The Berserkers

The Berserkers is a collective nickname for the trio of Judicator Halko's disciples, who are notorious for their rowdy behaviour and excessive consumption of alcohol.

Drawing their name from the pirate gang the three formerly belonged to, the Berserkers truly live up to their name in every sense of the word. Unruly, violent, quick to anger and able to drink any bar dry, these men would normally be among the last to be considered for Judicatorial training. Judicator Halko, however, seems to believe otherwise, having just the qualities necessary to bring and keep such wild men in line.

In line with the traditions of their gang, all of the Berserkers have adopted Norse-themed names which they retain as their official Judicatorial handles.

## Background

The Berserkers were originally a powerful and dangerous pirate gang, "the worst bunch of murderous thieving scoundrels this side of Aquila Reach", as aptly characterized by Halko. Led by a boss pompously styling himself Odin, the Lord of Berserkers, this pirate gang would menace the Imperium's shipping lanes and maintain an intense rivalry with a competing gang called Dandy Boys, known for their flamboyant Victorian-themed attires.

The gang was all but wiped out by a joint mission between Halko and Alain sometime after the Lenin Incident but before the events of the ill-fated Sidh embassy to A-1, only a handful of the original 2000 Berserkers surviving the slaughter visited upon them by the two Judicators. Four men in particular caught the Judicators' attention with their fierce and indomitable resistence. After their eventual capture, Halko and Alain would offer the four to enter Judicatorial service, the men naturally accepting, seeing how the alternatives were most probably life imprisonment or summary execution. Three of these Berserkers - **Bjorn, Ragnar,** and **Skjalli** - would become Halko's disciples, Alain selecting the fourth - **Malachai** - as his own.

If the three Berserkers had perhaps hoped to feign obedience at first only to dispatch of their master and regain their freedom at an opportune moment, they would quickly learn the error of such thinking, their wild and unbridled savagery finally having met its match in Halko. The Judicator has since managed to keep his unruly disciples in line despite their repeated attempts on his life, asserting his will and authority by his unmatched talent at intimidation, and more often than not brute physical force. It is said that Halko is the only person the Berserkers truly fear.

With that said, the Judicator seems to have conquered their grudging respect with his martial prowess and unparalleled viciousness.

## Bjorn

Bjorn is the nominal ringleader, or at least the smartest and most assertive of the trio, considerably more intelligent than his brutish appearance and mannerisms would betray. Although not much is known of his, or other Berserkers' past before their pirate days, his understanding of tactics and personal combat skills seem to suggest at least some military background.

Bjorn is the most refined of the trio - if refinement can even be mentioned in the same sentence with brutes like him. Being the most fashion-aware of the Berserkers, Bjorn pays more attention to attire, grooming and personal hygiene than his brothers in arms, and is generally more eloquent in expressing himself (in that he strives to avoid the casual use of profanity and criminal slang). His most notable piece of attire is a bowler hat, taken as a trophy from the Berserkers' former Dandy Boy rivals.

Bjorn's trademark weapons are boltgun and battle-axe, his preference for visceral flesh-rending weapons being in line with the rest of his former gang.

## Ragnar

The largest and most imposing member of the group, Ragnar is a mountain of a man, with strength and ferocity to match his size. Said to be capable of crushing rocks with his bare hands and endowed with the temper of a rabid grizzly bear, he makes for a terrifying foe to any unlucky enough to stray in his path. This is reflected in his combat style as well - he prefers things as up-close and personal as possible. Wielding a thunder hammer and a power claw in battle, Ragnar delights in smashing and rending apart his opponents in the most gruesome of ways.

Brutish and inarticulate, Ragnar prefers to take what he wants by force, be it loot or women, should his size and appearance alone be insufficient to persuade the hapless victims of his depredations. That and his legendary alcohol tolerance make him a rather difficult individual to manage. Unlike Bjorn, he makes no pretense to refinement, and in fact revels in his reputation as a savage brute - just the way he likes it. Ragnar's size and ferocity is only matched by his ego - he sees himself as the embodiment of rough masculinity and is genuinely baffled by the failure of more civilized folk and especially women to appreciate it (perhaps having in no small part to do with his poor personal hygiene). As a redeeming quality, Ragnar is fiercely loyal to whoever manages to conquer his respect, and will protect his battle-brothers with near-suicidal disregard for personal safety if necessary.

Somewhat amusingly, this violent brute has a soft spot for kittens, also being the only one of the Berserkers (or anyone else) who seems to understand Halko's strange fandom of *Kitty Nina* TV show.

## Skjalli

Skjalli is the Berserkers' self-appointed schemer and ladies-man - in that he usually prefers to plan in advance rather than charge head-long into the fray and prefers to win the affections of women with gifts and conversation rather than a knockout punch and heavy-duty restraints. His efforts in the latter are usually sabotaged by his habitual swearing and casual use of criminal slang, habits evidently picked up from a lengthy stay in a labour camp.

Skjalli apparently suffers from kleptomania, which was perhaps the original reason for his turn to a life of crime. Although he usually remains in control of his compulsion to steal, in no small part due to the Berserker gang's code of conduct which demanded that valuables be taken by violence rather than thievery, the constant urge to "procure" things has actually made him quite adept at procuring goods and supplies, Skjalli knowing every fence and black-market dealer in his former hunting grounds and beyond.

In a rather un-Berserker fashion, Skjalli serves as the group's ranged weapons expert, preferring to take out opposition with "precision" weapons like heavy boltguns and missile launchers. That's not to say he ever shys away from close combat, bringing a deadly chainsword to bear on whatever fools may have made the mistake of taking him for softer than his other comrades.

Skjalli seems to be a fan of Old Terra's metal subculture, sporting corpse-paint and various articles of metal fashion such as spiked wristbands in his attire as well as maintaining an extensive records collection of Old Terran heavy metal classics, oftentimes employing his kleptomania and procuring skills to obtain new articles for his collection.