Midgard

Midgard, known in Old Norse as Midgardr and also called the Northlands, was one of the Nine Realms of the World Tree and the home of mortals. Set halfway between Asgard, to which it was joined by the Bifrost, and Helheim, where most of the dead ended up, Midgard was the cornerstone of the Norse realms and a balance point between order and chaos. It was created long ago by the All-Father Odin from the body of the first giant, Ymir, and shaped to accommodate mankind. It became the home of Kratos after he left Greece, and the birthplace of his son Atreus.

Creation and early history#

After Odin and his brothers Vili and Ve slew the first giant Ymir, Odin shaped the realm of Midgard from Ymir's torn flesh, and from this act he created the first humans, Ask and Embla, the first Midgardians. The realm became home to many creatures, most notably the World Serpent Jormungandr, who grew so large he could wrap around Midgard and bite his own tail. Many kingdoms and communities arose, but the mortals' constant desire to die gloriously and reach Valhalla made war a recurring theme that kept the realm from flourishing as the others did.

In an effort to bring peace, all the races of the Nine Realms gathered under the leadership of the Norse god of war, Tyr, to build his temple on an island in the Lake of Nine. It was the last great act of cooperation between the realms, and while it stood, anyone could travel freely between worlds. After Odin's treachery was discovered and he was expelled from the giants' realm, Tyr removed the realm travel tower for Jotunheim and hid it in the Realm Between Realms so that Odin could never enter, sealing the path to protect the Jotnar. When Odin denounced the temple and sealed the paths to several realms, Midgard was condemned to stagnation and decline.

A lawless and frozen land#

After centuries of isolation, Midgard became a lawless place where the weak were destined for the depths of Helheim, made worse by harsh winters. Its infrastructure fell into ruin and the Draugr took over entire regions. The Aesir came to regard the realm as their personal playground, and any mortal who showed insufficient deference forfeited his life. The appearance of the World Serpent had caused a great flood, and the disappearance of the Valkyries left the dead unable to reach Valhalla, so the undead Hel-Walkers and Draugr came to dominate the land. Despite this, Midgard remained home to abundant wildlife in its forests, mountains, and fjords.

Kratos and the journey of the ashes#

Centuries after the destruction of Olympus, Kratos lived a secluded life in the Northlands. After many years of solitude he met Faye, a fierce warrior, and the two fell in love and built a cabin in the Wildwoods. Faye bore him a son, Atreus, and taught the boy to hunt and to read the Nordic language. When Faye died, she asked that her ashes be spread from the highest peak in the Nine Realms. Kratos felled a tree she had marked with her handprint using the Leviathan Axe, the weapon she had left him, and built her funeral pyre. Father and son then set out across Midgard on their journey, which in time would lead them far beyond the mortal realm. In the wake of Baldur's death, the great winter of Fimbulwinter was triggered, and the heavy snows took hold of Midgard.

Fimbulwinter and Ragnarok#

Three years later, Fimbulwinter had become a brutal and unending winter, with blizzards a daily occurrence and the Lake of Nine frozen solid, locking down Tyr's Temple and preventing travel between realms. Hel-Walkers and strange new beasts roamed the land. Odin, long aware of the foreign god in his realm and the threat he posed, finally decided to deal with the Ghost of Sparta. It was the intervention of Kratos and Atreus during Ragnarok that prevented the fall of Midgard. With the destruction of Asgard and the death of Odin, the great winter ceased, the skies cleared, and the mortal realm was at last free to thrive once more.