Icon of the Bjornling tribe as seen in Total War: Warhammer.
Losteriksson is a legendary Norscan warrior, explorer and sailor, the son of the famed Bjornling explorer Erik the Lost. He was the founder and leader of the town of Skeggi, the Norscan gateway to Lustria and the oldest Human settlement established on that continent. Losteriksson was the first man of the Old World to "discover" the mysterious continent of Lustria, where he established Skeggi in 888 IC.[1a]
Losteriksson's raids and establishment of the new outpost of Skeggi led to the Chaos Gods establishing a foothold in the New World, forcing the Slann mage-priests of the Lizardmen to contend with their ancient foe of Chaos from ages past in the form of their new Human followers. In time, many warbands sailed from Norsca to Lustria, eager to plunder its ancient treasures and slay its inhabitants.[1a]
Losteriksson is more famous than his father, known even in the Empire and Tilea for his discoveries. As a young reaver he penetrated the fogs of Albion several times and made the first crude maps of its coastline. He is best known for "discovering" and colonising the distant continent of Lustria.[2a]
Losteriksson met his end when he was strangled by Sammi Fiorgeirsson, who took over rulership of Skeggi as its new jarl. It has long been believed in Skeggi that any day now, the gem and barnacle-covered corpse of Losteriksson himself will be uncovered from the sands by the rolling tides, his crown still bolted to his skull. Taking control of Skeggi requires force, but having the skull of the first king is an ace in the hole. In fact, some are actively digging in the old beachside graveyard in hopes of striking it lucky.[3a]
Trivia[]
The character of Losteriksson is based on Leif Erikson, also known as "Leif the Lucky" (ca. 970s–ca. 1019 to 1025), who was a Norse explorer who is thought to have been the first European to set foot on continental North America, approximately half a millennium before Christopher Columbus. According to the sagas of the Icelanders, he established a Norse settlement at Vinland, which is usually interpreted as being coastal North America. There is ongoing speculation that the settlement made by Leif and his crew corresponds to the remains of a Norse settlement found in Newfoundland, Canada, called L'Anse aux Meadows, which was occupied approximately 1,000 years ago.
Leif was the son of the great Norse explorer Erik the Red, the founder of the first Norse settlement in Greenland and who is also the basis for the Warhammer Fantasy Battle character of Erik the Lost.