Northmen of Firnstayn

Concerning Firnstayn and the Northmen

Founded by Mandred Torkildson in the year 2783 of the Third Age, the first hall of Firnstayn was being erected upon a large rock overlooking the river Fjord that came down from the highest North. Mandred and his kin were simple woodsmen who knew how to handle the axe from the moment of their adolescence and so they were not only remarkable craftsmen but also able to wield their tool for the purpose of war.

These men and women were middle-men, tall grown and fair-haired and they had descended from the same House of Man as the people of Numenor, the Atanatári, but were not as long-lived, as they had remained in the lands of Rhovanion during the First Age.

Despite that Firnstayn lay only four days north of the Kingdom of Dale, it retained its independence and was ruled by a Jarl, who hearkened to the will of the people ere decisions were made.
  The town consists of several houses, an inn, an infirmary and lodgings for those who pledged their swords to the Jarl. A palisade of fir-wood surrounds the settlement and wards off those who stray close with ill intent. Several lime trees stand in the village which are decorated by the women on festive days with ornate woven cloth stripes in honor to the goddess Vefna, who is called Vairë by the Elves.

To the West of Firnstayn lay the Withered Heath, the land of dragons and to the East grew large forests, while to the south and north stretched plains. There the people could hunt the deer that migrated forth and back each year, while the river Fjord supplied them salmon and salt. 

Concerning Friendship

Mandred and his descendants ensured friendship with many other people, such as the folk of the Riddermark who gifted the Northmen some of their horses that are now known as the Firnstayner breed, a tall, strong kind of horses, able to withstand the dire cold.
  But also to the Elves of Mirkwood and the Dwarves of the Erebor, Firnstayn's people held good relations to and they traded their goods fair and freely with one another.
  And albeit that Gondor lay far away, it occurred on occasion that men of Firnstayn would travel hither to serve in a company of auxiliary forces, ere they returned with the experience of ordered battle to their home.

A Brief Timeline

Dates are set in the Third Age

2783 - Mandred Torkildson and a few of his kin establish claim to land miles north to the Erebor at the edge of the Withered Heath. They raise a hall and start to fish in the close by river.
2784 - The settlement numbers now three dozen inhabitants.
2787 - The people of the settlement victoriously defend themselves against a raiding party from the east. Afterwards, Mandred decrees that a beacon shall be set up upon the cliff over the river.
2787 - Mandred and Ragnvé are wed on the eve of victory.
2788 - The settlement, by now numbering nigh eighty souls is named Firnstayn. Mandred is made the Jarl and calls the surrounding lands Fjórdlanden.
2791 - First appearance of Sylgja, the giantess. Several woodworkers have gone missing.
2791 - More deaths dealt by Sylgja as she assaults a farmstead outside of Firnstayn. Firnstayn's men erect a palisade around the village and Mandred goes out to slay the giantess with four comrades.
2792 - Disappearance of Mandred for four months. No trace of Sylgja. Birth of Mandred's first son Olavr.
2793 - Elves appear in Firnstayn and take away Mandred's first-born. They speak of the pact of the man in which he yielded to the demand of giving his son in exchange for the aid of the Elves against Sylgja. Ragnvé curses Mandred and casts herself into the Fjórd.
2805 - Mandred returns and falls into deep grief over his sacrifice. Sylgja is slain.
2810 - Firnstayn is being expanded; A haven is being constructed along side small boats and ships that would sail up the Fjórd into the Withered Heath in search for better fishing grounds.
2816 - Battle with the Easterlings that seek to raid and pillage. Mandred's men can repel the attack.
2821 - First appearance of Asvör, a drake from the Withered Heath who demands lives from Firnstayn in return for not attacking them.
2822 - Mandred goes out to seek the Elves. His steward Asmund reigns over Firnstayn during his absence.
2822 - Mandred returns with his now grown son Olavr who by the Elves was named Núramar. Together they set out to slay Asvör.
2823 - Olavr finds his way back to Firnstayn, bearing the dead body of his father and an infant boy called Heðinn, claiming him to be son of him and Asvör, admitting his shame. Mandred is given a fire-burial on the Fjórd to be united with Ragnvé and Olavr ascends the high-chair of Firnstayn.
2824 - Friendship and trade with the kin of Thranduil is established by Olavr's life among the Eldar. The men of Firnstayn are given bows of Elven craft to fend off against invading hordes of the East.
2830 - Great Fjórd-Battle between Firnstayn's ships and the fleet of the Easterlings trying to invade from the North. Asmund falls valiantly in battle and the invaders can be driven back.
2833 - Heðinn's tenth birthday.
2834 - On a mission of peace and friendship, Olavr is introduced to Fruinu of the Greenwood and he takes her with him to Firnstayn.
2836 - Olavr and Fruinu are wed.
2837 - Fruinu drowns in the Fjórd as she went on a boat trip with her step-son Heðinn. Olavr forsakes all goals of love and focuses on the matters of Firnstayn alone.
2838 - In succession of Fruinu's death, rumors become loud of Ragnvé curse also meeting her son.
2839 - Heðinn is made leader of Firnstayn's guards.
2843 - Heðinn steals the axe of Mandred and slays his father, assuming the high-chair of Firnstayn through force. Any friendship to the Elves are ended and the Easterlings are invited to negotiations.
2845 - Firnstayn falls under Easterling control.
2886 - Heðinn returns with a crippled woman called Turið and makes her a slave. Turið claims to be the daughter of Mandred and Sylgja.
2886 - Turið is put to serve the Jarl in his hall. She suffers greatly at his hand.
2889 - Heðinn is found dead with a knife in his chest in his chamber. Turið, who killed him,  leads hence a rebellion against the Easterlings that have beset Firnstayn. The invaders are driven off and Firnstayn is freed.
2889 - Firnstayn's people wish Turið to become their leader as she resembles the good of Mandred in her kind heart. She refuses however and Eirikr, son of Mandred's fallen friend Asmund assumes the High-Chair.
2890 - Birth of Ævarr, son of Turið and Heðinn.
2891 - Trade with the Elves is taken up again. The kin of Thranduil helps to erect a statue of Mandred in the center of Firnstayn.
2910 - Eirikr fortifies Firnstayn by a deep moat, filled with the freezing water of the Fjórd.
2913 - Ævarr and Lifdis are wed.
2916 - Birth of Hrani, son of Ævarr.
2918 - Birth of Agmundr, son of Tónar.
2920 - Easterlings that attempt to take Firnstayn back are being defeated. Eirikr is slain, his son Tónar succeeds him as Jarl.
2937 - Death of Turið. The Elves take the book she wrote, copy it and take the original to be preserved in their library.
2938 - Hrani ventures to Gondor and serves as auxiliary soldier among the shipwrights of Dol Amroth.
Oct. 2941 - Ævarr joins the Battle of the Five Armies and is slain. The Men of Firnstayn return their hero to the Fjórdlanden. Hrani returns from Gondor.
Autumn 2946 - Birth of Tryggvi, son of Hrani.
Spring 2947 - Agmundr succeeds his father in the right to be Jarl as Tónar goes missing after an exploration into the Withered Heath.
Autumn 2955 - Tryggvi manages to catch a Cold-Drake alive at the age of ten together with Agmundr. The beast is kept caged in a cave beneath the cliff of the Fjórd.
Winter 2955 - Tryggvi and Agmundr unleash the Cold-Drake against the pillaging men of the East. The enemies are utterly defeated  and the monster killed. The drake becomes the new banner beast of Firnstayn.
Spring 2958 - Birth of Alfvadr, son of Agmundr
Summer 2965 - Tryggvi marries Sigga.
Spring 2966 - Death of Agmundr and Hrani in battle against Drakes. Alfvadr assumes the High-Chair of Firnstayn.
Winter 2966 - Birth of Torgrid, son of Tryggvi.
Autumn 2970 - Birth of Gjaflaug, daughter of Alfvadr.
Autumn 2971 - Torgrid nearly drowns in the Fjórd, but can be saved. Many deem that Ragnvé hence finally forgave Mandred and their descendants.
Winter 2973 - Birth of Stillingr, son of Alfvadr.
Summer 2975 - Firnstayn is once more attacked by Men of the East. The Dwarves of the Erebor come to their aid and Tryggvi slays the chieftain of the Eastern Tribe with but his fists and is forth on renowned for his strength.
Winter 2980 - Torgrid ventures out alone. Gjaflaug follows his tracks for a while but cannot find him.
Autumn 2981 - Torgrid returns with the knowledge of giant-speech. He receives the name Jötun-vinur. He learns from the Dwarves the construction of powerful crossbows and ballistae.
Spring 2982 - Alfvadr fortifies Firnstayn with towers and lets Torgrid build ballistae on them to defend the village even further.
Winter 2982 - Birth of Brúnjulfr, son of Stillingr.
Summer 2984 - Torgrid and Gjaflaug are wed.
Oct. 2986 - Birth of Skjalddis, daughter of Torgrid.
Spring 2999 - Torgrid reforges the axe of Mandred and leads it into battle.
Summer 2999 - Skjalddis slays the Highwayman Høgni at the age of fifteen and saves the life of  Dwarf Regún. The Dwarf forges her the sword Nothung and the girdle Norðurreim, said to double her strength, from what he claims was a fallen star.
Jan. 3000 - Death of Alfvadr against Men of the East. Stillingr becomes Jarl of Firnstayn.
Nov. 3002 - Skjalddis leads Firnstayn's men into battle against Easterlings and through a cunning trick strikes them back. She is forth on known as Snow-Drake.
Dec. 3002 - Skjalddis and Ingjaldr come to know one another.
Aug. 3003 - Ingjaldr flees Firnstayn after learning Skjalddis carries his child. He is banished and promised death upon return.
8th Nov. 3003 - Birth of Frøydis, daughter of Skjalddis.
15th May 3004 - Birth of Svávarr, son of Brúnjulfr.
Winter 3009 - Torgrid begins to loose his sanity under unknown circumstances.
26th Sep. 3014 - Death of Stillingr. Brúnjulfr succeeds him.
Last Entry - Skjalddis is chosen as Jarl.

How to Join

If you would like to join the Northmen of Firnstayn, then you should have a clear idea about your character. He/She must be a North(wo)man and either living in Firnstayn or intending to move there.

Regarding the setting: As it is obvious that we cannot access the lands surrounding the Lonely Mountain in-game to roleplay there, we have chosen the town of Forlaw in Wildermore-Rohan as our setting. It is reachable easily through the stable-master in South-Bree for a single Mithril Coin.
Five Mithril Coins may be purchased in the LOTRO Store for 50 Turbine Points. If you find that you have not the required points to afford the journey, yet still want to join, we will supply you with 50 points via reputation items. (Raising a faction from neutral/acquaintance to kindred will reward you with 50 Turbine Points).

We like kind people, who are friendly and are able to work in a community as it would be required of the people of Firnstayn themselves. 

If you have questions still or would like to send an application, then please send an in-game /tell to Skjalddis, http://laurelinarchives.org/profile/11805|Frøydis, Gjaflaug, Nauma, or Silrun. You may also reach us over the mailbox here in the Laurelin Archives.