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Characters and NPCs from the "Heroes of Mystara" campaign

by Jesper Andersen

Characters from the "Heroes of Mystara" campaign, living in or around Winter Dale in the domain of Aland in Ostland:

At the end of the post is a family tree of Wulfgar's family.

Wulfgar's kin and friends:

BJORN NJALSSON (dead)
45 years old (at least, he would have been), Warrior/expert (4/5), alignment LN, Proud 16, Honest 16, Dogmatic 13, Reverent 13, Vengeful 13
Str 15, Con 12, Dex 11, Int 14, Wis 12, Cha 14

Bjorn Njalsson was a stern man who taught his sons discipline rather than love. In his youth he went raiding all over the North and later he returned to Winter Dale where he founded a prosperous shipbuilding industry. For years everything was good and his family lived well. Then, in 996 AC, his son Wulfgar was left for dead on a raid on the coast of Ylaruam. Bjorn grieved but did not show it - not even to his own family. They year after his eldest son departed for the colonies on the Isle of Dawn. In 999 AC his daughter Ursula - the joy of his life - was abducted by raiders from the Oberbeck clan of the Soderfjord Jarldoms. Since Thorgal had left for the Isle of Dawn and Leif was a cripple it fell to the third son, Ogir, to try and rescue her. Ogir left with a group of loyal clansmen in Bjorn's three longships to extract revenge on the Oberbecks and rescue Ursula. So far, not one has returned and the Varmgarders believe they are all dead or thralls themselves.
With all of his sons scattered and his loyal housekarls away in the Jarldoms, his evil brother Heindal and his sons sprung into action. One or more of them infected Bjorn with Brown Plague (and a number of other villagers as well) and when Bjorn died in the early winter of 999 AC, Heindal claimed all of his possessions for himself. Usually, Bjorn's possessions would go to his eldest son, but Leif did not dare to claim them and Njal was still too young. Because of the way he died, Bjorn's soul is likely to reside in the Underworld ruled by the evil immortal Hel. There, he is tormented every day until Ragnarok.

THORA
43 years old, Commoner (3), alignment LG
Cautious 17, Courageous 3, Reverent 4, Trusting 3, no exceptional stats

Thora was the wife of Bjorn and ruled his household like a queen. When Heindal took over, she soon realised that at some point her youngest son, Njal, would become a threat to his rule and so she has done everything in her power to protect him - including taking Heindal to bed. She fears the Immortals have abandoned her in her time of need - stripping her of husband and children so rapidly. At present, she has given up praying entirely. The only thing that matters to her is Njal. She does not care about Leif, feeling that he has deserted her and the rest of the family.

THORGAL BJORNSSON
27 years old, fighter (3), alignment Chaotic Good
Courageous 17, Honest 16, Loyal 17

Thorgal is the oldest son of Bjorn and the oldest brother of Wulfgar. He currently lives in the settlements on the Isle of Dawn with his wife Gertrud and his son Bjorn.

LEIF BJORNSSON
26 years old, Warrior/Commoner (1/4), alignment Neutral
Cautious 18, Courageous 4, Forgiving 4, Reverent 3
Str 12, Con 12, Dex 6, Int 12, Wis 9, Cha 7

Leif is the second oldest son of Bjorn. He tried to be a warrior like his brothers but on a raid into the Heldannic Territories in 997 AC he was struck in the leg with a battleaxe and nearly died. Today, he is a cripple and lives as a petty farmer with his wife Inger and his children Ulf and Sigrid. Leif is bitter at how life turned out and detests his livelihood as a farmer. He is, however, very protective of his family and so has not contested Heindal's claim to Bjorn's great hall fearing reprisals from his cousins against his family.

OGIR BJORNSSON
23 years old, Warrior/Expert (shipwright) (3/2), alignment Chaotic Good
Loyal 18, Courageous 17, Honest 16, Energetic 15
Str 17, Con 16, Dex 13, Int 12, Wis 9, Cha 12

Ogir has been gone the past few years searching for his sister in the Soderfjord Jarldoms.

NJAL BJORNSSON
13 years old, Commoner (1), alignment Lawful good
Fearful 18, Modest 15, Cautious 16, no exceptional stats

Njal is named after his grandfather but has inherited none of his courage or strength. His mother has told him that Heindal may try to kill him, when he is old enough to inherit the great hall of his father, so he is very careful not to pose any threat to his uncle. In a few years, however, he will either have to flee of face Heindal and his cousins.

URSULA THORASDOTTIR
12 years old, Commoner (1), alignment Lawful good
Courageous 17, Energetic 17, Reverent 13, Generous 18
Str 7, Con 12, Dex 14, Int 16, Wis 13, Cha 14

Ursula is currently a prisoner and thrall of the Oberbeck clan in the Soderfjord Jarldoms.

GRANDFATHER NJAL
65 years old, Fighter/Bear Warrior (7/5), alignment Chaotic good
Loyal 17, Courageous 16, Cautious 13
Str 6 (15), Con 11, Dex 4 (13), Int 12, Wis 5 (14), Cha 14

Njal is Wulfgar's grandfather and the father of Bjorn, Erik and Heindal. Somebody is poisoning him slowly, attacking both his body and mind. These days the old warrior sleeps most of the time and is spoon-fed porridge by a thrall.

ERIK NJALSSON
47 years old, Warrior/expert (smith) (3/5), alignment Lawful Neutral
Modest 15, Energetic 16, Honest 16, Cautious 14
Str 17, Con 13, Dex 14, Int 12, Wis 9, Cha 10

Erik has retired as a warrior and now lives in Winter Dale with his wife. He is a skilled weaponsmith and creates lots of the swords for the clansmen going to the Isle of Dawn. Erik does not suspect that anything but ordinary Brown Plague killed his younger brother. He will demand evidence of treason before accepting any accusations.

MARTHA
44 years old, Commoner (2), alignment Neutral
Peaceful 15, Generous 14, no exceptional stats
Martha is Erik's loving wife. She strives to make a comfortable home for him and is always busy directing the thralls, cooking, cleaning and weaving. She keeps the longhouse pleasantly smelling with herbs.

SVEN ERIKSSON
22 years old, Warrior (3), alignment Chaotic good
Loyal 18, Courageous 17, Reverent 15, Proud 15, Trusting 16
Str 16, Con 14, Dex 12, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 12

Sven is first son of Erik Njalsson and Wulfgar's cousin. He has been on five raids so far and is very proud of his reputation as a courageous warrior. Unfortunately, Sven is not very bright and he does not see through the machinations of his deceitful cousins. Remthar has told him that he is favoured by Odin and now Sven protects his godi cousin. He will not listen to anyone saying anything bad about Remthar.

MATHILDE
17 years old, Commoner (1), alignment Lawful good
Trusting 14, Peaceful 16, Courageous 3, no exceptional stats

Mathilde is just a girl really, who considers herself very fortunate to be married to Sven, whom she believes is a great warrior blessed by Odin. She is very pretty and if Sven survives the raids in the future they will probably be very happy together. They have been married for a year.

EINER ERIKSSON
22 years old, Expert (archer) (4), alignment Chaotic Neutral
Reverent 5, Generous 14, Energetic 4, Dogmatic 3
Str 12, Con 13, Dex 18, Int 16, Wis 13, Cha 14

Einer is the black sheep of Erik's family. He is a prankster and a drifter. Raiding never appealed to him, instead he went hunting with his bow in the forest for days and weeks. He is capable of defending himself, however, so the bullies of Winter Dale leave him alone. His father ignores him because he is lazy, his mother loves him secret not to spite her husband, his brother Sven shuns him because he openly jokes about the Immortals. Sven would never hurt him however. Unlike most Northmen, Einer is beardless. He has red hair and freckles and dresses in the garb of a ranger. He is one of the best archers in all of Aland. Einer has developed a fondness for wine, forsaking the traditional Northman mead.

HEINDAL NJALSSON
42 years old, Fighter (5), alignment neutral evil
Cautious 16, Generous 4, Forgiving 5, Honest 3, Trusting 4
Str 17, Con 14, Dex 14, Int 12, Wis 9, Cha 6
Equipment: chain shirt +1

Heindal is Wulfgar's uncle and the brother of Erik and Bjorn. As a child, Heindal was always jealous of his two brothers Bjorn and Erik. He envied them their courage, their ability to make friends and that they had their father's attention and love. Heindal was no coward but he was cautious and quickly became a bitter loner in the village. As the years passed, Heindal's resentment of his brothers' good fortune became an all-consuming hatred. In secret, he coveted Bjorn's hall and fortune - even his wife. When Bjorn's sons were scattered and his loyal housekarls away fighting in Soderfjord, Heindal and his son Jorhal struck. They poisoned old Njal and infected Bjorn with Brown Plague. To cover their tracks, several other people in the village were infected as well. Bjorn died and Heindal and his family took possession of his great hall. It should have passed to Leif, Bjorn's eldest son still home in Ostland but he decided to remain a farmer rather than face his uncle and cousins. In another four years, when Wulfgar's youngest brother Njal has his Heyday, he will inherit the great hall. Before then, Heindal plans to have Njal meet with an accident of some sort. Heindal did not care for building ships so he sold Bjorn's shipyard to a clansman named Kolbein Erlingsson. The 35.000 Eyrir he gained he has buried or spent on mead and feasts. When Wulfgar returns, Heindal and his sons will quickly estimate that he constitutes a threat to their position and they will try to kill him somehow.

IRMDAL
39 years, Commoner (2), alignment Neutral
Cautious 17, Modest 19, Courageous 2, no exceptional stats.

Irmdal is married to Heindal. She has born him three sons and been a loyal wife but he has completely lost interest in her and treats her little better than one of his thralls. Most of the time she is cowering in a corner and she speaks only when spoken to.

REMTHAR
24 years old, Godi (priest) of Odin (6), alignment Lawful Neutral
Cautious 14, Reverent 18, Trusting 4, Loyal 16, Dogmatic 19
Str 13, Con 12, Dex 14, Int 17, Wis 17, Cha 16
Equipment: Shortspear +3, cast bless once a day (godi use only)

Remthar is the eldest son of Heindal and probably the least corrupted by his father's evil. He grew up with the teachings that all northmen should be proud and strong and scorn merchants and other weak members of the civilised world. That is why, according to Remthar, Bjorn died of disease - he was betraying the northman ways and was punished by the Immortals. Remthar knows nothing of his brother Jorhal's affiliation with the cult of Hel or the fact that his grandfather is being poisoned. Remthar always seeks to further the cause of Odin. He is one of the highest-ranking godi in all of Aland and as such a man of great power in the community. Remthar walks around town in a broad brimmed hat, a ceremonial eye-patch and a long cloak with a collar of raven's feathers. He has convinced his cousin Sven Eriksson that he is favoured by Odin and now Sven follows him everywhere and protects him.

ERIK
22 years old, Barbarian (5), alignment Chaotic Evil
Cautious 3, Modest 2, Peaceful 4, Courageous 18, Forgiving 3, Energetic 4
Str 19, Con 17, Dex 13, Int 10, Wis 8, Cha 13
Equipment: Masterwork battleaxe, masterwork large shield

Erik Heindalsson is Wulfgar's cousin, the second son of Heindal, and a brutish loudmouth. He and his small band of berserkers roam Winter Dale scaring women and children, getting into drunken fights and bragging about their raids on the Isle of Dawn against the Alphatians. Erik is not very bright but he is loyal to his father and dislikes anyone trying to take their newly acquired wealth away from them. He is quick to challenge anyone to a Holmgang or wrestling match. Recently, he has taken a liking to Yrsa, the younger sister of his brother Jorhal's bride-to-be Mara. Yrsa is afraid of him and avoids him whenever she can.

JORHAL
21 years old, Rogue/Warrior (3/2), alignment Neutral Evil
Cautious 17, Courageous 4, Forgiving 2, Honest 4, Trusting 3
Str 13, Con 14, Dex 16, Int 16, Wis 14, Cha 8
Equipment: Poison for Njal, dust of disappearance, unholy dagger +4

Jorhal is truly his father's son. He grew up feeling inferior and a coward but he tried to hide it. When Mara fell in love with Wulfgar, she secretly told it to Jorhal, believing he was her friend. A few months later, Jorhal stabbed Wulfgar in the back and left him for dead in Ylaruam during a raid. Jorhal returned to Ostland and tried to win the love of the grieving Mara but she was shocked at his cold heart and turned him away. Full of bitterness, he concentrated on helping his father win the great hall and shipyard of his uncle Bjorn. Only Heindal knows that Jorhal struck some sort of deal with Hel and got Bjorn infected with Brown Plague. Jorhal met a godi of Hel named Gerloc. She told him how to make poisons and gave him an unholy dagger blessed by Hel. It was Gerloc who spread the Brown Plague.
Jorhal has a limited knowledge of herbs and regularly brews a mild poison, which he feeds into porridge served to his grandfather Njal. It keeps Njal nearly sedated and will eventually kill him. The herbs Jorhal collects on moonless nights near the steep cliffs north of Winter Dale.
Recently, Mara's father Nim has been unable to repay a loan to Heindal and has instead promised Mara's hand in marriage to Jorhal.

Family tree
Grandfather Njal has three sons: Erik, Bjorn and Heindal

Erik Njalsson is Wulfgar's first uncle. He is married to Martha and they have the sons Sven and Einer. Sven Eriksson is married to Mathilde. Einer is not married.

Bjorn Njalsson was Wulfgar's father and was married to Thora before he died. Together they had the son Thorgal, Leif, Ogir, Wulfgar and Njal and the daughter Ursula. Thorgal Bjornsson lives with his wife Gertrud and his son Bjorn on the Isle of Dawn. Leif Bjornsson lives on a farm with his wife Inger and their children Ulf and Sigrid. Ogir, Wulfgar, Njal and Ursula are not yet married.

Heindal Njalsson is Wulfgar's second uncle. He is married to Irmdal and together they have three sons: Remthar, Erik and Jorhal, none of whom are married yet.

NPC's from the "Heroes of Mystara" campaign, living in or around the village of Winter Dale (Vinterdal) in the domain of Aland in Ostland:

Commoners: