Connects to: 13.02, 13.10, 23.11 and 23.11.03.
Longspear Bridge, a narrow wooden construction, spans a wide ravine just north of Winds. It is a fairly new bridge, but it rests on the location of older bridges. It, like its predecessors, is named in honor of Hardrald Longspear, a barbarian from the Westmarches who earned his surname by holding the bridge against an orc army for two hours. Hardrald slew wave after wave of orc warriors with a longspear named Seven Paces. It did not splinter even as it parried a hundred swords and axes. His deed bought the Winds enough time to evacuate the town’s women and children.
The great warrior finally died in a hail of arrows. It is said that so many shafts pierced his armor that he did not fall. The sheer number of arrows he took supported his weight and he died standing over the corpses of his enemies. The orcs retrieved his body and gave him an honorable orcish funeral, but his spear, Seven Paces, went missing. Some believe it ended up being just another trophy in the Collector’s Castle (02.22). Others say it is lost among the Gray Mountains. The citizens of Winds believe Seven Paces is rightfully theirs. The Council of the Calm is often petitioned to hire adventurers to follow rumors of its appearances.
Connection:
- Seven Paces now rests in Lochgate Lodge and is claimed by the werebears who live there. Grondelgar, who serves as captain of rangers in Winds, vows to return with Seven Paces on his next visit to his grandmother. He is more interested in being hailed as a hero than he is in fulfilling any duty to the town (13.10).
Hooks:
- What brought the orcs so far south?
- Why would a barbarian from the Westmarches give his life defending a foreign town?
- Is the current Winds militia still dangerously incompetent?
- Did the orcs build any memorials for Hardrald Longspear?
