The gods are not confirmed real in this setting. No one appears in a vision. No miracles are unambiguous. What exists is this: things happen, and the Norse settlers interpret them through the framework they brought from home. A drought is Freyr withholding favour. A plague is Hel walking. A storm that sinks three boats the night before a planned raid is either Thor's warning or very bad luck.
The game never resolves this question. The events are real. The causes are left to the player.
Once per year, before ending your turn, you may perform a Blót — a ritual sacrifice petitioning a specific god. Pay the sacrifice cost, receive a weighted random outcome. The outcome is never guaranteed. The gods are not vending machines.
"He is watching. He is always watching. The ravens that circle your village at dawn are just birds. Probably."
Blót cost: 50 gold + 1 guard (a warrior dedicated to his service)
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Odin's Eye | Receive warning of one incoming attack this year |
| Battle Fury | Guard attack power +50% for one combat this year |
| The Allfather's Count | Population loss from any single event this year is halved |
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Ill Omen | One random positive event this year is cancelled |
| The Wanderer's Debt | A guard deserts, taking 20 gold |
Affinity: Unbound (Iceland) — Odin favours the desperate and the exiled
"The settlers invoke Thor more than any other god. Not because he is greatest, but because the weather here is violent and he is the one who answers."
Blót cost: 30 food (a feast, shared communally)
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Thor's Calm | No storm events this year; boat losses from weather reduced to zero |
| The Thunderer's Strength | All guards +10% combat effectiveness this year |
| Fair Winds | Fishing production +30%; boats cannot be lost at sea |
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Thor's Wrath | Severe storm fires; double boat losses |
| The Broken Mast | Boats damaged even in calm weather |
Affinity: Stormborn (Norway) Between-Folk (Orkney)
"Freyr does not punish dramatically. He simply withdraws. The soil looks the same. The seeds go in the same. The harvest just... doesn't come."
Blót cost: 100 grain (returned to the earth)
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Golden Harvest | Grain production doubled this year |
| Freyr's Gift | Population growth rate +100% this year |
| The Full Barn | Rat infestation chance reduced to zero this year |
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Withheld Sun | Grain production −40% this year |
| Thin Harvest | Blight: lose 20–30% of grain stores at year end |
Affinity: Deep Roots (Sweden)
"The fishermen make small offerings at the waterline before every sail. Not formal ceremony — just habit. A piece of bread, a few words. Njörðr controls whether you come home."
Blót cost: 2 boats (ritually launched unmanned and set alight)
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Njörðr's Net | Fishing production +50%; guaranteed regardless of weather |
| Calm Crossing | Boats cannot be destroyed by any means this year |
| Tide's Bounty | One-time food windfall (50–150 food) |
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| The Sea Takes | One boat lost to unexplained causes |
| Empty Waters | Fishing production −50% this year |
Affinity: Stormborn (Norway) Between-Folk (Orkney)
"Nobody performs a Blót to Loki. You don't invite him. You appease him. There's a difference."
Blót cost: 1 ferret + 25 gold (chaos has strange appetites)
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| The Trickster's Gift | Steal 10–20% of a rival's gold — but also lose 5% of your own |
| Shapechanger's Luck | One disaster avoided — but a minor event fires instead |
| Loki's Whisper | Learn a rival's exact resources — they learn one of yours |
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| The Fire | A warehouse fire destroys 10–25% of grain stores |
| Confusion | Ferret count reported incorrectly — rats may strike undetected |
| The Lie | A market transaction cheats you — you pay full price for less |
Affinity: None — and all
"You do not ask Hel for blessings. You ask her to pass you by."
Blót cost: 20 population (the old and the sick are given over)
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| The Long Sleep | Plague chance reduced to zero this year |
| Hel's Mercy | Population loss from any single event this year halved |
| Winter's Grace | Food consumption reduced 10% this year |
| Name | Effect |
|---|---|
| Hel Walks | Severe plague fires regardless of probability |
| The Grey Winter | Food consumption +20% this year |
Affinity: Unbound (Iceland) — They've seen more death than the others. Hel recognises them.
Once per game — at a random year between Year 5 and Year 15 — a Völva (seeress) arrives at the most prosperous village. Her appearance is not announced in advance. You'll simply see her in the event log.
| Choice | Cost | Reward |
|---|---|---|
| Pay her | 100 gold | Reveals which god's curse is most likely this year |
| Offer shelter | 50 food | Tells you which rival village is weakest |
| Turn her away | Nothing | Loki takes note |
She arrives once. She does not return.
| God | Domain | Blót Cost | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Odin | War, fate, wisdom | 50 gold + 1 guard | Combat, intel |
| Thor | Storms, protection | 30 food | Fishing, naval |
| Freyr | Farming, fertility | 100 grain | Farmers, growth |
| Njörðr | Sea, fishing, wind | 2 boats | Fish-heavy strategies |
| Loki | Chaos, trickery | 1 ferret + 25 gold | Gamblers, disruptors |
| Hel | Plague, death, winter | 20 population | Survival, defence |