MARAUDERS CHARACTERS Marauders of Gor presents some colorful characters such as Ivar Forkbeard and Thorgard of Scagnar. Ivar Forkbeard is "a rover, a great captain, a pirate, a trader, a warrior." He is the epitome of the Torvaldsland man, fond of jokes, drink and pretty bond-maids. He is skilled with sword and axe and an expert seaman. His ship is the Hilda, named after the daughter of Thorgard, his mortal enemy. At the start of Marauders of Gor, Ivar is an outlaw for failing to pay a wergild set by Svein Blue Tooth. Ivar killed Finn Broadbelt in a duel and Finn was the cousin of Svein. Though the duel was proper, and no wergild should have been set, Svein set an enormous wergild, assuming Ivar would never meet it. The wergild was 100 stone of gold, the weight of a full grown man in Schendi sapphires and Hilda as a slave. Ivar freed Chenbar, Ubar of Tyros, from a dungeon in Port Kar. In return he received the weight of Chenbar in Schendi sapphires. He then sacked the Initiate temple in Kassau and gained a ransom for the Administrator's daughter, earning more than 100 stone of gold. With the aid of Tarl Cabot, he then kidnaped Hilda from Scagnar. At a Thing, Ivar presented Svein with the gold and sapphires but refused to turn over Hilda. He would rather remain outlaw than pay an unjust wergild. Later in the book, after the men of Torvaldsland unite against a Kurii army, Svein lifted the wergild and outlaw status. Thorgard is the Jarl of the island of Scagnar. He owns the Black Sleen, a warship said to be the swiftest ship in the north. Ivar's ship, the Hilda, though proved faster. Before owning the Black Sleen, he owned the Horned Tharlarion. He still owns that ship but it is no longer his flag ship. Thorgard's daughter is Hilda the Haughty. Ivar kidnaped her and made her his slave. Thorgard's power is equivalent to Svein Blue Tooth. Once in a duel, Svein gave Thorgard a scar on his left wrist and Thorgard wounded Svein's left shoulder. During the book, Scagnar worked with Kurii, hoping to conquer Torvaldsland for himself. The Kurii were defeated and Thorgard faced Ivar in a duel. Ivar was the clear victor in the duel but allowed Thorgard to escape with his life. Marauders of Gor depicted a dire plot by the Kurii to invade Gor from the north, traveling south to sweep across the land. Tarl Cabot traveled to Torvaldsland to ascertain the plans of the Kurii and fell in with Ivar Forkbeard. The men of Torvaldsland and the Kurii fought a couple major battles, ultimately ending in the defeat of the Kurii though many good men also died. It is a novel filled with much action and is highly recommended. |