GM Rednal's Northlands Saga Complete (Inactive)

Game Master Rednal

Asta stands, her mouth hanging open, staring at Eydis. "That was..."

"awesome."

Retrieving her weapons, the girl follows after Sigurd, arrow nocked and ready.

Looking at the scattered chunks of bear, Eydis found it easy to believe. Still, something lingered in the back of her mind that said there was more to it.

For now, she wiped off the blade of her spear and followed along.

"Berserk."
Blommhilde propped herself against her axe to rise back on her feet, coughing and wiping some of the viscera off her face.
"Blood-frenzy, the rapture of combat turned into deadly mania. They say it's Wotan's blessing, the wrath that broke the sky and the earth. No steel or fire can mark those touched by such a rage, and some tell of warriors whose fury was so great and bestial that they would actually turn into bears."
As dwimmer wielded together cracked ribs, Blommhilde sucked air through her teeth, looking for the head of the slain beast.
"You could worn its remains as regalia worthy of any Valkyrie. Once cleaned, of course. I thought it smelled bad on the outside!"

If the head and shoulder region's fur is not in tatters, I think Eydis would look dazzling in such a cape.

What remained of the bear slowly began to shift into the form of a man as death well and truly took hold - a man bearing the symbol of Althunak on the shreds that remained of his chest.

Up ahead, it became increasingly clear that the stone building was less a fortress and more like a single walled room. Inside, it had the makings of some kind of worship center - a most unusual sight in the North, given the overall lack of such places.

"A shapechanger...", Sigurd spits at the form of the man as he reforms. "Gods...what else will be find here."
Putting his named Axes back in his belt, Sigurd threw a set of mundane throwing axes, before moving on towards the stone building. Fortress or single walled room made no difference. They would slay those hiding within and put an end to the false gods ambitions.

Taking one last look at the devastation, Eydis continued towards the stone building with the others.

"Feh. This filth polluted my tale. No glorious fur coat, sadly, but we have a temple to raze now."
Before following, Blommhilde looked among the dead cultists' weapons, looking for something more suited for breaking a building.

In case they have a pickaxe, a maul, some 2-handed hammer or another weapon useful to break through, I'd like to take it.
Also, assuming it takes 3 minutes or more to get there, I'm healed to full and have 28 healing remaining.

"A worship center?" Asta asks, clearly not what she was expecting. The girl assumed it was a site dedicated to Althunak, but still, she paced the room, looking closely to see if she was correct, and looking for anything left by the worshippers that may be of use.

religion: 1d20 + 5 ⇒ (12) + 5 = 17
perception: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (7) + 16 = 23

Blommhilde, you don't note a lot of metal among their gear - hardly any, in fact. It's apparent there is no mining and smelting industry here, nor any real trade with areas where there is. The majority of their gear appears to be made of bone and wood.

Upon the massive slab is a 15-foot-by-20-foot stone structure made of crudely cut stones layered with ice and snow. The walls rise up 15 feet into the cold air, but do not support a roof.

Inside the temple, the statue of Althunak rests, a 7-foot-high, finely carved stone masterpiece showing a fierce and gaunt bearlike man clutching a scepter in one hand and a sickle in the other. His face is a snarl of hate and rage that displays sharp teeth. A crown of spear-like icicles covered in dried blood surmounts the figure’s head. The holy symbol of Althunak, a gaping maw filled with icicles, is painted in blood on the walls.

Eydis chose to explore the area first, sweeping it with her eyes as she carefully advanced. Once she was sure that there was nothing dangerous nor more rooms leading off she would contemplate destroying the idol.

Perception: 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (2) + 9 = 11

"I'll blunt my axes trying to dent that. You got any more of that divine wrath in you, Eydis?", Sigurd comments, while carefully watching the area. They were in hostile territory, and more likely than not, this was not over yet.
Perception: 1d20 + 15 ⇒ (7) + 15 = 22

Without a word, Blommhilde drew her warhammer from its place at the back of her belt. Holding the weapon in both hands, she swung at the statue's scepter.

Damage, Power Attack: 1d8 + 6 + 6 ⇒ (2) + 6 + 6 = 14

And unless this does something unpleasant to the surroundings, I'll keep hammering it into shards.

"Can we tip it?" Asta asks, before Blommhilde draws her hammer. "Perhaps we can build a sled, and take back to our ship, and dump it far out to sea?"

It turns out Blommhilde had a more direct solution, and Asta waited to see if it bore results.

"Those cultists and the bear were too weak, I need a better workout." says Blommhilde, punctuating the words with hammer blows.

You didn't see anything dangerous within - their high priest(?) had probably been the most dangerous thing in the area and, well, he'd been rather violently murdered a few minutes ago. It took time to smash the statue apart, but you also had time, and those outside joined in rather gleefully once they saw what was happening. After about ten minutes or so, the statue had been thoroughly shattered.

While his allies are happily smashing the statue, Sigurd will have some prisoners or survivors of the battle lined up, questioning them:
"Where are the other followers of Althunak?"
"What were Althunaks plans?"
"What was the purpose of this place?"
If one refuses to answer, is defiant, or Sigurd suspects he or she lies, limbs get chopped off starting with a hand. If the person questioned dies or falls unconscious, questioning goes to the next person in line.
All are asked the same questions, then individual follow-up questions for minor details...when did they leave/how many/etc...Sigurd is aware they can hear each other, but he wants to get as complete a picture as possible, as fast as possible.

With nothing else present, Eydis had no appetite for the wanton destruction, and she joined Sigurd in his questioning. At least lopping bits off these people had some purpose.

Asta stayed clear of the torture being inflicted upon the prisoners. She suspected the gods would not look so kindly upon such cruelty. Instead, the girl let herself out the temple's entrance, and stood watch for threats approaching.

perception: 1d20 + 16 ⇒ (12) + 16 = 28

Sorry if you were waiting on me. I missed the update.

Energized by the workout, Blommhilde moves to see what the others are doing.
"You know, Sigurd, I could infuse them with dwimmer, keep them alive as you work on them. It may poison their souls, and if so all the better."
Though the language barrier was stopping them from understanding her words, she approached one of the captive and just grinned, flush with bloodlust.

Intimidate(aid another): 1d20 + 9 ⇒ (2) + 9 = 11

Eventually, you managed to get a few rough answers from what few survivors there were. Most of the priests had been either here or in the village you'd attacked - a few more were scattered through other villages, but they'd spent most of their time here to help build the temple. There didn't seem to be any threats approaching - and you could see quite a long ways from here.