mundr Ivaldisson, Óttimaðr - Mundr is a promising young man endowed with the strength of giants by a mysterious incident during his travels abroad. A Laxbrynjung by birth, Mundr now finds himself betrothed to Gudrun Arvidsdottir of Songheim, illegitimate child of the city's Jarl.
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. Since the voyage of revenge against Kettil Sea-Strider, Ylva has gained a taste for command, and now plans to acquire a ship and crew of her own.
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
When the face of the giantess appears, Mundr is transfixed by mounting concern. The last giant he encountered was a terrible foe who slew Ingvild with a final blow despite being little more than a ghost—what faces him now is a living giant of flesh and blood, albeit one present only as a moving image in a pane of ice.
Despite Mundr's concerns, however, the giantess makes no sign of hostility—indeed, she seems quite pleased to see him. As Gudrun happily greets her "auntie" and begins telling Hvít-Rán about her betrothal, the giantess greets Mundr cordially and expresses her congratulations to them both. Looking Mundr over, Hvít-Rán recognizes him at once for what he is, and asks the name of his teacher in the ways of óttimáttr—surprised that one of her fiery cousins would be inclined to take a student. When Mundr is forced to explain that he had no teacher and came by his powers through direct exposure to the Realm of Fire, the giantess' eyes gleam with greed, and she offers to become Mundr's tutor as well as Gudrun's.
Unsettled by the whole situation, Mundr deflects instead of agreeing, asking more about Gudrun and Hvít-Rán's relationship. The giantess explains that she has been Gudrun's confidante for a long time without truly elaborating on the subject. She and Mundr can speak more at wedding, after all, which Hvít-Rán will of course attend—though the giantess is at present far away in the Realm of Frost outside the mortal world, for some time now she has been teaching Gudrun to "open the way", lessons which will surely be complete in time for the wedding feast.
Unwilling to make himself the giantess' enemy so quickly, Mundr can only agree. Hvít-Rán's image does not linger long after that, bidding Mundr and Gudrun farewell—for now. Mundr does not linger long either, parting from Gudrun to prepare for the trip back to Ymafjord. When next the two see each other, it will be at their wedding on the eve of the Alþing.
Back at the docks, Ingvild is wandering in search of solitude, only to encounter a familiar face: Odd Crooked-Brow, the Hersir of Ymafjord. Stumping along with the aid of a crutch, Odd emerges from the thronging sailors to greet Ingvild, surprising him—none of the party has seen their comrade since the kraken broke up their fleet. Looking Odd up and down, it becomes clear that the old Hersir has not weathered the intervening time very well; the crutch is a new addition to his outfit, made necessary by fact that his left leg now appears to be missing from the knee down.
Finding a secluded spot to speak, Ingvild asks Odd what's happened to him and his crew since the two were parted. Odd explains how he was wounded in the kraken's attack, one of its tentacles twisting his lower leg from his body before their ship was able to escape. Injured, his crew left short-handed by the attack and his ship badly damaged, Odd managed to steer into the port of Egil's Landing for repairs and recuperation. While there he made inquiries attempting to learn the location of Kettil Sea-Strider's lair, but was forced to be cautious—for Egil's Landing was known to be the pirate's port of call, and many there were sympathetic to his plundering of Southern waters. By the time Odd's ship was repaired he had learned nothing, and judged it better to return south and attempt to reconvene with the rest of the Ymafjorders—only to learn on arriving that Ingvild and his companions had already returned in triumph from their raid on the Sea-Strider's camp.
With Odd and his crew confirmed alive, most of the fleet that departed from Ymafjord is accounted for—and those in Songheim are ready to return home. The following morning, the party prepares to sail alongside Odd. Before departing, Ingvild fetches Kara and Gunvor from the temple of Gullvinna, the Goddess of Craft, where they have been staying as guests. With Trond gone and the question of the þejnship about to be settled, it's finally safe for them to return home.
Setting out, things quickly go awry, however. A storm blows in, and the winds separate the party's ship from Odd's. Lightning strikes their mast, causing it to fall, while surging out of the waves, eager to escape the lightning striking the water, the party's perennial foes emerge—the nárikrabbir, giant crab-lice that plague the seas and tear ships apart for their nests.
While sailors dive out of the way of the falling mast, battle is quickly joined. Hrafn's galdr-song stirs the sky, deflecting lightning away from the ship to strike the waves, making swimming crabs convulse and sink out of sight. Ingvild and Mundr trade blows with those creatures that make their way aboard the ship, while Ylva curses and transforms her foes.
Shedding crabs under the blows of the PCs and their crew, the ship limps away from the storm propelled by rowers bending their backs at the oars, and finally makes it home to Ymafjord a day behind Odd. On their arrival, the PCs are greeted at the shore by their friends and kinsmen, and immediately embroiled in politics, for Odd has sent messengers to the outlying holdings of the clan, calling everyone to gather for an impromptu þing.
The time has come to choose a new þejn of the Laxbrynjungs.
Behind the Scenes
I am constantly baffled by how often my group rolls crabs on the random encounter chart I have for sea travel. There's only one result that includes crabs, the odds of them rolling it again and again are incredibly low—and yet here we are. It's maddening, I'd love to have some more variety in these travel encounters, but I think fifty percent of the time we've used this chart we've gotten crabs.
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