The Norse Pantheon
Where the land plummets from the snowy hills into the icy fjords below, where the longboats draw up on to the beach, where the glaciers flow forward and retreat with every fall and spring—this is the land of the Vikings, the home of the Norse pantheon. It’s a brutal clime, and one that calls for brutal living. The warriors of the land have had to adapt to the harsh conditions in order to survive, but they haven’t been too twisted by the needs of their environment. Given the necessity of raiding for food and wealth, it’s surprising the mortals turned out as well as they did. Their powers reflect the need these warriors had for strong leadership and decisive action. Thus, they see their deities in every bend of a river, hear them in the crash of the thunder and the booming of the glaciers, and smell them in the smoke of a burning longhouse.
The Norse pantheon includes two main families, the Aesir (deities of war and destiny) and the Vanir (gods of fertility and prosperity). Once enemies, these two families are now closely allied against their common enemies, the giants (including the gods Surtur and Thrym).
Norse Deities
| Deity | Alignment | Suggested Domains | Symbol |
|---|---|---|---|
| Odin, god of knowledge and war | NG | Knowledge, War | Watching blue eye |
| Aegir, god of the sea and storms | NE | Tempest | Rough ocean waves |
| Balder, god of beauty and poetry | NG | Life, Light | Gem-encrusted silver chalice |
| Forseti, god of justice and law | N | Light | Head of a bearded man |
| Frey, god of fertility and the sun | NG | Life, Light | Ice-blue greatsword |
| Freya, goddess of fertility and love | NG | Life | Falcon |
| Frigga, goddess of birth and fertility | N | Life, Light | Cat |
| Heimdall, god of watchfulness and loyalty | LG | Light, War | Curling musical horn |
| Hel, goddess of the underworld | NE | Death | Woman’s face, rotting on one side |
| Hermod, god of luck | CN | Trickery | Winged scroll |
| Loki, god of thieves and trickery | CE | Trickery | Flame |
| Njord, god of sea and wind | NG | Nature, Tempest | Gold coin |
| Odur, god of light and the sun | CG | Light | Solar disk |
| Sif, goddess of war | CG | War | Upraised sword |
| Skadi, god of earth and mountains | N | Nature | Mountain peak |
| Surtur, god of fire giants and war | LE | War | Flaming sword |
| Thor, god of storms and thunder | CG | Tempest, War | Hammer |
| Thrym, god of frost giants and cold | CE | War | White double-bladed axe |
| Tyr, god of courage and strategy | LN | Knowledge, War | Sword |
| Uller, god of hunting and winter | CN | Nature | Longbow |