Dark Ages

Game Master Stormchaser

Kara hesitates, likely caught off guard by the sudden use of her own language, and Bletius shrugs.

"Yn wir, nid yw'n fawr o ganlyniad. Rwy'n deall bod y ferch yn siarad Saxon? Bydd hynny'n ddigon."

He gestures over his left shoulder in a beckoning motion and out of the shadows steps forth and enormous robed man - almost seven feet tall with a thick red beard.

"Dyma Gawen ap Gelert, awdur ein cynghreiriaid yn Glywysing. Byddwch yn mynd gydag ef i Gaint, lle byddwch chi i ymchwilio i'r Cristnogion sydd wedi glanio yno. Mae angen inni wybod beth maen nhw'n ei gynllunio."

Magan takes a moment to take in all the new information and faces, relieved Kara was spared the testing he had endured.

Bletius must be stressed indeed, this is concerning him more than he is letting on.

He looks at the new additions to the group.

At least they balance each other out a bit I guess.

He bows slightly to Lord Bletius and first indicates the giant standing behind him, seemingly unimpressed by his stature.

"Fel y dywedwch m'lord.
Dim ond i egluro, yr ydym i ymchwilio i ni? Ac i osgoi unrhyw sefyllfaoedd anghyfforddus, a ydym yn ateb i hyn ... dyn? A beth yn union yw'r rôl hon?"

He gestures to Felix

"A ydyn ni'n ateb iddo hefyd?"

Had been very much surprised to hear her native mother tongue spoken, and in her shock took too long to respond. She grins though, happy someone else was able to understand her most of the time. However as the conversation went back to some inferior language. All she knew was that she should get more chances to bring the glory of Freya to the heathen hoards

The giant initially gives a slight frown as if mildly annoyed, but then returns Magan's stony stare with a friendly smile.

(Cornish)
"I would ask if the hat gives it away, but I think perhaps it's a bit high up for most people to see."

He gestures to a thin but ornate wooden circlet on his head, almost lost amongst his wild, red hair.

(Cornish)
"Well, maybe you don't have dryw wherever it is you're from? I suppose I'm a sort of priest, but with a bit of history and herbalism thrown in. Spiritual leader, that's me."

Gawen speaks with a soft, cheerful voice that belies his size, and with an accent that is undeniably Welsh.

(Cornish)
"Anyway, some of the people back home aren't too happy with the idea of Christians coming over to Prydain, as I understand they can be a bit pushy at times, so I've been told to go and find out what's what."

He scratches his beard thoughtfully and frowns.

(Cornish)
"I don't really know what to expect, mind - it might be that we can just explain to them that we don't really need their god over here, as we've got plenty of our own, but as I say they've been known to be a bit pushy in the past so it might be that your negotiating skills," he gestures to Magan's sword "will be of more use than me. But I suppose we'll find out, eh?"

Magan grins. His eyes light up at the idea of killing Christian invaders.

"Gwelaf. Wel mae hyn yn swnio'n gytûn. A beth amdano?"

He turns to Felix.

Felix ponders for a moment before responding.

"Mae gen i set benodol o sgiliau sydd yn y ddau gynnil ac yn effeithlon. Mae sgiliau penodol sy'n gwneud i mi yn hunllef i bobl â trysorau a chyfrinachau ..."

He continues, smiling.

"Peidio â phoeni, serch hynny, nid yw fy targedau yn chi. Rwyf yn unig yma i hwyluso yn y fenter hon o ni."

Bletius nods at Gawen's words.

"Yn wir. Ar hyn o bryd chi chi yw'r arweinydd de facto o weddillion y lloliaid coch," he informs Magan matter of factly. "Felix yma yw'ch recriwt mwyaf newydd."

"Eich swydd chi yw mynd gyda Gawen i Gaergaint a chyda'i gymorth i asesu'r sefyllfa. Mae hefyd wedi ei grymuso gan ei gylch i gymryd pa gamau y mae'n barnu eu bod yn angenrheidiol."

He pauses and gives each of the group a serious look.

"Fel byth, os cewch eich dal, byddaf yn gwadu unrhyw wybodaeth ohonoch chi."

"Cwestiynau?"

Magan shrugs.

"Cyn belled â bod y trefniadau talu'n aros yr un fath, nid oes gennym unrhyw broblemau.
Byddwn yn cwrdd â'ch dyn yn y dafarn, yna yn gadael yn y bore."

Bletius nods.

"Gods' speed."

Darkness blossoms out around him, enveloping the cellar. Moments later it is gone and he along with it, leaving the two surviving Red Wolves and their new companions standing in the flickering candlelight.

Coughs softly, unsure if the man had dismissed them. She says in a quiet voice to Mayan, "Are we dismissed? If so I would like a brief update. You all kept muttering in that godsforsaken sounds. Almost as bad as the Baltic people I've raided in the past. Almost. Are we going to kill Christian scum?"
One could tell she was ready to rumble, having missed any earlier chance. She already missed the sounds and smells of battle, the feeling of connection, the sweet joy of victory, and the satisfaction of proper funeral rites. She was hopeful they had a new mission. She could prove her worth more instead of causing issues

Magan shuffles his feet a moment in the silence that follows Bletius' departure, he is obviously glad when Kara finally breaks it. As he turns to answer her the excitement of the prospect of battle is still in his eyes.

"I apologise for not translating. Bletius is an important man and does not have time to waste on hearing his own words twice. I will try to do better as we go forward. This gentleman, he nods at Gawen, is charged with nicely asking some Christian's to leave England. We are charged to get him there safely, and when asking doesn't work, we get to ask them less nicely."

He turns back to the group.

"Wel bod y lletchwith hwn drosodd, a gawn ni yfed a gwneud gwersyll am y noson?"

As he leads the way out of the cellar he falls in behind Gawen.

"Dydyn ni ddim wir yn ceisio ceisio negodi yn gyntaf ydym ni? Rydych chi'n gwybod nad ydynt yn haeddu yr un lefel o barch ag y gwnawn ni? Nid ydynt yn werth gosod byw"

Gawen bends down slightly to hear Magan.

"Wel nawr, i fod yn onest, nid wyf wedi siarad yn wir â llawer o Gristnogion fy hun. Ond dwi'n teimlo bod y rhan fwyaf o bobl yn fwy siaradgar gyda'u pennau ynghlwm wrth eu cyrff, a hoffwn i hoffi gwybod beth maen nhw'n gobeithio ei gyflawni yn y tir dirwy hon."

He pauses for a second, as though unsure of whether to continue or not.

"Mae'n swnio fel petai gennych lawer o brofiad yn delio â hwy, efallai y gallech ddweud wrthyf amdano dros y diod hwnnw y soniasoch amdano?"

Magan grimaces,as he recalls his experiences in conflict with Christians, both at home and abroad.

Be careful, the most useful experiences were in your father's presence

"Rydw i wedi cwrdd â llawer o Gristnogion. Fel arfer nid oes ganddynt unrhyw beth ddiddorol i'w ddweud. Yn anorfod, maent am naill ai eich trosi, neu eich lladd. Nid wyf yn gwybod pwy sy'n waeth."

"Mae'n swnio fel criw hyfryd o bobl, ni allaf aros i 'negodi' gyda nhw."

Felix says sarcastically.

Grins wickedly, and a gleam enters her eyes. She answers in norse, however, the general gist of her words was very obvious to anyone who had seen battle.
" So I get to smash heads in, after trying to tell them they are wrong. They will have no quarter, for they would have none for us."
Sure, Kara was a pretty woman, if you liked tall, blonde, and could toss you further than most could a mug. However, she obviously enjoyed what she did for her clergy, mainly converting people to Freya's way of thinking.

After a bunch more talking in the language she still didnt get, she mentions to Magan as they started to leave, unknown to her it was already taken care of
" Should we not head to the market and gather supplies? Or at least some travel food. I have plenty of arms left, but the food may be an issue unless you know how to hunt these lands. And maybe a final drink, for who knows when we are to be carried home to Freya's halls."

Magan translates the plans for the evening to Kara, and points her in the direction of the market if she needs supplies, before making his way back to the tavern with the others to settle in for a drink,and to wait for his money.

The mercenaries and their enormous escortee are quickly hurried back out the kitchen door by the staff and are once more left standing about outside the great wooden hall. After briefly discussing their course of action, the group heads back down the hill towards the docks.

Outside the stables behind Calder's a man can be seen lent against one of the wooden posts holding up the leaky porch that passes for a roof. A linen hood hangs over his brow, casting his upper face in shadow and a he is chewing a single stem of straw that protrudes from between his lips. His cloak hangs open, revealing a woollen tunic, and leather boots and breeches, with a dagger hanging from his belt.

Kara goes to the market, spending the little pay she has left on hard tack and other foot items needed for the journey. She even bought something for everyone else, unsure if they had enough, but it felt wrong to not prepare properly if she had the chance to do so. She would buy 20 days worth of rations to be split, ten traveling cake mixes for a bit of fresher bread, 3 pounds of powdered milk, and 2 pounds of honey. It all added up to 14 gold, but if it kept morale high on the journey, maybe it would be 14 gold well spent. Growing up in the church meant she understood that a small celebration kept everyone happy, thus the many holidays they had. And having fought in battle before, she knew food would be the most welcome.
Maybe this time it will not end badly. And that tall fellow is somewhat handsome. Hopefully I will not be making his funeral rites anytime soon.
Not realizing the hooded man may be out of place she would produce to hide the honey and the cake mix, since that would be somewhat special. After packing the items away on the poor pack mule, if not stopped by the strange man, she would go back and rejoin her companions, only this time she had her full armor and shield, unless stopped. No one had mentioned a leaving time, and it took a bit to get everything just right in place. She would leave all weapons but the battleaxe, as you just never knew when you needed an axe.

Magan looks at the man, a chill runs down his spine giving him pause.

You cannot trust a man like Bletius, given what we know, when he is close to done we will have to be eliminated. Are these other men his agents who need to be removed for their part in another venture?

"Felix, before we get too close, perhaps you would like to exercise those subtle and dangerous skills you boasted of and gain an advantage for us should things go badly. Though I hope this will be a quick and easy transfer of funds. "

Magan gives Felix a chance to slip away before approaching the man in a casual way.

" Hail ffrind, a oes gennych chi arwydd i mi?"

Felix gives Magan a sideway glance, amused.

"I highly doubt that lord Bletius went through all the trouble to hire us, just to kill us before we begin. But, if you insist..."

Felix slips into a side street before Magan could respond and takes an alternative route to approach the man from his flank.

On​ ​the​ ​way​ ​down​ ​to​ ​the​ ​docks,​ ​Gawen​ ​leaves​ ​the​ ​group​ ​for​ ​a​ ​couple​ ​of​ ​minutes​ ​to​ ​fetch​ ​his
travelling​ ​gear.​ ​He​ ​rejoins​ ​them​ ​just​ ​as​ ​they​ ​approach​ ​the​ ​stables,​ ​carrying​ ​a​ ​single​ ​large
backpack​ ​and​ ​accompanied​ ​by​ ​a​ ​smallish,​ ​very​ ​scruffy​ ​looking​ ​dog.​ ​He​ ​looks​ ​on​ ​with​ ​interest
at​ ​Magan​ ​and​ ​Felix’s​ ​approach​ ​to​ ​the​ ​man,​ ​but​ ​doesn’t​ ​interfere.

The man stands from where he was leaning against the pillar and turns to face Magan, raising his left hand to reveal a tattoo on his palm. Two serpentine red dragons entwined in each other in a figure of eight.

The corner of his mouth raises in a smirk under the hood.

"Beth sydd gennych i mi Aetheling?"

He gestures to the pack saddles on Errol, indicating that Magan should open them.

"By the way," says Gawen in Welsh, "did any of you notice how Bletius caused a cloud of darkness to envelop us back there? I thought it might be of note, as magic isn't entirely commonplace."

Magan eases ever so slightly and gestures to the loot filled bag, but makes no move to untie the saddle bag himself.

"Yn anffodus, nid yw ei arglwyddiaeth yn ymwybodol o'r diffyg. Oes gennych chi ein taliad?"

On seeing a sign of gold, Magan will allow the man to untie the loot filled saddle bag and take it.

The man peers into the bag at the medley of ostentatious baubles. Christian temples were always so unnecessarily flamboyant. The trinkets in the bag were likely worth much more than anything Bletius would deign to pay them... but it wasn't like anybody else would buy this stuff.

Seemingly satisfied, Bletius's man tosses Magan a jingling bag of coins.

"Dyma eich arian. Tri deg ar eich rhan, deg ar hugain ar gyfer y blaidd arall. Bod yn eich gweld Aetheling. Ceisiwch beidio â chael eich lladd eich hun."

Knowledge Religion DC 15 to realise Bletius has a sense of humour. :P

Magan nods his farewell to the man and breathes a slight sigh of relief.

The rest of the afternoon passes in the tavern with gradually less awkward conversation as the group attempt to get to know each other whilst largely wanting to say as little about themselves as they can. Many tales of battles are told and a brief history of the red wolves given to the new recruits.

Eventually Magan cuts an end to the polite conversation and pulls a map out from a pocket, laying it across the table. He speaks in Saxon, finding Gawen's Mercian easier to follow than his Welsh having grown up with more Mercians than Welsh folk as a child.

"So Gawen, we are to head to Kent, best we plan a route now so we know where to follow. We can plan our camps and look out for parts of the journey where supplies might be scarce as well as work out how long it will take so that we don't get caught short on provisions. I think it best to avoid the large cities once we leave Dummnonia, every lord and king from here to the end will want to know what we are doing and imagine ways to profit from it, slowing us down unnecessarily. Do you agree? What route did you intend to take?"

Magan takes a moment to explain the conversation to Prasutagus before waiting for Gawen's input.

Gawen leans forward and examines Magan's map for a minute before replying. His Mercian is just about understandable, though heavily accented.

"Well, I've not actually done much travelling outside of Glywysing, but unless we can find a ship travelling in the right direction we're in for a long walk - at least a fortnight, I'd say. If we do have to walk, we can either stay along the south coast or head inland and go through London. We'd probably find better roads going by London, but I doubt there'd be much in it either way, and there's be a few large towns on route either way too."

"As for the lords and kings - if we can keep a low profile it might not be too much of a problem. Maybe skirt around the edges of the larger settlements I suppose. If we take the main roads we might be able to blend in with traders and the likes."

Magan considers the options for a moment.

"If we are to blending with traders, a wagon may be useful, or at least some more pack mules. At the moment we look like a band of armoured thugs. Our first action would have to be to procure them somehow. Horses are going to be necessary, we have 2 between the three of us, not enough, do either of you have your own already? "

Magan looks to both Felix and Gawen, hopeful but not expectant.

Felix frowns at the mention of going along the southern coast. These days he tries his best to stay as far away from Sussex as possible.

"Let's head inland, I'd preferred it if we avoid Sussex all together. As for the horses, it's an expenditure that is currently outside of my capabilities. Maybe we can purchase a travelling wagon or cart?"

Shrugs her shoulders, unsure where they were going. Having packed away the provisions, she offers
" I can cook some. That would ease us on a journey on the road less traveled. However, since I am unsure the distance, is there anyway we could sail? Would that be faster?"
Truth was she felt more at home on the longships than open road, but if she had to walk for Freya, it would only increase the spread of the message.

Gawen frowns slightly at Felix's comment about Sussex, but refrains from probing further, and nods at Kara's comment about sailing before leaning forward and peering at the map again.

"Sailing would be much faster, but we'd have to find a merchant heading in the right direction along the south coast. So perhaps the best thing to do would be to head to Caerwysg - Isca, I think they call it in these parts - by foot before making a decision. It's on the road to London and probably the best place to look for a boat too. We might find a sea-merchant heading eastwards there, and if not we can just carry on on foot."

Magan looks over the map again. Seeing very little difference between the options.

"The merchant would also need a boat big enough to take the horses, and cheap enough to afford with our meagre funds.

I suggest we get hold of a couple of horses and a small wagon, disguise ourselves as two separate merchant groups, travelling in the same direction, sticking together for safety. Avoid the towns where possible, whether London or the south coast I don't mind. "

K(Religion): 1d20 + 4 ⇒ (14) + 4 = 18 How is Bletius' humour?

With Magan translating for him, Prasutagus listens to the conversation. After listening to their ideas of how to disguise themselves, Prasutagus snorts in humour and says,

"Pam nad ydym ni'n unig yn honni ein bod yn grŵp mercenari newydd i lawr ar ein lwc yn chwilio am waith? Dylai fod digon o drefi cythryblus i ddod o hyd i rywfaint o waith ar y ffordd i fwydo ein hunain ac i arbed digon ar gyfer ceffylau ar gyfer y tri hyn. O ran bwyd, dim ond digon o amser sydd ei angen arnom i ddweud deg diwrnod wrth i'r casgliadau achos fod yn ddrwg. Nawr byddem angen enw newydd."

Sighs as she is still unsure what Prasutagus says, but trust that it was worth saying. He may not talk anything she understands, but he was a good fighter, and good fighters normally had good ideas. She would however say " If we go the south way, would that not put us close to the sea? We could possibly hire on as arms for a merchant ship going our way..." She shrugs, not sure if they did that around here. She remembers some of the merchants back home did that. She did however start messing with her braid again, something those who had previously traveled with her would see is a somewhat nervous tick, or something she did when worried. Her white blonde hair really never seemed to come out of its braid, so why she always messed with it seemed a mystery. She looked around, and then stated " Either way, let us set off. If the road goes the same way for a long time, we still have to walk either way, so we can walk and plan at the same time. And Freya may always show us a sign of what we need to do."

Prasutagus recalls that the Christians have a tale where a man is paid 30 pieces of silver to betray their prophet. Bletius likely knows this and is making a joke by paying you the same amount to kill Christians.

Magan scratches at his beard. He is getting a slight headache from switching languages too much.

Byddai'r band mercenary yn iawn, ond gall ddenu sylw ac arafu ni. Gellid codi ceffylau yn llawer haws, ond gallai grŵp mercenary ddenu rhywfaint o amheuaeth o'i gymharu â masnachwr os yw pobl yn chwilio am geffylau coll."

" A new name may be a good step though. Tobias is gone, we could use a fresh identity. The red wolves always seemed a little unimaginative anyway. "

After repeating himself in both languages, Magan rubs his temples and closes his eyes.

"Another thought for the road I suppose."

"So...are we getting the wagon or not?"

Why steal horses at all, easier to walk than attract attention to ourselves...

In reply to Magan

"Awgrymaf nad ydym yn dwyn dim ceffylau wedyn. Nid oes angen i ni beth bynnag, gallwn eu prynu os byddwn yn dod o hyd i waith. Ni fyddwn am amddifadu eraill o'u crefftau naill ai, nid yma yn ein tiroedd ni. A bydd angen i chi ddysgu fi saxson."

"Byddaf yn eich dysgu chi. A gallwn ddal i ffwrdd ar y ceffylau nes ein bod ar fin gadael Dumnonia, ond dydw i ddim eisiau cael eich dal yn nhirgaeth brenin arall ar droed, nac yn rhy hir yn eu tiroedd. Gall achosi mwy o broblemau i ni nag y gallwn eu trin."

" so we leave after breakfast? "

Looks around and nods, gathering her weapons up to take them in for the night. " I would take your weapons with you, valuable could go missing, and none of us would want that. I have supplies for us, enough to last a few full days, but if we stretched them out we could perhaps get a few weeks from them. Would not be filling but... its better than nothing." She purposely hide the fact she had sweets and other goodies. She hoped there was sweet berries on the way, and she would be able to make some sweet biscuits. And she enjoyed sweet biscuits. Enough so she sighed and dreamily thought about them. They were good. As she was standing around thinking of biscuits, it would start to get time to move on and head in for the night

Felix chuckles at Kara's comment about valuables going missing.

What irony that would be...

He then turns towards Magan.

"If we are going by foot, I could scout ahead for us. Would it be terribly rude of me to leave some of my supplies with your pack mule?"

Prasutagus nods to Magan and bids the others good night as they leave. Prasutagus heads out to the stable where his horse is kept and sleeps with it for the night.

Magan smiles at Felix.

"Leave your supplies for sure, but without a horse I don't think you will be doing much of the scouting."

Magan gathers his values and orders a room for the night.

As she walks in for the night, the off comment about not having a horse would strike Kara as odd. She felt something was off, before she looks about suddenly and sighs. She hadn't been to church. In fact, she had no idea where the local church of Freya was. Given the time of the week she believed it was, it was fast approaching Friday. She would settle her equipment securely within the room, before she would head outside. Once outside in the dim fading light, she would look about, hoping to spot a church she could find some prayer in. She wished she had asked Magan before she left, but she did somewhat rush out, sparing a grunted " Need prayer" as she passed him.

Diplomancy with locals to find a nearby friendly church: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (12) + 7 = 19
I think that might get me something, let me know.

Cornish strangers are unfriendly towards being addressed by a stranger in a foreign language, so DC 20. -5 for asking only for simple directions makes DC 15 = success.

Kara is pointed about five hundred yards south, down a footpath that runs along the clifftops, towards a temple to the gods kept by a local priestess of Nerthus. The wind has picked up again and black clouds loom over Môr Hafren.

Meanwhile, Magan has retired to a local inn he knows by the name of "The Hungry Trickster", about 800 yards down the Castle Road from the docks. Situated off of Fore Street near the centre of town, it is surrounded by hidden alleys and rows of houses. The street outside is filled with the scent of damp earth. The inn is a single storey wooden building, with a poorly-thatched roof. The walls and ceiling are carved with wards against evil. Accommodations consist of a single large room with wooden cots.

The innkeeper is a willowy man named Lemma and the inn is currently hosting three other patrons. A merchant named Brich with braided red hair, large blue eyes and a straight beard sits by the fire. He wears travel-stained clothing and a yellow cloak. A grey rat scurries about his shoulders. Lying on a cot in the corner, sharpening an axe is another mercenary who Magan recognises as Björg. She is tall and slender, with brown hair and narrow blue eyes. She is known to be both bold and crude, but fearless in battle. The last patron is a girl named Mildga. She has a round face, with black hair and blue eyes. She wears well-made clothing and a wooden holy symbol.

Magan nods at the other patrons, rolls his bag into a pillow and and tries to get the sleep that he knows is unlikely to come.

Seeing that everyone is heading their different ways, Felix decides to make his move too. At first he wanted to join Magan in the local inn for a good night's rest, but what Magan said earlier about the horses got him thinking.

He is right...I won't be much use as a scout if I travel slower than the rest of the party, maybe I should have a wonder around the village and look for some 'lost possessions'. I may even bump into another thief or two, then I can have some real fun with them. Who knows... I guess I will let lady luck guide me.

With that, Felix heads into the village and ducks into a side road.

After a few minutes of waiting Felix sees the silhouette of somebody presumably heading home from docks. Their lurching gait suggests a few too many ales at Calder's. Felix slips out of his side road and tails them, trying to get close.

Opposed Stealth: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (11) + 7 = 18
Opposed Perception: 1d20 - 5 ⇒ (6) - 5 = 1

Having effortlessly succeeded in approaching his target, Felix slips a hand inside the man's pocket...

DC 20 check to Pickpocket: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (16) + 7 = 23
Opposed Perception to Notice: 1d20 - 5 ⇒ (8) - 5 = 3

...and is rewarded by a handful of silver and copper pieces. He sneaks away back to an alley to count them.

Opposed Stealth: 1d20 + 7 ⇒ (10) + 7 = 17
Opposed Perception: 1d20 - 5 ⇒ (10) - 5 = 5

His thievery successful, Felix finds his wealth has increased by an entire 5 silver and 7 copper pieces. Robbing drunken fishermen really is like taking candy from a baby.

Whilst happy with his gain in wealth, Felix also felt a little guilty stealing from the poor sod. He counts the plunders and sighs quietly.

It's going to take a lot more unfortunate drunks to fund that horse...I could head towards the more opulent portion of the village, there will be more guards, and they all carry sharp objects...

Felix pauses a moment longer, clearly conflicted.

...But, I am quite good with sharp objects...Screw it, I entrust my fate with lady luck.

Felix takes out a gold coin and tosses it, the coin flips rapidly through the air and lands in his open palm.

Coin Flip: 1(Head):Chickening out/2(Tail):YOLO: 1d2 ⇒ 2

"Well...I guess it will be an interesting night after all."

A smile creeps up Felix's face and he heads towards the noble quarter.

Welcome all to our OOC discussion thread for my Dark Ages campaign! The first order of business here will of course be to finalise the party in both fluff and crunch.

So far, the crunch looks like this:

Magan Human Slayer
Felix Aasimar Unchained Rogue
<Name> Human? Menhir Savant Druid

and our two new additions:

Rostam's Iceni Mercenary (Human Inquisitor? Warpriest?)
fatmanspencer's Shield Maiden (Aasimar Paladin?)

Magan is also pretty much fully statted. I will leave it to Chip to post any details.

I am going to go with a Divine Commander Warpriest of Andraste, by the name of Prasutagus Iceni. Named after the last great Iceni king by his mother so that Prasutagus may watch over the end of their people, he is not sure if the name is a blessing or a curse.

To finish up my crunch I just need to know two things,

1 - What would Andraste's sacred weapons be?
2 - Are we rolling for starting gold or taking the average?

I'll be able to build pretty much everything even not knowing that stuff though so I should still be done building it soonish.

For finalizing fluff, do we know each other before game start? And are there any significant changes to the area over what's on wikipedia that would be good to know about?

Hi Rostam, glad to have you on board. A warpriest sounds great.

1 - I'm inclined to say the sacred weapon is a spear, but I'm open to discussion if you have other ideas that you can justify.
2 - Average starting gold please.

The extent to which you know each other is something I'd like to discuss amongst ourselves here. I prefer it if the party has more than just happenstance holding them together, but not everybody has to already be best buddies.

The initial context is at the very least that you have all been engaged by an agent of Gerren rac Denau ap Custennin, King of Dumnonia, to investigate rumours of a bishop who has landed in Kent.

My intent is to maintain a certain degree of historicity so there shouldn't be any major changes outside of the religious ones I already mentioned. Also, you know, magic is real. ;)

Magan has been carrying out mercenary work in the area around tintagel, slowly having worked his way west from one job to the next, until he finds himself in the service of a man named Bletius. If anybody wants to be part of the mercenary band I'm happy to link up backstories.

*Bletius ;)

I am finishing up on her, mainly getting a good name and story to fit with the group, and if I want to take up a paladin archtype. She will be an Aasimar shield maiden, and most likely will stay a paladin. I may change to another martial class, but since I am unsure of the way we would level/unlock new abilities, it does make picking which would work better harder. You mentioned feat heavy classes having an easier time, but what about special abilities? How are stats being handled?

Since her being on a crusade to help the poor souls, she could have bee n attached to the court with an envoy, as in she was just taken along with them.

Hell I could even be the maiden assigned to the mercenary band, to ensure their souls made it home and all funeral rites were properly observed. Which i do like

I recommend you stick with Paladin, but you are welcome to adopt an archetype.

There will be traditional levelling, but it will be slow and it will be capped at 5. Alongside that, I will sometimes award things like feats as we go along as reward for in-character actions and achievements. Much more rarely, I may also award a stat point, but probably only like once ever. Some class abilities, such as further mercies, may also be unlockable given time and experience.

Magan has also been granted two weapon fighting for free at level 1, others will also get a discussed bonus of some kind. Everybody gets a free story feat at level 1.

Being already associated with the court would work well for her I think. :)

Oh and weapon finesse is free if your Dex is higher than your strength.

@spencer you could have been raiding in Christian settlements along northwest Europe, had your boat destroyed and lost the rest of your party, but been fortuitously picked up by a mercenary band raiding the same settlement, and stuck with them ever since? After they brought you back, you became attached to the court, and willing to work with them towards a common goal?

I'm looking at the Sacred Shield archtype, which would add some bonus for being a shield maiden. Since its capped at five, I dont get some of the other bonuses that come from level progression, but since they seem to be able to be gotten otherwise, I believe it will be a Aasimar Sacred Shield Paladin.

@ chip I can work with that. It would make sense, as I would have to be apart of a religion that enjoys enough power I'm not burned as a witch. That and the weapons would keep them at bay.

Oh, and all characters begin with two traits.

Disclaimer: There may be a few "Oh, and"s before I have remembered all our house rules. ;) Fortunately they should generally be in your favour.

Don't worry - there will be plenty of opportunities for near-death later. ^^

How do you feel about me getting to the angel wings feat that's racial for Aasimars? I understand it would take some pretty good feats of character/bring souls to the halls of Vahalla, but I think it would be awesome. Maybe take a while, but worth the image pay off. Also, I think I'm going with the name Kara Olmsdottor

Just took a look at the pre-reqs... I won't rule it out, especially given the Valkyrie background. You'll have to put in a lot of in character work to get there though. It's a very long term goal.

You might have already been over this, but remind why exactly a Valkyrie is walking the earth in mortal form? I love the concept, I just want the details thought out. PM me if you want it private for now.

Well, its more her lineage, since Aasimar's are celestial in that sense, its what I thought would be fitting for her. The backstory I'm crafting isnt set in stone, but it does involve the higher ups of her order knowing she isnt fully human. I'm guess her calling to serve Freya drove her towards her line of work. Its really more for her good service she gains the right to be a full Valkyrie, instead of just doing the work on earth. I would imagine in the past, one of her foremothers was a Valkyrie.

Sounds great.

Helpful link to the original E6 system for those who haven't seen it before. Our system is maybe better described as Epic 5, but we will also be using the new feats noted in that PDF.

@Gm Stormchaser - I am fine with the spear being Andraste's favored weapon.

@Chip Li - I would like to be apart oft he mercenary band under Bletius. What info do you currently have on him and the mercenary band?

@Rostam glad to have you on board. Bletius is very mysterious and we know nothing about him personally other than that he has money and influence. The mercenary band is quite small, does dirty jobs effectively and mostly without question. I'll let stormchaser fill you in on what we have been doing for Bletius, but I'm thinking the last job when we bought Kara back with us, saw most of the band die.

I haven't done any work on the individual members of the group yet, but would welcome your input. I was considering that there may have been a bit of a divide between some truly dirty thugs, and those of us with some moral code, possibly culminating in a fight that saw half the group die on the mission. As I say, work in progress and I welcome any input.

@chip

I like the idea of some of the group dying because of that. Because regardless of the life they led, finding someone giving them proper burial rites would strike some of them as strange, and I would bet some would find humor in a woman being the one to ensure their body/soul was taken care of, given their treatment of others. If any of you have ever read the Black Company series by Glen Cook, that would be a good way to view things. Some are murderous thugs, and others had a moral code, but a common goal lead them all together

Horse's Vigor Points: 2d8 ⇒ (3, 6) = 9

Well that was average.

And I have read the black company series. It's one of my favorites.

Here is the stat block, tell me what you think

@Rostam We'll be taking average vigour level by level anyway, so that turned out perfectly. :P

@fatmanspencer Don't forget your alter-self spell-like-ability.

I was... surprised to see you get that many paladin archetypes to work together, so I double checked them. Divine Defender is unfortunately incompatible with Holy Guide. RAW Divine Defender would also clash with Sacred Shield, but I'll allow that since it is only a matter of what you apply your divine bond to (I'm betting shield). You need to choose between Holy Guide and Divine Defender though, because both replace mercy.

Wounds and vigour system, remember? Please adjust your hp accordingly.

I take issue with the use of a scimitar, because it doesn't really match the region at the time... either explain it to me or replace it with something that fits the era. Similarly, four mirror armour is eastern. Please use setting appropriate gear.

Don't forget your racial +2 knowledge planes.

Something I hadn't mentioned in this thread yet: common doesn't exist in this setting. Your native language will be Saxon I assume. Others are angle, briton, jute, frankish and so on.

Also, please list all your equipment. :)

@fatmanspencer Now the nice things... gain shield focus as a bonus feat and pick a story feat.

I've added a house rules summary to the campaign main page and will expand it as we go. Everybody should take a look at the language system I've set out.

I used herolab, its interesting it didn't pick out that Divine defender and holy guide clash. Honestly though they are for flavor more than any real abilities, as Sacred shield has the ones I wanted. As far as weapons go I picked the best I had with the gold I had, however, It will just change it to a longsword and chainmail, since the better paladin armor, full plate, isnt around or a thing at this point I believe.
I think one of the archtypes either Sacred shield or Divine defender meant I had to pick the shield, which works thematically anyways. ( its sacred shield.)
Since I got more than one language I'll got with Saxon as a secondary, since Norse would be my native.

Shield focus is awesome sauce and thank you! I'll be able to edit my character once I'm at the house to reflect the changes and I'll jsut do a new state block here for her. I'll drop the divine defender or holy guide, most likely holy guide.

As for the wounds I believe it would go 28 wound with a threshold of 14, and a vigor of 10?

Edit: The average would just cut all those in half so if at first level its average its 14 wound threshold 7 and vigor 5, if I'm reading the rules right

The story feat I'm thinking on is Lost Legacy, since it does match the story I have. That or Foeslayer

That's correct for the wounds and vigour.

That was the clash between Sacred Shield and Divine Defender - one requires the Bond to be a shield, the other requires an armour Bond. Since we specify shield though, you can combine them.

Longsword and chainmail is fine. A sword is unusually sophisticated, but not unrealistic.

Be aware that with Norse (Germanic) and West Saxon (Anglo-Saxon) as your languages, you won't speak the language in Dumnonia, but will in the lands you are being sent to. Celestial you keep from race.

Please make an alias for Kara under your main profile and keep her stats there for reference. :)

You know what? I bet since the Divine defender is listed as can choice, herolab didn't restrict is since I don't HAVE to. I believe that Sacred shield is also a can, but it makes sense to have Sacred Shield

Do you have no mundane gear at all? If not you should probably pick up a Paladin's Kit. Vanilla Pathfinder rules also start you with an outfit worth 10gp or less for free.

The greatest thing in the world, no matter how one tries, is that you always, always forget stuff until someone else picks up on it. It'll be an Explorer outfit, and I'll nab that paladin's kit, since my gold comes up a bit since I'm not buying the scimitar and the fourmirror armor. which is nice

That actually puts you 26gp over the 175gp starting gold, if I've added that all up right. If you go down to scale mail for starting gear you save 100 gold though. Four-mirror armour is actually cheaper than chainmail and a scimitar and longsword are the same price. Easy places to save could also be a battleaxe instead of a longsword, or a heavy wooden shield instead of steel.

Scale mail I wasnt sure would work, but if you'll allow it i'll change it. It would also let me pick up a short bow, though I will not be focusing on range. More a hunting/ back up

Would the battleaxe be a better imagine to have versus the longsword?

Up to you. Axes are certainly more common than swords in this era.

@rostam and spencer. Looks like the three of us are what's left of the mercenary band. Felix is going to be hired specifically for the job, and I struggle to imagine a druid raider.

Are you both happy that somewhere in northern France, we completed our mission, picked up Kara, got ambushed on the way back to the boat losing many of our group. The survivors had an argument leading to a fight in which we kill the captain of the band and return as a group of 3 down from 10 or so?

Then axe it'll be. Nothing but the price, which is nice. So, after I go home tonight and fix it and recopy into the stats, but otherwise I'm ready, unless ya'll see something that needs to be fixed

I like that idea. Gives us some companionship and a history that means most the group will not be freaked out by their magic user, however little I have. What would the mission have been? Did we bring back some loot, any loot?

Nothing you didn't already spend getting back across the channel.

We attacked a Christian monastery, it was more heavily defended than expected. We lost several men which probably led to everyone being even more hot headed than usual. We took it in part due to the unexpected help we received from Kara. Burned what we could to the ground, tore apart some more, and left just the stone buildings.

We were ambushed on our way back to the coast, losing yet more men, including the second in command. The captain lost his temper, accusing me of worrying more about my horse and loot than the lives of my fellows, and that if we hadn't waited for Kara to carry out her ceremony over the dead, we might have beaten the ambushing party back to the boat. The argument escalated, blades were drawn and the 3 of us were left standing with the captain wounded and swearing vengeance. I took a huge sword from my pack and took off his head for slighting my honour,and costing the lives of 2 of my friends in the violence.

Luckily I am fluent in Saxon and cornish so can translate for Kara when we return.

How does that sound?

Also, being just 3 people and fearing another attack on horseback we couldn't carry the majority of what we took, so threw it on the ground making it harder to recover and traded the rest for passage back to dumnonia, considering the sailors all died and the boats were burned

Here is Prasutagus' stat block.

I just need to finish up the amounts carried. And pretty up the stat block a bit.

In the stat block I am using the Nemesis story feat, but I was wondering if any one thought the Lost Legacy story feat fit better. I am not sure what you think of me trying to restore the Iceni to prominence GM Stormchaser so I was hesitant to take it.

@Chip Li & Magan - I am happy with that background with 1 change. One of the opposing party managed to escape me after I dealt him a grievous blow. He survived and is now my Nemesis for the story feat.

EDIT - Changed my comment to Chip Li & Magan based on comments I hadn't seen and changed language from Common to Britonic. I think that would be the Icenic language group.

I just could not leave them dead without the proper ceremony, otherwise they would not have made it to Valhalla.

@rostam I don't mind there being a surviving nemesis for you. Maybe someone you had argued with regularly before the ambush?

For what it's worth I like the lost legacy for you though. Trying to carve your ancestral lands back out of a divided kingdom at some point might be fun.

Edit:
After we convert you to the pagan faith first of course, can't have another infidel kingdom spring up :p

@fms can Christian monks be chosen for valhalla? Or do you just bury our own?

@Rostam Lost Legacy fits very nicely, but completing it could take a very long time. Whether you want to plan that long term is up to you.

Your stat block looks good for the most part. The bonus feat was supposed to be for me to award based on concept, not for you to choose. However, since Ride-By-Attack is very Iceni I'll let it go this time. ;)

You do need to specify which Brittonic language is your mother tongue and you should have max vigour at first level as per vanilla rules. Animal Companions and PCs follow different rules, like in normal Pathfinder.

I think those are the only corrections I see for now. Please do also make a character alias and keep this info there. :)

@Spencer I also notice that after originally confirming the correct wound and vigour values with me, you've now halved them all. Is there a reason for that?

@GM Storm Chaser - I only picked feats that I am able to pick, my Bonus feat is Weapon Focus from the War priest class. Heres where my feats come from:

Human Bonus - Mounted Combat
Level 1 Feat - Ride By Attack
War Priest Bonus Feat - Weapon Focus
Story Feat - Nemesis

I still need you to assign the 'DMs Choice' Bonus Feat. Sorry if my wording was confusing.

Alias will be made shortly.

EDIT - Unless you meant the story feat was supposed to be assigned by you as the bonus feat?

...no, good explanation, my bad. You still get a feat. How do you feel about power attack? You've maxed your strength after all.

I will at this point reiterate something I said to Chip at the beginning. Part of the point of you getting bonus feats, is to allow broad builds that normally don't work. Not to let all of you specialise faster.

"oh and", just remembered another house rule: Intimidate ALWAYS adds both strength and charisma, even if one or both are negative. Intimidating Prowess ceases to exist. Or, seen differently, everybody is forced to have Intimidating Prowess (for free).

Here is Prasutagus. Still needs encumbrance numbers and a bit of formatting but otherwise done.

And I am more than happy with power attack as a bonus feat. Thanks

Everything should be up and right, minus the new feat. Outside of that, because you are somewhat encouraging a little bit more for a broad build, im going to start looking at some of the ranged stuff, cuz who doesnt love throwing spears into the eye of your enemy?

@ Magan, looking over your sheet, I notice you had taken shamed, is it a secret thing or fairly obvious? Like a missing limb? Or is it a dark secret? Dont spill if it is suppose to be hidden, just wanting to learn about the other backstories. Gotta get mine on par you know

@Kara I don't mind putting a spoiler on my character sheet at some point for people to read if they are interested. But it is something magan is hiding for good reason. It's a little twist on the traditional shame though.

I apologise for the mess my character sheet is in by the way. I'm away on holiday so doing everything from my mobile, which is not easy on this forum.