Session 019

## The Freehold

**Age of the Wolf, Year 5, Spring, Toil 3 days 8-10 -- Summer, Aerlun Toil 1 days 1-8**

*The party meets a number of intriguing figures at the Freehold. They take some time to reequip and regroup. Newly outfitted, they head east towards the dwarven stronghold controlled by the Firehand Clan.*

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## Player Characters Involved

* Nygäär the Dark the Fey Blooded Rogue/Fighter played by Dana
* Heiða the Seer the Dökkálfar Blooded Dread Necromancer played by Justin
* Esbjörn Sigvardson the Giant Blooded Barbarian/Cleric played by Greg
* Brydd Hjarta the Jörmung Human Sorcerer/Marshal/Sand Shaper played by Jason

## The Arch Magus

The Arch Magus Halldor greeted the party warmly. Vindr, the scout, told the wizard he had been sent by Yric to tell the tale of the adventurers standing before him. Vindr said that the wizard Yric had stayed behind, and sent him to find the Arch Magus to deliver the message that some local heroes had decimated a large number of Umbrian troops near Raendale. That message delivered, Vindr retired to the inn to recover from his long voyage.

Halldor introduced himself as the leader of the Ruegian wizards guild known as the Cunning Folk and explained to the party that he was in Seron to recruit troops to take the fight to the Umbrians on their home territory. Halldor also revealed that his guild worshipped Woden, which is another name for Odin. The party listened politely but decided not to take the wizard up on his offer to invade Umbria. Reluctantly, Halldor told the party he would be in town for a few more days, and that if they changed their mind and were willing to make the voyage across the Northern Sea (a journey of a few weeks) to let him know. During this recruiting attempt, Heida had slipped out surreptitiously to visit the town volva. It seemed the seer was not interested in what the foreign wizard had to say. Halldor bid them a good day and left Kettel's hall. After Halldor took his leave, Kettel Magnusson came out of his quarters to properly introduce himself to the party.

## The Jarl of the Freehold

Kettel explained how the Freehold had been founded. It seemed the fierce old warrior had grown tired of the Geat clan and was disappointed that his old friend the Geat chieftain Orri Karsson had sold out to the foreigners. Kettel wanted a stronghold of his own, beyond the petty squabbling of clan politics. He had decreed that any who worshipped the true gods were welcome in Gratisby, and after learning about the party seemed happy to welcome them. He went on to outline his philosophy, formed (or so he claimed) from his travels across Seron, Umbria, Ruegia, and even far across the Western sea in the Xi’an Empire.

In a nutshell, Kettel was of the belief that the clan system was outdated. It was his view that in order to defeat the foreigners, Seron must be united under one king. He was also of the belief that slavery should be abolished, and that any worshippers of the One God in Seron should be forced to convert or be killed or banished. Kettel then went on to outline his plans to make the Freehold a rich and powerful settlement, through the establishment of trade and a standing force of warriors. The jarl boasted that he could call up hundreds of warriors even now and that as his settlement grew he could foresee a day when it would become a powerful force in Seron able to protect itself from all attacks.

One issue Kettel had was the infestation of the flatheads who were disrupting trade along the eastern road leading to the Fjord of Tears. He asked the party if they could help, and promised to reward them if they cleared the foul creatures out. He wanted to open up further trade with the Frisian clan, and could only do so if the road leading to the fjord was safe. He was already trading with the dwarves of the Firehand clan, along with the local Harii, and saw trade with the Frisians as an important component to his plan. Kettel bade the party welcome once again and encouraged them to trade freely. Anxious to spend some of their hard-earned coin, the party took him up on his offer.

## A Former Law Speaker

While the rest of the party was speaking to Kettel, Heida sought out the local volva. Helva the Shrew was an old woman, who told Heida that she had been expecting her. They talked of Heida's past, and how she had changed from what many believed would be the greatest healer born in a thousand years to what she had currently become. Helva did not judge the young seer, stating plainly that women of their talents must stick together. Eventually, Helva opened up and told Heida of her wish - to become young again and have a family. It seemed the old woman regretted some of her choices and wished to make up for lost time. She spoke of a gateway to a well to the south that would lead those brave enough to enter it to the very base of the world tree Yggdrasill itself, where the Norns spun the tapestry of destiny. Helva asked Heida to journey there and recover a drop of water from the well Urdarbrunnr (also known as the Well of Fate) to allow Helva to recover her youth. Helva said that the Norns would answer one question of any who were brave enough to visit them. As the two women were talking about this, the rest of the party, done speaking with the local earl, made their entrance.

Helva revealed a number of interesting details to the party about her former life as a druid. It seemed she was once a green-robed Law Speaker. She spoke of each sect, and gave her best guess on why they had recruited the party:

* Red Druids: want a balance between fire and frost giants, wanted Esbjorn to get the Arm Rings so he could dispose of them in the fires of Odin’s Heart or at the very least keep them away from the Frost Giants
* White Druids: want the Frost Giants to invade Seron and wipe out all humanoids, a return to the land covered in a glacier. They believe the Umbrian invasion will weaken the true gods and the believers in the true gods
* Green Druids: want a balance between civilization and nature, sent PCs to the dwarves in order to have them investigate and destroy the dark dwarves who are working with the Umbrians. These druids fear that the continent will turn into Umbria where the forests are being cleared at an alarming rate

The party contemplated this information and thanked the volva for being so forthcoming. Over the next ten days, Helva sold them a number of scrolls and potions and used her skills as a wizard (she had learned this trade during her time in Ruegia) to create some magical items to increase the parties power.

## A Dwarven Master Craftsman

Looking to create or acquire new arms and armor, the party next met the dwarven master craftsman Hermon Forgebreaker. The old dwarf was stern but kindly, and the party learned that he had left the Firehand clan many years before to adventure with Kettel. Considered an outcast, Hermon worshipped Weyland the Smith (known to the dwarves as Voland) and told the party in no uncertain terms that he hated the dwarf king Grammar Oakspine.

It seemed the dwarf king of the Firehand clan was a very angry and unfriendly character, and Hermod warned Esbjorn to be cautious in dealing with him. Esbjorn took this advice to heart and marveled at the old dwarf's skill as he worked with him to forge a new bastard sword over the course of ten days. Forming a bond with the old dwarf, Esbjorn asked him how the dwarves felt about the giants and the giant blooded. Hermod said that the dwarves fought the giants often and that the king Grammar even had a trophy taken from a long-dead Fire Giant king hanging above his throne (a sword of terrible power was how the dwarf described it). Esbjorn noted that and thought about the implications if he were able to acquire such a sword himself.

## The Mad Priest of Odin

While Esbjorn made himself at home around the forges of Hermod, the rest of the party interacted with a strange man with wild eyes and hair. Finn the Fool (as he was known) was a worshipper of Odin, and it soon became clear he was as mad as they had heard. Able to provide the party with some healing equipment, he also told them a strange tale about the ancient ash tree in the Freehold.

Finn believed that the ancient tree, which was more than ten feet in diameter and long dead, could be brought back to life. In order to do so, one would have to seek out the Wolf of Winter, Ulver, and take a vial of his blood. Pouring the blood of such a powerful enemy of Odin around the roots of the tree would revive it, and the tree could once again speak as it had long ago. The party listened to this tale with a healthy degree of skepticism, but they did find out that Ulver was a servant of the Ice Giant king Istr Icesjel. Thanking the priest for his service, the party moved on to acquire other goods about town, rest and recover. One item that Heida acquired was of particular note - she asked Helva to provide her with a pearl of power that would allow Vungar to speak. Heida asked Vungar to eat it, which he did. Their wolf companion was now able to speak Giant!

Vungar verified that Ulver was indeed a servant of the Ice Giant king Istr Icesjel. In fact, Ulver was Vungard's younger brother and had stolen his mantle as the leader of the winter wolves. While fighting for leadership was customary for winter wolves, Vungar hated his brother because Ulver sold his own people into slavery to the Ice Giants. The reason that a winter wolf would befriend a fire giant blooded warrior like Esbjron now made perfect sense. It was Vungar's greatest wish to kill his brother and free his people. Amazed at the intelligence of their wolf friend, the party responded positively to this quest. As the goddess Frigga had communicated, the Ice Giants were their enemies, and it wouldn't be long before Vungar got his chance.

## The Quest Continues

Their rest over, the party made ready to continue east and visit the dwarven stronghold. Before they left, Nygaar sought out Kettel one last time and asked him if there was any way that he could leave the boy Arlow in town, in order to keep him safe and finish his training. Kettel agreed and said that he and the guard captain Gauk would train the boy and see that he became a great warrior. Nygaar bid the boy farewell, promising to return soon.

The journey to the Firehand clan stronghold was only a few days travel, and the party hoped to reach it quickly and without incident. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Barely a day into their eastward journey, they traveled upon Kettel's road through the foothills. Suddenly they saw the huge head of a mountain troll rise up from behind a hill, a creature twenty-five feet tall who made the very ground shake as it walked. The party made ready to flee, but the troll stopped a short distance away and bellowed out "I'M HUNGRY! GIVE US SOMETHING TO EAT!" Thinking quickly, the party decided to feed one of the horses to the troll, in the hopes that he would allow them to continue. As the troll feasted, the party made a hasty exit, continuing east along the road.

After camping for the night, the party continued on, the dwarven stronghold only a little more than a day away. The second day of travel brought no relief, however, as a large band of flatheads ran out of the hills and immediately attacked the party. Fighting fiercely, the party was able to slay fifteen of the foul humanoids, but not without Heida and Nygaar taking a number of wounds from flathead spears and clubs. It seemed Kettel's warning was true. The road leading to the fjord was infested with the creatures. Nygaar chopped off the right thumbs of the dead flatheads and placed them in a bag as they would serve as proof to Kettel of the group's success. The war between the Fire and Ice giants had pushed them out of their dirty lairs in the mountains to once again plague these semi-civilized lands. Breathing heavily after a hard-fought battle, the party stopped to regroup. With any luck, they would reach the dwarven stronghold the next day.

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