accomplishedApril 1st, Year 101 (since founding of Ulvfrist)
Adalstein Ulfarsson (
spross), Dagmar Ivarsdottir (Tammy), Hulm Runolfsson (NPC), and Gudny Ottarsdottir (NPC) set out from Ulvfrist's gates. Hulm says the trip north and upstream to the place where the barge is lies some 2km to the north following the Staerkvand River. The group starts their travels at a brisk pace set by Hulm. Dagmar talks to Gudny and their conversation leads the volva to think of the apprentice herbalist as a typical Norse teenager who thinks she's being let off the leash. By the time the four characters reach the barge crossing, Adalstein and Dagmar are panting for breath, but Gudny seems to be handling the travel pace in stride.At the river crossing, the player characters meet the bargeman, Helgi Vagnsson, and his apprentice Eyvid Gunarsson. Dagmar discovers that Helgi was the thulr before Berger, the thulr before Eskel. She also sees that Helgi's staff has a rune of some sort on it. Helgi tells them that the river is swift and cold right now, thus making for a more dangerous passage than usual. The barge is somewhat old and worn, but seems serviceable. Adalstein notices the water is choppy, and that the barge is rocking quite violently. Once Hulm has aided Helgi and Eyvid to prepare the barge for departure, the player characters and Gudny board the boat. Adalstein slips boarding, and hurts himself, and Gudny cracks her elbow hard on the gunwhale, but is otherwise unharmed.
As the barge departs the shore, the choppiness of the water increases. The boat catches a vicious wave that tips it at a 45 degree angle towards Dagmar's side, and she's tipped out. Hulm tries to grab her but is unable to do so as her wet arm slips out of his, and as she continues to fall towards the water, she's grabbed by Eyvid's barge pole hook; for just a moment, she hangs suspended above the water, and then she finds herself back on the barge, as the barge starts to right itself. She thanks Eyvid, and Hulm, who apologises for not being able to grab onto her. Meanwhile, Adalstein is almost tossed out of the boat, but fortune smiles on him. A wooden plank of the barge comes loose and he's able to grab onto it and spare himself.
The barge reaches the other side of the river safely, and the characters prepare to depart. Hulm pays 2 Silver (a thin silver arm bracelet). Tammy pays by telling the future for both bargemen (using her Seidr magic to do so). She sees that Helgi will attempt to do something with great passion, but alas he will be on his own, but will be successful. For his apprentice, Eyvid, the reading is a bit more vague. Through his strength and loyalty, he will be rewarded but she cannot see what the deed will be or what the reward will be. Gudny asks Dagmar what she should pay the bargeman. In the end, she agrees to a promise that she will provide him with herbs that he will need at a future time. They spit and shake hands on it, Gudny's cringing at it being visible at first. Adalstein agrees to teach Eyvid sword skill to a level of competence, and he and both Helgi and Eyvid spit and shake hands on the deal.
The player characters debark the barge, and turn to the inland area here. Dagmar talks to Hulm, and learns a bit about the terrain near the Hoj and the trip to Hel's Meadow. He tells her that it is a good two days at a relatively brisk pace. She sighs, and tells him she understands - they have a time limit. Hulm points out the path that caravaners use, still visible in the new growth of spring, and the groups sets out. Hulm sets the pace again, but both Dagmar and Gudny have trouble keeping up. They stop for a rest after a couple of hours, near a small set of stones covered with growth. Dagmar notices a pile of fresh dung near the stone where she's sitting, bear dung, and Hulm confirms there are adult bear tracks in the area, but they not recent. The group of characters set out again.
The player characters travel towards the wood, and Hulm spots a good place to camp just under the canopy of trees. Darkness starts to fall. While Dagmar and Hulm set up the camp basics, Adalstein and Gudny gather some stones for making a firepit. When they return, Dagmar notices that one of the stones has a wolf's-head carved on it. Before she can get an answer as to where they got the stone, Hulm whispers that they are being watched. However, he can't make out by what. Hulm throws a rock (but not the one with the wolf's-head carving on it) at whatever the creature is; it gives a wolf-like howl, and flees into the forest, disturbing the brush.
The evening passes relatively uneventfully. Dagmar notices that the fire in the pit is brighter than it should be, and she sees that the wolf's-head stone is in the pit. Using her magical senses she looks more closely at the stone [and fails the MD roll to resist magic], and realises that the stones themselves are magical somehow. However, she also realises that she's been blinded. Gudny confirms that her eyes are an opaque, milky white in colour. Dagmar learns that they found the stones in a flat, somewhat odd area. When she asks, Gudny tells her that the stones were in a septagonal pattern (the wolf's-head stone might have been part of the pattern). Dagmar says that the stones might have been from a shrine dedicated to wolves and/or varulfs. With a cry of "It's all my fault!", Gudny rises up and dashes off into the forest crying and in a panic...
Nothing really to add about this session of gaming, though I have to say that I'm still having a blast running the Yggdrasill system. Tammy and
spross both seem to have had a good time playing the game this afternoon, and I think that the scenario is on the right path at the moment, though there are a few surprises (I hope) to come for the players and their characters. 