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I actually had a look at the I Write Like tool a while back. I put all of In the Footsteps... through, and it came back with, rather aptly, Lovecraft.
 
Turns out the Durham side played an important part during the War of 1812.

Ah, did you know you can now leisurely reenact – and maybe even alienate any American friends visiting – with 1812: The invasion of Canada the board game? Definitely looks more fun than it sounds, if you can get the 5 players...
 
I actually had a look at the I Write Like tool a while back. I put all of In the Footsteps... through, and it came back with, rather aptly, Lovecraft.

Try posting various chunks of your writing. So far I'm Chandler, Margaret Mitchell and Rudyard Kipling :).

Ah, did you know you can now leisurely reenact – and maybe even alienate any American friends visiting – with 1812: The invasion of Canada the board game? Definitely looks more fun than it sounds, if you can get the 5 players...

Thanks for the tip. I just found it on Board Game Geek. It actually looks interesting.
 
Once upon a time I put in one of the better action scenes I wrote for Siegerkranz and got back Lovecraft. I would really like it if they listed the points of similarity, because nothing says "Things from beyond Time and Space" like "urban combat."
 
Try posting various chunks of your writing. So far I'm Chandler, Margaret Mitchell and Rudyard Kipling :).

I think a few chapters had me as Shakespeare. I also input some random words and got Joyce, which says quite a lot, methinks ;)
 
Once upon a time I put in one of the better action scenes I wrote for Siegerkranz and got back Lovecraft. I would really like it if they listed the points of similarity, because nothing says "Things from beyond Time and Space" like "urban combat."

Yes. I made that connection right away :). I tried my original passage several times, each time deleting cookies, and it always came back as Chandler, so like you, I'd like to see the points of similarity. A friend suggested if I use the word gibbering in a passage, it should come up Lovecraft. I tried it, and got Dan Brown!! Gibbering? Dan Brown? Maybe for the reader after trying a few chapters...

DB: Random words = Joyce. How appropriate :)


The text of my next post is complete (beyond the usual edit). All i need do is add some graphics. Hopefully I'll have it ready tonight or tomorrow. Oh, I decided to download the Norse DLC and now my red-bearded Halfdan is clean shaven. Guess I'll have to lose the beard in a future post.
 
I think whatever sorting algorithm they're using looks more at the grammar than the subject matter as such. Then again, I'm neither a programmer nor an English major, so I couldn't say for certain.

Also, glad to hear we don't have a long wait for the next update. Waiting warmly.
 
I copied a paragraph from this thread which mentioned several Lovecraft gods, and unsurprisedly it came back with Lovecraft, so I think it has at least some word recognition. When I entered several Abe Lincoln speeches, it varied between Lovecraft and Shakespeare.
 
I put in three samples from 'Special Providence' and got HP Lovecraft, Kurt Vonnegut and Mario Puzo.



*Long silence*



Estimable writers all, I'm sure. But to find all three contained in one of my AARs tells me I am more... multitudinous... than I had suspected.
 
Also, glad to hear we don't have a long wait for the next update. Waiting warmly.

Thank you. Finding graphics to match what I'm writing is a pain in the butt. And I can't find the pic of a certain battle in the upcoming post. Anyway, just a few minutes now.

I copied a paragraph from this thread which mentioned several Lovecraft gods, and unsurprisedly it came back with Lovecraft, so I think it has at least some word recognition. When I entered several Abe Lincoln speeches, it varied between Lovecraft and Shakespeare.

Well, after hunting vampires, it's only natural Abe Lincoln goes after Great Old Ones...

I put in three samples from 'Special Providence' and got HP Lovecraft, Kurt Vonnegut and Mario Puzo.



*Long silence*



Estimable writers all, I'm sure. But to find all three contained in one of my AARs tells me I am more... multitudinous... than I had suspected.

Cthulhu vacationed at Slaughterhouse 5 and all got was this horse-head t-shirt...
 
county durham1c.jpg


The conquest of Durham


July - August 867

On the morrow did Halfdan halt the rape and spoilage of Durham and bade his men rest, true to his word. Whereas he made such great show of passing food and drink to the cowering men, women and children, for they knew not their fate. And gathering what leading Nobles remained, he did lay forth his terms, charging they maintain the peace, as he would take no hostages, for he was yet on campaign, and would leave a smallish garrison. Were they to break the peace, he did vow to exact a terrifying revenge and make thralls of the survivors.

The Nobles did agree, seeing no recourse, so Halfdan, reunited with son Ragnar, gathered his men and did marcheth on the market town of Chester Upon Street, known to rest on the ruins of a Roman settlement. Here they said lay the bones of Saint Cuthbert, though a source most reliable to me did claim his bones were nay delivered from Lindisfarne and interred at said shrine but some fifteen years later. Be that as it may, Halfdan judged the town held import, and after a short siege did acquire it.

Thereupon, presenting the identical terms he spoke at Durham, and forthwith meeting acceptance, Halfdan did advance on the coastal town of Hartlepool and again lay siege. Again he met resistance, for the people of Durham are stout and have no love of the Norse, but succumb they did near July's end when a Viking fleet blockaded the harbour and prevented the delivery of foodstuffs.

And that ended the conquest of Durham, whom the Vikings call Dunholm, though King Ælla was loathe to tender defeat and, gathering a great army, did march into neigbouring Westmoreland with intent to give battle against Ivar. Now, when Halfdan heard this, he did march forthwith and, in early August, did meet with Ivar, Bjorn and Sigurd, where they fought a series of skirmishes with the Saxon King, until the day the armies met on the fields near Appleby and the brothers did claim a great victory...

From 'Being the Secret History of Geoffrey Monmouth'



vikings saxons1.jpg


Eyes wild with battle lust...


August 20, 867 - Aftermath of Appleby

The blood-soaked axe came down hard, slicing into the shoulder blade, through cloth armour, flesh and bone before lodging deep in the Saxon's chest. Halfdan braced one heavy boot against the dying man and, muscles bunching under the sleeves of his tunic, tore free the weapon with a savage cry.

Eyes wild with battle lust, red beard flecked with spittle, Halfdan held the axe ready in two strong hands and cast about, looking for another foe to engage. But, what enemy remained gave him wide berth. Of the half dozen Saxons who had originally circled the isolated Viking, thinking him easy prey, three lay dead at his feet. Unwilling to test the fierce Viking further, the remainder cast aside their weapons and fled the field, joining the remnants of King Ælla's shattered army.

"Come back, you craven dogs," Halfdan shouted at their fleeing backs. "Bone Cleaver yearns more Saxon blood." Cursing their cowardice, he set the axe head on the ground and leaned on the haft, drawing deep breaths.

"Resting, Father?" Ragnar approached, his youthful face smeared with dirt and blood, the rings of his chainmail shirt parted along the breast, exposing the tunic beneath.

Halfdan stirred. "You all right, boy?"

Ragnar glanced down at his chest and shrugged. "Some Thane I fought. A worthy opponent, he was. Managed to tickle me before I struck him down."

By now Halfdan's men were gathering around, trading boasts and crude jokes at the expense of the beaten enemy.

Ubbe pushed through their ranks and joined father and son. The look he gave Halfdan was full of reproach. "It would serve us better if you refrained from wandering off in search of glory."

Halfdan allowed a smile and looked to the sky. Grey clouds hid the sun and portended rain. Ravens gathered, circling the battlefield. He looked to Ubbe. "Let us find Ivar and discover the fate of that dog Ælla."

Ubbe and Ragnar exchanged unpleasant looks.

#


river eden.jpg


Along the banks of the River Eden...


Ivar and his great shield had been placed on a rock outcropping, allowing him a substantial view of his surroundings. His face a clouded mask of fury, he grimly watched Sigurd oversee the herding of prisoners into a hastily constructed prison along the banks of the River Eden.

Eyes sweeping the scene, Halfdan fought a sense of unease and called out to his older sibling. "Hail and good health, Brother. A fine victory we have this day."

"T'would better that cur Ælla had not escaped us."

"Aye, it would, but it does little to diminish today's achievements, and should bring cheer to that dour visage of yours."

Ivar fixed Halfdan with a dark, foreboding stare. "Do you mock me, Brother?"

Backing a step, Halfdan spread his arms. "Not at all. I merely suggest we celebrate the victory Father Odin granted us this day. Westmoreland is ours for the taking now."

The heavy cloth of the kjalta covering his lower body stirred, and Ivar appeared to rise in stature before leaning forward, an accusing finger pointing. "This was Cthulhu's victory," he snapped. "Cthulhu's alone. Would that you not deny it." He waved his hand to encompass Ubbe and Ragnar. "Why you reject his worship troubles me."

Halfdan frowned. "Truth be told, I am concerned over your reliance on these Great Old Ones." He pointed at the kjalta. "I know you have paid a heavy price for your victories. A price I will not question out of love for you. But why Sigurd? Why have you brought him into this wicked fold?"

"Leave me out of it," Sigurd said, striding over to stand near Ivar. "I worship who I will."

"And these prisoners? Are they for ransom, or will they feed your fishmen tonight?"

Ivar settled back. "The Great Old Ones require their sacrifice."

Thunder cracked, and a deluge of heavy drops fell, quickly turning the ground to mud.

Raising his voice to make himself heard, Halfdan said, "I think Father Odin disagrees."

Ivar glanced up, and for a brief moment his eyes held uncertainty, but for only a moment.

Halfdan said, "Half of these Saxons are mine to do with as I wish."

Ivar slowly shook his head. "Nay, Brother. On the morrow I depart north, with Sigurd and Bjorn, in search of Ælla. It is enough I leave Westmoreland for you to conquer. As for these Saxons, they are mine."

A figure detached from Ivar's arrayed Vikings and strode purposely to stand with Halfdan and Ubbe. Halfdan nodded a sharp greeting.

Ivar snarled. "You would desert me, Bjorn?"

"I have no love for your Great Old Ones, Ivar. I and my men stand with Halfdan and Ubbe."

"So be it," Ivar thundered. "By your actions this coalition is ended. I will no longer ally myself with brothers unworthy of trust."

Lips stretched into a thin line, Halfdan turned on his heel and left Ivar and Sigurd to be swallowed by the driving rain. With few words spoken, the men shifted and moved to rejoin their appointed leaders, and an uneasy calm endured until morning, when the divided army went their separate ways.

And afterwards, when Halfdan visited the Saxon prison by the River Eden, not a body was found.


odin stone.jpg


"I think Father Odin disagrees."
 
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And so the family is rent asunder. Hopefully Ivar will content himself with Saxons and not seek to offer up his own brothers -- or perhaps he himself will be warped into some inhuman apparition. Only time will tell.

Meanwhile, it seems Halfdan has a new kingdom to pacify.
 
Excellent! The alliance has broken - but where will it go from here? I don't know how active Odin intervenes in the matters of the living, but the Old Ones are fairly hands-on. That makes me doubt that the end of this family feud will simply be "and then they went their separate ways, each laying waste to the British Isles". There must be more confrontations between Halfdan and Ivar to come.

If it wasn't clear yet, I really liked the confrontation between Halfdan and Ivar - and the fact that it remains unresolved: no quick, easy answers here.
 
I'm curious, what do the Norse sources say about the breach in the Great Heathen Army? This being Mythos, I'd be very surprised if rubbings of old runestones, or Snorri Sturluson's 1300s version of events, hadn't snuck into that collection.

I hadn't thought about it in CK2 terms specifically, but Ivar's Scottish possessions do seem just like the kind of place you'd find the sorts of people who gather around ancient, nameless stones chanting in tongues never meant for human speech. All sorts of potential there. *Scribbles frantically* Mutter mutter Skara Brae... standing stones... Beowulf's dragon...
 
Disagreements within the family; The Great Old Ones or Odin? Cracking update, LD. I also very much enjoy the Being the Secret History paragraphs at the start of the updates - some lovely word choices there.

Very much looming forward to seeing what becomes of the brothers.
 
I don't know how active Odin intervenes in the matters of the living, but the Old Ones are fairly hands-on.

Odin may not meddle as much, but he doesn't ask for the sort of sacrifices Cthulhu does. So I'm not surprised the Old Ones are more tentacles-on when they get paid more, haha.

I am worried that if the factions fight each other, it's going to be tough for the Wotanites.
 
It's taken me far too long to get around to reading this AAR. Great stuff and I'm looking forward to seeing how the story progresses.
 
Very interesting, LD! Well done!

I was expecting there to be a split ahead. I suppose it makes sense that it would occur upon Halfdan's victorious campaign. Course, I was also expecting that, on the occasion of such a split, that some brothers might get eaten. Remains to be seen, eh? ;)

That's interesting that Lovecraft's characters aren't trademarked. Was Conan, for instance, trademarked by right of him being in the book titles? Or is there some other process that is required to protect a writer's characters, other than mere copyright?

Rensslaer
 
Ah, fraternal quarrels... though they may yet reconcile eventually.

Odin may not meddle as much, but he doesn't ask for the sort of sacrifices Cthulhu does. So I'm not surprised the Old Ones are more tentacles-on when they get paid more, haha.

I can see the TV ad already – Pound for pound, Cthulhu gives you more :)
 
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