Gjallarhorn

Gjallarhorn The Gjallarhorns are proud, dedicated and pragmatic. They are protectors born and raised, they are ready to go any length to shield their companions, guiding them to fight as single, cohesive force. While they carry weapons clothes and armor of vastly superior quality to the Odhinn’s Eye, the Gjallarhorns tend to favor dark and simple design over lavish and shiny ones. In everyday life and on the battlefield, a Gjallarhorn favors actions over words. While every Gjallarhorn desires to show her valor in a raid, they are all dedicated to protecting their homeland first. A true Gjallarhorn is always ready to abandon any task to rush back and defend the homeland when it’s in peril. Blood of the First Viking King The Gjallaorn clan, formed by the descendants of the first Viking King, rules uncontested upon the penin￾sula and the islands of the Jutland. Despite the constant threat of an invasion, the kingdom of Jutland is, probably, the richest and most stable of the North. Because of this, the royal family is very much loved by both the nobles and the popula￾tion. This state of “peace” was born from many years of bloody and brutal war that drove the opponents of the royal family almost to extinction. The cheerful and kind ways, typical of the Gjallahorn clan, are misleading. A visitor should not think that the clan lacks resolve, the royal family is ready to use the iron first when needed. Defenders of the Northen Lands The ruling family didn’t become legend just because of its strength and wealth, it also built the Danevirke, a great and ingenious fortification system that stretch across the entire peninsula, protecting it from the assaults from the nearby Frank Empire. The first queen herself ordered the construction of this great fortification and, to honor her memory, a force of Gjallarhorn’s shield maidens choose to fight on the borders, all worthy descendent of the great her￾oine of ancient times. The clan itself is named after the gigantic horn that sits in the capital. If the Danevirke should fall, a system of lighthouses across the peninsula would immediately alert the capital and the great horn will be heard loud and clear. According to legend, the horn was sounded once and it’s so powerful that it can be heard in all of Midgardr. The Gjallahorns are very faithful to the gods and, according to legend, the clan descend from the god Heimdallr and the clan took the name of his warhorn. This belief gives their chosen task a divine aura, they protect the North like Heimdallr protects Asgardr. 22 People of Midgardr: The Clans 23 Rich and Humble Beside the political stability and more fertile lands, compared to other regions of the North, the main source of wealth of the inhabitants of the Jutland are the raids. The peninsula is perfect to send ships against the Frankish coasts and toward those inhabited by the strange people of the East. While today the sea are under the control of the Odhinn’s Eye, it’s still possible to find good sailors and shipyards in the peninsula and the nearby islands. There is also the historical alliance between these two clans that created many terrifying raider fleets that ter￾rorized all the seas of Midgardr. Almost every important village of the Jutland has stone buildings and the quality of life is far higher than the rest of the North. In spite of all this prosperity, the nobles of the Jutland tend not to boast their wealth, especially compared to the Odhinn’s Eye. Ever since Fimbulvetr hit the Jutland the situation has changed dramatically and most of the population wouldn’t have survived the first years without the help of the royal family and the great stashes of supplies. The Queen of L egends During the last year, a great tragedy stroke the royal family: a furious sea storm destroyed the ship of King Horik Gottfredson, killing the King and his first￾born Erik Barn (“the Child”), while they were sailing toward Heill Hofn to meet their ally Asbjørn the Red. Apparently, nobody survived the shipwreck. The population feared a time of political turmoil, because the only living descendant was the king’s daughter, princess Thorunn. The young princess didn’t give up, showing to be a true Gjallahorn, she sum￾moned her faithful men and women and, in a single night, eliminated all the nobles and leaders that con￾spired against her. After this show of strength, it was simple to convince all the remaining sages to crown her Queen. She took a second name in honor of her late father becoming Queen Thorunn Horikdottir. After establishing her power, the Queen picked up sword and shield and marched to Danevirke with her elite guard, fighting on the forefront against the Franks’ invasion. According to many rumors, the Great Winter hit the lands beyond the wall with incredible ferocity, causing a spike in the number of Franks’ attacks. The enemy hopes to invade the Jutland to raid its resources. Covered in the blood of the enemies and sur￾rounded by the superb warriors of the elite guard, the Queen demonstrated her great skills as a leader, earning her spot in legends and tales. It didn’t take long for the Skalds to start comparing Thorunn with the first queen of legends, she who started the con￾struction of the Danevirke. Today, the people of Jutland, in spite of the extreme poverty, see their warrior queen as a sign of hope. Thorunn has become the incarnation of the faith and hopes of her people. While the Queen keeps a strict control over the Jutland, she knows that tradition is against her and the court nobles, who never fully supported her, push so that she find a husband worthy of the crown. Thorunn isn’t happy with this perspective, but she also knows that an alliance might help the Jutland rise again. Thorunn Horikdottir 24 Journey to Ragnarok 25 Beyond the Danevirke It’s not just the dreadful weather that bother the Gjallahorns. While the Franks’ attacks suddenly stopped, those few spies that returned from the enemy lands have gone mad. They keep blathering about a terrible disease, green lights and a terror that will soon arrive from the South. Thorunn made sure that these men could find an honorable death and that their ravings didn’t circulate among the people. The Queen doesn’t have resources to spare to discover what is really happening beyond the Danevirke, right now the only course of action is to keep the realm stable and survive the Great Winter. In spite of these precautions, the rumors have spread among the commoners fueling the collective hysteria. Thorunn will soon be forced to take action. Relationships with Other Clans Bear Warriors It’s rare to find any barbarian from the mountain in the Jutland, but not completely unheard of. Many inhabitants of the far North are skilled sailors, who dedicated their lives to raiding and were “adopted” by a warlord of Jutland. The tales of the Skalds made these mighty warriors famous. A Bear Warrior will always be welcomed with kind awe and amazement by the people of these regions, who consider him a legendary warrior. Icy Crows The Queen has conflicting opinions about the Icy Crows in her territory. On one hand, they are very useful to help those in need and investigate the strange events of the last year. On the other, they are a danger to the kingdom’s stability. The Queen is perceptive enough to know that, behind their shows of goodwill, the Crows have a precise design and that myths and superstitions are much more effective than a sword to control her people. So, the Queen harbors some well-grounded suspicions about the Icy Crows. She won’t trust them fully until they show their real goals. Until then, Thorunn would much prefer to hang them, but she can’t risk to create some martyrs, and keep with the tradition that the royal family has never allowed any kind of political interference. Jötunn Sons For the people of Jutland the existence of the outcasts’ clan is almost a myth. While Thorunn is a very “progressive” ruler, she will never be able to forge a true alliance with the Jötunn Sons, because her subjects are still very devout to tradition. This doesn’t mean that Queen cannot find a use for the Jötunn Sons and their unique abilities: the outcasts might take care of some delicate matters, like eliminating those few nobles that she doesn’t trust fully, yet. Odhinn’s Eye The Gjallahorns don’t know about the recent changes at the hall of King Asbjørn and, despite this lack of communication, believe that the Odhinn’s Eye will heed their call. The population – unaware of the recent marriage of King Asbjørn – hopes that the two clans might unite through the marriage between their heroic monarchs: King Asbjørn and Queen Thorunn. Due to situation getting worse and worse, it’s probable that the Queen will soon send a delegation to ask the Odhinn’s Eye for help, crossing the islands of Jutland and the region of Svitjod. Wolves of the Shadow The Gjallarhorn clan never had any direct relationship with the forest clan. Some Wolves fought alongside the Gjallahorns during raids, but the differences between the Clans and the alliance with the Odhinn’s Eye put a stop to any possible treaty. Still, the Gjallahorns deeply respect the Wolves because of the prowess of their warriors. The current Queen is less traditionalist and might be incredibly grateful to the Wolves if they provide her the help she so desperately need. She might even change her allegiance, although she has only heard rumors about what is happening oversea.

Type

Geopolitical, Clan