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  1. Races

Asmundi

Human

The Asmundi people are a hardy race, descendants of explorers and conquerors from over the sea, and heirs to their bold and warlike nature. They form the kingdom of Asmundia, though the "kingdom" could be more accurately described as a confederation of jarls who elect a king. They share a common cultural heritage with other peoples to their east and south.

Cultural Values

Family: The world is a dangerous place, and trust is hard won. However, loyalty and affection towards family is considered to be inherent to nature. It is unthinkable that someone might turn against their family. Even if a relative acts despicably towards others, he is still to be trusted. Only one's family can be counted upon in an emergency--any emergency. Thus a person is not left helpless against the world, but can always count on his kin for aid. 

Hospitality: When a host offers hospitality, he is promising not only food and lodging, but also protection. In return, a guest is expected to act respectfully to his host, and to aid in the protection of the home as if it were his own. An offender of this sacred law may never again be trusted as a guest or host, ill fate will surely dog his footsteps from then on, and the divines will frown upon all his endeavors.

Loyalty: A man's oath is his bond, usually observed by faithful witnesses, and always observed by the gods. An oathbreaker is marked as an untrustworthy knave. 


Government

Although the Asmundi have a king, the position is not hereditary. The king is elected by the jarls from among their own number. The king, therefore, derives his power from the jarls, and not the other way around. Each jarl is thus a sovereign ruler, and hands over authority to the king only when agreed upon by the council of jarls--the Witenagemot. Though the jarls are theoretically equals, the kingdom is dominated the a handful of powerful jarls, known as the “great jarls”, who vie for support among their lesser peers in hopes of advancing their goals.

Great jarls appoint officers immediately below themselves known as shire-reeves. Each shire-reeve oversees a shire, and is responsible for maintaining the readiness of the thegns below him. Lesser jarls do not have enough vassals to make this position necessary. 

Thegns receive grants of land from a Jarl. They provide military service, maintain public works in their domain, and organize the local militia. They are also obliged to attend their jarl when required, thus serving him as a rotating body of advisers and bodyguards. 

Below the thegn, and usually of little importance to the high noble class, is the hundred. Originally created to encompass 100 families each, the hundred is the largest organizing body with which a peasant typically interacts. It is here that disputes are settled, use of common lands is decided, and militiamen are chosen. 

Law

A local lord has jurisdiction over all minor crimes committed in his domain, and it is his duty to judge the crimes and disputes of his tenants. High crimes (such as treason or murder) must be judged by a jarl. Most crimes are rectified by the paying of a set amount of money (known as "weregild") to the victim or his heirs; a failure to pay a proper weregild could lead to a blood feud between families or tribes. More serious crimes may be punishable by banishment or outlawry. 

There is no full-time peacekeeping force among the Asmundi. Any free man witnessing a crime is expected to intervene, summoning his neighbors to assist in the pursuit. If someone claims to be a victim to a crime, he and his family are expected to seek redress.

One of the few kingdom-wide laws is the sanctity of the High Road. The High Road is a network of royally maintained highways that run throughout the kingdom. A crime committed on a High Road is considered a crime against the entire kingdom, and any free man apprehended on the High Road may appeal his case to the king. Thus anyone traveling via the High Road can consider himself safe, even if traveling through the lands of a rival.

Military

Jarls are powerful nobles, enforcing their privileges with their military might. They have a personal retinue of professional warriors called housecarls, which reside in the jarl's household and receive pay, privileges, and prestige. In addition to his housecarls, the jarl will be attended by a number of his thegns, who are landholders and vassals under the jarl. Thus the troops at the jarl's immediate disposal include an élite cadre of mounted thegns, a larger group of heavily armed housecarls, and an assortment of lesser soldiers that act as a support and garrison force. With advance warning, the jarl can call up light infantry, light cavalry, and archers from his demesne, and he can order all of his vassals to bring their own soldiers together into one fighting force. 

While housecarls and thegns provide a professional core in a jarl's army, he can also call up the local militia ("fyrd") to defend the realm. Their training and equipment are far inferior to the housecarls, but they can be used as skirmishers, guards, and laborers. In times of peace, these militiamen take turns in patrolling their locality. These militia are frequently used in borderlands regions, while those in the protected core of the kingdom have mostly become obsolete. 

Weapons: The spear is the most common weapon among all social classes, and shields are equally ubiquitous. Housecarls also wield a two-handed axe, intended to break through the enemy's shield wall. Javelins are the preferred ranged weapon of the upper classes, while peasants mostly use bows. Jarls and thegns wear mail armor with hardened leather lames, and wear a helmet that completely protects the face; housecarls and other professional warriors wear a mail hauberk, which is a coat of chain armor reaching the knees; younger and poorer warriors can only afford mail shirt reaching the waist; militiamen equip themselves with only a hardened leather cuirass. 

Light cavalry is made up of the richer peasants who can afford a suitable horse. When needed, thegns can act as heavy cavalry, though they usually fight as mounted infantry. 

Knowledge and Learning

Book-learning and written language are not highly valued by the Asmundi. While some written records are kept for purposes of administration, the oral tradition is more important for transmitting generational knowledge. This knowledge is kept by the bards, the sages of the oral tradition. Stories of gods, kings, and heroes are recited or sung with instrumental accompaniment. Within these songs, listeners also learn about history and cultural values. Bards also compose verses geared towards entertainment, such as love ballads or nonsense verses, but any performer can come up with those, and any bard that limits himself to such work is living far below his calling. 

While most Asmundi eschew formal education, the exceptions are those who practice magic. For each spell that a magic-user knows, he must keep track of complex astrological movements and star signs that are constantly changing; he must know how to appease the various ghosts and spirits that power certain dweomers; he must remember and obey special taboos that each spell dictates. All of these strictures, and they are many, can vary with the season, the lunar cycle, the caster’s location, and more. Such knowledge cannot effectively be transmitted and remembered by strictly oral means, and the idea of developing new spells without volumes of magical knowledge is ridiculous. For this reason, magic-users will universally be able to read and write.

Religion

Religion is Asmundia is a local affair. There is no centralized religious hierarchy, and local leaders take responsibility for appeasing the gods and spirits on their people's behalf. Local populations have their own unique practices, including minor deities and spirits, but the following gods are universally recognized:

Woden: God of war, storms, and fate.

Uller: God of stealth, hunting, and the wilderness.

Freya: Goddess of home, healing, protection, and fertility.

Forseti: God of wisdom and justice.

Gil: God of knowledge, learning, and secrets.

Balder: God of love, poetry, and beauty.

In addition to these, secret cults exist that worship an innumerable array of Chthonic gods, godlings, demons, and wicked fey. These are opposed and destroyed when they are encountered, but this is strictly a local issue—the Asmundi have no concept of inquisitions, excommunications, or crusades. 

Important activities are traditionally undertaken on certain days of the week. Note that this is not a strict rule, but when you need every bit of luck in an endeavor, you will try to do it on its appropriate day of the week. 

EXAMPLE: If Hans the farmer were going to visit his cousin in the next village over, he would likely go whenever he pleased. If he were to undertake a journey to a distant market town to sell his prized heifer, he would likely try to depart on Sun-day. 

Sun-day: Sacrifices to ancestors and the gods; beginning of journeys and new endeavors.

Moon-day: Beginning of hunts. (Also called Uller's Day)

Balder-day: Marriages (usually the first day of a four-day ceremony)

Woden-day: Declarations of war; organizing of raids or battles; augury.

Gil-day: Proclamation of laws; hiding things; seeking things.

Freya-day: Laying down of a new home or building

Forseti-day: Holding of court 

Magic 

Magic is considered mysterious and unpredictable by the common people. While a peasant may seek aid from a local witch, or a jarl may turn to his court mage for advice or his runemaker for magical strength in battle, these magic-users are best kept at a respectful distance, for their wrath can bring upon you terrible consequences. Three kinds of magic-user are found openly practicing among the Asmundi. 

Witches: When an Asmundi refers to a "witch", he is specifically referring to someone practicing the Antiquarian tradition of witchcraft. These magic-users (usually women) are dedicated to healing and beneficial magics, and live their lives close to the common people. They are respected by their communities and well-rewarded for their significant knowledge and powers. They are particularly skilled in producing potions.

Runemakers: Runemakers are warriors skilled in the lore of runes, magic sigils that contain eldritch power. Through rune-lore, runemakers can see the future, curse their enemies, and perform other miraculous deeds. Socially, they occupy a paradoxical role in a jarl's household as both battle brother and mysterious magic-user. A noble’s retinue will usually contain at least one runemaker, who uses his power to bolster himself and his comrades in battle. 

Wizard: Sometimes called "loremasters" for their breadth and depth of knowledge, these masters of the eldritch arts are highly prized for their versatility and schools understanding of magic. They are commonly found in the courts of the nobility, where they enjoy significant privileges in exchange for their service and advice in all things magical. When they are not attending to their lords, wizards engage in magical research. This research often leads them to enlist wandering warriors (sometimes called "adventurers") to seek out lost tomes or ancient artifacts to further their work.

In addition to these dedicated magic-users, each village will have several lesser wise women and cunning men able to perform a few spells of lesser power, known as cantrips. Workers of evil magic can also be found.

Life in a jarl's hall

The household of a jarl is large, and primarily focused on warfare. The most important residents are the jarl and his family, including wife, children, and some members of the extended family; these extended family members often serve in important roles, because family members are considered to be more trustworthy (though not necessarily competent). Close advisors to the jarl will include his senior vassals, his court mage, his court bard, and his spymaster. The jarl’s housecarls will be present unless out on assignment or leave. A large number of servants are also present, with their own roles and hierarchy (which the jarl would prefer not to concern himself with). Others present may include ambassadors, vassals, entertainers, and visiting nobles.

A jarl's home, called a longhouse or mead hall, is a large single-roomed structure with a hearth in the center. This hall is the center of activity. Meals are eaten here on tables brought in by servants. The tables are cleared away when the jarl holds court or hosts some kind of entertainment. Many of the residents sleep in the hall at night, with the most important sleeping closest to the fire on tables or benches, and the less important sleeping on the floor around the edges.