Main Character Sheet

Name: Rurik (pronounced Rhou-rek) Far-Stride (alternatively known as the Great North Bear to the Bretons and Dunmer)

Race: Nord (Solitudian)

Age: 42

Birthsign: The Serpent

Physical Description: Standing at six feet five inches, Rurik is not particularly tall for a Nord; however his build makes up for that. While his shoulders are not particularly broad, that gives him an overall better look, that of a well-toned, muscular warrior, lacking the 'barbarian brute' look to his figure that's so common amongst Nords. That's only so when his upper body is covered, however ? his chest and arms are decorated with blue Nordic tattoos, which depict the story of the coming of King Ysgramor from Atmora, with the word 'Shor' tattooed below it all.

Rurik's face is also tattooed ? a dragon's head is on his brow and below it the word 'Ysmir'. His face itself speaks of his many journeys and battles, with a deep scar running from his left ear to his chin. His eyes are deep, and sometimes seem world-weary, suggesting that the Nord saw much during his life. A large nose, below which are his fat, wide lips, most of the time invisible due to his lush, dark brown beard. All this is framed by his long, messy dark brown hair, which is long enough to reach his shoulders.

History: Rurik Far-Stride was given such a nickname for a reason. Before his conquests in High Rock, he has been to many places, starting with Solitude at his birth. His father was the captain of a Snekkja that was a part of an exploration fleet regularly making journeys into the Sea of Ghosts. Rurik joined his father's crew of rowers as soon as he was of age, and served there for several years, until peaking the age of 20.

A career as a rower wasn't to Rurik's liking, and he travelled to Winter Hold, where he came to the attention of a company of raiders. Rurik joined them, and it took him only three years to become the captain of one of their Drekkars. His name quickly became feared by the fishermen of west Vvardenfell, and soon Rurik was famous enough to assemble his own fleet, consisting of three Drekkars (one of which was his flagship) and nine Snekkjas, the crews numbering roughly at 450 men in total.

When the Nordic Invasion of Morrowind began during the Oblivion Crisis, Rurik was one of the many raiders that flocked to the invading army. He fought in most of the battles of the invasion, gaining valuable experience, learning much about sieges and open field battles proper. By the time the invasion was repulsed, Rurik had already managed to convince several other commanders to join him in carrying out the plan he had thought up. Contacting the King of Solitude, he also secured his help, and, with many men amassed under his banner, Rurik put his plan into motion.

The Duchy of Jehanna, the closest Bretic Realm to Solitude, was invaded and swiftly taken over. Farrun, feeling threatened by the Nordic host, and worried about the growing power of Wayrest, was made an ally of the now-Nordic Grand Duchy of Jehanna, although in truth it was more of a vassal state, controlled almost directly by Rurik. Now, the conqueror has stopped for a moment to catch his breath, however he and his generals are already plotting the next move against the Bretons.

Weapons: Rurik uses a massive bastard sword, large enough to count as a claymore for the common man. It is a fine double-edged blade, crafted of Nordic steel, specifically for the purpose of the invasion of High Rock, which was seen by many as another step towards rebuilding the Nordic Empire. A sentence is carved into the middle of the blade in old Nordic runes, which reads 'Alduin of the Bretons'. The blade has no sheath, usually hanging naked from Rurik's belt.

Armor/Clothing: Rurik wears the traditional armor of the Nords. A hauberk, with rings crafted out of Nordic steel, along with Nordic Steel Plate on his arms and legs, trimmed with silver. The hauberk is held by the waist by a wide fur belt that has a silver clasp, upon which carved are three names: Shor, Ysmir and Kyne. Rurik doesn't wear a helmet; however he has a large bear fur coat with a hood, which is a bear's head, which he puts on in battle, hence his nickname.

Misc. Items: A trophy rope, woven out of tongues as according to the old Nordic tradition. It is not a thing Rurik carries out in the open; however he ties it around his neck when going to battle to further inspire fear into enemies and encourage his Nordic troops.

Companions: Vytatus Great-Mouth, a Nord from Winter Hold and a companion of Rurik since the Invasion of Morrowind. Despite his nickname, the nearly seven foot tall, well built Nord appears to be mute, as he communicates by signs and no one has ever heard him speak. Some speculate that Vytatus is one of those skilled in Thu'um, the Way of the Voice; how true that is remains to be seen, although there are some amongst Rurik's men who claim that Vytatus shouted the Gates of Jehanna open. Following the 'alliance' of Jehanna and Farrun, and the mysterious death of the duke of Farrun, Vytatus has been proclaimed the new duke.


Faction Sheet

Faction Name: Grand Duchy of Jehanna (Velikiye Khnyazhestvo Jehannyja) (11410)

Rank: Rurik Far-Stride- Grand Duke (referred to as Velikiy Khnyaz by his Nordic subjects)
Vytatus Great-Mouth- Duke (Khnyaz) of Farrun

Men of Middle-Skyrim (10)- Skilled in the Way of the Voice, the gift of Kyne, these Nords are the very elite of the Nordic Armies, the warriors of legend. While they are not particularly well-built, and wear only haubergeons of Nordic Steel in the way of armor, their Thu'um magic is a highly formidable weapon. They can perform a variety of tasks, from frightening enemies to knocking down gates; however they need to be protected, as the tiny size of this unit available to Rurik makes them very fragile.

Solitude Heavy Infantry (3000)- Armored with hauberks of Nordic Steel, and armed with long pikes and axes for sidearms, these men are a very potent force, as long as they remain in formation. Usually they fight in pike blocks, nearly invulnerable from the front, but clumsy when the need comes to turn, they need to be protected by other, more flexible parts of the army to make full use of them.

Berserkers (400)- Assembled from the Mead Halls of Skyrim, these men wear little in the way of armor, however their shock value is still huge, despite the relatively small size of this unit. They go into battle with a mad desire to kill; each man is one of the finest that Skyrim can offer, easily towering most other soldiers, even fellow Nords. Armed with large axes, they are at the tip of an infantry assault, inspiring friends and disheartening foes in their apparent invulnerability.

Druzhina (1500)- These men are one of the few powerful forces of cavalry available to a Nordic general. Mounted on sturdy (although slightly smaller than usual) horses, they're armored in the traditional Nordic Steel hauberks, only with the addition of simple iron plate to protect their limbs. Each man carries roughly 30 arrows, a simple smaller version of a Nordic bow, and a bardiche.

Bretic Bowmen (3500)- Armored mostly with padded leathers, these men are gathered from the lower class people of Jehanna and Farrun. Mostly, they are hunters, thus they know how to use a bow well, as shooting a running stag is not much different from shooting a running man. They use smaller versions of the Bretic longbow, supplied from the armories of Jehanna and Farrun to ensure their effectiveness, as the hunting bows they usually use are frequently largely ineffective against even the lightest of armors.

Bretic Sergeants (1000)- Bretons are not renowned for their infantry, but not everyone can, obviously, afford a horse, thus the farmers and the like are enlisted into the armies as these men. They have large wooden towershields, and are armored mostly like the bowmen ? with padded leather, some of the lucky ones managing to scavenge chainmail off of fallen foes after battle. Their primary and frequently only weapon is a spear, with which they can form the basic schiltron formation, very useful against cavalry.

Mercenary Bretic Heavy Cavalry (2000)- If there is something Bretons can do well, it's fighting mounted. Rurik has realized this, and assembled a company of heavy cavalry to aid his cause. Armed with lances for greatest shock impact, along with sidearms of some sort, they're a force to be reckoned with when charging on an open field. The backgrounds of the cavalrymen of this unit vary greatly, from landless knights looking for service to banditry serve alongside each other, and this is reflected in their armor ? while some may wear plate, others wear chainmail, with many options in-between. Still, despite the appearance they are nothing to be scoffed at.

Main Character Sheet

Name: Arslan

Race: Ra Gada (Ayuub Tribe)

Age: 27

Birthsign: The Steed

Physical Description: A young and fit Ra Gada man at his prime, Arslan is five foot seven inches tall, around the average height for an Ayuub. He is growing into what will probably be the 'ideal' Ra Gada ? a warrior of middle age, well built, but shorter than the 'ideal' Imperial. Life in a desert has made him a swift runner, as well as a good bowman, as is reflected on his muscular arms and legs. Neither his shoulders, nor his chest are very wide, making him around the same width everywhere, unlike with the Nords who get wider going up. A white tribal tattoo covers his entire left upper arm.

Arslan's face could be considered somewhat handsome, if it wasn't marked by his past few weeks with exhaustion and constant worry. Small, slightly sideward brown eyes, only a bit snub nose, thin long lips and a wispy black moustache define his facial features. His pitch black hair is kept cropped, one of the most common haircuts amongst the Ra Gada.

History: Born into the Ayuub Tribe, Arslan is a true child of the Alik'R. His father taught him everything about hunting in the desert, and his mother passed on to him several secrets of nomad medicine. As is usual in the Ayuub Tribe, Arslan was a good rider, and a better bowman. Cold nights and hot days made him stronger than many of the city dwellers, preparing him for the horrors he'd have to endure.

When Baibars became the Khan of the Ayuubs, Arslan rode out to war with the rest of the tribe. He took part in the Battle of Lainlyn Forest (however he recalls very little of it due to the injury to his head he sustained). Unfortunately, he was captured by a Bretic soldier, who dragged him off to High Rock in hopes of selling as a slave.

Arslan was supposed to be sold in Wayrest, however he never reached it. After several brutal weeks, the nomad managed to escape his captors, recovering most of his former possessions (which the captor hoped to sell off as exotics to some noble) in his escape. Now, completely lost in an alien land, with no friends or allies to speak of, Arslan is completely unaware of the fact that he's only wandering further away from his home, being on the road Wayrest-Evermore.

Weapons: A composite bow, along with 40 arrows, also a traditional nomad scimitar, which hangs from his belt without a sheath as is common amongst the Ayuubs. All of these he has managed to recover during his escape from the Bretons.

Armor/Clothing: As his captors didn't bother getting him anything that'd mark him as a prisoner, Arslan wears the traditional Alik'R nomad clothes ? flowing robes, designed for warmth at night and fending off sun at day. They're in a worse shape than is usual, with many scratches, also with a layer of dust and dirt, due to the things he had to endure during his captivity. His wicker cuirass, only armor he ever wore in his whole life, is also the same way.

Misc.: Arslan managed to steal a Bretic military canteen from his captors, along with a small leather bag for food.