Your Viking Heroes
In Age of Vikings, the players create heroes with which to explore the Viking world of Iceland in the year of 977 A.D. These heroes are described in the following ways, with the rules providing guidance:
Identity, including aspects like name, a nickname, a spirit animal, a personality type, and distinctive features or aspects. Does your hero have a fearsome name, or are they known for some element of their appearance?
A short family history providing background for your hero, such as who their parents and grandparents were, and what events they experienced before play begins. Lineage is important in the Viking age, but also so are the deeds your hero performs while they live! Can they live up to the tales told of their forebears?
Characteristics such as Strength, Dexterity, Intelligence, Constitution, Charisma, and others. These are determined randomly and generally range between 3 and 18: the higher the better! Is your hero strong, fast, dull-witted, weak, strong-willed, or crafty?
Attributes like hit points (how injured your hero can get before dying), Reputation, Status, and how fast they can move. These are determined from your hero’s characteristics.
Passions are beliefs, loyalties, and commitments your hero has that inspire and motivate them. They can range from Love of family to personal Honor, Fear of trolls, or even Hate over some unforgiven grudge.
Skills represent the things your hero knows how to do, and range from weapon skills, skills to perform physical actions, social negotiation and performance, knowledge and customs, how well your hero perceives the world, and even magic abilities such as seiður magic and rune magic.
Once all these are determined, it is up to the player to embody their hero, giving them voice and roleplaying them in game play. The player makes the decisions for their heroes, and often knows more than their hero does about any situation. The players are on the same team as they explore the Viking world together.
The Game System
Skills, Passions, Reputation, and Status (all are abilities) are rated from 0 to 100%, representing the percentage chance your hero has of successfully performing that ability under pressure. So a hero with a skill of Broadsword 75% can successfully strike an opponent 75% of the time if the blow is not parried or dodged.
To determine success, the players roll percentile dice—two special ten-sided dice rolled and read together—to determine if the roll is equal to or under the skill. If it is under or equal, the roll is a success, and if the number is higher, then it is beyond the hero’s abilities at this time.
If an ability is used successfully in the course of game play, it is checked, and late the player can determine if their hero learned anything from successful use. Practice makes perfect, and successfully using one’s abilities in high-stress situations can improve them as your hero grows in experience.
The Game World
Your heroes inhabit and are part of the Viking world—a living, breathing place of fellow humans, monsters, and the stark and beautiful land of Iceland, 977 AD. Once created, your Viking heroes will go on adventures, journeys to other lands for trade or raiding, or must deal with problems at home, threats to their family and their community at large.
Representing the background and other beings in it is the gamemaster, a sort of player with additional responsibilities. They plan the adventures and occurrences your heroes will encounter, and roleplay the voices and personalities of the people and magical, monstrous beings they might meet as they travel and explore the Viking world.
The gamemaster is also the referee for the game rules when there is any question, and the gamemaster essentially serves as a guide to the world. If something opposes the heroes, the gamemaster must play it to the best of its abilities and personality. However, rather than competing with the players, the gamemaster is their facilitator while together, everyone creates an enjoyable gameplay experience.
