I'm fairly new to the planescape setting, and had a blast of a session. Afterwards we visited and on any number of subjects we were asking, "what would they say on Ysgard?"
Would love to see more information on what would they say on other planes. Being new to this setting this would be very useful.
So, What would they say on Ysgard to a Sirine from the prime who claimed that fighting was useless? This one question had our group roleplaying for hours.
"People like you actually exist? I must have won an actual victory somewhere."
"You keep right on believing that. This is the Planes; maybe it'll come true. And I'll kill any basher what tries to stab you in the back while you're believing it."
That or "BWAAA HA HA HA! You won't get very far on our plane believing that!"
From someone less enamored with Ysgard:
"There's a thin line between bravery and stupidity"
Probably also what native Ysgardians say about the Slaad.
I do have to point out, would someone on Ysgard care that much about dying for a cause? They live on a plane where they will literally get brought back to life within 24 hours guaranteed provided they die in battle. It seems to me that that would make death mean a lot less. Dying for a cause would mean about as much to the average Ysgardian as crossing the street for a cause. Living for a cause, surviving horrible events for a cause, that would be far more important to them.
I mean, keep in mind, it's not a CG plane, it's a CG(N) plane. It's Good, but it's not that Good.
I thought about that too. But since it's hard to get quotes from people who don't have to face mortality, I went with what I found.
Also, the promise of continual life doesn't always equate to heroism. The Hindu religion believes in reincarnation (yes, I know there points of "no return" at opposite ends of the karmic ladder; but for the most part, reincarnation is the norm). Yet despite this, the Bhagavad Gita is a major Hindu text regarding one prince's reluctance and confusion about going into battle (although much of that concerns his moral reservations about fighting his relatives); but ultimately, the god Krishna convinces him the that the justness of his cause and the responcibilities of his position compel him to fight bravely.
So while this is far removed from Norse mythology, it does show that there is the concept of fighting the "good fight" without consideration of how it affects one personally.
Ultimately I viewed the residents of Ysgard as people who don't think about what happens tomorrow. If Odin suddenly decided that "dead means dead", I think that most Ysgardians wouldn't hesitate to gird up for battle (although, they might put more effort into fighting for something "meaningful" as opposed to a lot of the brawling they do with each other).
In my campaign, I am spreading the Norse pantheon out a bit to reflect the Nine Worlds. I still have Hel in the Grey Wastes and the Aesir in Ysgard. But I moved the Vanir to Elysium, the giants to Acheron, etc.
Then to reflect the Nordic culture, I was debating sending the residents of Ysgard out on raids into other planes (e.g. take on the giants in Acheron, some conflict on the first layer of Baator, etc.) Sure, they still have their brawls on their home plane; but that is just a way to blow off steam and hone their skills until the next "real" combat.
If I follow this train of thought, maybe the valkerie will have a secondary job of retrieving the souls of valiant Ysgardians that die on OTHER planes and bringing them back to Ysgard to reform. That way, death will still have a consequence (for those who aren't valient enough) and the Ysgardian need to overcome fear and doubt in order to fight bravely would have more significance.
Why would the giants be on Acheron? Most of them are chaotically aligned...
I like all these ideas. I kinda see Ysgard very similarly. I find that wealth and retaining it is important and staying alive has its benefits.
I like the idea that many are fighting family members. Romeo and Juliet is a theme I've added to one location.
Also, I'm adding Slaadi from Limbo are slowly invading ysgard at the borders. I can do alot of expanding on Slaadi.
Currently I'm creating a tent city named "Festival". This is were warriors talk and drink to all their glorious battles. Many competition like archery, gladiator, and spell duals. It may be that a gang of Githyanki have control over a thievies guild who are rigging all the games to their favor. The party will naturally want to compete, but to loose at a rigged game. Therefore they must find the source.
Also, creating another city called "The Tower of Towers". Rules mostly by giants. Nevertheless, this is a tower like no other, not even in Sharn. As big as can be with multiple towers coming out around the base at various levels. The giants here are always fighting for wealth and the retaining of it. Players will get drawn into a family fued between 3 brothers who hold much control in the tower. Somehow the players will have some kind of information that can change the fueding families.
Anyhow, all of this with the ysgard theme I have going. Any suggestions to a clueless traveler are always welcome.
To those who do not have MMII, could you describe a Sirine?
I would strongly recommend going to the following website (http://www.finestquotes.com/) and look up some quotes for "glory" or "battle"
Here are a few (some with some alterations):
“Most dreams of peace are safe because the valorous defend them.”
“Death is nothing, but to live defeated and inglorious is to die daily.”
“Glory is not a conceit. … Glory belongs to the act of being constant to something greater than yourself, to a cause, to your principles, to the people on whom you rely and who rely on you in rerun.”
“Glory is the shadow of virtue.”
“You don't develop courage or virtue by being happy in your relationships everyday. You develop it by surviving difficult times and challenging adversity.”
“One isn't necessarily born with courage, but one is born with potential. Without courage, we cannot practice any other virtue with consistency. We can't be kind, true, merciful, generous, or honest.”
“With courage you will dare to take risks, have the strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble. Courage is the foundation of integrity.”
“It takes a lot of courage to release the familiar and seemingly secure, to embrace the new. But there is no real security in what is no longer meaningful. There is more security in the adventurous and exciting, for in movement there is life, and in change there is power.”
"Battle not with monsters?...I guess you like being a slave to monsters"
----Ysgard quotes for other occassions:
“Fame is not the glory; virtue is the goal, and fame only a messenger to bring more to the fold.”
“True glory takes root, and even spreads; all false glory falls, exposed as counterfeit.”
“The greater the difficulty, the greater the glory.”
“The nearest way to glory is to strive to be what you wish to be thought to be.” [Maybe more of an Olympus/Arborea idea?]
“Glory is a heavy burden, and to bear it is an art.”
“Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.”
“Glory gives herself only to those who have always dreamed of her.”
“I am climbing a difficult road; but the glory gives me strength.”
“There is no road of flowers leading to glory”
“True glory lies in noble deeds.”
“When there is no peril in the fight, there is no glory in the triumph"
"We have lost this battle; but we WILL win the war"
“Love bravely, live bravely, be courageous; there's really nothing to lose.”
“One man with courage makes a majority.”
“He who hath not known ill fortune, never knew himself, or his own virtue.”
“Finding the courage to strike the first blow is half the battle.”
“Courage doesn't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying, 'I will try again tomorrow.'”
“Courage is not the absence of fear, but rather the judgement that something else is more important than fear.”
“Have the courage to face the truth. Do the right thing because it is right. These are the magic keys to living your life with integrity.”
“Courage is the dividing line between weakness and strength of character.”
“Courage is never letting your actions be influenced by your fears.”
“The brave and the cowardly are only distinguishable when a threat appears”
“Courage is simply the willingness to be afraid and act anyway.”
“Courageous people are still afraid, but they don't let the fear paralyze them.”
“Courage is a learned mental skill that you must condition, just as weight training strengthens your muscles.”
“The opposite of courage is not cowardice, it is conformity.”
“You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honor.”
“To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage”
“Courage means the ability to face down those imaginary fears and reclaim the far more powerful life that you've denied yourself.”
“Making up one's mind diminishes fear; knowing what must be done does away with fear. “
“Courage, in the final analysis, is nothing but an affirmative answer to the dangers of existence.”
“Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but rather it is every virtue at its testing point.”
“Courage, it would seem, is nothing less than the power to overcome danger, misfortune, fear, injustice, while continuing to affirm inwardly that life with all its sorrows is good; that everything is meaningful even if in a sense beyond our understanding”
“Next to a battle lost, the greatest misery is a battle won too easily”
“Pessimism (or passivitiy) never won any battle.”
“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it”
“Pick battles big enough to matter, but small enough to win”
“A lost battle is a battle one thinks one has lost.”
“The battle is tough but if you reach where you want to go, then at least in some sense, it is worth it.”
“Carry the battle to them. Don't let them bring it to you. Put them on the defensive and don't ever apologize for anything”
“No battle plan survives contact with the enemy.” (I.e. improvise on the field of battle)
“Battles decide everything.”
"Today is a good day to die...again"
From someone less enamored with Ysgard:
"There's a thin line between bravery and stupidity"