Hrungnir
the stone giant called the Brawler
Hrungnir was a Jotunn born without head or heart, his body completed with stone, who became a drunken plaything in Odin's court before Thor crushed his skull with Mjolnir. His true story showed how myth was made from ugly truth.
Hrungnir, called the Brawler, was a Jotunn of the Norse realms whose shrine among the giants depicted him as a mighty warrior fighting off the Aesir. The truth, as Mimir told Kratos and Atreus, was far uglier, a lesson in how legend was made to hide what truly happened in the halls of Odin. (God of War (2018))
The stone giant#
Hrungnir was born with neither head nor heart, and so the giants completed his body with stone. Though this gave him incredible strength, it left him a simpleton, and he grew into a powerful but gullible creature. Mimir names him Hrungnir the Brawler. One day while wandering Midgard he was met by Odin, who was so amused by the stone giant's foolish nature that he invited Hrungnir to his hall in Asgard to entertain his court. (God of War (2018))
The feast in Asgard#
In Asgard, Odin plied Hrungnir with mead and goaded him into all manner of boasts and antics for the court's amusement. Having drunk his fill, the drunken giant grew rowdy, leaping upon his shield and swearing that he would kill the Aesir and carry their women back to Jotunheim. The Aesir only laughed, taking his threats as a joke. Then Thor arrived, took one look at the drunken buffoon, and was not amused in the slightest. He brought down Mjolnir on Hrungnir's head with such force that chunks of the stone giant became buried in Thor's own skull. (God of War (2018))
The truth behind the myth#
Startled by the faceful of rock, Thor did not notice Hrungnir's enormous corpse topple onto him until it landed with a sickening crunch, to the roaring laughter of the whole court. None of Odin's men were strong enough to free the thunder god, and Thor himself, his brain rattled and his breath shallow, was no help. Then Magni and Modi, the sons of Thor and no taller than shrubs at the time, entered the hall and effortlessly flipped over the stone giant, freeing their father. Only Magni was given credit, simply because he was the blonder of the two, which left Modi bitterly jealous of his brother from that day to the end. Mimir alone had witnessed both boys do the deed, and he later told the true tale to teach Atreus that truth is seldom so pretty as myth and legend. (God of War (2018))
Frequently asked questions
- Who was Hrungnir in Norse mythology of God of War?
- Hrungnir, called the Brawler, was a Jotunn born with neither head nor heart, so the giants completed his body with stone. The stone gave him incredible strength but left him a simpleton, and Mimir remembers him as Hrungnir the Brawler.
- Why did Odin invite Hrungnir to Asgard?
- While wandering Midgard, Hrungnir was met by Odin, who was so amused by the stone giant's foolish, gullible nature that he invited him to his hall in Asgard to entertain the court. There Odin plied him with mead and goaded him into boasts and antics for the court's amusement.
- How did Hrungnir die?
- After drinking his fill, the rowdy giant leaped upon his shield and swore he would kill the Aesir and carry off their women, which the court took as a joke. Then Thor arrived, was not amused, and brought down Mjolnir on Hrungnir's head with such force that chunks of the stone giant became buried in Thor's own skull.
- What happened after Hrungnir was killed?
- Hrungnir's enormous corpse toppled onto Thor, and none of Odin's men were strong enough to free the thunder god. Thor's young sons Magni and Modi, no taller than shrubs at the time, entered the hall and flipped over the stone giant to free their father, but only Magni was given credit because he was the blonder of the two, leaving Modi bitterly jealous.
- What lesson did Mimir draw from Hrungnir's story?
- Hrungnir's shrine among the giants depicted him as a mighty warrior fighting off the Aesir, but the truth was far uglier. Mimir, who had witnessed the events, told the true tale to teach Atreus that truth is seldom so pretty as myth and legend.
Sources
- GameGod of War (2018), Santa Monica Studio, 2018
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Followed from this entry
Atreus (Loki): Kratos's Son and the Truth of His Name
Atreus was the son of Kratos and the Jotunn Faye, born in Midgard and given the hidden name Loki. Across two great journeys he grew from a sickly boy into the prophesied champion of the Giants, the god of mischief whose fate was bound to Ragnarok.
Kratos
Kratos was the demigod son of Zeus who rose from a Spartan general to the Greek God of War, destroyed the pantheon of Olympus in a quest for vengeance, and then began again in the Norse realms as a father seeking to leave his bloody past behind.
Mimir
Mimir was a Celtic fae who rose to become Odin's advisor and the ambassador of the Aesir before the All-Father imprisoned him for over a century. Freed and reanimated as a disembodied head by Kratos and Atreus, he became their guide, conscience, and friend across the Nine Realms.
The Aesir
The Aesir were one of the two tribes of Norse gods, natives of Asgard known for their war-like nature and their hunger for knowledge. Descended from the slain primordial Ymir and ruled by Odin, they claimed dominion over all creation, waging genocide upon the Jotnar and war upon the Vanir before their fall in Ragnarok.
Asgard
Asgard was the realm of the Aesir gods, perched in the crown of Yggdrasil and ruled by Odin from the hall of Gladsheim. Behind the great wall of Hrimthur it stood as a fortress against the prophesied doom of Ragnarok, until Kratos breached it and the realm fell.
Jotunheim: where Tyr hid the last giants
Tyr sealed the giants' homeland away as Odin hunted the Jotnar to extinction. Kratos and Atreus reached it at last to scatter Faye's ashes there.
Mentioned in5 entries
Bergelmir: the Beloved King of the Giants
Bergelmir was a Frost Giant who, with his wife, alone survived the flood of Ymir's blood that drowned the rest of his race. He found a new land, named it Jotunheim, and repopulated the Jotnar as its king, refusing all vengeance against Odin. He died of old age surrounded by his kin and was remembered ever after as Bergelmir the Beloved.
Jotnar: the giants Odin nearly wiped out
The Jotnar were the oldest race of the Norse cosmos, gifted with precognition. Odin envied that gift, forged Mjolnir, and set Thor to exterminate them.
Magni: Thor's eldest son, killed by Kratos
Magni was Thor's firstborn and Odin's favoured grandson. He hunted Kratos and Atreus with Baldur, and Kratos buried an axe in his skull at Thamur's corpse.
Modi: Thor's second son, killed by Atreus
Modi lived in the shadow of his brother Magni. After Magni died, Thor beat him nearly to death for cowardice, and Atreus stabbed him in the neck.
Thor: Odin's enforcer, killed by Odin
Odin ordered Thor to wipe out the giants of Midgard with Mjolnir. When Thor finally refused to fight, his father ran him through with Gungnir.
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