Historical Accuracy in the Valhalla trailer | Forums

[KoldHoldt]

That's very fair. Unfortunately there was so much to talk about that it would not even come close to fit in a post here, and I didn't really have the tenacity to make 50 different posts/topics to cover it. My bad.


I'm going to have to trust distrust74 here (ahh the irony). As of yet we know very little about how it will all play out.

I suspect we will meet Ragnar's famous sons as historical figures, so if we were playing as Danes we wouldn't be able to make the decisions that are going to make this game really engaging to play.

What we can definitely credit here is that they aren't trying to play the Dane lands off like they have huge mountains and they don't seem like they're trying to pretend that all Norse lands are the same either. That's progress. Dane's and southern Swede's have often been portrayed as living along fiords in snow tipped mountain ranges. At least here they're being very clear about who lives near mountains.


Matheus1996AC - Thanks for reading and yes it would have been great if they had been better at keeping their own history.
Unfortunately what we have is mainly vikings doodling with knife on wood, or runestones which were mostly raised to praise some worthy man for deeds done. The whole idea of writing things down for prosperity doesn't seem to have meant much to our Norsemen. I suppose no one ever thinks that their culture is going to be wiped out, until it's too late.

[Tundra 793]

That's very fair. Unfortunately there was so much to talk about that it would not even come close to fit in a post here, and I didn't really have the tenacity to make 50 different posts/topics to cover it. My bad.

Considering how much detail you put into your post, I think most people can forgive going to your site to read it all. Thanks for taking the time to put it all together as well as you did. Love all the image references too.

Love your avatar pic too, beautiful shot of the ship.

[KoldHoldt]

Thanks a lot! I feel like a visual representation with photos helps to get a more complete image of what Viking Age Scandinavia probably looked like, and it also makes it more fun to compare and contrast with ACV's portrayal of the Norsemen.

And thanks, the ship in my avatar is the reconstructed Viking Age warship is sail with during my summers. It's called Havhingsten (which means: the Sea Stallion). Lots of awesome photos of it out there if you fancy a look at viking longships.
(on a side note: gosh it took me forever to figure out how to change my avatar)

[Tundra 793]

Thanks a lot! I feel like a visual representation with photos helps to get a more complete image of what Viking Age Scandinavia probably looked like, and it also makes it more fun to compare and contrast with ACV's portrayal of the Norsemen.

Absolutely. Hopefully the developers have looked to the same sources as you. I’ve always liked the world building in AC games, even if the protagonists look so fantastical they seem out of place. But usually the worlds seem more grounded.

And thanks, the ship in my avatar is the reconstructed Viking Age warship is sail with during my summers. It's called Havhingsten (which means: the Sea Stallion). Lots of awesome photos of it out there if you fancy a look at viking longships.

Aye I know of her, we had to watch a documentary about her construction for a history class some years back. Even got to see her a few times down at the museum. Amazing ship, loved watching the construction too, really interesting techniques.

[KoldHoldt]

I agree. The world in AC is what made me fall in love with the series. The storytelling is compelling too, but there always seemed to be so much care taken with the world that I couldn't help but fall for the series as a whole.

Aye I know of her, we had to watch a documentary about her construction for a history class some years back. Even got to see her a few times down at the museum. Amazing ship, loved watching the construction too, really interesting techniques.

Oh that's awesome that you know about the Stallion. I've always wanted to see the ship sail, but I'm usually onboard when it sails, so I've only seen it from the outside when we're in harbour. We've sailed with other Viking Age ships though, and it was so cool to see a group of Viking Age ships sail together.

(I know that sailors typically like to refer to their ships as she, but this is a stallion, so... we never know what to call it other than "the stallion")

[Tundra 793]

Oh that's awesome that you know about the Stallion. I've always wanted to see the ship sail, but I'm usually onboard when it sails, so I've only seen it from the outside when we're in harbour. We've sailed with other Viking Age ships though, and it was so cool to see a group of Viking Age ships sail together.

(I know that sailors typically like to refer to their ships as she, but this is a stallion, so... we never know what to call it other than "the stallion")

I love all the work the museum does for marine archeology, known about the Stallion for years (even kept that commemorative coin they made for it).
How do you actually get to join one of the Roskilde ship crews? Any requirements, are the crews permanent?

[KoldHoldt]

I love all the work the museum does for marine archeology, known about the Stallion for years (even kept that commemorative coin they made for it).
How do you actually get to join one of the Roskilde ship crews? Any requirements, are the crews permanent?

We're always looking to expand the crew! If you're interested, come down to the harbour when you have time and have a talk with the people there.

The crew is basically a guild. I think we have about 200 members in the guild for the stallion. It's not like we have one crew who always sails. The crew changes depending on who has time to be there, but mostly it's the same people who keep coming back, just maybe not all at the same time. Part of being a crew is that we not only sail the ship but also take care of it between seasons. It's basically to be part of a community. We have a pretty diverse crew, so people from all around the world (though mostly Danes), all ages, professions, etc.

There are no requirements other than a willingness to be there. No prior sailing experience needed. There are two smaller fees to pay, one to be a member of the museum (it's their ships that we borrow and that gives you yearly free access to the museum) and then a fee to the guild you're joining. Longer trips, like the summer trips where we sail one or more weeks in a row require a fee that covers food for the duration (It's still a pretty cheap summer holiday).

All of the larger ships there have guilds. Ottar, Helge Ask, Rana, Roar Ege and Havhingsten are the stable ones. People across guilds who feel like it also come down to sail with the smaller ships 1-2 a week. Right now we're obviously not allowed to sail though... But yes, if you're interested come down to the harbour when you feel like it and have a chat. That's really the best way to join.

[Tundra 793]

All sounds reasonable for what has to be an awesome adventure. I’ll definitely swing by next time I get down to Roskilde (Gods know when that’ll be though, especially these days).
Been looking for an excuse to get down there anyway, see the new exhibitions and enjoy the mind blowing food they make at the museum.

Thanks for the info! Really helped me out.

[RHYLASS]

Just reading through the information you put so nicely together about the trailer KoldHoldt, thanks for the insights. I noticed the wide pupils the woman blessing the hero had in the trailer. May this be a hint on their use of belladonna, Atropa belladonna, Tollkirsche? I read somewhere at least the Germans used it at times for the rituals.

Regards

[KoldHoldt]

Just reading through the information you put so nicely together about the trailer ColdHoldt, thanks for the insights. I noticed the wide pupils the woman blessing the hero had in the trailer. May this be a hind on their use of belladonna, Atropa belladonna, Tollkirsche? I read somewhere at least the Germans used it at times for the rituals.

Regards

Thanks RHYLASS. Good catch on the wide pupils. I have heard of no evidence of belladonna (nightshade) being specifically connected to the vikings. That being said, we know that nightshade was used throughout history, and our Norsemen would be aware of it, so it's within the realm of possibilities.
The same also goes for the speculation of berserker warriors using mushrooms (although there has been a few more people digging into that).