Pale Horseman Round 3

Sorry for breaking up the book into multiple posts but time has only just recently opened up for me thanks to the July 4th holiday. The end of the month and end of the quarter has allowed me to quickly catch up on some reading including the other books in the Saxon series as well as some Sharpe books. Quite glad I gave Cornwell another shot after not being impressed with the Stonehenge book.

Below will be some quotes and my ramblings on how they might relate to gaming so if you'd rather avoid the spoilers, read no further.

"...he wanted me to think him defenceless... he ignored me. He just stared past my shoulder.... So I turned my back... and I saw that Cippanhamm was burning."

Here the young Uthred is battling the mighty Steapa. He is losing. Not badly but it seems inevitable. However circumstances outside either combatant's control come to the front of the action, Dane's invading Cippahnhamm and looting and burning.

If the scene is not living up to its potential or its dragging or something just seems off, don't be afraid to throw in some new combatants or events into the fray in order to juice up the scenario.

There are also times when the elements themselves come into play. For example, during a siege late in the book, a storm breaks out with thunder and lightning and thick rain covering the entire field turning dirt into mud and making bows and spears useless. Don't pause when adding some wild natural elements into the setting when it fits.

Other factors that I've mentioned also come into play here.

The wheel of fate for example, has its way with Alfred who is forced to retreat to a swamp. Alfred, known as Alfred the Great, suffered many serious setbacks. Depending on the nature of the game, don't be hesitant to let players lose occasionally. In more recent editions, the themes seem focused on 'yes' and focused on keeping the game moving forward. I have no problem with the latter and think that failure, in and of itself, doesn't necessarily mean the halt of the game. But the players have got to want to push through the bad times their characters endure instead of rolling up new characters.

Another bit is isolation. When Alfred loses his kingdom and retreats to the swamp, the people of the swamp are isolated from the rest of the world. They know little of what goes on outside of their home. This should be something that players who explore, find time and time again. Lost valleys and hidden cities where the natives speak some variant of the local tongue because travel is difficult, dangerous, and without huge cities and trade, not particularly worth it for most.


'...by taking sixteen coats of mail to the river's edge I had given the Danes an irresistible lure. And they snapped at it."

One thing that annoys me as a player, is when the habits and mentality of an enemy are well known and their behavior doesnt' vary much or their intelligent level isn't that high and then the GM, probably inspired by Tucker's Kobold's, decides that every goblin, orc, and other low level, low intelligent monster is suddenly John Rambo. There's a time and a place for such smack downs, but if it becomes every encounter with the creatures and it does so for no reason other than to enforce a smack down, that style of GMing might not be to every player's tune. The mood and establishment should have some consistency. If kobolds are weak little things barely able to string a rock against a stick to make a crude spear one session and the next are using plant based grenades and hit and run tactics, something is wrong.



"Wulfhere let us live."

Wulfhere spoke to Uthred before about how dangerous things would be when the Danes invaded. And by saving the Dane Ragnar, he insured his own life, and his own prosperity. This didn't come clear out of the blue. Readers of the Pale Horseman had hints of what Wulfhere would do if push came to shove.

By sprinkling little bits of motivation about various factors in an NPC's ethos around, the players might have a better idea of what to expect to terms of motivations and actions. By allowing the NPCs to speak with the players about religion, survival, home and hearth, the players gain an insight into the characters.

In the same vein though..

'Steapa was good to his mother,' the man said. 'He brought her money. She was no slave any more.'

Steapa is first depicted as a monstrous, unfeeling machine capable only of murder. Which he does quite well. But this little detail, about how he cared for his mother and raised her from slave status, provides more to the character than just sword and armor. Little details even on the most basic enemies can sometimes provide more depth to the campaign world than all the elaborate descriptions of weapons and armor.


'...Saint Vincent's Day had been the day when Iseult drew Alfred's son, the AEtheling Edward, through the earth. And somewhere, Iseult had told me, a child must die so that the king's heir, the Aetheling, could live."


female's blade, but it is something to think about when describing events in war and even in peace.

..I wanted to come with you.'

'Why?'

'Because I miss this life. God, I miss it! I loved being a warrior. All that irresponsibility! I relished it. Kill and make widows, frighten children. I was good at it, and I miss it. And I was always good at scouting. We'd see you Saxons blundering away like swine and you never knew we were watching you. Don't worry, I'm not going to talk Christ into you, whatever the king wants."

This section does two things for me as a reader.

First, it helps provide some motivation for player character's. Most of the time if you stop to think about it, being an adventurer, a wanderer, a landless man, seems madness. And the quest is to ever gain further gold and power to gain further gold and power. But when Pyrlig puts it like the above, you have to figure, why not eh?

The second, is that Pyrlig puts a different face on priests, especially Christian priests. Up to this point, most of them have been fairly insufferable from the main character's point of view, including Alfred. By putting Pyrlig into the setting and showcasing him as a warrior and a priest happy to have God on his side as opposed to forcing him onto everyone else, the author provides a wider spectrum of the religion and provides another viewpoint to it.

In the Forgotten Realms, what if there is a sect of Tempus Worshippers who relish fighting not for fighting, but for the peace it brings afterwards? They make themselves the best and most frightening enemies not to cause chaos, but to cure it. Putting a slant on things provides the setting with more variety that's not just stuck to the player's who've read a new issue of Dragon and want to play an Albino Drow with a black runeblade that's brand new and never been done before!

A third bit that comes through, is the individual in the army. While Uthred is part of an army, part of a huge army, he is the main character and it is often through his actions, and the actions of those close to him, that victory comes. This happens either though a quick trick or plot of his, or through the declaration of single combat where the heroes clash among the army deciding the fates of all those around them. In a role playing game, unless it's Warhammer Fantasy Battle and the GM is actually using the miniature game, the players should have some ability to influence things. The old 3.5 book, Heroes of Battle did a nice job introducing various things that players can do to influence combat one way or another and provide some sample missions worthy of player attention.

The Pale Horseman round 2!

Sorry for the lack of regular updates but work has been kicking my behind lately. This is something of a regular occurrence at the end of the month, but throw in the end of the quarter and it gets ugly.

Anyway, more quotes from Bernard Cornwell's Saxon Tales book, The Pale Horseman.

Spoilers below so read no further if you wish to avoid them.

"Leofric smiled. 'I don't need orders to go on a patrol, do I?"

Uthred and Leofrid are warriors of high caliber but in this age, they are also warriors who need funds to pay for their soldiers and to build further reputation. By 'going on patrol' as Leofric crouches the words here, he's actually going raiding. This is an old staple where the hero does something nominally against the rules but does do in order to pursue some private agenda.

If you can allow the players room to maneuver their own raids, even when they have their own patrons, and add those elements into the continuing chronicles of the campaign, then you give the players freedom and allow their actions to have meaning.


"The cows are there to kill us." Haesten warned us in his new and not very good English.
"The cows will kill us?" I asked in amusement.
"I have seen it before, lord. They put cows to bring us on land and then they attack."

Bait is a useful tool. It can be something that motivates adventurers on their way, something to lead them into a trap, or something not worth the risk. In the above case, the cows were not worth the risk. In old school games, I remember the traps might be a bit too obvious but the fun thing was that if the price was right, players would still try those potential traps because the bait was worth it. When setting up traps, they can come in all types of sizes and shapes. In the above example, animals are used, in old school games, it was often huge gems or obvious magic items, weapons or shields that radiated their power.


"The West Saxons are Christians,' he said, 'and it is our duty to support them, not because of a love for them, but because of our fellow love for Christ.'

One of the elements that crops up often in the series is the brotherhood that Christians enjoy among each other, even when they are from different countries and speak different languages. The pagans, worshipping most often a Viking or Norse Pantheon, have a difficult time of it when surrounding by the Christians in getting on with day to day living when not raiding and so many of them converge on Christianity while keeping some of their old pagan ways.

While the Forgotten Realms and Greyhawk are both host to different pantheons and multiple gods within those pantheons, the threat of open warfare between them is often depicted as slim to none. Those conflicts were in the old days and while individuals may bristle at others gods, the armies that used to march under those banners rarely do so anymore. More of a rivalry thing thing any true military strength.

This doesn't have to be that way for your own campaigns however. What if in the Forgotten Realms the Mulhorand pantheon takes on new life? What if Tyr brings in more of his kinsmen from the Norse Pantheon and viking raids not only become a reoccurring threat, but new gods are brought with them?



"I'm looking for allies,' he said.

While the players are out pitting their sword and spell skills against others, one of the ways to build the setting is to have them encounter other adventuring groups and not have these groups always be enemies. Having the players options to ally with other adventuring groups might allow them to pull off larger jobs that they would not have access to otherwise. It also sets up the potential for reoccurring characters.


"The gatekeeper demanded that we surrender our weapons, a thing I did with a bad grace, but no man, except the king's own household troops, could go armed in Alfred's presence."

In my experience, one of the hardest things to do, is separate the characters from their magical toys. If they are in a setting or area where its the law, it becomes fairly easy to do so. On the other hand, if every time they are disarmed, they are attacked, they will NOT go to areas that require them to be disarmed. Its a tool that can be used a few times and no more.


"Men cheered. They liked a fight to the death, and it was much better entertainment than listening to Alfred's harpist chant the psalms."

When Uthred is accused of various crimes, the truth of the matter is put to the sword. This is an option that the GM should be careful in allowing. Players are most often specialist in their field and depending on their class, may have options and abilities that would be hard to counter. On the other hand, sometimes its fun to throw the logic of a thing out the door and allow the players to prove their 'innoncent' through might.

Bernard Conrwell's Saxon Tales provide several great battle scenes, a view into a dark and dirty world where life is cheap, and one worth a look for those old school game masters and players looking for sword and sorcery inspiration.

Bernard Cornwell The Pale Horseman

I've been enjoying Bernard Cornwell's tale of Wessex here and the second book in the series is well written, entertaining, and would make a great summer movie if they decided to go the high action route or an solid HBO series to take the place of Rome or Spartacus.

I'll be discussing some of the material from the book through quotes so if you'd like to avoid spoilers, read no further.

"In the winter, while I was mewed up in Werham as one of the hostages given to Guthrum, a new law had been passed in Wessex, a law which decreed that no man other than the royal bodyguards was to draw a weapon in the presence of the king."

The hero of the tale, Uhtred, is a Saxon who is more Dane than Saxon. His loyalties are often tested. He has friends on both sides of the conflict. His king, Alfred the Great, doesn't like him, but needs him. Alfred is able to play him like a fiddle though, thanks to things like the above, where Uthred breaks a law or falls into a law based trap. These things limit Uthred's options and make him more likely to do what Alfred wants.

In looking at motivations for characters in the game, if the GM and players discuss what their motivations will be ahead of time and that the 'theme' if you will, is that their patron is often well intentioned but a hard man, then they should be prepared to deal with those consequences. The GM needs to play it consistently though and allow that relationship to grow. Its okay to have a patron that doesn't necessarily appreciate everything that you do,  but one that blatantly ignores it or lies about it will not be served long.


""I hate him," he went on, "and now you owe me a favour, Uthred."

Just as Alfred plays Uthred like an instrument, there are those who don't like Alfred the Great who seek to ally themselves with Uthred just because of that. Actions have reactions no matter what the time period or setting. The social rules that are inherent to people generally push certain behaviors and if someone sees a person they don't like lording it over someone else, they tend to have sympathy or at least, see an opportunity to ally or use that person who also suffers under their shared nemesis.


"The tall man beside Odda the Younger was named Steapa. Steapa Snotor, men caleld him, or Steapa the Clever... he's dumb as an ox.'"

Here we have two names. The first has the Younger attached to it to distinguish family members. The second has an 'earned' name if you will. Its one of those ironic names like John the Big when talking about a short man. Nick names and descriptors can help flesh out characters and provide some clues as to their talents, or lack of talents.


"And they say more Danish ships arrive every day. They're in Lundene, they're in the Humber, they're in the Gewaesc." He scowled. "More ships, more men and Alfred's building churches!"

Priorities vary from person to person. In the series, Alfred is often described as being fill of piety almost to the point of ignoring the reality of the situations that surround him. But, and this is an important but, belief is a powerful factor in the human make up. Even today, in the year 2011, people who worship the same god will kill each other over the smaller differences their own brand of that religion follows. This isn't something limited to Muslim killing Muslim as Christians have proven throughout history and again recently. Belief is something men find worth dying for and worth killing for.

And the other but here? In a fantasy game, that might very well be a worth while pursuit. In many fantasy settings, like the Forgotten Realms and Greyhawk, despite the 'lack' of the deities direct interference in the world, almost everyone knows that they are real and indeed, in certain time lines of the Forgotten Realms, not worshipping a deity is a damning process. Faith and piety go a long way in a setting where the gods are real.