Vikings & Valkyries - Session Nine

Session 9 (July 26, 2014)

(Back to Session 1)

In which our intrepid heroes gathered information about the mysterious sorcerer who attacked their village, travelled north to personally investigate a possibly related matter, and saved a damsel in distress.

The party included the following characters:

• Esja Waldensdottir (Hunter 2)
• Freydís (Priestess of Freya 2)
• Gottfried Flogasson (Prince 3)
• Harald Greentooth (Viking 3)
• Jormund (Sorcerer 3)

The day after the attack, Jarl Olaf asked some uncomfortable questions regarding the sorcerer's appearing and sieging the settlement. Later, as the party helped the locals (burying, rebuilding, etc.), Freydís had a divine vision in which she saw wolf-like creatures hunting for prey and then being trapped by some people amidst a peculiar copse of trees.

Referee's note: Divine vision is her most often used spell, and I must say, it has been one hell of an instrument in my advancing the plot and providing information. At the beginning, I feared it may be abused, especially as the characters advance in level and the cost of power points becomes negligible; however, nothing of this sort has happened. I, of course, always tried to make sure the visions are cryptic and provide little but still useful information; so far, I suppose it has worked out quite good.

Freydís then talked to the local priest, Kjartan, and learned that they heard disquieting messages from Ulfgar, leader of a northern settlement, located not much farther from the site Freydís saw in her vision. The party decided to personally investigate the matter.

In the meantime, Harald talked to the Jarl's wife, Fridha (whom apparently has feelings toward him; at least his party members often joke about it), and she told him about a letter he would need deliver to Raghild, a priest in service of Sigurd (father of Varghöss).

Referee's note: There was also a scene in which Freydís confronted Jormund and told him that she knows that he is a sorcerer (this has been kept a secret from other party members so far). Knowing this later turned out to be absolutely redundant; but such is the nature of this game.

After their arrival and some talking, a group of trollmen attacked the settlement, and although five of them were defeated by the party, the rest of them got away, kidnapping a local girl. The party sent two local scouts to track the kidnappers. They returned with the information that they carried the girl to a cave of some sort. The party decided to go after them the following morning.

Referee's note: As watchful readers may have already suspected, I used the scenario Something Rotten in Novgorby and adapted it to my campaign's needs.

On their way to the cave the party was ambushed by an ice spider. Fierce combat ensued, and although they emerged victorious, they lost a great deal of their resources during the fight. While the others were resting, Gottfried accompanied Esja to the entrance of the cave, where she hid to watch the area until the rest of them arrived; Gottfried then went back to the others.

During her watch, Esja saw half a dozen trollmen leaving the cave carrying a small sack; she decided not to pursue them alone. When the others finally arrived, Esja went ahead to track the trollmen from a distance, while the rest of them entered the cave to rescue the kidnapped girl (whose remarkable medallion has been taken away, they later learned).

Referee's note: The battle between the party and a single shadow troll and his eight trollmen minions was spectacular, and one of the most interesting battles we had with this system. After many turns of tide, the players emerged victorious, and they managed to rescue the girl, as well. Also, Jormund had to reveal his sorcerous abilities openly.

Esja followed the trails until reaching a remarkable structure (not unlike Stonehenge) on top of a rocky hill, concluding there must be some sort of gateway; but she decided not to investigate it further on her own, so she returned to her companions.

Paranoid because of the information so far in their knowledge, the party, employing a variation on the good old "good cop - bad cop", learned from the girl's mother that the girl's medallion was given her by Sumarlid; the young lad accompanied her father on a dangerous journey from which he never returned. The party also learned that Sumarlid has recently left the settlement and travelled west to a place ruled by the iron-fisted warrior-woman Thorgunna.

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