Chaos on the quays

The Skaelings are fierce sailors and devastating raiders. The wrath of the Northman is feared by all southern realms. Sigmar alone cannot preserve men of the Empire from the Norscans wrath!

Tourism and cultural trips have been suppressed in most of our lives. Travel opportunities for riding a carriage or sailing to cosmopolitan sites of interest are thriving in our imaginations. There has never been such richly decorated resources for fans of the Old World to get out and about.

Despite the sun setting on Virtual Realms online production Warhammer Odyssey, the Cubicle 7 designers are cranking out more Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay releases. Their next tome announced is that green hell of Lustria. A write-up exposing the plotlines from Odyssey is something that you will only find being tackled on this blog. While I ruminate on compiling those conspiracies, I present some highlights from the latest WFRP publication devoted to the Sea of Claws.

The Nordland, Ostland and Bretonnian shorelines are all subject to perils from the Sea of Claws. Troll Country also borders the coast and there has never been a more thorough examination of Throgg’s domain as will be found in this release. Elves and the Norse Dwarfs of Kraka Ravnsvake have significant naval presence surfing this expanse. Maritime interests of other great nations are my main subject of curiosity. The might of Marienburg has trade dominion. Greatest seafarers of them all are arguably the Norsemen.

Longhouse illustrated by Dan Crisp

Kirkjugarður Langskipa
Ships anchoring in Kirkjugarður Langskipa are met with an unmistakable vista. A cemetery of longships is the Norse translation of the name of this infamous port. The coastal town sits in Skaeling territory. Here is where longboats go to their graves. Laboured tradition is for the wooden hulls of retiring vessels being dismantled to be reconstituted in the construction of longhouses, warehousing and mead halls. Its buildings not so elaborately planned against historic achievements of Marienburg like the ‘Tomeship’, as architecture of the Great Library was a scholastic marvel. Culture in Norsca is by contrast directed by commerce and combat alone. The port is filled with a worldly mixture of barbaric and academic customers, some more difficult than others. Here is where traders come to barter and they might lose sanguine fluids in the process. Some deals must be bound in blood.

“Only a foolish hunter returns to the same hunting ground every day. A wise hunter varies his hunts, so as not to hunt any one of his prey-flocks to extinction.”
— Skaeling raiding directive

It warmed my cockles to come across these entries. Warriors of the Stormraven clan from the Skaelings tribe form the foundation of my Citadel miniatures collection. My hoard of spoils dates back over 30 years, to the days when the Citadel Journal was publishing army lists for the Norse war hosts. All failed armies become warbands in Mordheim! Marauders and explorers spar and drink side by side in Kirkjugarður Langskipa. My heart fills with pride to see the development of Skaeling settlements as it echoes the conquests of my own personal retinues of heathen mercenaries on the tabletop! If you seek inspiration for your Norse warband then look no further than Vargr Lodge.

Skjold
The Bjornling coast seems more noble but no less feral. They raid like all Norse yet the thrill of discovery flows most prominently in the Bjornlings blood. Forefathers of the tribe were famously founders of faraway realms. Wanderlust makes their hearts less spiteful than neighbouring tribes. Bjornlings are less corrupt than the northernmost tribes whose devotion to the Dark Gods is a bottomless pit of cruelty.

Of particular interest is a seaside grotto hosting worship to Stromfels. By and large, the Norse are not known to be loyal to Stromfels. Their wide pantheon is more varied than any other nation, partly due to such superstitious awareness of the gods. The pragmatic Bjornlings are among the only Norse to actively revere Stromfels. The God of Predators occupies an awkward position between seaborne piracy and the Ruinous Powers. Worship is affiliated with reavers, wreckers, sacrifice and mutation, particularly aquatic metamorphosis.

The Seafarer’s Shrine is a mystical cave on the water’s edge. Manann and Mermedus are also paid tribute at the cliff feet beneath Skjold from where carved steps lead down to the place of worship.

More sites to tease the imagination are packed into the eighth chapter. Shipyards, regal halls and delicious royal intrigue with family ties connecting the crowned ruler to his prodigal daughter: Feared reaver of the high seas Aranessa Saltspite, the ‘Queen of Tides’. More settlements in Bjornling country overlook fjords hanging from cliff tops. Rocky villages on hillsides include Eyristaad, ruled by merchant-raider Eyri Goldfinger. Fjirgard trades its furs while keeping secrets of were-creatures inhabiting the remote settlement.

Several miles away from the coast is a fortified island. Svunum is managed by a preceptory belonging to the Knights of the Blazing Sun. The presence of a monastic military order unsettles the Bjornlings. Another island Horvenghaast, is ten miles out from to sea. A land mass of granite occupied by Norscans and other men from the northern tribes. Battle rituals are hosted by the diverse townsfolk in a strange site founded on ancient slabs of rock pitted with chasms and tunnels, once believed populated by a lost race.

The Wasteland
The Tumble Downs, Tancred Castle, Reaver’s Point, Arnau, Almshoven, Laurelorn Forest and the Old Coast Road are recapped with familiar treatment. Broekwater Village receives more exposure here as it did in Warhammer Odyssey.

Broekwater’s low reputation as a fishing village being little more than a ropey cluster of hovels is understated. Ship parts from watercraft wrecked along the western shore are traded in this haven for criminals. The Shark’s Eye is the only inn. Lost cargo enquirers are directed towards an ancient looking crone. Hendrika Baas is busy mending nets on the shore, when not arranging for ‘salvaged’ wares to be delivered. Discreet negotiation connects Hendrika with Marienburg’s branch of the Fish, the largest smuggling gang at work on and around the Reik. Some say that angering the crone ends in being sacrificed to the sea, with Hendrika having the honour of last rites.

It remains a place of great intrigue masked in mystery which was further expanded in Warhammer Odyssey. Hendrika is obviously not the only player in Broekwater dealing in maritime hand me downs. The Coast Road Camp is where another dealer’s name comes up. Barnabas Metzger supplies equipment to the Reaver’s Point Free Company, so long as no questions are asked. More on that later.

As you might expect, the Guilds, the College of Maritime Magical Arts and Elftown all receive honorary mentions. The Directorate is featured. A given since the city’s most powerful merchant families, the Ten, are calling the shots. They control all trade moving through the Wasteland by influencing crucial votes on Marienburg’s
High Council.

Broekwater Village
Some suggest Stromfels used to be a savage Norse deity, possibly an aspect of the Blood God. All except the Bjornlings have abandoned him now, but scholars do point out that his cult is strongest in Marienburg and Sartosa, two places with histories of Norse settlement. Cultists are tolerant of mutation, provided any evolution does not weaken the mutant. This order of survival may be regarded by many folk as tolerance towards Chaos, as mutants find a home amongst pirate crews, but worshippers of Stromfels do not see things that way. They see it as natural selection.

Rumours in Marienburg have it that the cult is centred among the criminal classes of Broekwater, though no investigation has ever resulted in convictions. Cynical observers have put it about that this is because members of the Ten support piracy, especially if it is directed against the Sea Elves.

“Ya murderous scum! Ye think I’ll go without a fight?! Friend, ye say? Nowt like those wreckers who sunk my ship and killed my crew as they desperately swam to shore. No, damnation, no! It can’t be coincidence. Morrslieb was almost full and our lookouts should’ve seen the wreckers clearly, yet they fell upon us when a chance cloud obscured the light. Help this old Cap’n take revenge on those vagrants and perhaps we’ll recover some cargo before it disappears into Broekwater’s
black markets.”
— Captain Brauberd, Marienburg Sailor

While there is no denying that smugglers like ‘Broekwater’ Barnabas are operating out of the villages, on Wasteland beaches and the Old Coast Road, the region suffers its own share of hardship from pillagers abroad. Corsair raids out of Brionne, Norsca and Naggaroth. Dark Elf raiders make landfall on the beach to the north, razing buildings and taking anything else. Local militia is not ready to fight a Corsair landing at Broekwater. The Free Company under Captain Dekker stationed at Reaver’s Point set up their Coast Road Camp to mount a defence.

The best defensible buildings in the area are a stone temple honouring Manann and the Watch Towers. The Eastern Watchtower is the closest. Corporals Braam and Labadie secure the road against reavers while troopers check storm cellars and help to evacuate villagers, before organising emergency repairs.

Inns and Cathedrals
The Cults leadership centre is at the High Temple in Marienburg. The Cathedral of Manann is the sea god’s most significant site in the Old World. All temples send a tithe to the cult here. The ruling High Matriarch is Camille Dauphina wields considerable influence on the Directorate. The Cult of Manann is a power broker. It has gold and warships. It has the Order of the Mariner’s knights to project its authority.

The Cathedral of Manann is fleshed out nicely. Not to mention that tasty looking octopus has gone missing from the temple’s decadent aquarium. Thanks to one of various juicy adventure hooks being included in 4th edition WFRP releases. That’s almost the limit of fresh content. Since the maritime subterfuge mentions the Prince’s Rest Inn, it segues nicely into some other Marienburg Nord source material worth recounting here after considering the culinary obsession of the city’s most exclusive restaurant-inn.

At the sign of the crossed words and shield, along the Swan Run canal in Gold Mound district, the storefront of Marquandt’s Escort Service occupies the ground floor of a four-storey building next to the Prince’s Rest. Master Chef August Bardolino, wanted to add a rare breed of octopus to the inn’s menu, the same time as when the fugitive cephalopod went missing from the Cathedral’s aquarium.

After a bloody uprising, the main Temple to Sigmar was closed. The building remains locked to this day. It is unclear for how long. Following the violent insurgence against devotees of the Heldenhammer in Temple District, observances were discreetly moved to a small chapter facility in East Wall. Solace with Sigmar has only been found at the chapel house in East Wall district, until the recent arrival of a warrior-maiden of Sigmar (in Death’s City).

“Though my portly frame may suggest otherwise these days, I was once a Knight of Sigmar's Blood. I have wielded the lance and the hammer against the foe!”
— Memoirs of Brother Elbrecht, Priest of Sigmar

Since the Sigmarite’s saddest day when the city seceded from the Empire, the Church has been dogged with accusations. The chapel at Church Square in the Ostmuur, ties into various plots happening around the city. Temple Father Haldric Verdemeer has proved worthy of being supported by the imposing Brother Dieter Rolsch, a talented but sarcastic warrior-priest. Brother Cawlings is quartermaster for the chapel and equipment in the temple armoury.

Priests worry the riots may risk their followers’ lives. These riots form the central main plot in the Warhammer Odyssey campaign story. These crucial events are being investigated for a wider exposé on Liber Malefic. It is enough to confirm now that the clergy is securing a safe pathway through the city to protect its flock.

Secret passages were built to quickly ferry people out in case of siege or invasion. Father Verdemeer is familiar with the entrance to this passage. Is it safe, still clear and leads out into a safe and secure location? There could be subsidence since the city is built on marshland. A loyal boatman Calvin Weiss, devout member of father Verdemeer’s congregation, will ferry those faithful to Sigmar from western piers of Rijkspoort to the Wasteland. Another setback has recently come to light with abductions taking place near Church Square.

“There are no peasants in Marienburg, because they can’t tend fields with all those rings on their fingers.”
— Popular Imperial myth

The Eight Bells, is on one of the bridges across the Tussenkanal. Sitting at the centre of an intermediate bridge crossing one of the Reik’s many canal tributaries, the tavern offers hot meals and hot tub bathing facilities. The tavern is visited in the third volume of the Konrad Saga. Before the orphaned hero of ‘Warblade’ eventually comes to the aid of Emperor Karl Franz in Altdorf, event coverage in Marienburg is difficult to pinpoint on the Imperial Calendar timeline. Major conspiracy incidents take place at High Bridge.

The Haggard Fox, was a three-storey building in Elswilrod. Three streets down from the main quay on the port’s docklands, where boats ferry people across the Reik Estuary from Marienburg’s harbour to the far shore. Wedged between a low warehouse and a moneylenders offices. The inn was a place of outlandish folk and strange company protected by followers of Ranald. A tavern hideout for thieves and tax-dodgers to recruit adventurers. The guesthouse has no bar, to avoid paying revenue
on liquor.

The Flying Swan, rose to prominence for all the wrong reasons as the place of an unlikely crime. The theft of an 18” high brass statue of an armoured rat stood on its hind quarters, holding a piece of red quartz in its claws. The idol mounted on a red quartz became the curious subject of investigation for the renowned halfling detective. Sam Warble goes down to Fisherman’s Steps to begin inspection. The Swan is a protected premises! It pays good money to the Guild (We Do Not Name) to avoid having its guests inconvenienced. This short story originally appeared in the classic ‘Wolf Riders’ omnibus. It was penned by Sandy Mitchell, the same author to confirm one of those warrior-maidens, a Sister of Sigmar arrived in Marienburg, in Blood on the Reik: Death’s City.

“We haven’t found anyone floating in the harbour recently and no-one’s left Sound since the fog has started.”
— Gill Roland, Watch Captain

The Blind Eye, is a dark smoky taproom frequented by Sam Warble. The Eye has a large clientele of faithful officers and petty hustlers in equal measure. Almost opposite the watch house headquarters of Captain Gill Roland. Unusually honest trooper making him the favourite watchman of detective Sam Warble.

The campaign story from Warhammer Odyssey introduces adventurers to a few more taverns of notoriety around Marienburg Nord in East Wall district. The Nightingale Inn is near the Garret. The Singing Ferryman close to Church Square and the Salty Crow Inn.

Hartshorn Lodge
Screaming spectres of smugglers who drowned in haunted caves on Wasteland beaches. The ghosts of Marienburg past (or wailing hags as they’re known in Garlic Town) return to the present, warning greedy sailors the same peril awaits them! What other wraiths reside in the underbelly? Several leagues northeast of the city along a stretch of isolated coast, is a confidential retreat of dangerous occult practices.
A manse for the black arts for its macabre flock. Anyone outside paranormal circles would have no awareness of the lodge. The gentry only know it as a hunting resort for game and fish.

The lodge is terribly haunted. One of the most haunted places in the Old World. This comes as no surprise since as a service to its members, the lodge employs a team of grave-robbers to keep its pantry stocked year round. The simulacra of some ghastly events that took place under its roof in days past still continue. Spectres of participants reenact their dreadful deeds that led to unholy destruction of desertion of shadowy ruins surrounding it. Vile scholars visit these lurking evils seeking answers to prolong their own unnatural existence. Those being caught in the library’s gloom by vengeful ghosts may never leave.

Lost souls protect this wilderness refuge to guarantee its elite clientele complete privacy. The lodge security system of banshee sentinels patrols the perimeter. At Twilight’s Tide the spectral guardians of Hartshorn and resident apparitions of its lower dungeons are doomed to go on, repeating the traumatic turns of phantom conflicts forever.

Twilight’s Tide
We are taking the opportunity to honour the original heroes of Geheimnisnacht in my local wargaming centre this month. I have prepared a Mordheim mini-campaign for Halloween weekend to celebrate the Night of Mystery. A series of suitably spooky scenarios are being played. Anyone who likes to do something similar is welcome to download the Twilight’s Tide - Mordheim Campaign Pack.

Geheimnisnacht Eve is considered a time when the veil between the mortal world and other planes of existence becomes dangerously thin. On Geheimnisnacht, rifts become larger, allowing ancestral spirits to come back to converse with the living. Daemons can walk the world for one night of mayhem and destruction. Villagers abandon their hovels to take shelter in castles and fortified inns. Elves know it as Twilight’s Tide. The Dwarfs call it Ar’Uzkul. All give thanks to have survived another Geheimnisnacht, and fearfully begin counting the days until it is upon them
once again.