Hildisvini

Hildisvini was a Vanir god, a master archer, and the advisor to Freya. Exiled to Midgard by Odin, he was trapped in the form of a boar and lived as Freya's friend during her years in the Wildwoods, where Kratos and Atreus first encountered him. (God of War (2018); God of War Ragnarök)

Exile in Midgard#

Hildisvini was exiled to Midgard alongside Freya, but unlike her he remained locked in his boar form. The two lived together in the Wildwoods alongside the turtle Chaurli, and Freya often reminded him of his home in Vanaheim so that he would not forget himself entirely. (God of War (2018); God of War Ragnarök)

The wounded boar#

Crossing through a cave in the River Pass, Kratos found a set of boar tracks and decided the animal would make good practice for Atreus. They pursued Hildisvini through an abandoned village, and after his hide turned aside the first arrow, Atreus eventually managed to pierce him. The wounded boar fled until he collapsed, and Kratos heard a woman screaming at Atreus for hurting him. Reaching the Sanctuary Grove, they met Freya, the Witch of the Woods, tending her bleeding friend. Unable to fully close the wound, she asked Kratos and Atreus to carry the boar to her home, where she finished healing him with their help. Afterward she told them his name and revealed that he was not from Midgard, and that he had been stuck in his boar form so long that he was forgetting who he had been. (God of War (2018))

Return to the Vanir#

By the time of Ragnarok, whether before or as a result of Fimbulwinter, Hildisvini had returned to his Vanir form. When Kratos and Atreus came back to Vanaheim to help Freya, they found Freyr's camp seemingly deserted until Hildisvini appeared with his bow drawn. He quickly recognized the Ghost of Sparta and his son from their meeting three years earlier and welcomed the unexpected reunion. He and Mimir traded sharp insults, an old rivalry between the two counselors, and he lifted his shirt to show Atreus the scar from the arrow that had once wounded him, having long since forgiven the boy. He explained that the Einherjar presence had grown and that the celestial wolves had gone missing with no moon in the sky. (God of War Ragnarök)

The war and after#

After the moon was returned to the sky, Hildisvini and Atreus infiltrated the Temple of Njord, where Heimdall and his Einherjar held Freyr prisoner, and rescued him while Kratos battled and killed Heimdall. On the eve of Ragnarok, Hildisvini was tasked with recruiting the Army of the Dead from Helheim by negotiating with Hraesvelgr, and asked for Mimir's company, reasoning that the deal would go better with someone who had already died once. (God of War Ragnarök)

After Ragnarok, Hildisvini was seen in Vanaheim coordinating with Sif, now leader of the remaining Aesir, to bring the surviving refugees in. Their efforts began rocky, but with permanent peace established between Vanir and Aesir, they set about breaking the cycle of hatred Odin had set between the two tribes long ago. (God of War Ragnarök)

Nature and abilities#

Hildisvini was a Jofurr, one of the boar-shifting Vanir warriors prized for their wisdom, and could change his form at will, though Odin's exile had trapped him as a boar for years. In that form his skin bore golden markings and his eyes glowed blue. He was renowned as a master of the bow, a supreme hunter and long-range warrior. Because of his role he was often regarded as the Vanir counterpart to Mimir, and after the war Freya hoped that both Hildisvini and Sif would one day join her council. (God of War (2018); God of War Ragnarök; God of War Ragnarök: Valhalla)