Gronnar

The Hill Creature

Gronnar is one of the deities of the Ordning pantheon and the god of the fertility in giant religion. He is revered as the god of hill giants, ogres, feasting, food, agriculture, labor, anger, the wilderness, thralls, and animals.

Divine Domains

Gronnar is the Ordning's god of hill giants, ogres, feasting, food, agriculture, labor, family, honor, the unintelligent, the illiterate, anger, the wilderness, thralls, and animals. His divine domains are Life, Nature, Grave, and War.

Holy Books & Codes

The primary religious text for the gods of the Ordning is the Tale of Twilight, which is said to recount that which will come to pass in the days of the Twilight Era, the Final Doomed moments of the Material Plane. Ordered claim that it was Jötu, himself a powerful seer, that gleaned the Tale of Twilight through the runecasting. Jötu then had his child Duris record the Tale and give it to all the giants that they might prepare the smaller races for the coming apocalypse.
Gronnar himself is considered to be foolish but many tales also tell of his strength, his courage in battle, and his embodiment of many of the things followers of the Ordning claim to believe in. Moreover, Gronnar is said to be the one to finally end the Twilight War by being the one to finally slay Valdra and bring about the enlightenment of all mortals and even to himself.
Many stories in giant culture involve the brothers Thenn, Styr, and Gronnar, with Thenn acting as the antagonist, Styr as the wise but cautious counselor, and Gronnar as the impulsive, brash hero. In these stories, Gronnar is depicted as dimwitted yet powerful so that despite the scheming of Thenn, the Hill Creature often triumphs in spite of himself to comedic effect. One such tale, the Mirkul Edda, tells the story of Styr and his brother Gronnar traveling across Varangia to visit the realm of the Feywild and the Fomorian giants that live there. Cultures influenced by giant religion, such as the Varskogans of Varangia, often have echoes of these tales stitched into the fabric their oral histories.

Divine Symbols & Sigils

Gronnar's divine symbol is the giant rune, poerth, the Old Varangian sign for "good luck."

Tenets of Faith

Though depicted as dimwitted and possessing only the base instincts of a beast, Gronnar's followers look to him as an example of hard work and the grim honor that comes from fulfilling one's destiny. The faithful of the Ordered maintain that Gronnar does have some great wisdom and incredible divine power as a result of the blood sacrifice that came with the death of his mother, Vaynera. Because of this, many farmers and slaves see him as their protector and a deity that understands the important matters of life, family, duty, and honor.

Holidays

In giant culture, the five days of the week are divided among the giant gods, save Thenn. The fourth day of the week is called Gronday, and worship of the Hill Creature is held on this day.

Divine Goals & Aspirations

According to the tradition of the Ordning, those who die as slaves or animals are brought to the Pastures of Paradise in Ysgaard. There they are fed even better than the warriors in Jötu’s hall of Kothungshúr, yet it is for a grim purpose. According to the Tale of Twilight, at the beginning of the Twilight War, all the animals and slaves will be given as a blood sacrifice to grant the warriors of Jötu extreme magical powers. They are essentially fattened up for slaughter. However, this also means that if the thralls and animals are willing to face this doom, they will be the first to see the Enlightenment brought about by the Era of Twilight.
This kind of rhetoric is often used to convince those captured in thralldom to cooperate so that they can be taken to Gronnar and not considered a traitor and be made into a draugr in Thengaard.

Social

Family Ties

Gronnar has one parent, the Storm Father Jötu. His mother, Vaynera died giving birth to him, rendering Gronnar foolish, impulsive, and bestial. He is the youngest of four divine siblings Duris, Frothga, Thenn, and Styr. In many stories, he and his brother Styr are considered close, with Carven Protector looking after his foolish brother as they adventure across Ysgaard, Helgaard, and Thenngaard.

Divine Classification

Deity

Religions

• Ordning

Alignment

Chaotic Neutral

Current Location

Pastures of Paradise

Realm

Ysgaard

Church/Cult

Ordning

Honorary & Occupational Titles

The Hill Creature; Wombsplitter; Branchbearer;

Circumstances of Birth

It is said that Gronnar’s mother, the enchantress Vaynera, was killed during birth and so he was born foolish and ravenous like a creature.

Birthplace

Kothungshúr

Current Residence

Pastures of Paradise

Aligned Organization

Ordning