The Hrossvalr Tusk

This artifact looks like a primitive curio one might see displayed in a university collection or nobleman’s parlor.  It is a large stained tusk of walrus ivory, thickly carved with nine scenic panels of mythic Norse figures lined by two spiraling belts of futhark runes.  While it is primitive in appearance, the tusk contains the means to unravel profound arcane mysteries, provided the magician comprehends the inscriptions upon it and successfully goes through their “proving,” meaning that they are found worthy by the spirits attached to the tusk and initiated.  

In addition to the illuminating rite illustrated on its surface, the Hrossvalr Tusk conceals a rune awl in one end, which can be drawn by depressing the Ansuz rune nearest the tip.  This rune corresponds with Odin and Yggdrassl, the World Tree from which he gained the sacred knowledge of writing.  The awl’s blade is chiseled and fashioned of cold-forged iron, and it can be used for ritual spells or as a weapon against supernatural creatures.

            To access the tusk’s powers, the rune awl must be used to fashion a nine-part magic square to enact the ritual depicted by the figures, where the magician goes through their “proving,” or acceptance of worthiness by the spirits of the tusk.  Deciphering and enacting the rite allows the magician to summon visions and spirits which reveal the correspondent principles of each rune along with chants and songs of the higher mysteries.  The ninth panel shows the awl acting of its own accord, and if a magician learns the blade’s true name and calls upon it, the awl will animate and do his or her bidding, scribing more potent symbols and even attacking on its own as an enchanted weapon.  By the time the magician understands all of these mysteries, he has been initiated as a runemaster of dreadful power.

History

It is unknown who made the Hrossvalr Tusk, but it was plundered sometime in the late 1200’s from a pagan tomb in the Eastern Frisian Islands and kept by the grave robber for some years.  It was then sold to a boatswain bound for Lübeck, who lost it in a drunken gambling binge while in port to an unknown personage.  The tusk suddenly appeared in an open air market, where it was purchased by an errant Hanseatic merchant named Jorgen Finlayson, a man with a serious passion for collecting scrimshaw.  Over the years the tusk was examined by many of his guests as a historic curiosity but its occult secrets remained undiscovered.  So it sat until he moved overland to Hamburg in 1321 and then by ship to a new assignment and opportunities at the expanding Kontor of London in 1324.  The Hrossvalr Tusk stayed in the Finlayson family as a displayed heirloom until around 1490, when grim rumors of witchcraft and spectral hauntings suddenly surrounded it; it is presumed someone in the household meddled with the tusk and unleashed something from within.

To avoid a shameful scandal, the artifact was quickly swathed and hidden in a cramped attic crawlspace where it lay unused and eventually forgotten until 1517, when a porter hired to help the occupants move discovered the artifact by accident and stole it away to be sold to a shopkeeper on nearby Thames Street.  The tusk was shown by this anonymous merchant to a known occultist named Sir Francis Barwick, a man already known as an accomplished occult student who soon after performed all manner of miraculous cons and illusions for friends and parlor guests, including public swindles, feats of strength, resistance to all manner of blows, and the use of ancient Nordic rhymes and songs to animate or change otherwise lifeless objects.  Sir Francis was quite an eccentric who lived an unnatural count of years, and when he finally perished in 1661, he willed his estate and possessions to a scandalously young Dutch mistress.  It is unknown who this furtive maid was, but it is believed that after five years as a recluse, she perished in the Great Fire inside the burning Bariwck manse.   Thereafter, the Hrossvalr Tusk disappeared from common knowledge, but some clues have led witch hunters to suspect that it survived, as did the anonymous woman, who is believed to have traveled by ship to the New World.  Some investigators in the Holy Orders believe she fled to the eastern Dutch colonies, while other witness accounts suggest that she used the chaos of that year to assume an alias (some say even a different physical form) and that she lives in London still.  Certainly these occurrences suggest at least some knowledge of the artifact’s powers.

            Given that the Hrossvalr Tusk is rather unique, it is not surprising that no known copies exist.  However, Sir Barwick did allow a fellow magician to make a rubbing of the panels, and detailed woodcut illustrations of these figures have since been verified in England and on the Continent.  Whether these plates bear any significant threat or magical worth has yet to be ascertained.

Spells

The spells from the Hrossvalr Tusk use rune inscriptions, chants, songs and cunning prose laced with kennings, each learned through visions of the priests and skalds of old after the runes and their mythical symbolism are fully comprehended.  These written letters literally spell out the intent of the enchantment, and the very act of writing and speaking in this language crafts the spell and connects it to its maker, whose name is kept pure and magically powerful by feats, honoring troths, and sacred duties, although some witches use true names and exploit such troths and taboos to accomplish great works of magic over men and spirits.  Some runic spells are inscribed or written on bark, branches, bone or paper and broken or burned to activate them, while others are carved into objects or flesh.  The given or magical name of the scriber is often added into this written enchantment, along with those of divine powers, relevant myth symbols and elements to achieve desired ends and effects.  It is possible for a Gothi or Volva (a priest or witch-seer) to craft new spells given the multifarious nature of the runes, but this requires great creative skill and understanding.

Spells

Hamrammr Song

This shapeshifting rite consists of a rhyming lyric composed upon a drum skin beaten in accompaniment to the tune written upon it.  The song-charm causes a trance that allows the magician to lie down in some hidden or protected locale while projecting their hamr, or soul, in animal form (sometimes this form is also called the Scin Laeca, or "shining body.")  This shape is usually a wolf, fox or raven, but harts, horses, boars, squirrels, lynxes, owls, swans and even mice or salmon have been known.  The magician is visible to those that look directly upon them, and the terrain must be enough for the type of creature to move upon or through.  The magician can travel at triple their normal speed in this fleet form, able to leap great bounds or fly unhindered by all but the heaviest of terrain and weather conditions.  Since the magician has an immaterial form, he cannot move anything in the physical realm unless he has some additional magical or spiritual means to do so.  He can however slip through small openings such as bars or crevasses by concentrating, and is immune to most mundane physical blows.  This form also grants resistance to certain supernatural and magical attacks, and the transformed is received far more favorably by creatures of its type and among the powers of the Invisible World.  During this rite, Gothar often protect their bodies by using a remote or inaccessible locale, or else they use magical wards or guardians to ensure their body is not disturbed.  It is rumored that the most powerful of magicians and shamans in this form can possess an unprotected person or animal of the same type for a short time to learn their secrets and wreak havoc in the material world.

Rune of Discord

This simple but potent hex uses an inward curving spiral of runic script with a Fe rune at its center, the formula charged with malicious invocations to Loki.  This spell is usually cast on gatherings of enemies, imbuing a malignant hex that makes anyone in the radius bicker and fight amongst one another if they do not make a Faith check.  It is usually carved in a place where they will meet or upon an object likely to be contested over.  The more permanent the surface, the harder the rune is to banish, but even simple materials such as bark, a leaf or slip of parchment placed under a chair or dropped into a pocket can still cause great calamity in the proper circumstances.  Any conversation, debate or dispute which strays onto serious and sensitive subjects, or truly valuable objects inscribed with the rune only increases the power of its charm: a chest of treasure, a murder trial or the suspicions of an undiscovered traitor can break out into chaos and even open violence.  When used with guile, this simple hex can become a very effective weapon.

Odhr Staff

This war charm is comprised of a rune staff inscribed along the blade or haft of a weapon, and it remains inactive until it is drawn or gripped again.  Once this is done, the wielder feels a growing battle madness and high morale that makes him a warrior of inspiring action.  In open combat conditions, this person bears great courage and physical vigor which they can use to incite high spirits in others, but in peaceful conditions they will be grim, irascible and easy to anger until left alone or a conflict breaks out.  Should this charm be used as an offensive hex or the target otherwise wishes to resist its benefits and succeeds in doing so, they will merely be irritated and argue with others until they are secluded or no longer carry the ensorcelled weapon.  Drunkenness, direct danger and other conditions that cause discomfort or loss of composure only makes this compulsion stronger, and those under this hex can be taunted into fighting with reckless abandon.  The Odhr hex can be removed from the weapon by wiping off the rune staff and blessing it with a prayer, salt or running water (holy water, a stream or the sea) and after one conflict the charm loses its effectiveness.  If this spell is combined with a rune of discord, the results are often quite disastrous, especially if a weapon bears both charms: in this case the stronger charm is two ranks higher.

Hangadrott’s Oracle

This necromantic divination is manifest by scribing runes upon the chest and anointing the forehead of a hanged person who has been dead no more than nine days.  The Magician compels the corpse in the name of the Hanged God and Hela to answer, promising that he will speak honorable prayers to the Aesir on behalf of the deceased.  If there is no response however, the magician then threatens to bind the corpse’s hamr inside a lowly beast or a stone and drop it into the sea, or otherwise hide the soul so it will never find a peaceful repose.  If he is successful, the body will give a rattling cough and open its eyes, whereupon the magician must grip the head fast and command the corpse to reveal its secrets in the form of three questions.  Alternatively, the hanging corpse can be used as an oracular vessel for spirits to enter and reveal a minor prophecy or other hidden lore from beyond.  If the deceased was an enemy of the magician or a devious spirit enters the body, the information revealed can be cryptic or even in riddle form (so long as it is truthful) but having the given name of the corpse or compelling it with additional spells, promises or threats will render more detailed and accurate information.  Some clever magicians use this spell to trap malicious spirits haunting them or an area by preparing the body with a binding spell or hidden magic square beneath it.  If they have other means to threaten this entity, such as another spell or holy water, or they know its True Name, they may question it more thoroughly, but this spirit will likely attempt a fitting revenge once it is freed.  If this spell is cast at a crossroads, the magician adds three dice to their check, and if the body is hung from an ash tree and they succeed, the magician can gain rare and powerful prophecies or the True Names of spirits, humans, animals and even objects.

Runic Square

The Runic Square ranks as one of the most potent forms of protection against fleshly abominations and the psychic depredations of sorcerers and malicious entities.  To fashion this ward, the magician draws a square divided into nine parts and scribes a thick border of bind-runes along these so that each rune line corresponds with the one adjacent.  The magician then rests within the central square behind a threefold magical barrier, which also renders bonuses to ritual magic as well as some offensive spells provided they are written into the square itself.  Certain Runic Squares are unique and bear spells and rites written into them, or they use named creatures of those beings meant to be protected against, but calculating and preparing such a ward is time consuming.  However, if the Runic Square is already written down (or memorized through a poem, song or other skill check) then the process for making it takes only the time spent to draw it.  Like other enchantments of this type, the more permanent a surface or the more time spent preparing the Runic Square, the more certain the runester can be that it will work.  Sometimes a Runic Square is made portable by scribing runes on interlocking staves or spear hafts and then assembling them in a grid, which lowers the effectiveness of the square by two dice, but since battling forces that require such a ward is precarious this is done only when there is no other choice.  The most powerful version of this spell is called a Kenning Square, which uses the double meanings and plays on words of interlocking kennings to form an additional element to the ward.  This takes a combined high poetic skill and true mastery of rune-craft and is two ranks more difficult to scribe, but if prepared properly, a kenning square is said to be able to resist the most powerful of supernatural forces.

Binding Square

This ward is drawn and used in the same way as a Runic Square, save that it is inscribed around a malicious supernatural creature or a place where it will be summoned to hold it fast, or else fashioned beforehand to lure an entity into its confines.  It may be created by as simple an act as drawing it on the ground or a floor or carved permanently, and the inclusion of specific names and other rune staves increases its power to summon and bind monsters and spirits.  So long as the binding square holds such an entity fast, the ward can be reinforced, but any mishap while doing so allows the bound entity another chance to break free.  A binding square is just as effective on a roof, sill, headstone or chest, so long as the surface is large enough to accommodate it, but the smaller the surface, the more difficult this ward is to fashion and remain effective.

Einherjar Troth

This necromantic spell invokes the names of the Valkyries, compelling them to bring forth one or more of the slain heroes from Gladsheim to battle on behalf of the living.  These ghostly warriors possess and animate a ritually prepared sword, axe, spear or knife and can wield it with deadly skill.  An Einherjar performs one task before it returns, such as guarding a camp or room for a night, fighting one battle, and so forth.   If more than one of these spectral warriors is summoned, they can be split up to accomplish separate tasks, but they are more effective when acting as one.  The task they are given is defined by a pact when it is summoned: some Gothar will attempt to trick the spirit by twisting meanings and the like, but compelling the spirit for additional tasks or attempting to bind it allows the spirit the chance to break free of the magician’s compulsion, even if the first task has yet to be completed.  The weapon will follow the magician’s instructions and attack anyone or anything designated by the caster until this opponent or the magician are dead, the weapon is broken, the spirit is exorcised or compelled, or the task is complete.  There are also myths of clever warriors and shamans who foiled such spirits by playing on the words of the pact, but it must be heard and understood to do so.  Because this weapon is wielded by a spirit, it cannot cross magical barriers which would impede such entities, but it also imbues the weapon it wields with magical power and can strike true against certain creatures that normally would be immune to such attacks.  As these long-dead warriors are companions and guests of the All Father, most Gothar and magicians are very respectful to them and wise enough not to risk an incalculably grim punishment later.

Limrunar Staff

This powerful charm consists of a staff of healing runes drawn upon the bark or leaves on the southern face of a correspondent tree, depending on what ails the victim in need of this spell.  The wounded or afflicted person is leaned against or laid at the foot of the tree beneath the charm, and they will be healed for four dice of damage and stop bleeding, or they may be cured of any normal poison or specific wound, such as a broken hand.  The magician offers supplications to Waldh of the Forest and the Ul rune is inscribed on or near wounds, or else on the forehead or heart if the victim suffers fever or poisoning.  Herbs, salves and amulets and magic squares are often used to compliment this spell, especially if the victim is possessed or suffers the effects of some malignant curse, and any skill check or resistance attempt from these gains an extra die when used in conjunction.

Curse of Vali

This dread incantation is cast upon a man or wolf by preparing a dark potion containing wolves’ blood, which is either fed to the unsuspecting victim by concealing it in food or spattered it upon them, often with a ritual wand, athame or evergreen branch.  The hex then begins to work its dread magic and calls out the primitive beast within, causing the target to make a Resolve check or undergo a hideous and painful transformation into a berserk and frothing varulfur, a werewolf that viciously attacks anything it comes across, including loved ones, friends and allies.  The caster of the curse can establish a sympathetic link with the creature and implant commands in its presence through force of will, or else concentrate to know its whereabouts so long as it is no less than one league distant.  However, if the varulfur is harmed or wounded in any way in the magician’s presence, they must then wrestle mentally and verbally compel the beast with an additional magic skill check, often through some kind of additional charm or fetish, or else protect themselves via a prepared ward such as a magic square.  Alternatively, the Magician can cast this spell on himself and add his magical skill to his Resolve to remain in control of the primal rage within.  The Magician still has his wits about him but he may not use other spells in this form unless they are already extant: worn talismans, a prepared magic ward or blessed area, and the like.

The enchantment does not require darkness but it is more potent during these hours and adds one to dice when cast.  The hex wears off the next dawn, and the aftermath is usually vaguely remembered carnage and a guilt-ridden victim.  Any unfortunate soul who rolled no successes during their Resolve check will contract lycanthropy permanently unless blessed or cured by an exorcism rite, usually accompanied by ingesting potent herbs such as wolves’ bane.  Old tales say that violent criminals and others burdened with grim sins find it harder to resist this hex or revert back to their natural forms, and the GM may opt to give penalties to those with excessive Damnation points.  Some stories tell of evil magicians who enchant a varulfur skin with this spell and use it to transform themselves at will for diabolical purposes.

Dvalin’s Dance

Through a scribing of interlocking rune staves and a singing invocation, this powerful dwarven charm calls out the elemental power inside of inanimate objects and imbues them with a life of their own, moving and shuffling about in accordance with their shape, weight and size.  The magician must take the number of successes and split them between strength and agility, and the item follows basic commands.  Common uses include enchanting brooms, oars and boat rudders, as well as chests or portals that operate at the magician’s command: such objects are also harder to break or force open, receiving an automatic success to resist chances to break them.  If placed on a weapon or tool, this object becomes much more effective in the wielder’s hands, giving him an additional three dice to any attack or skill check made with it.  If the object is especially conducive to movement, such as a lock, barrel, wagon or a smooth boulder, these items will prove far more mobile and increase their speed by 50% if they can move, or with one automatic success against opposed checks for speed such as dodging or attempting to catch a door before it closes.  Objects that are held fast, exceptionally large or unwieldy in shape are far more difficult to animate, and they soon become devoid of any beneficial use compared to the cost of time and mana spent to do so.  However, a few tales do exist of legendary magicians who animated whole towers and other mammoth objects to do their bidding, and it is rumored that this charm can be used with binding runes to permanently enchant well crafted items.

Disir Blessing

This effective enchantment is prepared in advance by scribing runes with his given name on a talisman or the skin and hidden somewhere on the magician’s body.  It is possible to attempt to use the charm if the written form is lost or unprepared, yet it is much more difficult to invoke.  When the charm’s power is needed, the magician implores Freya’s feminine servants the Disir to liberate him from physical bondage.  Thereafter, anything directly binding the magician’s movement will be powerless to fetter him: manacles, ropes, heavy objects and enemies pinning him, even quicksand and tar, but not a barrier such as a locked cell.  If the magician is under the effect of any spell that restricts his direct movement, he is allowed a chance to break free so long as this charm is in effect.  If the magician uses the True Name of a particular Disir, the spell is more difficult to cast but they may then bypass locked doors and other portals so long as they are not magically warded.  Additionally, if this charm is prepared on the holy day of Disting (late February), the magician may invoke it nearly effortlessly with one automatic success.

Blood Pledge of the Thurs

This vile spell takes the form of a sworn compact which is first cut upon the magician’s flesh and then spoken aloud, usually in a ritually prepared barrow or cave.  The pledge is sealed by drinking fresh blood and burning a living sacrifice, often a young herd animal but sometimes a human child or young woman.  The magician pronounces himself a blood brother to the Thurs, hideous trolls who grant him an unnatural Toughness, the power to regenerate wounds at five times the normal rate, and even reattach severed limbs.  He will be recognized as a blood brother by these creatures but must never do any harm or wrong to their kind or else the pact is broken, and the difficulty to cast this spell is three higher the next time he attempts to cast it.  The magician now has a very keen sense of smell, can heal at five times the normal rate and has a high resistance to tiring, physical blows, alcohol and poisons for one full day.  This rite has on occasion been known to summon Thurs from deep within the earth, especially if the sacrifice is an unblemished beautiful virgin of marrying age.  In this case, the sacrifice is taken by the Thurs to mate with instead of being burned, and the cunning magician can make a better pact in person.  There is a Frisian folk legend of such an encounter between a Thurs and an evil magician who tattooed himself permanently to seal a lifelong troth.  He lived for many years by drinking the blood of innocents and was hunted down when his depredations became too much to bear.  The warriors who sought this unholy sorcerer out dismembered him, yet even this was not enough to kill him, so his howling head and parts were blessed by a Christian priest and burned to be certain of his destruction.