Introduction

[Rodion Romanovich]

why not to start where the world first heard about the vikings - 793 ce ?

Because around 843 there are huge changes all over the map, which can't be simulated with the R:TW engine. An alternative date would have been 911 AD, but that's too far, so we went for a compromise. After all, most viking actions before 843 AD were relatively insignificant raids whereas the later activites were more of conquest and so on.