Races & Creatures

[runeskin]

creatures

Listed below are some of the creatures to be found in the 9 Realms. (¤ denotes creatures that Meja hasn't encountered yet.)

Dragons
Coming from deep within the worlds, among the roots of Yggdrasil, dragons are winged creatures who are, usually, extremely high strung. Dragons of a certain age, who fight their way out of the roots of the World Tree, often take up caves among the Realms and hoard treasure (attracted by the glinting light, but they also eat metal to strengthen their scales). Most breathe fire, but some have been documented as breathing ice or even spitting up a caustic, burning fluid. They have not been seen in some time, and when born are immediately imprinted on the first creature they see. Their scales are described as one of the hardest substances in all of the Realms.

Draugr
Undead vikings, Draugr retain some semblance of intelligence after death and enjoy causing suffering among the living. Draugr have a wide variety of abilities and often jealously guard their graves, where all of their worldly treasures were buried, similar to how a dragon guards their hoard. But they are not inconvenienced by their graves and are not completely tied to them, and they can also move about in daylight (though they show an affinity for the night). Among their abilities is shapeshifting (they can make themselves taller, and even turn into other species of creatures), becoming intangible (black smoke), and even magic (entering the dreams of the living, changing the weather, temporarily turning day into night, and seeing into the future). They carry with them the stench of decay and cannot be wounded by mundane weaponry, and, most importantly, they can only be killed by a true hero. Draugr do not kill others with weaponry — rather, they prefer to kill the living with their bare hands, or by shapeshifting into something with natural weapons such as claws. They subsist by eating the living. Someone who is killed by a draugr will become one, in death.

Kokko ¤
Birds of iron and fire, Kokko are intensely territorial and have a wingspan of 25 ft. They prefer areas of great natural heat, such as hot springs and volcanoes, and can cause eruptions when riled. Permanent death is impossible, as they will melt and reform a week or so later. But even then, they can only be affected by a hero wielding an iron blade. Kokko lay a single iron egg only once every few years (living alone until then), and often, the chick inside is not strong enough to break the shell. But it cannot die, either, and so lives forever trapped inside its metal prison, which (unless touched) is similar in appearance to any volcanic rock.

Kraken
Dwelling deep within the oceans of several Realms, Kraken, too, have not been seen in quite some time. They are territorial creatures who, in ancient times, would attack ships that they perceived as a threat. Kraken have a fair amount of magic inherent in them and are able to see perfectly in the dark abyss of the oceans. They're intelligent and tenacious, and can live to be quite ancient.

Trolls
There are several types of trolls. Some more than ten feet tall with two heads, some of them human-sized with an affinity for hiding. Trolls seem to have an ancestral hatred for humans, and will attack one on sight. They eat mostly the local wildlife, and have underground dens to call home. Their night-vision is extremely powerful, making venturing into their dens a risky proposition. In the heaviest winter months, trolls mostly keep to their dens — the Urdahl family believes that they hibernate — which gives nature a nice time to recuperate. Unlike Giants, who much more resemble Midgardians or Asgardians, Trolls look rather primitive, as if carved clumsily from stone.

Winter Wolves
Stellan Urdahl believed that they originally came from Niflheimr, the home Realm of the frost and rock giants. About six feet tall, when full grown, the winter wolves have a pack oriented mindset and never travel alone, usually hunting in groups of four or five. Their nickname comes from their white-blur, stiff-looking fur, which ice occasionally freezes onto. They also have exceptionally huge, amber-colored eyes. Unlike trolls, they aren't always a threat, and peaceful encounters have been recorded. Winter wolves are magical beasts, inherently, and are completely unaffected by the cold.

races

Some of the races to be found in the 9 Realms. (¤ denotes races that Meja hasn't encountered yet.)

Æsir
The primary race of Asgard, Æsir are immortals who can only die in battle with other immortals. Most of them, more or less, resemble the humans of Midgard. They are uniformly good with magic, and are much stronger than beings of their size should be. Their technology is significantly behind where Midgard was before Fimbulvetr, but their magic and forgery is much better. They are a clan of gods focused on war and power, and are constantly at odds with the Vanir from Vanaheimr (Asgard's Queen, Frigg, is a Vanir who was a peace offering long ago to Odin).
Unknown to humankind on Midgard, an Æsir's immortality is, in fact, a gift and not an inherent quality of their being. Within them nestles a tiny fragment of the energy that exists within Yggdrasil, the World Tree. This energy protects them — literally protects their very souls — and as a result, for the most part, only someone with the same protection can kill another with it. This is why most of the gods appear immortal and do not age past maturity. (Some, like Odin, deal with forces so powerful that their appearance ages anyway.) There is one exception, and this is an arrow carved from bark harvested at the bottom of Yggdrasil — bark soaked in the void between Realms. This is what killed Baldr.

Dark Elves (Dökkálfar)
Coming from deep within Midgard, unlike their kin, the Light Elves (who come from Alfheimr), Dark Elves are especially clever with magic — particularly with Seid magic. Seid deals with manipulation and trickery; incantations are spoken, or whispered, aloud and some casters choose to dance in a circular manner. Odin himself is said to have used it. Though Seid is a very primal and old magic, it's very powerful and can be used to enter the dreams of sleepers (among other things). Dark Elves are tall, about six foot on average, and have skin darker than black, as though their skin somehow absorbs the light around them. Even their hair and eyes are black. Often, their only giveaway is the white-grey of their teeth. They have lean, willowy frames — deft and quick in a fight — and wear dark but light-weighted clothing and armor. Dark Elves specialize in ambush rather than prolonged fighting, with magic, and can tire easily.

Giants / Jotunn
Ancient and, in modern times, quite rare, giants truly live up to their name. At least three stories tall, their children are seven feet tall even shortly after birth. Giants come in three varieties. The most commonly seen in Norway are the Rock Giants, which have dark and craggy skin much like their name; they specialize in throwing boulders at opponents. Rock Giants only have a primitive society (they don't even have a language — just gestures), and are, generally speaking, loners. Another king of Giant are the Frost Giants, who hail from the freezing and dark Realm of Niflheimr. As pale as the snow, Frost Giants have a much better-developed society and an actual sense of fighting strategy, complete with an actual king, Thrym. Whenever they appear on Midguard, it is to terrorize the occupants. Unlike Trolls, which are much more crudely shaped, Giants more closely resemble Midguardians or Æsir/Vanir — just on a much larger scale. The last kind of giant (Jotunn) are the Fire Giants of Muspellsheimr, who almost exactly resemble Æsir except for size. They have a love of heat true to their name, and are usually talented with fire magic.

Light Elves (Ljósálfar) ¤
Living in Alfheimr, a kind and temperate Realm, Light Elves are fair beings who live at peace with nature. Like Dark Elves, not much is known about their society — or even about their Realm itself. They keep to themselves, not bothering other Realms and not leaving their own very much.

Vanir
The other clan of gods, Vanir hail from Vanaheimr and are constantly at odds with the Æsir. Like Æsir, they are immortals who can only die in battle with other immortals, and have uncommonly high strength. In addition, Vanir usually have some sort of extra-sensory ability, such as Frigg's foretelling dreams or Heimdall's incredible vision. Vanir society is much more focused on introspection and free-thinking, rather than the Æsir focus on war. They are aware of the energy from Yggdrasil that protects them, and venerate it.