Many other champions had come from Norway to this battle.
“Thrand from Thrandheim, Thorir from Mœri; Helgi the White, Bjarni, Hafr, Finn from Firda fylki; Sigurd; Erling the Snake, from Jadar; Saga-Eirik, Holmstein the White, Einar from Egda-fylki; Hrut the Rambler, Odd the Wide-travelling, Einar, Ivar.
“The following were the great champions of Hring: Aki, Eyvind, Egil the Squinting, Hildir Gaut, Gudi, Tollus, Stein from the Venern lake, Styr the Strong.
“These also had a host of their own: Hrani Hildarson, Svein Reaper, Hlaumbodi, Soknarsoti, Hrokkel Hœkja, Hrolf the Woman-loving. There were besides: Dag the Stout, Gerdar the Glad, Duk the Vend, Glum the Vermlander, Saxi the Plunderer, Sali the Gautlander.
“These from the Swedish realm: Nori, Haki, Karl Kekkja, Krokar, Gunnfast, Glismak the Good.
“There were from Sigtunir: Sigmund, the Kaupang champion, Tolufrosti.
“Adils the Gay from Uppsalir stood in front of the standards and the shields and not in the Fylkings; Sigvaldi, who had come with eleven ships; Tryggvi and Tvivivil were there with twelve ships; Lœsir had a skeid all manned with champions; Eirik Helsing had a large dragon, well filled with warriors. Champions had also come to Hring from Thelamörk (Thelemarken) and they were least honoured, for they were thought slow-speaking and slovenly; these were: Thorkel the Stubborn, Thorleif Goti the Overbearing, Hadd the Hard, Gretti, Hroald Toe. There was yet one more who had come to Hring: Rögnvald the Tall, or Radard Hnefi, who was the greatest of all champions; he was foremost in the point of the wedge; next to him were Tryggvi and Lœsir, and then the sons of Alrek and Yngvi; then were the Thelemarkians, whom none wanted to have, as they were thought to be of little use; they were great archers.
“When these hosts were ready for battle, both had the horns sounded, and raised the war-cry. The arrays met, and the battle was so severe, that it is said in all old Sagas that no battle in the Northern lands was ever fought with so many and so valiant picked men. When it had raged a little while, Ubbi the Frisian, a champion, advanced in front of the host of Harald, and attacked the snout of the array of Hring, and first of all Rögnvald; their fight was very hard, and terrible blows could be seen in the host where these dauntless champions rushed at each other, dealing many and heavy cuts. Ubbi was such a great champion that he did not cease until their single fight ended by Rögnvald’s fall; then he rushed at Tryggvi, and gave him his death wound. When the sons of Alrek saw his appalling rush into the host, they went against him; but he was so hardy and skilled that he slew them both; then he killed Yngvi; and rushed so furiously into the ranks that every one fled before him; he slew all who were foremost in the snout, except those who were fighting other champions.
“When Hring saw this he urged the host not to let one man overcome all, such proud men as there were. He shouted: ‘Where is Störkud, who till now always has borne the highest shield (gained victory)?’ Störkud answered: ‘We have enough to do, lord, but we will try to gain a victory if we can, though where Ubbi is, a man may be fully tried.’ At the urging of the king he rushed to the front against Ubbi, and there was a great fight between them with heavy blows, as each of them was fearless. After a while Störkud gave him a large wound, and himself received six, all of them severe, and he thought he had rarely been so hard pushed by a single man. As the arrays were dense they were torn from each other, and so their hand-to-hand fight ended. Then Ubbi slew the champion Agnar, and cleared a path in front of himself, dealing blows on both hands; his arms were bloody up to his shoulders; thereupon he attacked the Thelemarkians. When they saw him they said: ‘Now we need not go elsewhere, but let us shoot arrows at this man for awhile, and little as everybody thinks of us let us do the more, and show that we are valiant men.’ The most skilled of the Thelemarkians began to shoot at him, namely Hadd the Hard, and Hroald Toe; these men were such excellent archers that they shot twenty-four arrows into his breast; this much was needed to destroy his life. These men slew him, but not before he had slain six champions and severely wounded eleven others, and killed sixteen Swedes and Goths who stood in the front of the ranks. Vebjörg, shieldmaiden, made hard onsets on the Swedes and Goths; she attacked the champion Soknarsoti; she had accustomed herself so well to the use of helmet, coat of mail and sword, that she was one of the foremost in chivalry,[[379]] as Störkud the Old says; she dealt the champion heavy blows and attacked him for a long while, and with a blow at his cheek cut through his jaw and chin. He put his beard into his mouth and bit it, thus holding up his chin. She performed many great feats. A little after Thorkel the Stubborn, a champion of Hring, met her, and they fiercely attacked each other; finally she fell with many wounds and great courage.
“Great events happened here in a short time; and first one, then the other array got the better; many a man from both hosts never returned home, or was maimed. Störkud then made an attack on the Danes, and on the champion Hún, and at last slew him, and a little after one who tried to revenge his death, by name Ella. Then he attacked Borgar, and after a hard fight slew him. Störkud rushed through the ranks with a drawn sword and killed one after another; he cut down Hjört; whereupon Visma, shieldmaiden, who carried the standard of Harald, met him. Störkud made a fierce attack on her. She said to him: ‘The fierceness betokening death is over thee, and now thou shalt die, Thurs!’[[380]] He answered: ‘First thou shalt nevertheless let the standard of Harald fall,’ and cut off her left hand. Then Brai, Sækalf’s father, tried to avenge her, but Störkud pierced him with his sword. In the host in many places could now be seen large heaps of slain and fallen men. A little after Gnepja, a great champion, attacked Störkud; they fought hard, and Störkud gave him his death-wound. Afterwards he slew Haki, but received many large wounds himself; he was cut on the neck at his shoulders so that one could see into his chest, and on his breast he had a large wound so that his lungs were hanging out, and he had lost one finger on his right hand. When Harald saw that so many of his hird and champions fell, he rose on his knees and took two saxes, whipped fast forward the horse which drew the waggon, and thrust the saxes with both hands and slew many a man with his hands, though he was not able to walk or sit on horseback. The battle went on thus for a while, and the king performed many great deeds. Towards the end of the battle Harald Hilditönn was struck on the head with a club,[[381]] so that his skull was broken; and that was his death-wound, and Brúni slew him. When Hring saw the waggon of Harald empty, he knew that he had fallen; he had the horns blown and shouted that the host should stop. When the Danes became aware of this the battle ceased, and Hring offered truce to the entire host of King Harald, which all accepted”[[382]] (Sögubrot, c. 9).