Bruno is surprised that Selene will join them and the idea concerns him somewhat. Until now the party has been made up of adventurers and soldiers -- many of whom seem to have been in direct service to her. That many of the group are, or were, soldiers puts his mind at ease as to how they will behave, but others are not or do not understand her position, because they are not from the environs of the ArchBarony.

He gives a glance at Lord Zenon trying to read his take on the matter, but is careful not to stare or reveal any signs of concern. Rather when she mentions the hafling he turns and looks to him, "Well met, and welcome to the company, Dugger. Since Lady Selene was the original organizer of this group her introduction speak volumes!"

In response to the Jarl he raises his cup, "The evil that we face is such that even without your support I suspect my comrades and I would want to return and confront it, so it means much to us!"

His bashful smile is washed away with the gulp he takes and he continues, "Am I correct to understand that you do not know of this Mogens? I hoped that he, or whomever he once was, would be known and thus we might be better prepared to face him. If nothing else, from what you say your bards and priests would know about the remaining heroes who were put to rest in the valley. It seems notable to me that the various 'bogeymen' we fought did have differing powers. The holy water and fire weapons you give us will be most useful to us when we face them, but having some knowledge of who they were in life might enable us to confront them in Mogens' perverted unlife."

"Ah, yes, Mogens," Yngvar said. "A tale out of time. Initially I thought it a cruel hoax, some fakir who was pretending to be the legend come to life. Now, though? Who knows? My thought is that it may be him, the true Mogens, though he would be very old.

"He was Her Lady's second, and an uncompromising leader and solid tactician. Where she was supposedly mercurial, he was stoic and calm in the face of battle. Narrowly, he held the field against us.

"It was Hjalmar and his son Teodor that won the day, however, when humanoid ranks finally buckled and fled. Hjalmar is the greatest of our warrior Jarls."

"Why would Mogens be raising the spirits of your greatest heroes? Is he trying to demoralize your people by using their legends against them?"

"I think so," Yngvar posited to Gildan. "What is worse than having all your traditions, all your sacred cows, if you will, thrown down. This seems a systemic attempt to drive us from our lands. It certainly has the flavor of conquest to it, at the very least."

"Conquest makes the most sense given what I think I understand of your history and the reasons he was driven away to begin with, Jarl. I fear his actions in the Valley are only preparation, and maybe warning, for what he plans.

"I am still wondering if the creatures we faced reflected the heroes they were in their lifetimes and if they DID, then it is possible that those we will face in the other barrows as we move through the valley will similarly reflect their living selves. Understanding this might help us prepare for each undead we shall face, so..."

Bruno describes the major undead they have faced and the barrows in which they faced them. He does not so much describe the actual fights that occurred, but how their enemies appeared and their powers, though understanding his audience he will give detail to make the story a bit more exciting than a mere litany of facts.
OOC: I am not doing this literally, because I don't want to take the time to go back and research everything, but if you say it's necessary I'll go back and edit.

Having given the descriptions and leaving room in his retelling for other party members to make comments to ensure the best information, Bruno pauses, "If there are obvious connections in what you hear, perhaps you or your bards may use knowledge of those heroes that remain in the barrows we have yet cleansed?"

OOC: Just to clarify what I'm trying to do here, Seer, if I'm misunderstood and it is not likely that we might gain some forewarning or understanding of what else we're going to face in the next phase of this adventure, no problem! I may be misreading/understanding things and the enemies we have faced may not be literal perversions of their living selves.

OOC: I think you're on point. One thing the author of this module did was leave things open to a certain amount of freedom. That said, there were encounters  you ran across that you'd never seen before. The best you could do is describe them to the Jarl, although he would not necessarily know some of the 'monsters' you encountered.

As a sidebar you might visit the keep's shrine and talk to one of the more experienced clerics therein.

That might be worthwhile.

Not much for peoples stations in life, Dugger reached out his small hand and gave Selene hand a squeeze.  He could tell that she was sadden by the news of the lost companions. He knew there were no words that could sooth a sadden heart.

When Bruno addressed him directly Dugger actually seemed a bit surprised at the acknowledgement.  He looked to both sides making sure that he was being address. "Your Bruno right.  Glad to be of help where I can."   He leaned in a bit closer to him. "That old elf over there"  He made a scrunched stuck up nose face.

Myrrick listened, carefully, as the more scholarly amongst them conversed. The ideas being discussed, they all made sense to him

Antonin, Lord Zenon was studiously quiet during the Jarl's meeting with the party. He'd had words with Selene earlier, but she wasn't one to give in, especially when her mind was made up. He had no doubt that the Curate would be wroth with him for letting his new bride disappear into the vale.

He reflected angrily that he was not a young elf anymore, well past the point of heading out into the wastes to do battle with undead. And yet, the thought did occur - it seemed preferable to meeting with Torin.

At this point, however, he keenly felt the weight of the years and besides, someone had to be present to tell the tale. That was not something he would leave for the Jarl.

As talk waned, he finally said, "Milord, I'll be acting liaison to our contingent until Torin returns."

PM

"Of course its conquest," Yngvar said. "The dark lands, which is where we believe the first armies came from, were shrouded in shadow. Many thing that they were fleeing some grimmer fate. I can't tell for certain that it is true, but it certainly seems possible. As for Ingolf and Folke, there spirits are safe, I am sure. Their remains are but a vessel...at least that is what the priests say."

A moment later and old woman barges in. In her hands is a bag. Without ceremony, she dumps the entirety of her bag upside down. The contents are bones, mostly of small animals, but there are a few human digits as well. She crawls along the floor, careful not touch any of the bones. At last, she sweeps the bones back into her bag and stands.

"What do your redes portend?" Yngvar asked.

"Mogens has returned," the old woman replied. She looks around, her face creased with with deep crevices, taking particular note of the party. "The old enmity awakens and seeks what it sought long ago."

"We've known that for a fortnight, woman!" the Jarl practically spat. "Did your bones tell ought else?"
This message was last edited by the GM at 22:50, Thu 10 Dec 2020.

Gildan watches the primitive ceremony with a frown, not wishing to cause offense but finding it distasteful. That her predictions were useless only reinforces his beliefs.

Ulrich winced at the rebuke Yngvar gave the old seer. They had their places and were important, but in this case it was too little too late.

"Yes, yes," she said. "We knew, yet we did nothing but wait, milord. When steads started falling, we waited. When townsfolk disappeared, we waited. And when the dead showed up in droves, we shut ourselves in...against my earlier prognostications. You are fortunate, milord - the term seemed derogatory to those listening - that these fine warriors arrived when they did. The Halls of Jarl Yngvar are not so full of heroes any more."

The witch approached Kullonar, drew very close. "You've a nice way about you, Priest. There is a kindness within that one does not see in your blood very often. As a token of my regard: She hands him a small rod, perhaps 2.5 feet long.
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:15, Fri 11 Dec 2020.

Kullonar glances around the room and then back to the old woman. He bows his head slightly and accepts the small rod, looking at it curiously. "Thank you, old mother. What gift have you bestowed upon me other than your kind words?"

"The gift of healing wounds, sirrah," she replied. "You have five charges. By prayer you can recharge the rod each night as if you were praying for new spells. A small boon, but I suspect and welcome one."

Bruno witnesses the exchange between the witch and Kullonar and he asks, "Might you have time to speak tomorrow, mother? I would ask your advice on matters before we depart again."

"Certainly, Scion of Moradin. I am happy to help in any way I can."

"It is very good to hear you say this! As you might note from my questions to the Jarl it seems to me that there must be some knowledge among your people here that will better prepare us for confronting this evil."

"I think that if you have questions then ask them!" she said. "Do you think we remember the events that such as Ingolf and and Folke took part in? Even Yngvar was but a young boy when Her Dread Majesty attacked with her army  of doom. There are few left who recall the specifics of those terrible days."

She paused a moment, and then added, "Most of what we know are rumors now. But I will answer your questions as best I can."

I think She wants me to ask my questions now rather than when we meet? Or... The accent here still takes me longer to understand what locals are saying than it should, I guess, Bruno thinks to himself.

Recovering himself, "Yes, well, I very much appreciate that! It seems the Jarl is unable to answer the question I asked him earlier, which is understandable. And, I realize it may not even be practical given the nature of Mogens' magic; however, it does seem to me that it might be useful to know about who was originally buried in the barrows we have not yet visited. Knowing their abilities in life might give us some sense of what Mogens has brought out of them in unlife.

"If I am being naive about a necromancer's powers and what we shall be facing need not be reflected in who and what these heroes were when they were buried, at least I will have learned that! So, this is what I am seeking to learn... And if you or any other wisefolk have advice beyond, 'take holy water', it would be useful to have that knowledge as well."

Hmmm, Pelors light would continue to shine in the darkness too, Ulrich thought to himself.

"Most of our heroes have been laid to rest in the vale," she said. "That's as it should be. But there are two in particular, two that stand above the rest. They are the ones that held the coalition together during the Winter of Tears when Mogens and Her Dark Majesty unleashed their final assault. That would be Jarl Hjalmar and his son Teodor. Hjalmar survived the battle and was victorious. Teodor fell to treachery on the way home. He was buried with honors, and Hjalmar, driven by grief, spent the rest of his days in futile search for Teodor's killer.'

"There are many great heroes in the vale, my friends. But those two stand above the rest."
This message was last edited by the GM at 01:09, Mon 14 Dec 2020.

Bruno listens, nodding along as she speaks, "Very well... What can you tell us about Hjalmar and Teodor specifically that might be reflected in what we meet in the vale? Did they have items of note or a particular style of fighting?"


OOC: As I wrote the lines above I realized that I'm probably getting to the end of utility here in these questions. Thanks for your patience, everyone!"

"As a matter of fact, Teodor was renowned for his blade work. No swordsman was he, though. Nor an axe man. Teodor was nifty with a dagger, and wielded one to great affect. It was said to be highly magical. Added to his great strength and nimble quickness, he was a foe to be reckoned with."

Hjalmar was an axe man, puissant, though not overly so. His claim to fame was great strength, and he was a keen leader of men.

As for the layout of the vale, there was no rhyme or reason to the placement of the tombs. Those who died in battle were not given any special consideration unless they left instructions for internment in a specific area. Thus, what may seem a haphazard approach is just that. You will have to search from tomb to tomb I'm afraid."