The Annual Torvaldian Games and Festival. All games are for Free Men ONLY. There are no games for Free Women according to the scrolls. The Free Women may watch the Men compete, and cheer them on. There is ONE contest for kajira (none for kajirus, sorry not in the scrolls), the Platform (beauty contest). There is a truce declared in Torvaldsland while the Thing is in progress. Weapons may be carried, for no Free should be without, but no blood is to be spilled nor the peace disrupted during the Thing. Anyone breaking this rule will be booted from the room. (see the Duels as well please)

the Games start Saturday at Noon MDT (14:00:00) Maze time.....We will run them till 6pm MDT (20:00:00) Maze time....If there are still games Left then they will start again on Sunday at Noon MDT(14:00:00) Maze time.....

Prizes
Winners of each game is awarded a talmit or headband made of leather, metal or cloth. The overall winner of the Thing will collect a very nice prize and the banquet at the end will be in His honor and the honor of the camp/village/tavern He calls His homestone.

Scoring System
To keep this as fair as possible under a v/t environment, We have come up with a system. The first part is the POINTS. Each Competitor is allotted 100 points to be spread out among the games as He sees fit. No more than 50 points to ANY ONE event. (ie: If You only enter ONE event, You only get 50 Points) (note: NONE of Your points goes towards the Beauty Contest for the bond-maids, or the Wrestling). On the Poetry/Songs and the Riddles, Your points are only used to break a tie. Be careful how You spread out Your points! You are gambling here, and this is part of your skill. The more points You put into a game, the higher Your skill is in that game.

The second part of calculating Your chance to win, will be done on dice rolls. So have a 6-sided die ready r/t when You compete v/t. This is the “luck” part. And it doesn’t matter what You roll, for the Judge will be rolling die as well, so please be honest with Your numbers.

The third part of the game is on Your posts. (ie: “I ran real fast” will get you less points then “Legs pumping in a Warrior’s stride, then putting on a burst of speed.”) This also counts toward Your skill.

The Duels
The Thing is also a place to settle disputes, in the Duels. Should anyone wish to take advantage of having their disputes settled in this manner at the Thing, then contact Jarl Kurzon and set up a time and place. This is a controlled spar, witnessed and closely monitored. NO SPONTANEOUS DUELS WILL BE ALLOWED TO BREAK THE PEACE OF THE THING.

House of Justice
Although a House of Justice is present at The Thing, We would not presume to tell another how to fix their problems. The House of Justice will therefore not be obvious at the Thing.

The Games

Swimming
This will be done inside the bay, as the outer part of the Fjord is home to sea sleen. Of course, sometimes a smaller sleen comes a little closer to shore. The distance to swim is 4 posts from the dock to the marker and back. (enters the water, swim, swim, head to the finish) The prize is a talmit of sea sleen skin.

Climbing the Mast
The “mast” is a 50’ high needle wood pole, peeled of it’s bark and smooth. The first up to the top and back down wins. There is a copper tarn disk on the top, grab it before You come down. You can keep the copper tarn. This is 4 posts. (grasping the mast, the climb, grabbing the tarn disk, the descent and landing together) The prize is a talmit of white leather.

Jumping the Crevice
A running broad jump on level land, starting from a marked line and measured to the landing point of your feet, from the line to Your heels. One jump only allowed, 3 posts. (the run to the line, the jump and the landing) The prize is a talmit of red leather.

Walking the Oar
Simulated “oar”…a long pole balanced upon two blocks of wood, and spanning a mud pit. The successful Rarius will traverse the pole to the end and back without falling off. The operative word here is “balanced” as the pole is thin, and is NOT fastened to the blocks of wood. 4 posts (getting on the oar, going in one direction, the turn, and returning to the start) The prize is a talmit of braided leather.

Spear Throwing
Winners will be in the “best distance” category and the “most accurate” category. We need a volunteer to be the target (just kidding). The target will be a bosks-eye (bulls-eye). Distance: 2 posts (warm up, the throw and the flight of the spear together) Please do not post how far the spear went, the Game Master will inform everyone publicly how far it went. Most Accurate: 3 posts (warm up, the throw, and the flight of the spear) Please do not post where the spear hits, the Game Master will inform everyone publicly where it hits. The prize is a talmit of steel for each winner.

Axe Throwing
Accuracy counts. Axes to be thrown towards a sturdy post, one foot in diameter and six feet high, set into the ground. The one that splits the post most dead center wins. Should You split the post in half, wow! 3 posts (warm up, the throw, and the flight of the axe) Please do not post where the axe hits, the Game Master will inform everyone publicly where it hits. The prize is a talmit of bronze.

Wrestling
Hand to hand combat judged like the spars, but the two wrestlers are joined together with a length of rope around their waists with a few feet of rope between them. Is judged as a spar is, with three judges watching the posts and determining the winners. 4 posts per contestant only. In each post, You may have 4 actions (ie: attack, defence, movement) any combination of these three. Acknowledging an opponents attack is NOT an action. The Points are NOT used on this competition. The prize is a talmit of larl skin adorned with larl claws.

Singing/Poetry
Self explanatory. Will be something You have composed beforehand, under 200 words please, and either sung or recited. Presentation counts. Points only count in this competition to break a tie. The prize is a talmit of amber colored verr leather (suede).

Riddle Guessing
The RiddleMaster will present 5 riddles. When the contestant knows the answer, PM Your answer to the Riddle Master. The first correct answer wins, and the one who answers the most riddles will win the talmit. Points only count in this competition to break a tie. The prize is a talmit of blue dyed verr leather (suede).

For the bond-maids…. The Platform (Beauty Contest)
The only contest for females, and ONLY for slaves. The bond maids strip and walk the platform, a 5’ x 100’ wooden walkway. Only men can judge this. There are two parts to this competition.
Part 1 – The av itself…..The av should be created BY the contestant, not anyone else. It should be a NEW av made JUST for this competition. It is on your honor, girls, that you present your own work of art. It should be naked, and have a girl’s name and ko lar written on the av.
Part 2 – A one post, (no more than 100 words) walk across the platform. Like in a modeling contest. ANY post that takes up more than 100 words will have marks deducted. Prize: a pastry for the winning girl, and a silver tarn disk for her Master/Mistress.

The Great Feast
At the end of the weekend competition, the talmits will be given out by the Jarl to the winners, and the overall winner of the most talmits will have a special place of honor at the Great Feast that night, with a special slave appointed to serve Him and only Him for the evening. He will win honor and glory for Himself and His homestone. The winner of the most talmits will receive a prize for His personal keeping, and a keg of Torvaldsland’s finest mead for His Homestone to share.

To Enter
Contact Jarl Kurzon the Hunter or Lady Nyx at Vanir's Fjord Webmaze....or....e-mail Us at mwtraub@jetnet.ab.ca

Because of the large number of games, all Entrants should pre-register with their Name and Homestone before the Thing takes place. Any games having less than 2 competitors will not take place this year. We will inform You which games have been cancelled.
Come pit Your prowess against Torvaldland's finest!