Editing Setting:Hail and Kill (section)

===The Varangian Civil War===
Varangia of the modern Ferrumgard is a peaceful place, but this was not always so. A mere forty-six years ago, the island continent was a mess of violence, death, and destruction. Now, many tales are exchanged over the fires in the many mead halls, stories of hard battles against foreign foe and monster alike. The men of Varangia drink and fight in harmony once more with one another.

But what of the past? What was the Varangian Civil War? This turbulent time which mothers refuse to tell their sons of, which fathers shy away from telling out of shame. It was the darkest hour of the proud Kingdom, when brother turned against brother, son against father, and even the wives and children were preyed upon. It began in the year of Metal, 1669 on a freezing August night. Former High King Áfastr had passed unexpectedly during the night, in a manner no Varangian wishes to die; in peace, in his bed, at home. The fact that this great warrior never was able to bleed out on some foreign field covered in the blood of his enemies feeling the bliss of his stinging wounds is one of the many tragedies that marked this time.

The clan of Hadgarak lived deep in the frozen north of Varangia, and over the years they developed an exceptional hatred for their fellow man. It had been over two hundred years since the last High King was chosen from the Hadgarak Clan, and he wasn't even of their blood. He was an orphaned child from the Kistgard, their neighbors, which they raised after he was abandoned by his whore-mother. They made an oath to the Old Gods of the West, that if a High King wasn't chosen from their clan, they would topple the whole of Varangia and put their king on the throne of Skalhiem by force.

Now we come to Horsk the Lesser, second son of an unremarkable Thane from Ragunselk. He worked tirelessly on the southern edge of the Great Wood, the large thick forest of central Varangia. The lumber harvested from the mighty oaks was put to use creating hundreds, if not thousands of longboats. He began cutting down trees when he was at the ripe age of twelve and continued till he grew to the age of seventeen when the Civil War grew out of control. Others considered lumberjacking an unworthy job. Since you can't exactly tell an exciting story about felling a giant tree in the woods. To Horsk, the job was honest, humble, and suited to his personality. Someone had to collect the lumber needed to construct the mighty longboats required for trade and mercenary work. He was more than happy to fill the role needed that others shied from.

While Horsk cut trees in the Great Wood other Varangians were cutting each other in half. The civil war had erupted just after the High King Halvar Trungyv was slain in his feasting hall before he could move to the safety of Skalheim. The men of ice brought down the chilling fury of the north down upon their brothers. The first to fall was Kistgard, their former close friends and allies. This marked the first in a long series of betrayals made by Hadgarak.

Urdengar is characterized by its worship of the Raven Prince, for most Varangians venerate the Old gods of the West. The clan lived entirely in the mountains directly east of the Great Wood. Hadgarak allied with them first. Dyrndunhold, their neighbors, had become a thorn in the side of the Hadgarak advance. Making use of their new Urdengarian allies, the Hadgarak gave them a task; complete and utter annihilation of the Dyrndunhold clan.

No one had known that the Urdengar Clan choose to side with the Hadgarak Clan. When word was sent to the Dyrndunhold that a splinter force of Hadgarak warriors had moved around their force, and was heading straight for their halls. The home guard and Housecarls of the Dyrndunholds wasted no time in gathering to arms to fight the invading clan. With the defenders out of the way, the full force of the Urdengar force descended down on the easy prey. Hundreds were slaughtered in a single night. Women, children, dog and cattle, all were put to the sword. The heads of all those who were slain were put up on spikes, just outside the main mead hall of Dyrndunhold.

When the warriors returned from their wild chase, they came upon the horrifying sight at their hall. Their loved ones butchered mercilessly in a cowardly act of deception. They had not died slowly either. Most had fallen from multiple stabs and cuts, others bleeding out after their limbs were hacked off. Hymns of the Dyrndunhold's lamentations are common dramatic songs sung late at night in feasting halls to calm the drunken warriors down. They use what happened next when the party is in full swing.

The Dyrndunhold Clan pulled all their warriors from the front that was battling with the Hadgarak. When both forces met, the rage that sparked in their hearts could melt the ice at the foundations of Skalheim itself. Faces contorted, voices were raised, and swords rose into the sky as they sounded a fierce battle cry that rang out over the winds. A terrible storm descended down upon the island of Varangia. Lightning struck the ground, glassing the earth as it roared constantly. Many named it the Fury of the Gods, as they too had become enraged with the heathen Urdengar.

In a blind fury similar to the Dyrndunhold warriors, the Urdengarians threw themselves upon the shields of their enemy. Swords clashed with axes, pikes with shields. The clattering of arms filled the mountains along with the thunder of the furious storm. The storm passed when the sun rose. The battle was over. Two clans had utterly destroyed each other in a single night. Only a few dozen warriors remained on either side, too tired to finish the conflict. They returned to their wrecked halls which were filled with the blood of their kin.

This vile act stirred Horsk into action. While only seventeen he asked his father if he could take his position as Thane. At first, the aged Róaldr, his father, thought he had gone mad, but calmed when he saw the fire in his son's eyes, and so he agreed. In three years, with some clever thinking and good dealing, he was elected Jarl. His best friend Póraldi was elected Jarl of the Talleskeird Clan in the same year. Together they prepared to do battle with the accursed Hadgarak Clan.

Now we come to Skalheim, home of the Varangians. It is built at the end of a fjord, eternally alive with trade ships. Four wooden walls surround Skalheim. Two around the base, while another set of walls guard the top, built around the keep. The Hall of Kings lies in the center of Skalheim. Within it is the mightiest feasting hall in all of Varangia. When first built by the very first High King, it was meant to be a testament of Varangian strength, intelligence, and pride. A bastion that would last longer than the fabled Metallican Empire.

When Horsk brought his Clan, the Ragunselks, and his friend's, the Talleskeird, three clans held the fortress city.

The Bjaldkurn Clan, bloodthirsty pirates and raiders, sworn enemies of the White god and Tyrnoth. Were not as wealthy as the other clans due to their lack of trade, the Bjaldkurns had mostly scavenged arms and armor from the Tyrnoth raids. The beautifully crafted crests and emblems on the chest plates they have stolen long since faded and scrubbed away. The Bjaldkurn honor the Old gods by drinking their fill of enemy blood, savoring the taste of a well-earned kill more than anything else in life.

The Vardskeil Clan, a cabal of the finest warriors the Varangians had to offer. Several of their most famous figures have been named Hersirs, and they are fierce in both blade and word. Long scrolls of lore detail their genealogy all the way down to the first landing of Varangians in Varangia. Their pride knows no limits, matching that of their bitter rivals, the Seahunters of Kingsford. Horsk knew that a fight with them would be a difficult one indeed.

Finally, there was the clan that started the civil war in the first place. The target of Horsk's righteous anger, the Hadgarak Clan. Locked away in the north they had taken to hunting and trapping to scrape a horrid extense on the edge of land no other clan wanted due to its landscape of ice, ice, and more ice. Hailstorms are as common as the wolves which seem to breed faster than rabbits. Because of this, many warriors of Hadgarak put wolf pelts and heads upon their persons, hoping to gain the spirit and fury of the animal.

Two minor clans versus the three most powerful, warlike clans. Wolf trainers against Wolf Hunters. Honor-bound master warriors against huntsmen and lumberjacks. Horsk was called mad when he showed them his battle plan. They would draw the enemy forces into the Great Wood, and try to use the natural terrain to their advantage. Not a single soldier would desert that night. Horsk's voice was smooth and he had an aura of authority about him. He spoke calmly and was slow to anger. All knew that if Horsk had a plan, he would see it through to the end.

The Talleskeird Clansmen started to draw the enemy out by rousing their chained and leashed hounds, their barking and gnashing awakening all within the city. While the Vardskeil warned of caution the Bjaldkurn and Hadgarak Clans did not listen, for battle called. Blood lust had muddled their minds with nothing but death and clashing steel. The armies raced out of Skalheim to meet the Talleskeird. The vanguard clashed with the full force of the enemy. They focused primarily on defense rather than striking back. A signal from a bannerman came, and they disappeared into the woods.

The whole of the enemy force chased after them. In their haste, they didn't notice the traps laid out for them. Dozens fell in pit traps. Trip-wire triggered crossbows fired off, taking down giants clad in scale armor. The wood axes came down upon the heads of the Hadgaraks, cleaving them from the torso. The battle had begun. The wolves struck down the men of ice. Spears dug deep into the flesh of men, ripping apart bone and organs. Swords split neck and arm. The exact numbers of those who fought are not known. The figures are presumed to be in the thousands for both sides. The grass was stained crimson when it was all over.

Horsk had taken an arrow to the eye, and a spear to the thigh. His friend Póraldi had been stabbed in the gut with a spike. He still lives to this day with his clan. All of the Hadgarak Clan warriors had been destroyed in the battle, along with the Bjaldkurn's. The Hadgarak Clan had moved into Skalheim. This meant their women and children were still in the keep when Horsk's army marched to take the keep. Horsk walked forward towards the frightened innocents, his sword grasped firmly in hand, drenched with blood.

The son of the Hadgarak Jarl, only four, walked right up to him without fear. He stared up at the tired, worn Horsk. Before, any Varangian with sense about him would cut him down then and there. You couldn't have the son of a rival walking around to come back and attempt to kill you when you were old and aged. Horsk allowed the Hadgarak Clan to leave, not wanting to further the bloodshed. He was titled the Child's mane, in mockery. He gladly accepted the name. Most Varangians adopted this tradition as well. Children and women are to be left untouched, no longer acceptable targets for raids.

Years later, Skalheim stands as a bastion to all Varangians as it was once meant to be. The Hadgarak Clan's remnants joined with other clans, bringing with them their history and traditions. The Kistgard Clan, the Bjaldkurn Clan, the Urdengar Clan, the Dyrndunhold Clan, and the Hadgarak Clan have all been destroyed. Never again shall they rise to the positions they once held. They can only hope that they can find a place integrating with the other clans now.