Projekt Hoddminir

Trolls in Scandinavian lore is not the same as trolls in DnD lore, they are not rambling monsters you have to kill of with fire. A Scandinavian troll is perhaps more of the todays traditional giant, large and live deep forests and mountain. Some are slow and stupid where as others are smart and know magic. Usually they look like round humans with large noses and horns. In the same way a Scandinavian elf is not at all the same as a modern fantasy elf. A Scandinavian elf is usually ugly in some way and almost always evil. There are variants that will help humans, like the Tomte, but only if treated with the outmost respect. Others like the forest Rå (also known as huldra or mara) and Näcken (Nix) will exploit, torment or kill humans.


The Jötunn in the north mythology is something between what we today would call a Giant and an Elf. Smart, larger than humans, naturally magical, long lived and beautiful. The distinction between Asar, Vanir, Jotunn and Elfs in the mythology is a bit diffuse. There are elves mentioned, like light and dark elves. The dwarfs that are often mentioned in the texts are also referred to as elfs sometimes just to add to the confusion. I always got the feeling that the Vanir and the Jötunn where very similar, but that the Asar got peace with the Vanir (after some hostage exchange), but not the Jötunn. For example some of the gods are Vanir, like Njord, Freyr, Freya, and Loki is a Jotunn. Sometimes Jötunn are describes to look like giants or trolls, and sometimes more like human.

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