Jumping the flames from one encirclement to the next, Erik immediately charged at the next troll and swung the remains of his Halberd.
The weapon now held a strong resemblance to a Goedendag, a kind of two-handed mace with a top spike.
Connecting with the troll’s kneecap, the repurposed weapon held up perfectly fine while the troll collapsed onto one knee from the mighty blow.
Sadly, the fractured bone and cartilage immediately started wriggling and repairing itself. But upon seeing the troll distracted, everyone surrounding it started piling on blows to keep it down.
Enraged, the troll reached out and got hold of a Marauder, swinging him around and forcing the others back. Three other Marauders received a direct hit, flinging them to the side. They were not mortally injured, but would have at least cracked a rib or two.
Picking up a fallen axe from the ground, Erik threw it at the rampaging monster. The axe twirled through the air, going straight for the troll’s face but as it moved slightly to the side, all the damage it did was chip away at one of the huge teeth jutting out of its mouth.
The Marauder in its hand had long gone limp, smashed to bits and losing its use as a ‘weapon’ so the troll brought back its arm to throw the corpse at Erik.
This distraction then allowed Sven, great axe in hand, to deal a lethal blow from the side. Stumbling to the ground, this time the troll was not allowed back up as it was hacked to pieces by the Marauders’ axes and burned with fire.
Just the troll duo remained. They must have grabbed them as they ran out of their cave, but these two wielded crude clubs. Surrounded by fire and having witnessed the end of their fellow trolls, they had no desire to fight anymore and were fervently looking for a way to escape.
Meanwhile Erik estimated that this Hunt had resulted in ten deaths or crippling injuries. Not a huge number when fighting against five trolls, but every casualty was one too many as far as Erik was concerned.
Not willing to send his men into melee with desperate trolls, Erik gave the order to javelin the trolls to death.
Hundreds of javelins filled the air and descended on the helpless trolls. Many bounced off or missed entirely, but as the Hunters continued throwing the damage started adding up.
Additionally, the trolls could not regenerate their wounds because the javelins were still stuck in their bodies. Very quickly they were drained of blood and energy before simply slumping to the ground.
Taking no chances, Erik ordered for their skulls to be smashed and hearts burned out.
Raising the decapitated, half-split skull of the Chaos Troll high above his head, Erik let loose a victorious roar, echoed by his exuberantly cheering warriors.
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Returning to the troll den, Erik raised his nose and scrunched his brows at the foul smell emanating from inside.
“Gods, these creatures truly are foul and disgusting!” – He couldn’t help but exclaim in repulsion.
With a loud *blurgh one of the Elites couldn’t stop the urge to vomit.
Everyone else, Erik included, also felt bile rising but forcefully repressed it. Throwing up would show weakness and diminish their standing.
Taking a deep breath, Erik held his Messer in one hand and a lit torch in the other before diving into the cave.
The tunnel took a sharp turn right after the entrance, cutting off the daylight and casting deep shadows.
Erik did not rush forward, but instead threw the lit torch into the darkness to try and illuminate the insides before carefully walking in.
Soon they came across the real troll den. It was littered with cracked and broken bones from every creature the trolls managed to get a hold on in the Norscan plateau.
Wolves, deer, human and even the remains of a manticore were strewn about.
An especially fresh skull carried a set of black horns, like those of a goat or cow. Bits and pieces of fur and meat were still stuck to it in a grisly visage.
Finally, all the way at the back of the den, Erik’s party came across one more troll. But this one was covered in grotesque boils all across its massively bloated belly and its limbs had been roughly torn off and crudely cauterised with fire to prevent regeneration.
Stunned at the sight before them, none of the Hunters could make sense of this.
‘Why would trolls keep another troll captive like this instead of just killing it?’
~Bleep! – Encyclopaedia entry: female trolls.
Not much is known about troll ‘culture’ but females are highly prized for any troll-pack. They are so sought after that any female too weak to resist is rendered unable to move independently and forcefully bred to increase the pack’s numbers. Additionally…
‘I… did not need to know that…’
Having informed himself using the Encyclopaedia, Erik held a new level of revulsion for trolls. And at the same time, a sinister plan emerged in his mind.
“Get some ropes! We’re taking this thing back to the camp.”
Not understanding Erik’s reasoning, the Elites nevertheless obeyed their orders. But when they dragged the live troll and the corpses of the dead ones back to camp, they quickly understood Erik’s intentions.
Trollhide truly was a sought after resource. When it was properly cured and treated, it could be used to create incredibly tough and lightweight armour that was even self-mending. It was a near perfect material with the only downside being an increased susceptibility to fire. But for humans, fire is always a danger, making this one weakness almost negligible.
But obtaining good quality Trollhide unspoiled by battlescars or other impurities was difficult. So what Erik planned to do was to chain up the amputated trollhag and start farming good quality trollhide from it.
The back and shoulders of a troll provided the best quality trollhide and the back had a surface area of over two square meters or 22 square feet.
After tying up the trollhag, Erik immediately went to work. Using his Slaanesh infused Messer to inflict the pain of skinning a living thing alive should make for some good results, right?
The trollhag was wide-eyed while it was being transported and tied up, its pea-sized brain not comprehending what was going on.
But all that turned in abstract fear and pain when it felt the ice cold yet searing hot sensation of Erik’s blade sliding between skin and muscle.
Hearing the horrid screams of anguish from the repulsive beast, Erik showed no sign of hesitation at continuing this cruel act. As a look of disdain and revulsion covered his face, he simply ordered for the trollhag to be gagged, muffling its screams of agony, as he continued his work.
Working with careful, deliberate strokes Erik worked his way down from one shoulder to the trollhag’s waist before going all the way back up. In this manner Erik slowly made his way up and down to free the premium quality Trollhide.
When he finally finished, over 20 minutes had passed and a new hide was already fully formed on the parts he had started cutting. The trollhag had long since fallen silent, actually fainting from the pain it felt.
~Bleep! – Player Erik earned Favour! Slaanesh, God of Torture and Perfection, approves enormously of your display of torture inflicted on a hideous creature.
‘Does the adrenaline of battle improve a troll’s rate of regeneration or is there another reason the hide is taking so long to grow back?’
~Bleep! – Player ability ‘Regeneration’ has levelled up due to increased understanding of the skill and defeating numerous Regenerating enemies (Trolls).
Looking around at the gathered Marauders, Erik proudly displayed the perfect piece of Trollhide.
“Look boys! If we keep this monster alive, we can have as much Trollhide as we desire! We’ll all be clad in Trollhide-armour and rich when we sell the rest back home!”
The Marauders had not flinched at Erik’s display of cruelty, not caring in the slightest about the torment of lesser beings. Trolls, thralls, Imperials and everything else that was not them, Norscans or followers of Chaos, could be hurt, killed or disrespected as they wished.
So upon seeing the enormous piece of Trollhide, big enough to make a Trollhide-cuirass out of in one piece, they loudly cheered once more.
“The Gods have surely blessed us with their Favour!” – No longer did anyone doubt this, as they cheered in admiration of today’s spoils as well as their Chief.
It was truly a great day for the Frost Wolf Hunters!
Smiling at his loyal men, Erik then opened his GAO to check today’s harvest. During the Winter Hunt he had obtained great benefits while other things had stagnated but his overall improvement could not be denied.
Pleased, Erik spent 20 of his first new Slaanesh points in weeks to increase his DEX by 1, feeling a rush of exhilaration wash over him as he spent another 15 minutes to get the second piece of Trollhide.
~Bleep! – Player information displayed!
Player: Erik –
Affiliation: Chaos, Frost Wolf Tribe (Skaeling Confederacy)
Patron: Khorne; Slaanesh; Nurgle; Tzeentch
Title(s): Chief of the Winter Hunt (+5 CHAR)
Player stats:
Strength (STR): 40 (+5) (+100% Berserk)
Dexterity (DEX): 43 (+6) (+10 from Contract)
Constitution (CON): 35 (+5)
Wisdom (WIS): 41 (+10)
Charisma (CHAR): 22 (+7) (+100% for females) (+5 from Titles)
Player Favour:
Khorne: 106 (+80) -> 6 (-100)
Slaanesh: 347 (+150) -> 227 (-120)
Nurgle: 202 (+200) -> 52 (-150)
Tzeentch: 212 (+170) -> 12 (-200)
(Earn Favour by performing actions that either directly please your Patron or are in line with their commandments.)
Favour can now be exchanged for Patron Deity’s Gifts and Bonuses.
Patron Deity’s first ability unlocked:
Khorne: Berserk (Active) Lv. 1– Activated by spending 50 Favour or when extremely agitated. The followers of the God of Rage can perform impossible feats of strength by invoking this power.
Slaanesh: Pheromones (Passive) Lv. 5 (MAX – Upgrade to Pheromones II?) – Attract members of the opposite sex. Gain better initial relation and get better prices when buying or selling items.
Nurgle: Regeneration (Passive) Lv. 4 (+2) – The Lord of Ruin expects unnatural perseverance of his followers and grants them the ability to do so.
Tzeentch: Encyclopaedia (Passive) Lv. 3 (+2) – Allows the user to gather and store information. Also provides a basic understanding of new discoveries and first encounters.
(Abilities can be improved by spending Favour or with repeated use of the ability.)
Player weapon proficiencies:
Unarmed: 154
One-handed: 246 (+74)
Two-handed: 298 (+22)
Polearms: 333 (+77)
Archery: 50
Throwing: 291 (+81)
Firearms: 50
Player armour proficiencies:
Unarmoured: 60
Medium armour: 132 (+40)
Heavy armour: 60
Magic armour: (LOCKED)
Player magic proficiencies: (LOCKED)~
Player mutations:
Right arm: Chitinous Claw morph – A strong, razor sharp claw capable of rending armour.
Right arm: Tentacle morph – An extendable mass of muscle with high sensitivity and great strength.
Phew, for a moment there i though he will f*ck the troll, or transform it into an attractive humanoid. I mildly remember a couple of chapters back some one asking for dem troll titties. Not judging the guy who wanted that, i too have dem hobgoblin fetish, although they look ugly in this universe so ill pass. Besides, because it's in the WH universe it will never happen. Greenskins have a wierd way of reproducing, which doesn't include women in the Warhammer Universe.
Anyways, i suggest you continue the 1 chapter every 2 days you planned or you'll be burned out writing. Hell, i'd rather have 3 chapters a week than see you enter a writers block, or worst, stop writing this. Well, i have rambled on for far too long, thanks for the chapter.
Yeah, thats why I didn't put an R18 in the chapter title. I'm willing to use some "Slaaneshi Magic bullshittery" to get a cowgirl (since Beastmen were originally part human & it seems to work the other way around soo...) but I agree that Trolls or Greenskins in WH is a couple bridges too far.
Also, yes. Today is a monday for me (usually upload at 20:00-20:30) so tomorrow there will be no chapter.
@Macrendil-Ysmir Green skin reproduction isn't weird when you understand that they are actually a fungus... True story.
@Blizzisme Oh definitely, Greenskin reproduction is awesome in Warhammer. Just not suitable for a "collect them all! -Fantasy Waifu's edition". Plus, considering Greenskins are masculine-yet-genderless, making one a woman would require 'gender bending' which I don't think suits Erik's tastes.
In Total War Warhammer, the norscas have ice trolls among their units. I wonder if the Frost Wolfs will be able to have some too, that would be cool.
Then, we just have to find an elf and a basket of apples (a reference that only French-speaking readers will understand).
To paraphrase from the Warhammer Fantasy wiki about trolls: "Trolls are dumb creatures only thinking about their next meal. They can be bargained with and especially Greenskins have been known to offer a steady supply of food (or goblins) to sate their appetite on return for their assistance in battle."
Not saying Erik won't fight alongside trolls in the future, just that its unlikely (remember trolls are pretty damn far from goodlooking & Erik seems to enjoy the Slaanesh side of Chaos quite a bit, thus being disgusted by hideous looking things).