Rosta

"You win by playing, and a quiet mind is your reward. Let the air and nature's beauty soothe you."

―Rosta to Eivor, on the purpose of stacking cairns.

Rosta (died c. 855) was a Norse noblewoman who lived in Norway with her husband Varin and daughter Eivor Varinsdottir during the 9th century. She was the younger sister of Ímar, a famous Viking leader who reigned as an early king of the Norse-Gaelic Kingdom of Dublin in Ireland, and an aunt to his son, Bárid.

Biography

Early life

"Think of this as a test of mind and wit. Stack the cairn stones high and wide, into any shape you like."

―Rosta teaching Eivor about cairns.

At the age of nineteen, Rosta and her lover Varin stacked cairns together on a high cliff near the fjord of their village. The two later got married and, by 847, Rosta was pregnant with their daughter, Eivor.

During a plague outbreak, Rosta and Varin sought shelter but were turned away at every doorstep. Eventually, her brother Ímar allowed the couple to stay at his house, where Rosta gave birth to Eivor. For the next few years, Rosta and Varin visited Ímar and his family often, and Eivor formed a close bond with Ímar's son Bárid. However, the two families lost contact after Ímar, his wife Ségdae and Bárid moved to Ireland.

Once Eivor was old enough, Rosta taught her daughter how to stack cairns herself and explained their importance as a test of mind and wit. This quickly became Eivor's favorite pastime and Rosta and Varin would take turns accompanying their daughter whenever she went to stack cairns, during which they shared conversations on a variety of topics.

Later, Eivor befriended Sigurd, the son of King Styrbjorn of Fornburg, and Rosta would sometimes watch over the two children when they played or stacked cairns together. On one occasion, she asked Sigurd about his engagement to a girl named Sefa, only for Sigurd to reveal that he had ended the relationship and spat on Sefa's foot after she insulted him.

Attack on Heillboer and death

"No, no, Varin! No Varin! Pick up your axe."

―Rosta to her husband, after he chose to surrender himself to Kjotve, 855.

Rosta with her daughter during the feast

Around 855, Varin and Rosta planned to pledge their village to King Styrbjorn and organized a feast in Heillboer, inviting Styrbjorn and his clan to attend. During the feast, Rosta inspected an arm ring given to Eivor by Varin, which she was meant to gift to Styrbjorn as a symbol of their clans' alliance. Eivor then asked her mother if they could show Sigurd a cairn they had built the previous day, which Rosta promised they would do in the morning.

Shortly after Varin's clan pledged themselves to Styrbjorn with Eivor's arm ring, Heillboer came under attack by the Wolf Clan led by Kjotve the Cruel. While Rosta readied herself for battle, Varin instructed Eivor to stay inside the longhouse and went to rally their men. During the subsequent fight, Rosta killed several of Kjotve's warriors before spotting Eivor hiding inside a cart. Grabbing her daughter, Rosta brought her to the stables and placed her on a horse, but was distracted by a fellow villager in peril.

Rosta rushed to the villager's aid and killed her assailants, but was too late to save the woman. After giving her her last rites, Rosta saw that Sigurd had joined Eivor at the stables and instructed him to take her daughter to safety. She then returned to the battle but was quickly defeated and captured by one of Kjotve's warriors, who forced her to watch as Kjotve defeated Varin.

Rosta and Varin's deaths

With Rosta's life as leverage, Kjotve offered Varin a chance to spare the village if he defied Viking tradition to die honorably in battle. Against his wife's protests, Varin knelt in submission and tossed aside his axe, allowing Kjotve to pick it up and execute him. Hoping to avenge her husband, Rosta rushed at Kjotve, only to make it paces from him before her captor launched a throwing axe into her back, killing her. Kjotve then immediately broke his deal with Varin and ordered the entire town massacred, though Eivor was able to escape.

Legacy

"Eivor! Blood of my blood. Look at you! You have Aunt Rosta's cheekbones."

―Bárid to Eivor following their reunion, 879.

Following Rosta and Varin's death, Eivor was adopted by King Styrbjorn, who raised her as his child alongside Sigurd. However, Eivor spent many years obsessing with reclaiming her father's lost honor by avenging her parents, which she eventually succeeded in doing when she killed Kjotve in 872.

A vision of Varin and Rosta reaching out to Eivor

In 877, a vision of Rosta and Varin, alongside Eivor's various friends and allies, appeared to their daughter during her battle against her Isu conscience, Odin. After rejecting Odin's influence and the promise of eternal glory, choosing to be with her loved ones instead, Eivor approached the apparition of her parents and quietly embraced them before walking with them through a shining gate to escape Yggdrasil's simulation.

In 879, Eivor and Bárid briefly reminisced about Rosta when the two cousins were reunited upon Eivor's arrival in Dublin, Ireland.

Behind the scenes

Rosta is a character in the 2020 video game Assassin's Creed: Valhalla. She is voiced by Danish actress Cecilie Stenspil, who also provided the voice of Eivor.

Etymology

The name Rosta is related to the Old Norse word rósta, meaning 'brawl, riot, strife'. It's best known as the byname of Olvir Rosta, a character in the 13th century Orkneyinga saga and thus has also been translated as 'brawler, rioter'.

Gallery

• 
  A young Eivor with her parents
• 
  Varin talking to Rosta during the attack on Heillboer
• 
  Rosta fighting a raider

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Valhalla (first appearance)
  • Wrath of the Druids (mentioned only)
  • Shared History (indirect mention only)