Nord Refugee Character Diary - Hrisskar III

[BIGwooly]

- 14th of Heartfire, 4E 202 -

It's a long way from Windhelm to Riften. A long .. long way.

I did my best all day to avoid the many wolves and bears that frequent the wilderness between the two cities. It is definitely one of the more dangerous routes in Skyrim. Maybe once the chaos from the civil war dies down they can get some patrols to make the road a bit more safe.

Riften was nearly in sight when the giant brown beast came crashing through the brush towards me. Another bear! I kicked my heels into Dawn's side and we sprinted off down the road. I could hear the deep thuds of the bear's paws on the stone behind us, even over the clapping of Dawn's hooves.

As we raced down the road with the bear in pursuit, we passed a stormcloak soldier on foot. If she was patrolling the road she appears to have missed one very hungry bear. I'm certain we startled her as we burst past at full gallop, and she instinctively turned to see what we were fleeing from. A moment later her bow was drawn and she was engaging the bear.

Now I could have just continued on to Riften and let her deal with the bear, and I'm sure that's what most would do, but I felt a tinge of responsibility to help her out. After all, I led the bear right to her. And I also wasn't convinced that she would be able to handle the beast.

So I turned Dawn around and headed back with haste. I wasn't keen on joining the fight, as bears are massive and powerful and I'm not ashamed to say they strike fear in me. I've heard stories of a single swipe of the claw killing a man. But the soldier was in need and I couldn't just leave her there to fight alone.

I jumped into the fray and we both assaulted the animal. Her with a hefty axe. Me with a mace. The bear was frenzied, and at first it seemed like our blows were doing nothing, but after several minutes .. which felt like an hour .. he finally slumped to the ground. The stormcloak soldier was on the ground as well, near death. Had I not been there she certainly would have died.

I helped her recover, and then continued to Riften, where I will spend the night. I hope the gods smile on me tomorrow for the good deed I did today. I hope they lead me to what I seek. A word wall.

 

[BIGwooly]

- 16th of Heartfire, 4E 202 -

Riften has a bear problem. The woods surrounding it practically have more bears than trees. It seemed I couldn't set foot in any direction yesterday without running into a bear. And if it wasn't bears, it was spiders and wolves. I'm liking Riften about as much as Morthal right now.

It doesn't help that I didn't find what I was looking for yesterday. My mood is certainly sour from that. I rode the mountains all day, and managed to find two old .. and opened .. dragon bural mounds where the marks on my sketch are located. So it would seem that my theory, that the marks corresponded to word walls, is incorrect. I must have just gotten lucky by coincidence the first time. Even if I did almost get killed that time.

So I'm back to the beginning. I need to learn more of the dragon language, but I need to find word walls to do that .. and I don't know where to find any. It's a pretty frustrating predicament. My only thought at the moment is that the word walls I've found so far, except the two that were exposed outside, were in ancient ruins of my nord ancestors. So maybe instead of searching random caves filled with spiders and who knows what else, I need to look for nordic ruins. That, of course, means draugr. But I never expected this to be easy.

The first to come to mind is a ruin I discovered many months ago. It overlooks Falkreath and can be reached by traveling through the valley where I used to hunt game when I was barely on my feet. I remember encounter a draugr there, and never went inside as a result. But I'm stronger now, and I have to know if my theory is correct. Falkreath is quite a journey from here, but that journey starts now.

 

[Mr1cammando]

- 16th of Heartfire, 4E 202 -

Riften has a bear problem. The woods surrounding it practically have more bears than trees. It seemed I couldn't set foot in any direction yesterday without running into a bear. And if it wasn't bears, it was spiders and wolves. I'm liking Riften about as much as Morthal right now.

It doesn't help that I didn't find what I was looking for yesterday. My mood is certainly sour from that. I rode the mountains all day, and managed to find two old .. and opened .. dragon bural mounds where the marks on my sketch are located. So it would seem that my theory, that the marks corresponded to word walls, is incorrect. I must have just gotten lucky by coincidence the first time. Even if I did almost get killed that time.

So I'm back to the beginning. I need to learn more of the dragon language, but I need to find word walls to do that .. and I don't know where to find any. It's a pretty frustrating predicament. My only thought at the moment is that the word walls I've found so far, except the two that were exposed outside, were in ancient ruins of my nord ancestors. So maybe instead of searching random caves filled with spiders and who knows what else, I need to look for nordic ruins. That, of course, means draugr. But I never expected this to be easy.

The first to come to mind is a ruin I discovered many months ago. It overlooks Falkreath and can be reached by traveling through the valley where I used to hunt game when I was barely on my feet. I remember encounter a draugr there, and never went inside as a result. But I'm stronger now, and I have to know if my theory is correct. Falkreath is quite a journey from here, but that journey starts now.

Falkreath is my favorite small town. The hold is so much fun to hunt in. There is one spot I like where you can hide in a tree trunk and wait for foxes and deer to run by.

 

[DarkEastwood]

I love hunting. Absolutely LOVE Hunting (I have 3 hunter roleplay characters). They're the roleplay I can relate to, since I hunt in real life. And the game makes it very exciting. One nitpick I have about it though, is that I wish everything gave meat (ahem... Bears? Foxes?), as well as everything gave much more meat (3x as much at least). To balance this, game would also be a bit more scarce. This adds to the accomplishment of getting a deer, while rewarding you fairly. But yeah, Falkreath has some nice game

 

[Honourman]

I love hunting. Absolutely LOVE Hunting (I have 3 hunter roleplay characters)

If you don't mind elaborating, how do your 3 hunter characters differ? I am going to to start one soon and am looking for a bit more clarity.

 

[DarkEastwood]

Well for one, one is a total pacifist. He hasn't killed anybody, including at Helgen. They also differ in the magnitude of roleplaying. One is basically under all the rules Hrisskar is under. Another is under none at all. Another has a decent amount, but not nearly as many as the first. One doesn't touch civilization. They also have different beliefs, in terms of religion, politics, and other misc things. There are a few other things that you'd expect like race, looks, and weight.

Note: When I say they're pro-Stormcloaks or pro-Empire, that doesn't necessarily mean they'll do the quest lines. Overall, all they do is hunt for a living, taking on bigger and more scarce game over time (ex. I wanted to kill a few Sabre Cats one time.)

 

[DarkEastwood]

I plan on making a new character following these rules, along with writing a journal. Does anybody have any ideas that isn't a blatant copy off this one, and makes playing with these restrictions fun (A variation of Adventurer is fun. A thief is not.). I was thinking maybe an independent assassin? But my motifs needs some details to help flesh out the character. Any ideas?

 

[Honourman]

Thanks for sharing about your hunters. I have just started another character, and after much deliberation I decided to base the character around myself. I'm on day 4, still in Riverwood having made a day trip to Whiterun to inform of the dragon attack. It is quite fun assessing the skills you possess which are transferable to Skyrim. At the moment I'm pretty weak, I chop wood so I can afford to eat and sleep in a bed, I try to improve my sneak and archery by attempting to hunt (which just turns into defending myself against wolves). When I feel confident I will eventually head towards the Dark Brotherhood as it is a quest line I have never done and I think I could do it with a certain amount of nobility and honour.

 

[Mr1cammando]

I plan on making a new character following these rules, along with writing a journal. Does anybody have any ideas that isn't a blatant copy off this one, and makes playing with these restrictions fun (A variation of Adventurer is fun. A thief is not.). I was thinking maybe an independent assassin? But my motifs needs some details to help flesh out the character. Any ideas?

I would imagine an ex-assassin backstory would be cool. That way you would have an excuse to kill evil and if needed, good.

 

[DarkEastwood]

So like, a chaotic good guy? Maybe a ranger, and only uses his assassin abilities for certain situations? Sounds cool. I'll try it. A dunmer (ex Morag Tong?) will probably fit. I'll need a more fleshed out backstory though... Thanks for the help though! You really got me going, since I was really on a writers-block kind of situation where I couldn't think of anything. Sorry to go off topic some. I'll begin my character backstory writing right now

 

[BIGwooly]

- 24th of Heartfire, 4E 202 -

I found the ancient ruins above Falkreath after a two day ride from Riften. The trip was surprisingly safe this time around, although I did have a sabre cat chase me across the bridge near Whiterun. As I sprinted Dawn up the road toward Riverwood I glanced back over my shoulder in time to see a Whiterun guard cut the cat down with a two-handed axe. Good for him.

The ruin is known to the locals as South Shriekwind Bastion, although I couldn't seem to get any other information than that. I was going to go in blind and hope for the best. The best being finding a word wall inside.

It was a quick ride from Falkreath up to the ruins, and after killing a lone wolf I approached the them. I was greeted by a skeleton and a few draugr, which I dispatched of easily. A brief search of the area led me to a an old door. I pushed my way inside out of the cold wind.

The interior was familiar, it's design and architecture fitting the mold of the ancient nords. My heart was beating quickly. The look of the place left me confident I would find a word wall. I just needed to go through the work to find it.

The main passage split in two directions. One going up. The other going down. I chose to go down first, as my gut told me that was where I would find what I was looking for.

But I didn't find it. I found a man in a room with a throne, who attacked me on sight. He was a tough opponent but I overcame him with the combination of my mace and my voice. There was something strange about the man, though. I couldn't quite figure out what it was.

Beyond that room I found an extensive route of passages that just went deeper and deeper into the mountain. I bashed and smashed my way through quite a few skeletons, and found a room coated in blood with a dozen empty boots and shoes in a corner. Something was definitely not right in this place, but I just didn't know what. My excitement was gradually turning to apprehension.

Eventually I came to a room with a very large door. The door was locked, and I had no way to open it. Sometimes I really wish I had learned how to pick locks like my dunmer friend back in Morrowind. But I didn't know how to pick a lock, and there didn't seem to be any lever to activate the door. So I was stuck. My exploration was at a dead end.

I headed back up to where the main passage had split, and took the stairs upward this time. I found another door, a smaller one, and this one wasn't locked. I wish it had been.

I opened it carefully and made my way through it. It wasn't long before I came across another man, and he heard me approaching. I froze in the darkness, hoping to remain unseen so I could strike the man with a deadly silent blow. But in his efforts to find what he had heard, he found me, and managed to strike first.

Not wasting any time, I retaliated with my mace, and then began bashing with my shield. This man was a deadly foe, however, and was using a combination of metal and magic to sap my health. I tried to shout him down, but fumbled my words and only got a portion of the shout out. It stunned the man, and I flurried against him the best I could. But he recovered and began using strong magic to drain my life from me. Within seconds he had bested me.

So instead of traveling to Falkreath and locating a word wall, I've been recovering at an inn for the past week or so. My injuries were severe, and it was divine intervention by the gods that I'm even alive. I need to go back to the ruins, as much as I don't want to. There may still be a word wall in there, beyond the man with the sword and the magic. Or perhaps he has a key to the door I discovered below. Either way, I have to find out.

 

[Highlander]

I read through 41 pages in 2 days and made an account just to tell you how much I love this journal. It's so fresh and entertaining plus you have inspired me to do a hardcore playthrough of skyrim. Please keep the posts coming and I will keep enjoying every single one.

 

[shongo3258]

I have been reading this for the past week or so to catch up and am happy and sad now that I did. no more infinite entries but I am finally caught up Also does anyone know around how many people read this journal?

 

[BIGwooly]

I read through 41 pages in 2 days and made an account just to tell you how much I love this journal. It's so fresh and entertaining plus you have inspired me to do a hardcore playthrough of skyrim. Please keep the posts coming and I will keep enjoying every single one.

Wow, that's impressive! 41 pages in 2 days? You should get a medal or something. Best of luck with the hardcore playthrough. You will love it I'm sure. It's such a different kind of gaming experience.

Thanks for following the journal and for the kind words!

 

[BIGwooly]

I have been reading this for the past week or so to catch up and am happy and sad now that I did. no more infinite entries but I am finally caught up Also does anyone know around how many people read this journal?

I'll try and get more entries out for you. d;-)

 

[BIGwooly]

- 2nd of Frostfall, 4E 202 -

So after nursing my injuries for a week, I headed back to the ruins. But not until after I visited the local blacksmith to see what he had for sale. It turns out he had a very nice enchanted orcish shield that was slightly better than the one I owned. So I gave him my shield and three thousand septims and the shield was mine. It's magical fire resistance should aid me in fighting dragons.

But then I went to the ruins and tried my luck against the man I had last faced. Just as before I snuck into the room where he stood, and just as before he somehow detected my presence in the dark. I remained motionless, like a statue, as he searched the room for me. I waited patiently, certain that he would come close and I would take him by surprise.

But .. just as before .. he somehow spotted me in the darkness and began assaulting me with all types of magic. I panicked and ran at him, swinging my mace several times before I was even close enough to hit him. I finally connected with a strike, and this prompted him to draw his own blade. I swung once more and was about to shout him into a wall when he performed a very impressive and specialized attack with his sword, and once again bested me in a matter of seconds.

So here I lay again, in Falkreath, fuming that I'm now out another three hundred gold and a week's worth of time. What's worse, I'm not really sure how to go about defeating this man. I need to go back and see what lies beyond him in the ruins. I must go back. But I can't until I have a better plan of attack.

 

[BIGwooly]

- 9th of Frostfall, 4E 202 -

My frustration is indescribable. For a third time the man at the ruins has bested me.

I purchased an enchanted bow to take with me. My plan was to strike the man from a distance, in the dark, so that I could kill him without him ever finding me. It seemed like a solid plan.

After each arrow struck home the man would search for me. But each time he would eventually give up. You see, I would loose an arrow from the darkness near the doorway, then immediately sneak back down the stairs and hide behind a rock. It seemed to be working. The arrows were slowing weakening the man, and the bow's magic would light him on fire with each hit as well. It was only a matter of time before he fell.

But then one time, he went searching for me and walked through the doorway. I could see his evil eyes piercing the darkness. His hands were alive with deadly magic. And then he spotted me. To my absolute shock and horror he somehow saw me in the darkness and unleashed ice and lightning against me.

I fumbled with my bow and groped for my mace. It's not easy to remain calm against an adversary that has overpowered you previously .. on two occasions .. especially while he's blasting you with magic from both hands. In my panic to switch weapons, I decided I needed to use a shout and at least disrupt the magic that was killing me. My first shout was that of force. My voice was like thunder but it had no impact on my opponent. I was shocked again.

This time I had a backup plan. My shout of fear. And I used it now. The shout caused the man to drop to a knee, and I should have taken that moment to flee. But I was overzealous and decided to attack him instead. And once again, to my surprise, the man rose from his knee a moment later and attacked me as well. My shout had not worked against him. How is this possible?

Well, obviously you can see where this is going. I'm at the inn in Falkreath .. again. I'm running out of gold .. again. My patience is at an end .. again.

 

[BIGwooly]

- 10th of Frostfall, 4E 202 -

Yesterday was a long day. And it didn't start off well. I walked out of the inn, fully recovered from my previous injuries, only to see the shadow of a dragon pass across the ground in front of me. Yes, I rose up from a week in bed to say good morning to a dragon. Curse these wretched beasts.

The only good thing was I was in a town, and towns have guards. So with their help and the help of several brave townspeople, we killed the dragon within half an hour.

Funny that killing a dragon should feel less momentus than killing this man in the ruins, but such is the case. And as for the man, he still lives as I write this evening.

I spent the entire day in the ruins trying to kill this man. After my previous debacle I had to purchase a new bow, and the local blacksmith only had a basic hunting bow in stock. So I didn't have the assistance of magic this time around.

All day long I played the game .. shoot an arrow .. hit the man .. duck back into the darkness behind a rock .. wait for the man to give up searching for me .. repeat. I went through thirty arrows doing this, and then backtracked in the ruins to find a skeleton I had killed. The skeleton had a quiver with another seventeen arrows, and I took them and fired each of those into the man as well.

Yet still he stands.

I returned to Falkreath late last night to get some rest and purchase more arrows. I'm heading out now, and if this man survives another thirty arrows I may have to come up with a different plan altogether.

 

[Mr1cammando]

Hah. If this dungeon is the one I'm thinking of, there may or may not be a large balcony to shout him off of.

 

[BIGwooly]

Hah. If this dungeon is the one I'm thinking of, there may or may not be a large balcony to shout him off of.

Did you miss the part where I said I used the unrelenting force shout and he was unaffected? d;-) Same for battle cry. I'm starting to hope this isn't a glitch.