Fjorn
You will find no greater warrior, shieldmaidens, friends, or clansmen outside of a Fjorn. Loyal, fierce, and half-crazed should be tattooed across each Fjorn's forehead.
Fjorns are a proud people that primarily follow a clan lifestyle. An individual's first duty is to their family, clan, and finally Freyr/Freya. Towns and villages are spread all throughout Mjornlan, dotting great plains, tundras, coastlines, and forest clearings. Each major town owes allegiance to a Freyr/Freya, who in turn has Lendr Madrs who serve them, who are then served by Housecarls. Many often seek adventure and new obstacles to overcome, over time this has established the Fjorns as great adventurers and warriors.
Civilization and Culture
Naming Traditions
Common Female Names
- Astrid
- Ragna
- Ingrid
- Arnora
- Sibbe
Common Male Names
- Thororm
- Arnvid
- Ludin
- Sigmund
- Torsten
Common Last Names
- Ragi
- Eindri
- Arnor
- Hallbjorn
- Hrossbjorn
Beauty Ideals
Fjorn Women
Fjorn look for practical rather than what others may consider beauty. Preferring to be taller and built like a stone house, with baby birthing hips, bonus points if her body holds tattoos or scars. Scars coming from battle or perilous hunts are even greater an ideal. Scarification, while not frowned upon, doesn't really add to the perceived beauty of a woman.Fjorn Men
The same base appeal of practical over superficial looks. Men are expected to be in good physical condition, able to hunt and keep themselves taken care of. Also in the same line as women tattoos and scars only seem to add to the perceived beauty of a man. Scarification, on the other hand, is something that can add to the beauty of a man. Most often near scars from battles or hunts either something to denote a date, creature, or battle and whether or not they were on the losing side. Though other things such as a crest of their clan or family or other things that are held personal to the man.Courtship Ideals
Fjorn courtships are generally quick and to the point. Whether for safety and security or love, it matters not to the world of the Fjorn. Marriage and romances aren't overly affected by the culture of the Fjorn nor at they set in stone about how or what is counted as being married. Though for what can be called a traditional marriage is generally performed by the closest Freyr/Freya Skald. It is quite common for a "married" couple to not be traditionally married and still be considered married.
Relationship Ideals
Priding themselves on honor amongst their people and those who have earned the respect and honor as if they were born of Fjorn blood. Striving to teach each other as if they are blood-related as being a unified people is very important to them. Priding things like honor, hunting skill, combat ability, and animal husbandry for things that are the utmost importance in picking Fjorn to bond with whether it is friendship or marriage.
Common Etiquette Rules
Physical Greetings
- The standard greeting of a two Fjorn is giving a forearm handshake. Often done for the sole reason of most of the colder regions of Mjornlan shaking hands have been rumored to cause people to lose their fingers from the cold. Other stories surround it as a way to figure out if the other person is hiding a blade, and that it's just a more honorable stance than a regular handshake.
Verbal Greetings
- Greetings are typically Title and Name, or just name. They are rather informal even to higher ranked Fjorns. Though the High King or Queen is almost always simply called their title and only after their retirement are their names added to the equation. Some Fjorn are still more formal than others and will use Title, Name, and Surname.
Emotional Demeanor
- While to the outside world they are stoic or gruff in everyday interactions. Though most of the time they seem to hold a resting stoic face, they are often quick to laughter and frivolity. Most of the time their demeanor is happy and relaxed even if their faces don't show it.
Other
- Shield Bashing: This is common Fjorn thing. While they are not bashing their shields together it is more of touching or soft hitting of shields. Most common after spars, battles, fights, disputes that end in battle. They will attempt to do this with other combatants that are not Fjorn as a sign of respect for their skill and no ill will meant for them in the end.
Common Dress Code
Male Fashion
- Dark colors
- Furs and Leather
- Heavy boots
- Various bone and leather jewlry
Female Fashion
- Brighter colors than their male counterparts
- Pants are more common than dresses or skirts
- Embroidery on their clothing, boots, and coats
- Gems, precious metals, bone, and leather jewelry
Armor
- Their armor is mostly unisex in the most base of it's build
- Female armor tends to be more ornate or decorated as with their normal clothing
- Male armor is often darker in color and less ornate as the women's
Common Customs, Traditions and Rituals
- While Deponics are highly prized they are not what they use to signify coming of age. Coming of age generally involves bear hunting, not that they are expected to hunt one on their own. Young men and women are taken out with experienced hunters to track and kill a bear. All of this is done in honor of Aelred the Falconer and the loss of his arm.
- Tattoos are a normalcy within the Fjorn culture. Taking pride in most of their ink on their body as with the majority of Fjorn their ink represents great feats or fond memories in the life. Though that does not mean that a Fjorn doesn't get a tattoo just to get something.
- Honor is everything, most Fjorns will refuse to perform acts they consider dishonorable. Though a few things may be seen as fine in their eyes such as taking an opponent with overwhelming force, killing armed and able women, etc.
Common Taboos
- While some stories about the Fjorn describe their women as barely clothed in the harsh snow, most Fjorn find an overexposure of skin outside of intimate settings appalling.
- The killing of children is so taboo that the act is seen as something to exile a Fjorn as. The only time they would think of it as passable would be if the child is already wounded and going to suffer till death takes them.
History
As cities were built and people filled them soon the Fjorn began to spring up, blonde haired beauties and larger bodies as they mostly worked on the docks. Slowly they became different from the other humans and the Ezana. Building great ships to go north and conquer the land.
Truth be told, that land was a wild beast, untamed and new to man, it seemed like a new frontier as they began to build the first Fjorn city free of the Human Empire. Calling it Horn It Vestra, with Aelred the Falconer as their first High King. Though it looked like they were in luck nothing going wrong for the first few years of taming the wild and beating back the ice and snow.
Their luck quickly turned sour the moment Aelred and his wife Birghiva had a child. It seemed like the snows came worst, the animals were more hostile, and the water stayed frozen more times in the year than ever before. As if this union and this baby were an affront to the very Eidolons themselves. But this would not hold these people down, they still seemed to beat back the wilds and nature herself.
Till one moonless night when the largest bear anyone had ever seen began to pull apart homes and killing people in the streets. Aelred soon faced down the dire bear, losing an arm to the beast before making the killing blow. Having the bear skinned and the people renamed him Aelred the Bear. From then on everything moved like a well-oiled machine.
More Fjorn cities were built, family heads were named the first Freyr or Freya of the major cities, everything again entered into the normalcy of peace. For years even after the death of Aelred and his son rising to High King, there was peace in relative terms for the Fjorn. Cities flourished, families and clans grew, trade was good and then it went all to hell.
While reports of Dominikus charge and trying to wash over every kingdom upon Eiria, the Fjorn were sure they could beat him off their lands if he tried. Knowing the southerners would freeze if the wildlife didn’t get them first. Aelred’s son was more confident than his father, possibly even more overzealous, and it came at a great shock when the Anucia Empire arrived in Mjornlan.
While the Fjorn kept them at bay for a year, in time every great clan bent a knee to Dominikus. With that came the building of Mida, the stronghold of the Empire and a constant reminder that their ways were lost. While the Freyr or Freya were allowed to rule their cities they still had to keep a bent knee to the empire. And this hold would last for centuries before the great Nikolas Oleifsson rallied the Fjorn to start a rebellion of ages.
The rebellion was long and tiresome and looked as if the Fjorn would never win and the Empire would try to wipe them from the world of Eiria. When a surprising ally turned up, a tall dark skinned elf woman, claiming to the ruler of some sort of empire who wanted her revenge on the humans of Eiria. She made an offer to Nikolas that he could not refuse. And thus this started the turning of the tide, as Nikolas promised to help and that the Fjorn people would be spared.
With the Empire beaten they resettled in their home as Nikolas stepped down after learning the Drassi woman would not hold her promise. Now they wait in uneasy peace for the next turn of the war drum.
Lifespan
80-100 Years
Average Height
5'7"-6'6"
Average Physique
While strong and muscular, their bodies tend to retain a layer of fat to insulate, though it isn't uncommon for a Fjorn to not have it. Either due to activity level, food consumption, or both. Most Fjorn are highly active either in daily chores, hunting, or various hard labor jobs. Men tend to be taller than women but it is not always the case.
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Their complexion tends to be pale or fair skinned, stemming from the fact they tend to stay rather covered up due to the cold climate they live in. Though those in the southern parts of Mjornlan may have darker skin since those lands are not always stuck in a permafrost.
- Fair or dark brown hair tends to be the most common along with blue and green eyes. Ginger and darker hued eyes being a rarity.
- Mjornlan
- Rorith Kingdom
- Council of Freyr/Freya Skald of Mjorn
- Ysvern
- Astrid's Folly
- Omnivore though they do lean to a more protein side of being an omnivore.
- Wolf
- Bear
- Deer
- Deponics
- Hardy Veggitables
- Berries
- Alcohol
- They lack tolerance for warmer climates, the more north you go the worst the intolerance to warm weather a Fjorn gets.
- They invent snowshoes to help with getting around easier.
Hailed as the best high King and often toted as the Fjorn's Fjorn, Aelred is a legend in not only his time but for all time. Even when he lost his arm he was still something to be reckoned with. His start in life wasn't really much more than any other Fjorn at the time, though as a young man he wanted a better life for his people. Even if his dream didn't take off till a little bit later on in his life. Leading his people to the cold wastes and taming it like a rouge Deponic. He would go on to have a few children and pass down his famed bearskin from the dire bear that took his arm. Nikolas Oleifsson
He was a good man with a great heart and no one will ever deny it. His life started out under the rule of a tyrant, he made a deal with a devil, and in the end, he would regret a lot of his choices in the latter years of his life. Being born under the Anucia Empire's rule Nikolas like many Fjorn dreamed of a free Mjornlan. When the opportunity, came for him to take that chance he took it even if the woman he was dealing with seemed strange to him, he just wanted to be free form the choking grasp of the Empire. In the end, she turned on them like a viper and seemed to start trying to do what the Anucia Empire had done so many years ago. Warm of Many souls
What little is known about this hermit is either marked as myth, legend or simply Deponic wash. Hailing from some of the first Fjorn, it was said he fell in love with a woman. The two seemed ill-fated and never to be together. This is said to have driven him mad spiraling into a void of madness. Between his skinning of stray cats, love of tea, or odd ramblings about insects and zombie fungi. It is said he lived passed, at the time, the known age of Fjorn. Whether or not the truth in his 120 years was correct it is said that he passed at least at the age of 100. It is unsure if in his later years he began following Totrix and Muldir rather than Ehses and the world of Eiria may never know.
Comments