A couple days ago I followed a trackback from here to a Danish gaming blog called “The Voice from the River Valley”. Curious, I used Google Translate to take a peek around. The blog line, which in Danish reads:
En blog om rollespil af Morten Greis. Fra Tryggevælde ådal en dyb klang. Elverpigernes dans. Røre i det hvide slør. Disen hyller landskabet. De gamle stammer krogede trolde.
Is currently rendered by Google Translate as:
A blog about RPG by Morten Greis. From Tryggevælde creek in a deep tone. Elfin girls dancing. Stir in the white veil. Haze clothed the landscape. The ancient tribes hull trolls.
I don’t know anything about Danish, but I’m guessing something has gone slightly awry with that last sentence. The poetic imagery got me thinking about it, though… what if the ancient tribes actually were hulling trolls?
Trolls are regenerative, right? So imagine that a tribe of (let’s say) Vikings learned how to use certain alchemical compounds and rites to warp the bones and flesh of captured troll-spawn, twisting and stretching them until they formed the endurant, regenerating hulls of their longboats. Vulnerable to fire, of course, but so is wood.
Of course, for this technique to be worthwhile the trolls would still need to be alive. And the pain must be unimaginable.
Beware the Raiders of the Screaming Ships.
That’s Awesome!
I did something similar for my “D&D as horror-western” setting project – the PCs were charged with collecting and herding trolls to have their hides flayed and hardened into weapons-grade materials (cf Chlen-hide in Tekumel/EP). It seemed appropriately gruesome at first to the players, but settled quickly to the usual level of violence.
Then I introduced the idea that the trolls were mutations from something else… At the reveal of the “something else,” one player ran off to the bathroom of FLGS to hurl.
Never underestimate the power of body horror, my friend.
Ouch that’s gotta hurt!
GM: The northern skald offers you Potions of Permanent Regeneration for 1g each.
Players: No Way!!!! This is going to be AWESOME!!!!!
GM: Yes, yes it is…
That is awesome.
On a related note, I’m a Dane. And I’m not sure I can make sense of the danish version of the sentence. “Krogede” could be translated to “crooked” (like the trees, not the crooks).
Of course, “stammer” might also be translated as “trunks” (again as in trees), but that still doesn’t make sense.
It might be “The old tribes of crooked trolls.”, but then it should read “De gamle stammer af krogede trolde.”
Hi,
I am the one behind Stemmen fra Ådalen. I can see that Rubberduck has more or less covered the translation. However, Rubberduck, you have to be a bit poetic, when reading the sentence. So it is not De gamle stammer af krogede trolde but it is to be read The old trunks = crooked trunks = crooked trolls, as the old and bend trees growing along Tryggevælde å can seem like trolls in foggy weather. Just as the dance of the elves is a misty veil.
Otherwise, I really do like the idea of hulling trolls to create viking longboats. Very evocative. It seems almost like the fantasy version of the raiders from the Firefly tv-show.
My first thought was Om My God.
I am definitely using this. And then Electrolux’s idea about using permanent regeneration potions as a trap in such a way.
Wow, I never thought of dnd inhabitants being so vile.
Very thematic and evocative. Raises enough questions for a nice adventure.
Aaaaaaand stolen. If I’m lucky, you’ve given me something that will finally creep my players out.
“Hulling” could mean like seeds…
Downright disturbing, but would make for an interesting sea battle. The players are concentrating, firing their ballistas and… nothing, ship isn’t even damaged. And then a low moaaaaaaaan as the ship gets closer, and they realize the viking ship is watching them.
GM: Make a Knowledge(Arcana) check…