I can’t believe we can come up with that sort of ransom. If we did we could live in luxury anywhere, not on a windswept coast!
The Jarl is entitled to set WereGild (though notice that Gautrek’s man didn’t think much of the Jarl).
Ulf is happy to follow Bjarni - it’s been great so far.
Well, we probably won’t be able to come up with the ransom on a windswept coast. We’ll probably have to venture into the wealthy South, or else find one heck of a treasure.
True. Where you presently are, it’s hard enough to come up with an ox the weight of a prize ox, never mind that amount of gold and silver.
Ah, young Jedi, you have much to learn! 
The man who composed the brilliant poetry in the Middle Earth thread is not a man who will be deterred by a party doing something unexpected.
No need to stick rigidly to the first plot.
Further, would you like to guess a couple of things in my English dungeon that were added purely because of the players doing something unexpected? :eek: 
Oh, just for fun - if it turns out that the Harper is our new Skald , then they deserve some sort of award for ‘most unpromising introduction of a new recruit’:
(slight paraphrase here) “Gentlemen, my Master says you will all DIE if you leave this miserable piece of land. Unless you come up with a King’s ransom.
Oh, and can I join you?”
Regrettably, I have yet to hear from our would-be Skald.
Not unexpected - she did politely inform me that real life was interfering with roleplaying in my thread and so a reserve is currently or her.
She was enthusiastic about playing, so I’m sure (as someone almost said once) - she’ll be back!
There will be opportunities to join in, not necessarily involving finding a stowaway under a tarpaulin.
Okay, I have issues.
One of my personality quirks is that I get overly reactive to ‘social injustice’ or simply lack of justice. Its a weird thing that ruins many movies for me. While I can understand that in the real world these things happen, and intellectually I can accept that Bjarni could be put into unfair positions. I have a hard time enjoying it.
So the prospect of collecting treasure for a blow-hard Jarl is unappealing to me, and I would not have fun as a de facto slave.
Living on the run is unappealing to me.
Quite frankly, moving to Africa is the most appealing to me at this point.
If you’d like to replace me with someone more amenable to playing Bjarni’s position, I’m fine with that too.
You forgot the third option: viva la revolucion!
How does overthrowing the evil dictator sound to you then fighting a little social injustice.
But he’s not really an evil dictator is he? He’s simply mistaken and doesn’t know the fact that his brother was a drunken twit.
I’m sorry you feel that way. On the other hand I should think most adventure stories have an element of wrongs to be righted somewhere along the line - and of all possible outcomes to this story, returning meekly with an enormous fortune, handing it over, and the Jarl saying “Oh. All right then”, and everyone going back to his old life, would be the least likely.
The more monstrous the injustice, the greater the glory to be won in the righting, I should have said. But if you truly wish to bow out at this stage, I understand.
This is an interesting point, especially as I feel the same way.
In the Middle Earth roleplaying thread, my gentle Healer was confronted by casual killing of Evil prisoners and captives.
Despite that clearly being the expected behaviour towards Evil orcs in that World, my Healer objected and said everyone should have a chance of redemption.
And the adventure magically changed!
So provided our DM is up for it (I have enormous confidence he will be 
), why not follow your conscience?
Ulf will happily travel to new lands - new monsters to fight!
I expect the rest of the party will be OK with it too…
These things can go many ways - you can set off with nothing more in mind than your desire to do anything it takes to win back your own land and good name, and find yourself embroiled in enterprises of such pitch and moment that the doings of all Scandinavia seem like an irrelevance; you can win such riches that the pittance Jarl Hrothgar demands can be paid out of pocket change; you can go from bad to worse and meet a sticky end in a far-off land, never having had a sniff at a chance of winning; you can return with treasure just in time to find your homeland invaded and all debts cancelled if you can help to save it.
Think it over. If you want out, I shall not mind and I will keep the adventure going for whoever still wishes to participate.
Oh good god. Well. Perhaps there are beautiful women in Africa, and interesting NEW forms of magic to learn about, unknown to us Viking Wizards. I would be one of the new explorers of a far away land, and document our adventures and the creatures we encounter.
Hell, “The Lost Vikings” was one of my fav. Sega Games.
Osvald nervously is up for this. Let’s Explore Africa! But why not once we’ve amassed enough resources and power, we return here with an Army or something, and set right your name. Not by paying off debts, but instead simply by a Show of force.
Why force ourselves to be slaves in heaven, when we can be KINGS in Africa (not to make the insinuation that Africa is Hell or anything)?
Osvald is down for exploring of Far off Lands. Sure, just because this is a Viking D&D doesn’t mean there has to be OTHER Vikings in it. It could be like our own personal Odyssey- Viking Style!
Hey I’m up for what ever although Jorund may have some problems with Africa and its lack of fishing opptunities, especially after I lobbied so hard to have him learn the skill. Heck if you want lets go join Leaf in America and go find El Dorado
Well said that man.
This may be the time to mention that one of my roleplaying characters once decided to travel far and wide. He finished up completely stuck in a piranha-infested river … with a Ring of Regeneration! :eek: 
:smack:
Words to live by! *
*or engrave on our tombstones…
Or go the other direction and see if we can’t loot the living daylights out of Prester John!
Or both.
Even if we do actually come back and deal with the Jarl, we could come back, best him in battle, then graciously allow him his life in exchange for the cancellation of our debt.
New Lands it is then!
Let us leave our Viking home and search out wealth and glory away from small-minded bureaucrats. Perhaps one day we will return and find justice has returned to our homeland.