Dark Age Of Camelot: Norse, of Course

I'm back from my Christmas vacation (all right, I admit it...I got a Playstation 2 for Christmas and was happily pummeling my husband at Tekken 4) and ready to take pen in hand once more. I hope you all had a fantastic holiday.

Two columns ago, I posted a bit of a primer on basic Shakespearean English. I received an overwhelmingly positive response, and got more than one request for a similar column on the Norse way of speaking. But it surprised me that nearly everyone who wrote me commented on my offhanded example of Troll speak. It seems that the wits of Trolls are a hot topic.

The Norse mythos in Dark Age of Camelot is something of an eclectic collection of Germanic, Norwegian, and Icelandic history, with a bit of Mythic ingenuity thrown in for spice. Unfortunately for us, no one nearly as well-known as William Shakespeare wrote volumes to give us examples. Beowulf's murky Old English is not something I want to begin to advise on, and no one would understand someone speaking that way.

Ergo, we shall fudge it.

First, and perhaps most importantly, get a feeling for the culture. Attitude represents a large part of how the Norse act, and consequently speak. While almost completely historically inaccurate, the movie The 13th Warrior does give a good feeling for the spirit of the time. If you have a tolerance for opera, you may also enjoy finding a production of Wagner's Ring Cycle to see.

Read Norse mythology. Encyclopedia Mythica has not only Norse tales, but mythos from many other cultures as well. As most encyclopedias, the language and retellings do not represent the original Norse, but it does catalog events and people. Northvegr has another excellent reference collection, with histories, religious information, and sagas such as the Eddas online. I highly recommend reading these, because in spite of their roleplaying value, they are enjoyable and educational to boot.

For those who would like to know more, a Norse Mythology links page has more examples. I apologize in advance that some of these do not work. One that I love, however, is the Verbix Old Norse Verb Conjugator. Linguistic nuts should adore it.

So how did the Norse speak? Go back to Northvegr's site to find out, as they have a Concise Dictionary of Old Icelandic available online. This is a rather daunting work, and the organization does not make it easy to find what you are looking for, but there isn't a finer collection of Old Icelandic that I've found.

If you simply don't want to know badly enough to wade into the Dictionary, do not despair. The Icelandic Phrase Page contains a healthy listing of commonly used phrases, epithets, and useful tidbits such as the names of the months. It also contains a pronunciation guide, if you'd like to shout at your monitor in Icelandic.

Now we know how the Norse speak. But what about Trolls? Are they as dumb as the rocks they resemble, or do those stones contain the wisdom of the ages?

Traditionally, there is a bit of debate on Trollish intelligence. In many tales, Trolls are nasty, randy things who steal human women for wives and turn to stone in the sunlight. They appear to have descended from the Giants, however, implying that perhaps they are not historically dumb.

What about in Dark Age of Camelot? I have seen little lore on the Trolls or their mental facilities. With the release of Shrouded Isles, though, the Troll Fathers were introduced, and are described as creatures of great wisdom. They even managed to "tame" a portion of a savage race, the Morvalt, and bring them into Midgardian culture. If Kobolds and Trolls descended from the Troll Fathers, does it not follow that they, too, should possess at least wisdom, if not intelligence?

My own personal opinion is that Trolls are perfectly intelligent. Perhaps their culture is not as civilized as what the Norse developed, but they are not stupid. On the other hand, I will also be the last one to tell someone who enjoys playing a "simple" Troll to stop. In the end, it is all in what you enjoy.

Speaking of the Valkyn, what about them? Are they intelligent, or too basic for such things? In my mind, they are intelligent, but unsophisticated and tribal. They have lived away from Norse civilization all their lives, and have a good deal to catch up on, should they choose. I intend to play my own Valkyn as someone who does not fathom the strange, big-city ways of the other races, and considers them rather silly. Why add such complexity to your life?

Have your own say on this in our forums. Or, as ever, feel welcome to e-mail me at blackbird@warcry.com. Happy New Year!