Afvaldr Ljung, a Modern-Day Viking

[attr="style","color:white;"]Name: Afvaldr Ljung
Alias: Jötunn
Age: 27
Gender: Male
- Growing up on Skraelheim will whip anybody into shape, and Afvaldr is certainly no exception. The harsh trainings he received, both as a child and in preparing himself to become a follower of Grishna, pushed Afvaldr’s body to its limit. The blessings of Grishna simply pushed his body beyond that. While none of these would be considered a power in their own right, Afvaldr’s body has ascended to metahuman levels in terms of strength, reflexes, and general durability. While he won’t be lifting buildings or catching bullets anytime soon, his physical abilities are certainly nothing to sneeze at, even by metahuman standards.

- The valknut on the back of Afvaldr’s hand serves more purpose than just looking cool. It acts as a focus, allowing him to channel power through it and summon weapons made from pure ice. These weapons are limited to those he trained with, such as axes, swords, shields, and the like. However, Afvaldr is deadly efficient with all of them, wielding them to the fullest of their deadly potential. The weapons he creates are razor-sharp, and harder than the strongest steel, yet Afvaldr can break them as easily as a toothpick if he desires. They also will not melt, even if put directly into fire.

- The most powerful of his gifts from Grishna, Afvaldr can fly into a rage reminiscent of the berserkers of old. While in this state, glowing tattoos appear on Afvaldr’s skin and blue light fills his eyes as he channels the power of Grishna. While in a rage, Afvaldr’s physical abilities are heightened further, he shrugs off any wound inflicted on him, and he fights like a man possessed. However, this does take a toll on his body once the rage wears off. Afvaldr is still mortal, and any wounds sustained during the rage eventually catch up to him, and without the rage to sustain him, any fatal wounds will quickly end his life.
Afvaldr is the epitome of the phrase “gentle giant”. While his height and build may seem intimidating, that intimidation is hopefully broken by the near-constant smile on his face, or by his bellowing laughter. He is a happy man, making friends fast and forging bonds quickly. He respects those he sees as warriors like himself, but also those who are warriors in their own right. He takes insults easily, seeing them as a form of verbal sparring, which he likes almost as much as actual sparring. One of the few unabashed pleasures Afvaldr has in life is combat, as it allows him to let loose, stop thinking, and just have some fun, although if he’s just sparring or trying to capture someone, he may try and pull his punches so as to not actually hurt them.



Centuries ago, the Norse people were the source of terror along the coasts of Europe. Known as vikings, their reputation grew as they plundered monasteries, raided settlements, burned, killed, and pillaged. As this fearsome image of brutal savages bent on destruction spread, a schism formed in the various Norse clans. Some wanted to continue to foster this image and expand on it, using the fear it caused to begin expanding their settlements further into Europe. Most of the clans agreed with this sentiment, yet a handful did not. They believed that continuing down this path would spell disaster for their people. So, banding together, they left their homeland and sailed across the sea, eventually arriving in the new world, on an island off the coast of present-day Canada. This island community was named Skraelheim, and this became their new home for generations. Long after their stubborn brethren had become a chapter in a history book, these Norse men and women lived on. Their way of life adapted as the times changed, but their overall sense of community and identity never wavered.

It was in this community that a young lad was born: Afvaldr Ljung. He was raised like any other child in Skraelheim; he learned how to read and write, he was taught of the gods and the history of his people, and he learned to survive. And he was prepared for the Kostr Tívar. Skraelheim had a strong connection with the gods, much stronger than previous Norse settlements. At age 10, each child would be brought before the ellri, who would give them a special elixir to drink. It was believed that this elixir connected the children to the gods, and allowed them to choose their patron. Or their patron to choose them. Going into his Kostr Tívar, Afvaldr had no idea which god to choose, as none of them really seemed to fit him. Fortunately, he didn’t have to. When he drank the elixir and closed his eyes, he saw a towering female figure, standing tall and proud on a battlefield, anger in her eyes, and a smile on her face. She was knee deep in bodies and holding two handaxes, the blades stained crimson.

It was on that day that Grishna, the goddess of war, bloodshed, and berserkers, chose Afvaldr to be her new follower. As a result, his childhood changed dramatically. While he still maintained the basic education all children received, Afvaldr began training to become a true berserker. He trained with swords, shields, axes, spears, knives, and every weapon he could get his hands on. He grew tougher, stronger, and began looking more like the vikings of old. At 16, the age of adulthood, Afvaldr underwent the Bjóða Tívar, to prove that he was worthy of having Grishna as his patron and receiving her blessings. He displayed his new combat prowess to the ellri, showed his knowledge of Grishna and her stories, and presented them with his offering: a knife crafted from the jawbone of a wolf he had tracked, slain, and butchered all on his own.

The ellri deemed this satisfactory, and thus Afvaldr became a man in the eyes of Skraelheim. With that came a tattoo, the first of many. With the blessing of the ellri, Afvaldr received the valknut on his right hand, as a symbol of protection and power. His adult life in Skraelheim would not last long, however. One night, Afvaldr received a dream from Grishna that bore two purposes: the first was to give him her blessings and seal the bond between them. The second was to inform him that his destiny was not on this island. Not one to question the gods, Afvaldr informed the ellri, packed his possessions, and left the only home he’d known.

From there, Afvaldr traveled, wandering through Canada and the United States, not entirely sure of his purpose but trusting in the guidance of Grishna. It was the moment he stopped a burglary simply by punching the thief that he realized what she meant. So Afvaldr became a wandering hero, although his approach was a bit brutish at first, consisting of mainly beating up small-time criminals. At some points he actually needed to hold back to prevent from causing irreparable harm. Eventually Afvaldr settled in Millenium City, although he does tend to wander from time to time, making trips back to Skraelheim or just for the act of traveling. While his method of heroics may have refined somewhat, it is still rather simplistic, which suits him just fine.

One look at Afvaldr gives his Norse heritage away almost immediately. Standing at 6 feet and 9 inches tall, he is a mountain of muscle, with a thick, full beard sprouting from his face with long hair that shifts between a bun, a ponytail, or hanging free. He has no specific outfit devoted to his heroic escapades, just settling for casual clothes, although he does cycle between a leather jacket or a fur-lined hoodie.