From the dawn of time the skalds told that the world would end in fire. But the thanes are old, the battle horns are silent, and the swords are gone to rust. Time has brought a new age of trade and luxury for those who are willing to put aside the old ways and traffic with foreigners.

Tonight the _Honor_ sets sail not to raid but to allow those aboard to conduct their business far from prying eyes. Among those aboard, some have abandoned the old ways and some still hold to them in their hearts. Though, when the price is right, who can tell the difference? And who still cares?

There will be wheeling and dealing, strife and betrayal, magic and the end of prophesy. If you liked Elizabeth Bear's _Edda of Burdens_ setting, Theon Greyjoy, or Noir fiction then you might enjoy our game.

From the dawn of time the skalds told that the world would end in fire. But the thanes are old, the battle horns are silent, and the swords are gone to rust. Time has brought a new age of trade and luxury for those who are willing to put aside the old ways and traffic with foreigners.

Tonight the Honor sets sail not to raid but to allow those aboard to conduct their business far from prying eyes. Among those aboard, some have abandoned the old ways and some still hold to them in their hearts. Though, when the price is right, who can tell the difference? And who still cares?

There will be wheeling and dealing, strife and betrayal, magic and the end of prophesy. If you liked Elizabeth Bear's Edda of Burdens setting, Theon Greyjoy, or Noir fiction then you might enjoy our game.

* * * Long ago, weary citizens of Troy left their besieged city for the North. They fled from Greeks and their wars, from the pestilent swamps of the South, and settled among the clear air and pines of Norway. To the bold but simple folk of the snows, these were as gods---and so the stories tell us they were. Odin far-seeing, Thor strongest of all, Frey the fair, and cunning Loki are names known by every child in the world---for the long boats of Norway take her stories to every shore.

It is the year 1920, over two thousand years since the fall of Rome---since Rome drowned in blood and strife, never to rise again. Power is in the North now, held by thane and skald and viking boat. Since the reign of Harald, Oslo has been the core of civilization. Strong thanes keep men safe at home, dispensing justice with peace. Bold raiders seize plunder from those with too much wealth to keep it all. Skalds and priests bring us the blessings of the gods of Asgard.

So it has been---but new times and new ways of traveling bring new problems. To the east, Russia's endless froth of murder and theft boils over again. South of blighted Rome, the free city of Carthage weaves spells of copper and glass, flashing messages across a continent in an eyeblink. Across the sea, the Cahokia have leashed twelve nations in a federation of trade and commerce. And now they are here- --buying, selling, and shipping goods across the Great Sea in their strange ships. Without sails, without oarsmen, burning stone---still they carve the world into routes for peaceable trade.

What then of the old ways? Who needs a thane when the cities have police? Who needs raiders when the Western traders will sell anything you need? And who needs the gods---or the poets---when news reports travel faster than Sleipner? Normal people don't need the old ways. They live their lives in the cities, mining coal, trading goods, forgoing the ways of the past. And the old ways wither.

Some people aren't normal. They use forbidden magics. They need what normal people don't: wealth from raiding. Blood from battle. The roots of mountains, the breath of fish, and the sound of a cat's footfall. Some people don't fit in the old ways. Some people don't fit in the new. Some people don't fit anywhere. Tonight, a crew of outcast, outsiders, misfits, and the desperate set sail on the Heithur, raiding the sea itself for wealth and wisdom.