Norse Pantheon of Mystara
by Marco DalmonteOkay guys, as I anticipated I am about to talk about the Norse pantheon of Mystara.
I have based my conclusions on two facts:
1. Odin and Hel come from Laterre (Dimension of Myth), and their influence over the Antalians and the Northmen has generated a series of myths which closely resemble the RW Asgardian epic.
2. The deities mentioned in the Norse Mythoi are always tied to specific individuals and/or gods who performed great deeds in the Antalian region during their mortal or immortal life (like Donar, Korrigans, Fredar and Fredara).
AS such, I have hypothesised that the RW Viking pantheon has been re-established almost completely by Odin and Hel in Mystara, with just some minor changes. This pantheon is the base of the Antalian Cult, and should be worshipped in the Northern Reaches, Heldann (secretly), Wendar, Norwold, parts of Isle of Dawn, Qeodhar, Antalia and probably even in Nentsun.
Now, since Odin wanted to be the Head of the pantheon, in his version of the creation myths he is responsible for giving mortals the breath of life and waging war against Jotun (Ymir), the first giant. Odin himself was created by the ur-cow Audhumla, which licked his body out of Niflheim's ice and gave him life.
When Audhumla died later, from her guts came forth Erda (Fulla), from her heart came Frigg, from her tears formed Nooga (Njord) and from her last breath, frozen in Niflheim, took shape Hel.
Nooga and Erda are the forefathers of the Vanirs, while Frigg married Odin and together they sired the Aesir and Asinye (it's a bit more complex than this actually, but I'm trying to be short).
After the war with Jotun, Odin took the corpse of the giant and created the universe and the dwarves, while Jotun's surviving children became the giants.
The light elves (ljosalfar) were the children of Frey and the giantess Gerd, while the dark elves (dokkalfar or svartalfar) were the children of the dwarf Ivaldi and some elves who were cast away from Asgard for their crimes and went living underground, worshipping Hel.
The humans get to rule over Midgard, while the giants over Jotunheim, the light elves took Alfheim (aka Ljossalfheim), the Aesir lived in Asgard and Vanirs in Vanaheim. Hel was given rule over Niflheim, Land of the Mists, where she gathers the souls of those who do not die bravely, and Surt (one of Jotun's get) reigned over primeval Muspelheim. Thus were the worlds of Yggdrasil shaped.
Hel then insisted on mating with Odin and Nooga to seal their peace and approve of the division of the worlds. From Odin she begot Loki the Trickster, while from Nooga she got Nott (goddess of night) and Gullveig (goddess of witchcraft). Each child went to live with his or her father.
[Note that according to RW myths, Loki is in fact Hel's father, while Nott is Njord's mother. However, since Hel and Protius/Nooga are more powerful and ancient in Mystara than Loki and Nyx, their positions have been reversed.]
Later a war erupted between Aesirs and Vanirs because of Gullveig, which offended the Aesirs in their own house and Loki tricked them into burning her for avenging the insult only to inherit her magical gifts. Gullveig's soul was then taken by Hel, who reincarnated her into Angrboda, the ogre-witch who dwells in the Iron Forest and has sired all the witches and trolls of the world (and who is the mother of the wolf Garm and Fenris and the Midgard Serpent, horrendous creatures she bore from Loki).
The Vanirs considered the death of Gullveig an insult, and the war began. Only after Odin travelled through the universe and drank at Mimir's well did the war end. In fact, when he returned, he unveiled he had gazed into the future and this had cost him his left eye. But in turn, he saw that all the gods were doomed to meet their end at Ragnarok, so it was useless to fight among them now. His wisdom prevailed and the Vanirs and Aesirs called a truce, sealing it with some marriages between Odin's sons and Nooga's daughters.
Later, Loki tricked the blind god Hod to kill Balder and his wife Nanna was so heartbroken that she killed herself in order to go to Hel with her husband. Odin was forced to sire two more sons to avenge this offence: thus Vali and Vidarr were born, and Vali killed Hod to punish him for his crime.
But the prophecy of Odin has that after Ragnarok, Hod, Balder and Nanna will come again into the world that has been reshaped, and will rule in peace over it, together with the survivors of the Ragnarok, the sons of the gods (Vali, Vidarr, Forseti, Magni and Modi).
Note: there are 12 months like the 12 Aesirs, and there are 24 hours in a day because the Aesirs + Asinye are 24, according to the Norse myths. Also, each day was sacred to one of the gods.
So these are the 12 Aesir and the 12 Asinyie:
Aesir
Odin = Odin (wisdom, authority, knowledge, storms, skies, magic)
Tyr = Ixion (war, justice, power, heroism)
Balder = Pax (light, joy, peace, beauty, wisdom, forgiveness, harmony)
Thor = Thor (battle, bravery, honour, strength)
Hod = Dreaming Seer (one of the Korrigans) (darkness, winter, prophecy)
Hermod = Eternal Wanderer (one of the Korrigans) (travels, boldness, messengers)
Loki = Loki (deceit, change, treachery, cunning, fire, magic)
Heimdall = Watchful Champion (one of the Korrigans) (defence, patience, loyalty, guardians)
Bragi = Divine Singer (one of the Korrigans) (eloquence, poetry, ballads)
Forseti = Forsetta (justice, peace, order)
Vidar = Halav (strength, loyalty, sacrifice)
Vali = Gorm (just revenge, justice, war)
Asinye
Frigg = Terra (fertility, prosperity, protection)
Sjofn = Valerias (love, passion, desire)
Saga = Grammaton (knowledge, legends, history, memory)
Var = Tarastia (justice, honesty, trust, just retribution)
Nanna = Thalia (motherhood, family, love, harmony)
Gefjon = Virgin of Prosperity (one of the Korrigans) (nature, fertility, crops, virgins)
Eir = Wise Healer (one of the Korrigans) (healing, medicine, health)
Hlin = Keeper of Souls (one of the Korrigans) (solace, protection, guardian of souls)
Snotra = Maat (virtue, integrity, honesty, self-restraint)
Syn = Petra (guardianship, sacrifice, loyalty)
Sif = Madarua (fertility, crops, courage)
Idunn = Spring Maiden (one of the Korrigans) (youth, beauty, eternal life)
Note: Idunn is Bragi's wife, Sif is Thor's wife, Nanna is Balder's wife.
Coincidentally enough, the Spring Maiden and the Divine Singer are both Korrigans (could have been in love in mortal life).
Madarua is one of Thor's sponsored immortals (together with Bemarris and Bartziluth, who play his sons) and we can assume she's his lover.
Thalia and Pax mysteriously disappeared in the Vortex, much like their mythological aliases of Balder and Nanna, who went to Hel but are still considered alive and will return one day to inherit the new world.
Vanir
Nooga (Njord) = Protius (water, fertility, nature)
Erda (Fulla) = Djaea (nature, fertility, plants and animals)
Frey = Frey (fertility, peace, manhood, courage, happiness, ripeness)
Freyja = Freyja (sexuality, fertility, magic, love)
Uller = Silent Hunter (one of the Korrigans) (archery, hunting, snow & skiers, woods)
Aegir = Hymir (sea, prosperity, sailors, abundance, brewing)
Ran = Kallala (sea, death at sea, malice)
Nott = Nyx (night, darkness)
Gullveig = Demogorgon (witchcraft)
Enemies
Hel = Hel (death, corruption, cold)
Angrboda = Demogorgon (witchcraft, monsters, curses, trolls)
Ivaldi = Atzanteotl (corruption, svartalfars)
Jotun = Ouranos (giants and giantkin)
Surt = Zugzul (fire giants, destruction, war)
Others
Norns = Urd, Verthandi & Skuld
Mimir (all-wise giant) = Brom or Noumena
Tiuz (aka Dain, Light Elves' King) = Ilsundal
Modsognir (Dwarves' King) = Kagyar
Volund (gods' smith) = Wayland
Modi (Thor's son) = Bartziluth
Magni (Thor's son) = Bemarris
Note: Dain is the light elves' king (Frey is also renowned for being the elves' king in Norse myths, but here he is "only" their father). However I used the name Tiuz to tie in with Ilsundal's identity in Eusdria, which in fact is a nation whose culture derives partly from the Norse-Antalians and partly from the Celtic-Antalians (the same stock that colonised the Isle of Dawn and was enslaved and moved to Davania by the Nithians, and later became the Thratians of the Thyatian Hinterlands).
As a sidenote, I have changed a bit the Nine Korrigans to fit my needs for the Norse deities. Hope you all won't be too mad about me (especially Thorf, since he'll have to change Wendar's map once again).