-- Outline For The First Game Session --
LIFE IN THE MUCK
We'll begin on the three Duncohr boys, Thrallan and the twins, Branoc and Caelis, not far from Seven Stones. Knee deep in muck, they're ripping up small islands of grass and root, upturning them, digging for small kernels of iron-ore. They're bog mining, dropping the rock-like pellets into leathern sacks that hang at their waists.
None are shirted. All have bare feet. And the twelve year old boys are excited because the Beltain begins upon the rising of tomorrow's sun. The celebration of the first day of summer means no work for a day or three--yet the boys are also anxious, as this Beltain will see them, all three, run the Ras Croi.
They all know that, within three days, there lives will change, and they will begin the journey to manhood.
Stop here and roll Stats. Roll their Fate scores. Give option to arrange to taste if a Test of Fate is successful.
Explain how stats are different than in AD&D--how a STR 12 yields the same attack bonus as a STR 17 in AD&D.
Give them an idea of how each stat is used in the game--how all are important, including CHR modifying Fate tests.
Once this is done, give each character max hit points, per the rules.
OLAV COMETH
Young Branoc looks up from the muck. "On the ridge, Olav comes," he says to the others, pointing towards the horse and covered wagon. He refers to old one-armed Olav, who'd sent a runner two days agon to announce that he would be making the festival. Sometimes old Olav made it, and sometimes he didn't. But, when he comes, he always brings something interesting and entertaining--a spectacle that the entire town enjoys.
"What will it be this year?" Branoc will say to his brothers. Shrugging his shoulders at them, he says, "I'll guess that we'll soon find out."
(Tell the players that Olav brings a simple "circus" type act to Cimmeria. He's a Hyborian, but he's welcomed among many of the Clans. He usually finds something "interesting"--never the same thing twice--then makes the rounds, earning a living by the trading with the Cimmerian towns and villages.
Note: I'm establishing Olav, from Betrayer of Asgard, very early. I want the players to be quite comfortable with him.
Note: Before Betrayer is begun, the PCs could have a previous adventure with Olav, serving as wagon guards as he travels to nearby villages. These will probably be Grath villages, so the journey may be quite interesting.
In addition, Olav could employ the PCs' hunting skills in finding him something "interesting" to take to the next village, should he loose what he takes to Seven Stones.)
Stop here and go over the Conan RPG skill system. Cover skill points and buying skills. Training. Skill bonuses provided by Race and Class.
Go over Ability checks, difficulty class, re-rolling checks, opposed throws, taking 10 and taking 20, and skill synergy.
Answer player questions as needed.
Describe allowable skills.
Allow the players to add ranks to skills, following the rules, but they do not have to allocate all points. They can save points and allocate them over the next couple of game sessions (before we begin the game proper with their characters at Age 15 as 1st level Barbarians).
Any points they do allocate, though, will be permanent. There is no going back.
Questions will come up about the Ras Croi. Explain the ritual with an emphasis of how important it is to the characters (make it important to the players).
It will be interesting to see how they allocate their points, given the importance of the race.
Also: Allow the PCs to pick Nordheimer as a bonus language, if they want. As with the skill points, they can elect not to, then add it later, while we are developing the characters over the first few sessions. Or, they can add it as a bonus language now. If they do, though, the choice is permanent.
THE THIRSTY MAN WITH NO TONGUE
Skip ahead in time to the night before the race. Olav has kept his wagon covered, and curiosity is high as to what he's brought to the Beltain.
This morning, Olav revealed what he had to the people of Seven Stones. It's an old man. A Vanir by the looks of him, but up there in his years. He doesn't say much because Olav has cut out his tongue. The one-armed rogue teased the crowd this morning by announcing an axe throwing contest using the Vanir, tied up against a pole, as the target. The contestant who throws the most cuts on the old man, without killing him, wins.
There is no love for the Vanir in this town, so anticipation of Olav's event is high. Today, warriors began throwing heats against a naked pole to win a place in line at Olav's contest on the morrow.
This night, the boys cannot sleep, for the next day is also the day of the Ras Croi. Out at night in the town, they hear laughter and see candle light from inside the buildings. Smoke flows from chimneys, even at this late hour.
They pass the animal pen near the center of town, which is now, and is usually, empty of animals because hogs and boar, cattle and sheep, and goats, are a rare sight in Seven Stones. When those animals do appear, they don't last long as the butcher is quick to put his chopper to them.
The boys can't help thinking that the same is true for him who does occupy the pen. Olav has the Vanir tied to a pole in the pen. He's roped in such a way that he stands, even if he uses none of his fatigued muscles and slumps against the harness. There is little slack in the lines. There the old man awaits the chopper, just like the pen's previous residents.
"Lllaaa-aayyy," the old man croaks when he sees the kids. "Lllaa-aaay."
If the PCs ask what he's saying, give them an INT ability check at DC 20. If a PC speaks Nordheimer, then use DC 10.
He's asking for water. The Nordheimer word for water is "Lahsaay" (Lah-say).
It will be interesting to test the players' morality with this. Watch how they act. Are they true barbarians? Or, do they pity the Vanir.
At the appropriate dramatic moment, or if the PCs try to give the Vanir some water, they will hear a cough in the dark. It's Drachena, their older sister. If no one figured out what the Vanir was saying, she'll say, "He's thirsty. Go...bring some water." But, if the PCs left and returned with water, she'll speak up from the dark, saying, "Bring that here," before the PCs are able to put the cup to the old man's lips.
Either way, Drachena will take the water and walk slowly over to the old man. He motions as if to run his tongue across his lips, but dry swallows instead, probably realizing he doesn’t have one in his mouth any longer.
Stopping a foot or three in front of the Vanir, Drachena will look, unblinkingly, into the old man's eyes. For an uncomfortable, long moment, she'll hold the old man's gaze.
Then, without emotion, without even a smile, she'll drink the water in front of him, draining the cup dry, then hand it back to the PCs and slowly walk back across the pen, finding her perch again upon the rail. There she will sit. Quiet. Unmoving. Just staring across the pen to the Vanir.
This is Drachena's introduction as a major NPC. See her background above for her motivations.
The next morning will come, and we'll run the Ras Croi, using the rules I've devised. It is likely that all PCs will finish the Ras Croi as Graiis. But, if a player gets unlucky with the d20, and a few natural "1's" are thrown, then consider not passing him--making him wait until next year to attempt the Ras Croi again. That will put an interesting dynamic between the player characters.
The PCs also have an equal chance of becoming the Ar Grais, but Branoc, the NPC, could also win the race. Either way, with either PC or Branoc as the Ar Grais, an interesting roleplaying dynamic is created among the players and their NPC brother, Branoc.
At the end of the race, their father, the town Elder, Finn, will crown the Ar Grais by placing the Grai-mada-ra over his head. This is something that the PC can be proud his character obtained, if a PC wins the race. If Branoc wins the race, then the PCs can envy him (though I'm going to play Branoc as if he loves his brothers extremely).
AXE GAMES
As the PCs are not yet warriors, they can only watch the event Olav brought for the Beltain. I'll describe, in bloody detail, how the Urrogh warriors landed their axes, cutting off a finger here, nicking the old man there--how one of Drachena's throws almost pierced his throat, but instead cut out some of the man's hair before slicing through his collar bone.
The Cimmerians let their young watch such a spectacle because it hardens them, preparing them for the world Crom has set before them. Besides, it is likely that Cimmerian young have seen worse if they're old enough to remember anything at all.
The Vanir is an enemy--a common raider into the Cimmerian lands, and as such, is worthy of no mercy. Crom would think the Blue Foxmen weak, otherwise. (I'm trying to show the players that this game is based on Howard's version of the Barbarian--real barbarians--not the heroic good guys that sometimes show up in the works of Jordan and such.)
I want to come up with a quick dicing system to roll the event. Something like d20 + character level, with a certain number resulting in a killing blow. That way, the narration of the event won't look so "pre-planned" to the players. I can even have them throw for the various warriors in the contest, skewing the results to the higher level NPCs.
It should come down to the Duncohr brothers, and maybe Drachena, too, so that the players can see their characters' NPC family in action for the first time.
TAKING OUT THE TRASH
Once the Vanir is dead, and the day begins to come to a close, the Ar Grais is given his first order. He's to take the dead Vanirman's body down, with the help of his Graiis, and drag him out into the woods. "Make sure its far enough down wind from the town, mind you!" This is past the bog, where the stream narrows and the current picks up. "The wolves may as well enjoy the Beltain as did we. And, Badh knows, the old Vanir may be more useful than just feeding the wolves and fertilizing the ground. He might still attract some game this way."
As they leave town with the body, they will see the Witch, old Rutcrana, standing just outside her door. The boys can't hear anything, but, in the dwindling light, they can see her lips moving. And her gaze never falls off of them until they can see her no more.
(Make Rutcrana creepy...mysterious. The Cimmerians are a highly superstitious people.)
This is where the 1st game session will come to a close. But, as a Cliff Hanger: Ask the players how they are moving the Vanir. Are they dragging him with rope? Carrying him in an old blanket? (If they are, this will look back for the Ar Grais as blankets are valuable.) Using a wagon? (Again, probably not, as going across the stream and getting deep into the woods would be a major hassle with the cart.)
Either give a character a Search check (again, to get the players used to rolling skill checks--make it an automatic success, but the player won't know that), or just tell the most appropriate PC that they notice something odd about the Vanir's hair. The drag through the stream soaked the body. Much of the blood is gone.
But, his hair has changed...it's lighter.
It's some sort of dye. The old man's hair really isn't red.
It's blond.
