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    1. Oak7ree 9 yrs ago

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Shortly.

Just a regular university student, majoring in hospitality and tourism. Also a history and trivial knowledge nerd, aircraft aficionado, occasional trekker and a D&D player.

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The Ouroboros – A Viking-inspired RP


"It's my belief that history is a wheel. 'Inconstancy is my very essence,' says the wheel. Rise up on my spokes if you like but don't complain when you're cast back down into the depths. Good time pass away, but then so do the bad. Mutability is our tragedy, but it's also our hope. The worst of time, like the best, are always passing away."

--- Boëthius, a Roman philosopher.

An Introduction

Welcome to my new RP, which is inspired by the Norse, Nordic and other mythologies of the world. There will be references to different mythologies and real-life history, but the RP follows a certain viking vibe.

The RP is set in the world of Midgard, where the feared nightmen of old legends are resurfacing and threatening the kingdom of Borrland. Only brave heroes can save the world.

I am still writing more material for the RP, and will be refining and polishing the writing. Feedback, comments and questions are always welcome, though.

A Bit of Background

Midgard is the world of the humans, goblins and giants, riddled with conflicts and opportunities. As one of the nine realms of the Circle, Midgard has been a battleground between the different creatures and entities of the Circle.

The Circle is the name used for the nine worlds that form the world tree Yggdrasil. Yggdrasil keeps the Circle intact, and if it falls, so does the Circle.

The Kingdom of Borrland is one of the major countries in Midgard, named after its first High King, Borri the Giant. He bent the tribes of modern day Borrland under one banner to fight the threatening "nightmen". The nightmen were men-like monsters from the darkness between the realms of the Circle, seeking death and destruction of the realms. They are described in ancient tales as shadowy figures, as dark as starless sky and cold as a deep winter night.

The kingdom was founded over eight hundred years ago, when High King Borri united the rivalring human tribes under one banner. The year is now 871 after the war agaisnt the nightmen. The curent high king of Borrland is King Jorvi the Elder.

Valkyries are famed female warriors from Asgard, who hare known to choose those who die in battle. They are sometimes sent by Odin to aid humans to battle otherworldly threats, Odin is one of the gods of the human pantheon. He is revered as the god of wisdom, mysteries and warfare, among other things. He is the king of Asgard, and the father to many other gods and heroes of the past.

Skara the Raven was a renowned valkyrie during the days of Borri the Giant. She was sent by Odin, and is said to have been Odin's daughter by a human mother. She was trained in Asgard and cast down to Midgard without her memory. She fought agaisnt the nightmen and married Borri the Giant after he became the first High King. The nightmen were defeated and driven into near extinction by the humans. She gained the nickname "the Raven" for her coal-black hair and a raven wing tattoo on her back.

It is said that the spirits of the dead wander to the lands beyond the northern sea. They then meet the ferryman Gwynewhyr, who takes them to the underworld for a certain prize. The spirits have to tell the ferryman a secret. The ravens of Gwynewhyr then take the secret to Leofri, the keeper of secrets and the scribe of the gods.

Important feasts of Midgard's calendar are the midsummer and midwinter's Yule, alongside others. There are twelve months in a year, and around 364 days in a year. The calendar is upheld by the sages, who decipher the movements of the celestial bodies and are said to commune with the gods of Asgard. They are respectede by the community and their advice are sought after. They often speak quite cryptically, when they give advice, though – listerners be wary!

Borrland's terrain is mountainous and wooded. To the north are the Isles of Hjorska, named after the famed explorer Hjorska, who sailed to the north and to the south, mapping the shores and coastlines of Midgard. The isles are under Borrland's control, even if in name only. The earl of the isles is highly autonomous and often applies his own laws and customs to the isles. The isles include Orkney, Hedemark and Karlehamn, alongside countless smaller islands and rocks. Orkney is the largest one, and houses Gulftown, a large harbour and market town. To the south of Borrland lies its neighbour, the kingdom of Taranis. It has expanded after the founding of its capital Taran, and has made overtures northwards. Borrland itself is surrounded by sea on two sides – to the west and the north. In the east, lie the tall mountains known as the Grimnir Mountains – a place infested with many monsters and dragons, according to tales and legends. Borrland's "capital" is Beornhall - a town built on the coast between the Black Forest to the north and the great Kingswood to the south, and the River Orn flows through it. It is mostly built on wood, but stone has risen is popularity, as the people have grown more wealthy in recent decades. There are many guilds and merchants in the town, and about twelve thousand permanent residents. Beornhall is a trade hub for the kingdom, and many guilds, both new and old, have quarters there. Other small settlements of Sparrowton, Kirk's Watch and Ornspool lie nearby. The major products of the region are dried meat and fish, honey, tar, beer and wood. Only Beornhall and two other towns in the kingdom have staple rights, or the freedom to trade with the outside world.

Harkland's "capital" is called Serpentstone. It is a walled town on the top of an easily defendable hill, which rises in the middle of great central plains of Harkland. It's walls turn and twist like a snake around the town. It boasts stone walls as high as thirty feet, and it is Earl Hjalmar's base of power, as it provides him much needed revenue. On the lands ascadent are rich gold and silver mines and many smaller villages and farms. On Harkland's western coast lies the important town of Colsgrave, providing a harbour and an access to the wider market.

Harkland's terrain is dominated by open plains, tall hills and deep forests of pine, aspen and spruce. The villages of the region suffer from frequent goblin attacks, though many common folk can also defend their households quite effectively. Women acting as warriors aren't frowned upon as much as in other regions.

Borrland is a feudal society ruled by a high king. Below him is the landed nobility, mostly earls, barons and landed thanes. Thanes are warriors, who have pledged their service to a noble, and are often rewarded with weapons, money, jewellery and other such gifts. Thanes form the backbone of Borrland's armies, as they are often well-versed in the arts of warfare. They often form warbands, that go on raids. Peasant levies can bolster the numbers of an army. Some of the thanes have been given a patch of land to farm and protect, and in times of war, to follow a baron or an earl. Thanes are often recruited from the lowes classes, and they can raise quite high in the society despite their humble origins. Below the nobility is the common folk - the peasants, the merchants, the artisans and other such people who don't have a noble bloodline.

Laws govern the daily acts of commerce, criminal justice and government. Horse theft and murder are punishable by death, if a blood money isn't cannot be paid. Thievery - the thief usually loses the hand, if he cannot pay back the owner the stolen item with interest. All crimes, small and great, must be judged before a tribunal, often consisting a judge, a notary and a jury to counsel the judge, but in the rural backwaters, lynching and justice by the mob are commonplace, when a proper tribunal cannot be held. The nobility are bound by law to uphold the law on their domains and fiefs, to protect the innocent and counsel the king on stately matters when needed. Also, they need to bring their thanes and levies to war when called.

Giants wander around Midgard in nomadic tribes and clans, migrating and herding mammoths. They are mostly peaceful creatures, though aggressive and protective of their own when threatened and provoked. They wield archaic weapons, armour and tools, often made made from mammoth bone and tusks, or from other materials, like stone and wood. They are between ten and fifteen feet tall.

Goblins pose a threat to remote settlements by attacking quickly and retreating quickly, relying on ambushes and deception. They are small, but numerous in the many woods of the world. They are primitive, but also unorganised, though great numbers can easily overwhelm unprepared humans.

A runic alphabet is used in Borrland.

There are three monetary units in use; coppers, marks and crowns. Coppers, as the name implies, are made mostly of copper, but often some other metals are added when they are minted. Marks are silver coins, often used by the merchants when buying or selling to each other, while crowns, gold coins, are rarely used by the common populace.

Most people follow the old gods, such as Odin, Balder, Týr and others, who live in Asgard. The gods affect all aspects of human life, but often they are cautious on influencing Midgard's life. Ravens are seen as sacred animals.

As a GM, I have only two rules: act nicely, and don't use coloured text. And I will not most likely flesh out every little detail in the world, as it would take quite a while, but if you have questions, hopes, comments or doubts if something would work, just ask, and I try to answer it.

Character sheet

Name: What is this human being called?
Occupation: How does the character earn his or her living?
Height: Is he or she short or tall? Measured in feet and inches.
Weight: Is he or she lean or stockier than usual?
Appearence: What does he or she look like?
Personality: What makes you tick?
Background history: What made you? Where did you grow up? How about family? What did your parents do for a living? Et cetera.
@shagranoz, @DrunkasaurusRex & @Master, thank you for your interest. I will continue in coming few days the writing. I will read some more on the vikings. I will also take some bits and bolts from other mythologies and real history, but I try to keep it "Norse-friendly", so to speak. The basic premise will be about the resurfacing nightmen threat.

Edit: if you have questions or character concepts, you can PM me anytime and I try to answer them the best I can.
So, I've written a short introduction to a world based heavily on the Nordic/Scandinavian mythology, and I'd like to base an RPG on it. But before I start a full-blown RP or write more of the background material, I would like to drum up some interest and get feedback on the material already done. Any interest, anyone?

You know what, guys and gals? I've seen Dunkirk, and it was awesome. Damn you, Christopher Nolan, for getting a proper audio team. I can still hear those Stukas and their diving...
@shylarah *Plays ominous music.* I have no idea.
@Super Grandpa Sorry for the delay, but the answer is yes. You're hired. The RP has been for some time been a bit quiet, to put it mildly. What kind of Axis character do you have in mind?

And Tali-Ihantala is correct.

The Soviets tried in the summer of 1944, right after the Normandy landings, push through the Finnish lines. After the Winter War, Finland became closer with Germany. During the summer and fall of 1941, Finland reclaimed lands lost to the Soviet Union as the operation Barbarossa took the Soviets by surprise.

Ever since the late 1941 and early 1942, the Finnish front had been quite quiet. The Soviet attack through the Finnish-occupied land towards Finland forced the country out of the WWII as the Soviet Union's enemy. Tali-Ihantala was a major battle, and as a result of the battle and few other engagements, the Soviet advance was stopped.

During the WWII, Finland fought three major conflicts; the Winter War, the Cobtinuation War and the Lapland War. The first two were agaisnt the Soviet, while the third was agaisnt the Germans. Before and during the Continuation War, German troops had been transported to Finland and given the task to fight in the northern battlefields. After the Soviets forced Finland out of the Continuation War, they also forced Finnish troops to expel the Germans from Northern Finland.

Before and during the battle of Tali-Ihantala, the Finns gained materiel support from the Germans, mostly arms, and also the Detatchment Kuhlmey was assigned to Finland. As example of material support Finland received, there were Panzerfausts, Stumgeshütz III tank destroyers, BF-109s, fuel and food.
@shylarah On my part, no. I've been a bit busy lately, but I am not pronouncing this dead.

Edit: (Optional) A history trivia question about WWII.

At what battle was this picture taken?


@shylarah Care to tell me why?
@Afro Samurai, @shylarah Perhaps Izkry and Walter could act as a pair, covering each other's backs as waiting staff.
A thought of mingling among the high society made David nervous, to say the least. He hadn't been this nervous since his first raid in North Africa with the SAS almost a year ago. David had felt calm as they had been flown from Camp Toccoa to New York. Colonel Clarke had stayed in the camp, while Hanks had come with them, only to disappear after they had come to New York a few days ago. They had been given a very spacious, almost luxurious apartment to prepare their disguises and aliases. At least it was better than anything David could afford on his officer's pay check.

And the big night had come. The team was preparing, and each of them had been given a proper alias. David's alias was quite simple; he'd pose as a Marine officer from New York, a Captain named David Rogers. He was dressed in the Marine uniform.

Belasý had been assigned as his avec to the party. David didn't really know what to think of her. She was the quietest of the team, and that would have alarming in a normal recruit or soldier, but no one of them was exactly normal. She clearly had baggege with her.

The party would take place in a six storey hotel in Manhattan, named the Golden Fleece, after the Greek mythology. It was said to be one of the best hotels in the City, and it was famed for its elegant restaurant and great customer service. The reception, the restaurant and a big ballroom were situated in the ground floor, while the rest of the floors were reserved for the hotel's guests.

The hotel itself was mostly built from smooth red bricks and had rooms for two hundred people. The ballroom could fit about one hundred fifty people easily and leave some room to maneuver. As far as David knew, there were going to be almost a hundred people invited to the party. It made looking for a spy difficult, but as Hanks had assured, there would be a few FBI agents undercover for assistance.

The party would start at seven o'clock with some Champagne and speeches, as far as David knew. The hotel's Champagne must cost a fortune, David thought. The objective was to stay near the Senator and to look after him. Just in case the spy took his chance at his life.

---

Hasso Steiner was also preparing for the evening in his apartment. For the past few days, he had been practising and preparing for this evening. He would go to the party as a import and export agent named Franklin House of the Universal Exports. It was a shell company, of course, and there wasn't a Franklin House. Well, not anymore. Franklin House had been a single man with not much family, and he had been a very reclusive person, until Hasso had killed him and asssumed his identity. Hasso could mimic other people, but he had to meet and talk to them first, so he could mimic their way of speech and mannerisms, every little detail and posture.

The shell company had bought an invitation to the party, and Hasso was ordered to go the party and kill George Kellermann. He was to kill Senator Emmerich, if an oppurtunity rose, but it wasn't necessery. His contact's had provided the last details to the mission.

It was time. Hasso started to morph into Franklin House. House had been a tall and thin man, almost ghoulish figure with black hair and blue eyes. A real pen pusher. It always tickled when Hasson morphed into a new person, and it took some time, but in the end, it was easy for him.

Franklin House dressed in his best suit, took an umbrella, and left the building.
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