Bard (VC)

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==Bards==
Known to the Vikings as skalds, bards were respected and honored members of the community. As stated before, the Vikings were not all uncouth barbarians. They placed great store in poets, developing poetry to a fine art. It was common for kings and nobles to support and protect skalds—and the poets were naturally expected to sing their lord's praises!
Skalds were poets and storytellers. They entertained by reciting verses, often composed on the spot. Without a written language (runes were not used to write down poetry), the skalds memorized their work and passed it on by reciting it to others. Their poems are filled with fanciful allusions known as kennings, a poetic description of a person or thing. For example, an axe would be called a "wood-griever" or "wound-wolf," while a warrior might be an "enemy of trolls," "painter of the wolf's tooth," or "feeder of ravens." The skald's audience was expected to know these kennings, and their complexity and word-play would add to the beauty and skill of the poem.
If proficiencies are used in the campaign, all skald characters must reserve one slot for Poetry (Slots: 1, Relevant Ability: Intelligence; Check Modifier: -2). Whenever the skald attempts to entertain, he must make a poetry proficiency check to see if he can master the difficult kennings.
Of course, poetry was not the only form of entertainment. Musical instruments were known, but were not valued as highly as the spoken word. Harping, in particular, was a popular entertainment.
Before a Viking skald can gain the use of magical spells (as described in the Player's Handbook) he must first have the opportunity to learn this art. This can only be done in a foreign land (such as Ireland), since the Vikings did not have these magical traditions. New player characters have not yet had the opportunity to travel, and so cannot begin knowing any spells.
==Colorful Kennings==
When running skald characters, players and DMs may want to brighten the characters' stories with poetic expressions appropriate to the class. The kennings (word-plays) below may be just what's needed to add that bardic touch.
: Arrows — wound-bees
: Axe — wound-wolf, wound-griever
: Battle — clash of the valkyrie, game of iron, storm, storm of metal
: Beer — pool of malt, sea of the horn
: Blacksmith — pole of iron
: Blood — arrow-dew, milk of corpses, river of swords
: Drinking horn — auroch's spear
: Eagle — battle-crane, vulture of battle
: Earth — fjord of the heather
: Farm land — sorrow of oxen
: Fire — terror of the birch
: Generous — hostile to gold
: Gold — arm-fire, fire of the wave, Frodi's flour, moon of the sea, river-fire
: Head — helmet-crag
: Hearth-stone — table of fire
: Hot iron — gold of the fire
: King — giver of rings, land-demander
: Man — Odin's oak, shield-wood, tree of gold
: Poetry — giant's drink, mead of Odin, Odin's theft
: Sea — belt of the earth, plain of seals
: Shield — spear-cloud
: Ship — sea-king's horse, sea-king's ski, sea-steed
: Silver — snow
: Sky — wind-bowl
: Snake — thong of the heather, valley-fish
: Spear — flying thorn
: Sword — glory of battle, hilt-wand, war-flame, wound-engraver, wound-snake
: Warrior — enemy of trolls, painter of the wolf's tooth, rouser of the valkyrie, spear-shaker,
: wolf-feeder
: Wife — goddess of the needle, pourer of beer
: Wind — enemy of the sail, wave-troubler
: Winter — death of snakes
: Wolf — horse of the giantess
: Woman — goddess of the arm