D&D 5E Norse World

[BookBarbarian]

In result, roughly equal numbers of Norse warriors fight with a sword, ax, or spear, as Viking Period burials evidence.

• shield
• spear
• sword
• ax
• longbow

I did not know longbows were that widely used.

It always made sense to me that someone who spends time on an oar would make use of a bow since they both require strong back muscles.

#crossFit800AD.

 

[Yaarel]

I did not know longbows were that widely used.

It always made sense to me that someone who spends time on an oar would make use of a bow since they both require strong back muscles.

#crossFit800AD.

Yeah, the bow and the spear are primarily hunting weapons. Because hunting is a staple source of food during the long winters, many Norse will have a bow and a spear around anyway, and know how to use it.

Similarly, the ax. The same ax that is used to chop wood is often the same ax that is reused for war. Only the sword is unusual, in that its only purpose is combat, which is why it functions as a status symbol.

You mention the ships. The Norse especially use the longbow for sea battles, until the ship can close in to hook onto an other ship. They also use longbows in land combat whenever tactically advantageous.

Evidently, at least half of an army will carry a longbow, and probably most or all of them are proficient with the longbow. Each longbow enters a fresh battle with at least 20 arrows.

Norse boys and girls appear to begin training in combat from about the age of 7 or 8, often in the context of archery and wrestling. This wrestling style is bloody. There are stories about precocious children as young as 10 who avenge in combat the death of their parent.



I find it somewhat humorous, the Norse sense of honor can extend to taunt and humiliate the combat opponent − to force the opponent socially to have no choice but to fight to the death.

 

[Yaarel]

Viking style wrestling, called glíma, is brutal. It resembles mixed-martial arts today, with take downs, body locks, punches and kicks, and lots of blood, except glíma involves more body throws, and uses improvised weapons, such as throwing stones, wielding an oar, pulling down an opponents pants to distract, throwing sand in eyes, etcetera.

​

During the Viking period, glíma normally happens in the context of sports competitions. Presumably, the sports version has some kind of bars, heh, such as no bashing brains open with a rock. But its purpose is to train for lethal combat.

Children, both male and female, begin glíma around the age of 7 or 8. The combat training gives young women an opportunity to excel in warcraft. Women and men fight together. Anyone can challenge anyone else. The training is for deadly combat, and women who decide to become warriors have already demonstrated their competence.



Today there is also a modern version of glíma that is strictly for sport − involving hip belts and all kinds of bars and regulations to prevent injury. Obviously these restrictions are in place now to prevent the many injuries that occur in premodern glíma. Even so, today, the original viking-style glíma is still around, in a similar spirit to Fight Club.

 

[BookBarbarian]

Yeah, the bow and the spear are primarily hunting weapons. Because hunting is a staple source of food during the long winters, many Norse will have a bow and a spear around anyway, and know how to use it.

Similarly, the ax. The same ax that is used to chop wood is often the same ax that is reused for war. Only the sword is unusual, in that its only purpose is combat, which is why it functions as a status symbol.

I find the evolution of tool to weapon fascinating. Fighting spears not having tines like boar spears, and narrower points meant to force mail rings open, the latter also similar to arrowheads and knives meant for combat.

I find it somewhat humorous, the Norse sense of honor can extend to taunt and humiliate the combat opponent − to force the opponent socially to have no choice but to fight to the death.

Indeed. Reputation seems to be especially important. Which makes sense when a leader can't really command people to battle for him. Given a choice of you who want to sail with, or even if you want to sail at all, would want to follow someone not bold enough to stand up to taunting.

Dumping Int, Wis, and Cha would be a bad idea.

A couple of years ago I looked to see if anyone was practicing glíma in my area. I couldn't find any, but maybe I can convince my local HEMA group to look into it.

 

[Yaarel]

A couple of years ago I looked to see if anyone was practicing glíma in my area. I couldn't find any, but maybe I can convince my local HEMA group to look into it.

I am impressed. That is awesome if you can set up glíma club.

 

[Yaarel]

The ax is one the three main Viking Period weapons for one-on-one combat. Roughly a third of Norse warriors seem to use each: ax, sword, and spear. For mass combat and its battle formations, most use the spear, at least initially before throwing it. When switching to one-on-one usually the ax or sword finds use.





In the Early and Middle Viking Periods, the Norse ax is typically the bol-øx, the same ax as the tool for chopping wood, literally the ‘tree trunk’ ax. An other style of utility ax is the ‘beard ax’ whose axhead has the blade hanging downward.

These axes are known for destroying the opponents shield.

Around the Late Viking Period, a battleax that is specifically designed for combat comes into use, called the ‘broad ax’, breið-øx. Its axhead has an edge that is much longer, but also lighter, being thinner.

Any of these three axhead styles can be two-handed with a ‘high shaft’ or one-handed ‘low shaft’.

​

Simple Weapons
øx, háskepta (two-hand ax) 1d6 slashing, versatile
øx, lágskepta (one-hand ax) 1d6 slashing, light, thrown

Martial Weapons
breiðøx, háskepta (two-hand broadax) 1d8 slashing, versatile
breiðøx, lágskepta (one-hand broadax) 1d6 slashing, light, finesse, thrown

 

[BookBarbarian]

I am impressed. That is awesome if you can set up glíma club.

It would probably would be fairly irregular as they would have to balance it with the other classes, but they already do it with Pugilism courses, so It's not too much of a stretch.

 

[MonsterEnvy]

It's still weird to me that you are trying to discount the Norse worshiping gods just cause you don't like polytheism.

 

[BookBarbarian]

I remember reading an admittedly fictional battle scene were were warriors wielding axes in the shield wall used them to pulled down the shields of their foes, while others with spears would take advantage of that.

I also remember the tale of a hero using his long hafted axe to catch the top of a palisade and pull himself over.

As a kid who grew up completely enamored with the sword, those scenes were eye opening.

 

[Yaarel]

It's still weird to me that you are trying to discount the Norse worshiping gods just cause you don't like polytheism.

It is the other way around.

I resent how Greco-Roman polytheism distorts and misrepresents the culture of Norse aborigines.

At least as far as the Norse of Norway are concerned, they are strictly animistic.

The misrepresentation of Norse culture by imperialistic Continental European Christians and polytheists, is unwelcome. When people like the Norse, learn who they are. They are actual people. They differ from a fictitious Conan movie.



The aboriginal Norse nature spirits are the lifeforces of actual natural phenomena, including mountains and winds. Things you can touch with your hands.

Norse nature spirits are mortals and can die. Nature spirits can die of old age. Even powerful nature spirits are fated to die.

Norse nature spirits can be defeated by other nature spirits, such as the most powerful æsir sky nature spirits being defeated by a single dvergr earth nature spirit. And so on.



These are normal things in nature, ‘who’ the Norse pay attention to and develop relationships with.