Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-24577079-20141203031648/@comment-1789156-20141204005142

NFSreloaded wrote: Individual named, son of , becomes inspired by , sets foot on Canada, and around the time he did in OTL? Nah.

I wouldn't really call Eirik the Red a spree killer, especially considering the shape of society at the time. He was never sentenced because of murder, but was exiled for a number of different incidents.

According to the Eiríks saga rauða the story is a lot more complicated than someone who is simply a killer. If anything Erik was less a killer than his father, who was forced to leave Norway after manslaughter essentially. Erik lived in Hornstadnir (which is in Iceland) presumably for much of his life without incident. It was only after some of his thralls caused a landslip at Valthjofsstadr, on the estate at Valthjof did problems occur. In return for this deed Eyjolf the Foul and his crew killed Erik's thralls, which prompted Erik to slay Eyjolf, as well as Hrafn the Dueller. Eyjolf's surviving kinsmen Gerstein and Odd of Jorfi followed up with legal prosecution, and Erik was found guilty, forced to leave the valley of Haukadalur in the region of Snæfellsnes in exile.

Erik had lent his setstokkr, often translated as pillars, which are basically these special beams that he had inherited, to Thorgest. When Erik attempted to reclaim these, for whatever reason he could not obtain them from Thorgest, and had to take them himself, prompting Thorgest to pursue him, where the two fought. It is recorded that two sons of Thorgest were killed, as well as some others. After this incident both men assembled men to aid them in this feud. Eirik's band included men by the name of Styr, Eyjolf of Sviney, Thorbjorn Vifilsson, the sons of Thorbrand of Alptafjordr. Thorgest recruited Thord Gellir of Hitardir, Aslak of Langadair, and his son Illgui.

The feud was resolved at Thorsnes Thing, and Eirik was exiled. After this it is said that Eirik prepared a ship to begin his trip from the region, while Thorgest's men attempted to find him still. Eirik and some of his men traveled to Greenland before returning east, where Thorgest fought Eirik again. Eirik was defeated, and ultimately the two reconciled.

Through these passages I'd say that Eirik the Red is not a spree killer, and a lot more sensible than you make him out to be. Many of his acts were in self defense, or were in defense of his property/honor/family etc, not with the goal to attack or kill innocents.