Lore

HUNT HIS KIN

Eikthyrnir

This land is hard and wild but we who are brought here are harder still. Take comfort, traveller, in the gifts before you, the good wood and stone, the fruits and flowers of the forest. Look also to the wild boar who roam these lands. They fear fire and the hand of man but they can be taught to obey it. Go quietly to them and let them eat of your stock. Roots of the ground are their pleasure.

Runestone boars

Where the grass grows underfoot And the sky is blue overhead There will always be a hearth and a home

Runestone meadows

Long ages past, when the Allfather Oden united the worlds, he threw down the Vanir, the giants and those creatures older than any others. The greatest of them could not be killed but were instead Forsaken, exiled here to Valheim for eternity. When they tread the earth, the lesser creatures jump like crumbs on a drumskin. You will know them when you see them.

Runestone meadows

Give thanks to Frey for the rain and sun For the shoots that break the earth's skin And the fruits of the vine Give thanks to Oden for the flesh and bone The smoke from the cooking fire, the warm pelt And the strength of your arm

Runestone meadows

Hold, traveller, and bear witness to my warning. We are many who have come before you, carried here by Oden's will to do his work. The path ahead is hard and the dangers great. If you hold your life dear, keep to these meadows and make your dwelling away from the trees. Fear the Horned One and the creatures he will send against you.

Runestone meadows

Heed these words of Ulf, a poor settler in a strange land. You will find here good stone and wood, all you need to build a house. You will need to craft a roof to keep out the rain. Then you will need walls to stop the roof from falling down. Finally, you must have a door or it will be much harder to go in and out. These things Ulf has learned for himself. Now he writes them on this stone to help others. Pray to Oden for his soul.

Runestone meadows

I was Astrid, a shieldmaiden of the forest. I know nothing of my life before I came here but my arm remembers the sword and my eyes see the course of the arrow. Now the raven guides me and I fight the great beasts in Oden's name.

Runestone meadows

Blue-eyed shufflers in muck, the neck are small lizards native to Valheim. Surly and mean-spirited, they will attack on sight and must be destroyed like vermin. They stay near water because the creatures of the land loathe and abhor them. Yet no creature is all bad. Their tails are delicious.

Runestone meadows

Sisters and brothers of the shield-wall, lift up your hearts! You are the greatest warriors, chosen by the Allfather himself for your courage and valor. Now death has brought you to a land where you can remake yourselves in battle and toil, winning favor and honor from the Gods! Leave your memories to rot in Midgard along with your sins, the finest part of you is here!

Runestone meadows

On this spot a tree fell on my head and I cursed the Gods. So I leave this stone in praise of them, that they might forgive my reckless words.

Runestone meadows

Pause, traveler. You are well come to the last and most lawless of the Ten Worlds. In Valheim, the air is pure, the water deep and clear and the forests overflowing with bounty. Here is adventure, joy and glory for the taking!

Runestone meadows

A full belly A full sail The weight of a spear to your hand And a song on your lips Let all the mountains crumble And the seas boil to salt One day in the sun is a life well-lived.

Runestone meadows

Long ages past, he wore a crown Beneath a blood-red sky Now naught is left of all he was But his spirit cannot die

Start temple

Black wings across the moon and sun Down from the mountain our mother comes Her weeping tears will fall like rain Her voice will call us home again

Start temple

Wanderer, look to your feet That tread upon our tomb One thousand bones without their meat Will drag you to your doom

Start temple

First of the Forest, King-in-the-Wood Lord over those who dwell at his feet His roots will grow where cities once stood Their blood his wine, their flesh his meat

Start temple

His antlers are branches of iron They crack the rocks and bring down mountains His hooves are the sound of thunder His voice a howling gale

Start temple

BURN THEIR YOUNG

GDKing

Know, child unborn, that this was once the greatest kingdom in all Valheim. Here lived the Sons and Daughters of the King of the Emerald Flame. Beneath his wing, we knew strength and security. In his sight, we grew like green shoots. Now we set this stone among rubble and turn our backs on the land of our birth. May future ages take warning from us.

Runestone ashlands

In the forests of the far North, our scouts came across a sleeping boy, sitting naked in the deep snow with his back to a tree. They wrapped him in furs and brought him back to the king, asleep all the while with only his eyelids moving. We named him the Winter Child and we took him to be a good omen. May the gods have mercy on fools.

Runestone ashlands

It was known throughout the land that the two would often sit together as if in talk, the king coiled about the sleeping child with his face close, straining to catch any murmured words. Nobody knew what passed between them but all saw the change in the king. Justice flared into wrath and caution deepened into fear. Laws were passed that must be broken and each time the lawbreakers were punished more harshly. Tyranny came in a spiral, like a great storm.

Runestone ashlands

When the King of the Emerald Flame flew away to visit the wizard king of the Fulings, his own thegns rose against him and torched the palace with the Winter Child inside. All of us who were alive at that time heard the shriek that sounded for the nine days of the fire and echoed in the city's streets for many weeks longer. Those were the last good days any of us knew, before the return of our king.

Runestone ashlands

When the king saw the charred remains of his great hall, he swore to show his foes a fire far greater than the little spark they had kindled. With his breath, he razed our city to the ground and then brought war to all the land. Some of the people stayed faithful to the king but many sought to quench his fury. Brothers fought against brothers, sisters against sisters. The Kingdom of the Emerald Flame tore itself apart. Now only these charred ruins remain, within which not even the dead can find rest.

Runestone ashlands

The stones tell of a great tragedy in this land, many centuries ago. It is hard to believe the creature who stalks this ruined city was once a noble beast and a wise king. Yet we will not stay our hands on this account. When we kill him, we will count it a mercy.

Runestone ashlands

I have not been happy for more than a day in any place since I came here but this place is the worst of all. Most things are on fire and the fishing is not good. These are the words of Ulf.

Runestone ashlands

The pure fire of a grand drake has the power to give life and quicken the dead earth. Once, they blessed the land and seas with their cleansing flame, bringing new life wherever they passed. But for those who are burned by a drake's fire, the blessing is a curse. They are killed and quickened at the same time, caught forever between death and life. Such are the unfortunate souls who wander this ruined land, with flames for flesh and agony in every moment. They cannot be destroyed, only pitied.

Runestone ashlands

If the tales are true, the gods long ago abandoned this world. The King of the Emerald Flame was the closest to a god we knew but our prayers to him have turned to ashes in our mouths. This is the last of our strongholds and in the morning we will die defending it. We offer no more prayers and wish only for clean, free deaths, unburned by the flame.

Runestone ashlands

It is folly for the free folk to say they need no gods. Nobody needs gods and the gods need no one. They owe nothing to men. But still the wise will seek the powerful as vines will seek a mighty tree to climb. We give our swords to the King of the Emerald Flame because without him there is only death.

Runestone ashlands

War is a fire And men are fuel. When the heart-blaze kindles Their bodies are dry wood.

Runestone ashlands

I am Astrid of the Long Arm. I came here after much hardship to fight the beast and break the curse that keeps me here. The raven has returned a memory to me and it will not let me rest. I will die as many times as I need to die to see my son again.

Runestone ashlands

I have watched many warriors throw themselves against the beast again and again, losing a little of their will each time until their beds lie empty. If this is my fate, so be it. These are the words of Björn, who was once a farmer.

Runestone ashlands

Beware the deep trees, beware the true dark. When the night comes, keep close to your fire.

Runestone black forest

Beneath the ground, the roots of the forest twine together on a great loom. Pluck one thread and the whole weave will move. Chop down one tree and all the wood will know. Make yourself known to the One Who Walks, and he will seek you out.

Runestone black forest

I was Harald, a man from the coast. I remember nothing more of my life in Midgard except that I was a warrior. In my dreams I see the faces of those I killed. I leave this stone that at least my name will remain.

Runestone black forest

Rest awhile and remember Ulf, who carved this stone with his own hand but could think of nothing to say.

Runestone black forest

Beware the Old One. The ravens say that in ages past he was a shoot of great Yggdrasil itself and a force of wisdom in the days when men and trees were friends. Now he scorns the axe and sets himself against the works of the Gods themselves. Oden banished him here for his pride but his roots are deep.

Runestone black forest

We who were carried here by the Valkyrie are not the first men in this land. I have seen with my own eyes the halls they made beneath the ground and the ruins of their towers. Will the same fate await us?

Runestone black forest

Eight were the creatures banished to this world by mighty Oden in the first days of his kingship. Eight Gods and monsters too proud to bear his yoke. I have heard the tread of the Old Ones in the forest and have crouched in the shadow of the Mountain Mother when she flies. Of the others I know little. I will add to this stone when I have seen more.

Runestone black forest

The trolls of Midgard may be fading from your memory, as indeed they are from all the race of man. Few and forlorn, they crouch in damp caves and gnaw on the bones of the weak and foolhardy. The will of Oden has pushed them back into the dark places. But in Valheim they have flourished. It has been centuries since any in Midgard saw the great trolls stamp flat the land and bring down the trees for joy. Look upon this great and noble sight, wanderers in a strange land! Then take to your heels and run...

Runestone black forest

Raised by the Old Man of the Forest from seeds of sin, the greydwarfs clothe themselves in the human forms they once knew, but there is no longer any warmth in their hearts. They live now only to serve the Elder and to protect the wood. Do not let pity for them stay your hand.

Runestone black forest

Which among you was a murderer, a kin-slayer, a renegade? Who turned a blade in their brother's back? Who tore babes from their mothers' arms, set fire to the houses of the plundered? Consider it a blessing that you remember nothing. Each among you is a great warrior, and warriors' souls are never clean. But Oden has gifted you a second chance... Praise the Allfather!

Runestone black forest

Look to the sky where mighty Yggdrasil reaches out, called by the Forsaken Ones to join itself once more with this wayward world. It is a glorious sight but a dreadful one. For as the great tree bends out across the void, its branches strain and crack, felt in the remaining nine worlds as quakings of the earth, great storms and holy fires. The Forsaken must be slain and balance restored.

Runestone black forest

Astrid will not look at me twice. I leave this stone to honour great Freya. O goddess, grant me a beard like Bjorn's that I might win her heart!

Runestone black forest

I have been reborn many times in this world. I have died again and again only to awaken in my own house. Yet still I wonder how many more times I will return like this. Frida was taken by a serpent and her bed lies empty still. Bjarni was bitten in half by a troll and neither half has been seen since... All around are the ruins of those who came before us but where are the hands that built them? Perhaps, when a warrior loses the will to remain here, they can no longer return...

Runestone black forest

Let all who read me beware of the Greydwarfs, the skulkers in darkness, the soulless ones. They are born from rot and rainfall, they spring like mushrooms from the smoking soil. There is nothing on their tongues or behind their eyes, those who fear nothing should still fear them. When the soul of a murderer or a great sinner rots under the ground, it makes a hollow cyst which draws rock and wood and moss to it. It gathers up the peat into flesh, braids reeds into bone and takes rags for skin. It should not walk but when the night comes it walks. Should you who read this see one with a sword to your hand, lance it and let it out. Or put it to the torch, for it fears the flame.

Runestone greydwarfs

COOK THEIR REMAINS

Bonemass

Long ages ago, the world of Valheim was home to a race of proud and noble people. They built great towers which touched the clouds and delved deep into the earth for precious metals. But their pride was their undoing. They challenged the very Gods and went to war against the Aesir and the Vanir, destroying themselves completely. Great Oden levelled their cities and Loki consumed their mines in fire. Mighty Thor broke down their towers and Freya sowed their fields with salt tears. Now they are sunk many hundreds of years deep. No songs sing of their stories, and the earth has claimed their cities. But pride cannot be killed entirely and the warriors who fought in that final battle will not surrender until their bodies are dust and the dust long gone. They return as Draugr, unholy walkers in ancient armour, creatures of rust and despair. Break them, bury them, let them know they are dead.

Runestone draugr

Heed the words of poor Ulf and do not build your house beside the murky waters. Bad dreams and a soggy bed are all you will find. I leave this stone as a warning and go now to make my dwelling on higher ground.

Runestone swamps

Linger not, traveller. The air is pestilent and the water poison. The Draugr walk here and the thing I will not name stirs below the surface, a bitter mass of bone and sin. Tread carefully and quickly until you feel the sun on your face once more.

Runestone swamps

In this gloomy region you may yet find something which shines. War-flesh, warrior's gold, bread of the forge... Bright iron is here for those who will take it!

Runestone swamps

You who pass, remember me. I am a man whose home was once in the mountains of Midgard, carried here when I thought to earn my rest, to find a life after life in Valheim. There were seven of us before the Greydwarfs came. Now Oden will not hear me and the seas refuse me. Soon this stone will be all that remains.

Runestone swamps

Beware the surtlings, embers of a great fire long ago stamped to ashes. They are drawn to the swamp in numbers but their lights can be seen from afar. Keep to the high ground.

Runestone swamps

In centuries past, the Draugr walked these lands just as you do now. Pity them, caught between the living and the dead in a shadow of the world they once knew. To destroy them is a mercy.

Runestone swamps

Below the mist and murk Bone speaks to bone Remembering flesh.

Runestone swamps

For long ages, Oden's eye was turned from Valheim. Yet while the Gods ignored it, other creatures crept or fell through cracks into the forgotten world. Trolls, goblins and men found their way along these secret paths. Kingdoms rose and fell, and are buried deep beneath the ground. Walker among the dead, you tread a grave with every step.

Runestone swamps

At this place I killed seven of the draugr and ended their long years of fighting and misery. Now who will end mine?

Runestone swamps

I am Gudrun, no man's wife, no father's daughter. Only my name remains to me. But sometimes when I wake I feel the weight of a babe at my breast and I cry. Great Freya take pity on me.

Runestone swamps

Fear not that the Gods have abandoned you. Valheim drifts from the world tree and the Vanir cannot come in arms to this world but still they watch from afar. Keep them ever in your mind. If your faith is strong, they may send you a sign.

Runestone swamps

There is no death that does not bring new life. As worms feed on the battlefield, so did the great corpses of Oden's enemies bring new life to Valheim. Lesser creatures fed on their flesh, fattening themselves on the ancient magic that still clung to them. Their spirits trickled into the earth to renew the soil, or sought out new bodies for themselves. Do not scorn the dead, you who are dead yourself.

Runestone swamps

SACRIFICE HER SPAWN

Dragonqueen

Let you who read me be aware of the Frost wyrms, one of the most ancient kins sprung from Ymir's body. The most common form of the wyrm are the Drakes, the small males who care for the offspring. Most often they can be seen poised by rocky nests guarding the eggs. In contrast, the females are much larger and a rare sight to behold, but once angered they provide a vicious foe.

Drake lorestone

Few of us found our way to these mountains. We were twenty and now we are two. Agda is dying, a Draugr arrow lies near her heart. I will bid her farewell beside this stone and give her ashes to the wind. Then I will turn my face to the highest peak and seek out the Winged One. May Oden give me death or glory.

Runestone mountains

This marks the spot where the great drake was first seen by me, Ulf, in the third summer of my life in Valheim. She stopped here to leave a pile of dung holding the bones of deer, boar and the skull of a greydwarf. I will never come near this place again.

Runestone mountains

Halt and listen, traveller. On the highest peaks of Valheim, the air is thin and fragile. From here you can sometimes catch sounds from other places, the ring of battle on Midgard, the roar of a feast in Valhalla or the shriek of a Valkyrie as she crosses the space between the worlds.

Runestone mountains

Where this stands I once saw the great drake flying above me and I hid in a bush until she passed. Ulf the Brave carved this stone.

Runestone mountains

Let those who read me know not to tarry on these slopes, far from their hearth and the safety of the greenwood. The beasts of the mountains are fell and fierce, hungry for meat, and the worst of these beasts is the cold wind itself. Wear thick furs, build strong fires and keep your bow close at hand.

Runestone mountains

Great cities do not rise of themselves Harden your heart, settler in a strange land Build from the ground upwards

Runestone mountains

This stone was placed by me, Astrid, in my seventh year in Valheim. At this spot, the Allfather spoke to me. I awoke from a deep sleep to find his words scattered around me on the ground, frozen to pebbles by the deep cold. When I warmed them in my hands they thawed and spoke his message to me, one word after another. Slay the Forsaken. Chain their heads. I will come.

Runestone mountains

Watch for him in moonlight Haunter of the night. Soft of foot Sharp of tooth Slow to stalk Quick to bite.

Runestone mountains

When first I awoke in Valheim, I pleaded with Oden to show himself to me. Where was he? Why had he abandoned me? For many moons I braved storms and fierce beasts in search of answers. Where were the Gods? Was this to be my reward? Where was Oden? But now I know. When I pulled up the greydwarfs like weeds from a field or stamped out the surtlings like embers, I did Oden's work. And when I matched my strength against a great wyrm and smote off its head with one blow, I felt Oden's joy within me, deep and proud. We are Oden's hands, each one of us, and our worth in life is to work his will.

Runestone mountains

Upon this spot, Otho and Bjorn fought a mighty duel to decide who has the finest beard. Now I, Bjorn, must carve this stone to say that the beard of Otho is as bright and beautiful as a corn-field in summer. May almighty Thor tear my own beard from my face if I lie.

Runestone mountains

In Midgard of old, the armies of man pushed back the drakes from the mountains just as the Vanir threw down their mother and cast her into Valheim. But here they have recovered their strength and their numbers. The beat of their mighty wings echoes among the peaks. They are fierce and noble creatures, true foes worthy of battle. If they scorn to meet your blade, send your arrows to greet them.

Runestone mountains

In these mountains I cannot throw a spear without hitting something that wants to kill me. But from the heights I have seen sunny plains where life will be easier. I go now to make my home there. These are the words of Ulf.

Runestone mountains

There are friends in Valheim but you must seek them amongst your enemies. Old friends, fire-kin, moon-singers. For centuries they have hunted alongside you, now you must remind them of the old covenant between your people and theirs. Flesh is their delight and must be your offering.

Runestone mountains

AND HIS DYING SOUL WAS SPLIT AND SHARED AMONG ALL HIS KIN

Goblin king

Where no rain falls And no crops will grow Still the ground can give up treasures.

Runestone plains

This place was too hot for Ulf, a man used to brushing snow from his beard. He carved this stone and moved on.

Runestone plains

Still your mind, traveller. Oden speaks to those who listen. Here in this barren land, one of the Forsaken Ones dwells. He is an ancient sorcerer twisted by bitterness, dragging what remains of his broken body across the sands. Surely Oden will smile upon the warrior who can vanquish this abhorrence.

Runestone plains

In a land far from here I once saw a star come unfastened from the great curtain of night and fall into the sand. It glowed red when I approached but by morning was cool. Blessed sword-flesh, furnace-food, a gift of strong metal from the Gods!

Runestone plains

Good friend, lay your hand on this stone and remember Harald, who carved it. In Midgard I lost my life on the battlefield but in Valheim it was restored to me. Yet still my battles continued. In the green meadows I fought Eikthyr the Great Stag and lost an eye to his horns. In the deep woods I gave my shield hand to the Old Man of the Forest, and took a draugr arrow below my ribs that my fingers can still feel. On the mountainside I fought the Mother Drake and she bit off my leg at the knee so that I must walk always with a staff. Now my last battle must be at hand. When I sleep this time, where will I wake?

Runestone plains

In my dream, Oden came to me as an old man leaning on a stick, a wide-brimmed traveller’s hat on his head. He told me to trust the ravens who carry his words under their tongues and to carve this stone that others might know his will. We must kill the Forsaken to find our places in his hall at Valhalla.

Runestone plains

Beneath the ground are the halls of men and women long since gone, ancient tribes who lived in Valheim even before the Allfather turned his eye upon this place. Delve deep to find their treasures but beware, some amongst them do not yet know they are dead.

Runestone plains

From the mountaintop, this plains looked peaceful and pleasant. But I have found it worse than anywhere else. I always hear the buzzing of those thrice-damned insects. My beard has turned as white as snow. I will build a boat.

Runestone plains

What joy it is to roam abroad With the wind in your hair And a blue sky before you. And what joy it is To stand tall against your foes And speak plainly to the world. And then, what joy it is To come home from your travels And find the fire still bright in the hearth.

Runestone plains

On these plains, only the greatest survive to read my words and heed my advice. So heed me now. Great Oden is not a loving father, kind and gentle, speaking honeyed words. Nor is he a stern liege-lord, arms banded with gold, commanding his thralls on pain of death. He did not send you here to fight his foes for love or fear of him, but because his foes are your foes. His joy and honour are yours also. You will fight and win just as he once did. Sons and daughters of Oden, rejoice!

Runestone plains

Here on the plains you will find the dwellings of the Fuling, that ancient race who once built towers and cities to rival those of men until Oden punished them for their pride. He trampled the Fuling armies, their armour cracking like snail shells beneath his feet, and tore down their cities. Only Yagluth, the great sorcerer, would not bend or break before his fury. So Oden tore his body in half and cast the remains into Valheim, where he bled into the earth and crumbled to dust, wept over by the last of his people. Now the Fuling rule over the plains of Valheim, savage and wild with only hatred and fear in their hearts. But Yagluth is with them still, an unseen force that the Fuling shamans draw upon for their crooked magic, growing again in strength as his people spread across the world...

Runestone plains

The lox are mighty creatures, great earth-shakers who roamed the plains of Valheim long before the Forsaken were banished to this realm. They are quick to anger and will crush any who are foolish enough to approach them unguarded, but they have known the hand of man and can be taught to love it again.

Runestone plains

Know, traveler, that while you cannot die in the world of Valheim, yet you can cease to be reborn. Many are those who have come before you to work the will of Oden, only to find their own will failing...

Runestone plains

We sealed the door and scattered the key. Leave her be.

Dvergr boss entrance

Here lie the Jotunn, most ancient of all Oden's kin and fiercest of all his adversaries. In life they were bringers of ruin but now, in death, they nurture new growth. What is living must die, and what is dead must be born again.

Runestone mistlands

Where the air is thick with magic And the earth is quick with life, The mist breeds wonders.

Runestone mistlands

Trust nothing in the mist. I passed through here in a group of seven people but every time we stopped to count, we counted eight. We do not know who the eighth was, but by morning they were gone.

Runestone mistlands

The Dvergr are the descendants of the great smiths of old, delvers in the deep earth, seekers of hidden treasure. Here in Valheim they mine the bones of the Jotunn and distill eitr, the stuff of magic. If left alone, they are happy with their own plans and care little for the lives of others, but when raised they will defend themselves.

Runestone mistlands

The raven showed me how to make a staff that set my beard on fire. I will meddle no more with such things. Weary of mist and magic, Ulf carved this stone. Now I go to find a less troublesome place.

Runestone mistlands

Heed the words of Ulf and do not take the hats of the short ones from their heads. They have no sense of a jest and the only cure for insulting them is to kill them. Also, their hats do not fit common heads.

Runestone mistlands

Wanderers in fog, Where do you go? Not knowing what you were, Nor seeing where you go.

Runestone mistlands

RING HIS PRAISE

Fader location

You dream of a river running uphill, of green shoots turning downward into the earth…

50% chance

Once again, you run at the head of your warriors, the weight of your father's axe in your hand. You wake with the war-cry on your lips…

50% chance

In your dream, you sit beside a fire in a great hall, surrounded by the chatter of familiar voices. Their faces blur like smoke and their names slip your mind, but the warmth of their memory lingers…

50% chance

You stand at the prow of a leaping ship, the salt spray before you and the joyful shriek of gulls above. Folded within a dream, you remember what it was like to be alive in the land of your birth.

50% chance

You dream of a great tree reaching out through the night. One half of its branches crackle with flames, the others are green with leaves.

50% chance

You dream of running through a meadow, the sky alight with pale fire. There is a thunder of hoofbeats behind you but when you turn, nothing is there. You awaken with your heart pounding in your chest.

10% chance · not after Eikthyr

In your dream, the forest rises before you, dragging the trees upward like a cloak, its dark mass hiding the stars. At the mountain's peak, vast antlers frame the moon...

10% chance · after Eikthyr · not after The Elder

You dream of a hundred ghosts crowding thickly around your bedside, seeking warmth and life until something thumps deep below the ground and they jump like crumbs on a drumskin and are gone.

10% chance · after The Elder · not after Bonemass

You dream that you are flying over mountaintops, all of Valheim spread out below you. As you wheel and dive in the cold air, a great shape soars up past you to block the sun. In the darkness, it speaks. "Seek me."

10% chance · after Bonemass · not after defeated_moder

In a chamber hung with golden drapes, you kneel before the throne of a veiled king. "Sleep is but a mask", he tells you, lifting the veil slowly. You wake screaming.

10% chance · needs defeated_moder, defeated_bonemass, defeated_gdking, defeated_eikthyr · not after Yagluth

Amidst the crash of arms, on the dark and glimmering plain of sleep, a face swells snarling before you. Your shield arm hangs limp, your spear is broken. You welcome the cold blade when it comes. From a dream of death, you awaken to death itself.

50% chance

You dream you are lying on your back in a meadow, gazing upward at the clouds. Your name is nothing, your mind is free of thought. But there is a warm hand in yours. In the dream, you are laughing. But when you awaken, you find your face damp with tears.

50% chance

On a boat carved from dark wood, beneath ragged sails, you lie with your arms folded across your chest. Blurred faces, like thumbprints on the darkness, croon familiar songs as they push you out to float on a sea as black and flat as glass.

50% chance

You lie on the battlefield, dreaming eyes turned upward to a sky veiled by smoke. The calls of your warriors grow fainter and your eyes close for a second time. Great talons slide beneath you and you feel yourself rising, lifted from your body like a babe from its crib…

50% chance

You fall into the deep well of sleep and dream only of darkness.

50% chance

You dream of a bright hall filled with gracious warriors and fair maidens. The air hums with song, the boards groan under the weight of steaming dishes, the mead flows like water. You awake slowly with the laughter still ringing in your ears…

50% chance

You sleep in fits and fretful dreams, the weight of the nightmare heavy on your chest. When morning comes, you greet it with relief.

50% chance

Sleep is a river and dreams are live fish. You wake in the morning with your net empty.

50% chance

You dream you are hunting with your companions, running high over green hills and down through mist-haunted valleys. Ahead of you, your prey stumbles and you leap forward, sinking your teeth into warm flesh. When you wake, the taste of metal lingers in your mouth.

50% chance

You dream you are walking in a snowy wood when you come upon a naked child, sitting against a tree with his eyes closed but his chest moving to breathe. As you kneel beside him, you know he has been sleeping here for many centuries, waiting for you. When you touch his shoulder, you both awaken.

50% chance

You dream of a mighty bear, sleeping deep below the earth in the winter of the world. It turns in its sleep, folds upon folds of flesh and fur. It has no head, no limbs. A vast mass of bear flesh, mercifully quiet.

50% chance

You fall asleep planning your next day's labor and in your dreams you complete it, hewing wood, foraging for food and hunting after swift deer. You return home exhausted but happy, only to awaken and find the day is still ahead of you...

50% chance

In your dream, you walk through a hall of smiling warriors and gracious maidens. You join with their mirth until you realise that you are naked and the small bronze shield you are carrying is not enough to cover your shame. You greet the morning with gratitude.

10% chance · after Yagluth

Dark-eyed Loki approaches you in your dream and gifts you a ring for each hand. He tells you that as long as they stay on your fingers, you will never hear an insulting word again. You wake with your fingers in your ears.

10% chance · after Yagluth

You climb a winding staircase, curled tightly within a tall tower, until you arrive at the top and look out over an endless forest. The wind blows green waves across the tree-tops and beneath the surface, dark shapes stir...

10% chance · after Yagluth

You awaken within a dream of dark skies and boiling clouds. Night on the mountaintop, a rough cloak pulled tight around you. Thunder tears the sky and a rain of hot embers pours through the rift, destroying your dream body in an instant…

10% chance · after The Queen

In your sleep, you crouch in the middle of a vast and gloomy cavern while a huge beast prowls in circles around you, dragging the darkness behind it. Emerald flames flicker at its edges and the growl of its throat lingers long into the waking day…

10% chance · after The Queen

You dream of eating roast hog at a feast. It is a simple and delicious meal. If only all dreams could be like this.

10% chance · after The Queen

Nine maidens in robes of white dance barefoot at midnight. Nine wolves hunt a white hart in the greenwood. Nine bells ring out on the mountainside and you awake.

10% chance · after The Queen

In your dream, you stand naked in the middle of a pool of water so clear it cannot be seen, only felt as a swaying girdle around your hips. Three figures stand at the water's edge, watching you in silence. When the lead figure touches the water's surface with her toe, the ripple dissolves the dream and you wake.

10% chance · after Fader

You slide down the tunnel of a fretful dream into an absence so complete that no words will cling to it…

10% chance

You dream of a hall in winter, glittering with light and laughter in the midst of a snowy night. As you approach, the lights twist into tall flames and the laughter into screams. You run towards the hall but it sinks hissing into the snow as you approach.

10% chance · after Fader

You run down an endless hill, your heart thumping for joy within your chest. Two dark shapes fly alongside you and the beat of their wings lingers into your waking hours.

10% chance

You see a child's face, laughing and crying at the same time. The eyes are clear and blue behind their tears, the mouth is a tumble of tiny teeth. In the dream, he tells you something, but the words are gone when you wake.

10% chance · not after Kall Fimbulbringer

In your dream there is a door without pin or bolt. You feel it would open with a push but your body is frozen in a swirl of cold wind. Behind the door are the voices of the ones you love but cannot name. You strain forward into empty wakefulness.

10% chance

The ghosts of all those who have died at your hand come to you in your sleep and linger at the edges of your dreams. They want nothing, need nothing, say nothing.

10% chance

You sink through layers of sleep to a vast chamber where a dark shape hunches beneath a snarl of heavy chains. As it shifts to face you, the blue orbs of its eyes pierce the dream and you wake, drenched in sweat.

10% chance · not after Kall Fimbulbringer

You remember nothing of this night's dream but its rainbow mood lifts you into the day with a smile on your lips.

10% chance · after Kall Fimbulbringer

Odin visits you in your dream and offers you a horn filled to the brim with a frothing draught. You drink deep and greet the new day feeling refreshed and alive.

10% chance · after Kall Fimbulbringer