Gungnir
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In Norse mythology, Gungnir (also Gungni, Gungner, or Gungrir) was the name of Odin's javelin. The javelin's name means "Swaying One" or "influential". According to Snorri Sturluson's Skáldskaparmál the javelin was fashioned by those dwarfs known as the Sons of Ivaldi under the mastery of the blacksmith dwarf Dvalin . It was obtained from the dwarves by Loki as a partial reparation for his theft of Sif's hair. It has the practical characteristic of always hitting the target it was hurled against. The war between the Aesir and the Vanir officially started when Odin threw a javelin over the heads of an assembly of Vanir gods. Whether or not this was Gungnir is unclear. This magical weapon symbolizes the importance of the javelin in the world view of the Norsemen (see more at Javelin in the Norsemen societies).
[edit] Popular Culture
The character Gallantmon Crimson Mode from Digimon Tamers holds Gungnir in his right hand.
Cress Albane (Cless Alvein) of Tales of Phantasia receives Gungnir after completing a certain dungeon, and it is the strongest equippable spear in the game. However, he loses it midgame, and only regains it close to the end, despite its power being increased, it is no longer as useful as other weapons such as the Eternal sword and Excalibur. It also makes an appearance other Tales games, including in Tales of Eternia, where it is the best spear for Reid Hershel, in Tales of Legendia as a the best weapon for Moses Sandor, and in Tales of the Abyss as one of the best weapons for Jade Curtiss.
In Breath of Fire III, Gungnir is a powerful spear that can be wielded by Garr close to the end of the game.
In Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles, Gungnir can be crafted. It's the second most powerful spear of the game. The Gungnir can be stolen from Odin in Final Fantasy III and also appears as Kain Highwind's default weapon the third time he joins your party in Final Fantasy IV; both being the 2nd most powerful spear in those games. Similarly, the Odin summon in Final Fantasy VII uses an attack called the "Gunge Lance" to do heavy damage to monsters that are immune to his instant kill attack.
In Valkyrie Profile series Odin holds Gungir as his weapon and has been part of the main plot as one of the 4 treasures.
In Ah! My Goddess: The Movie, Gungnir is an energy attack from heaven used only in the most extreme circumstances. It requires a high level of system access from the Yggdrasil system.
In Final Fantasy Legend II, Gungnir is a spear which you may receive after defeating Odin.
In the hit MMORPG Final Fantasy XI Gungnir is the name of the fully upgraded relic polearm (a relic is the most powerful and most sought after weapon in the game and also the hardest to obtain).
In Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow Gungnir is a spear that can be created through soul synthesis, it is the most powerful spear that can be created through synthesis and has an elemental affinity of lightning.
In Phantasy Star Online Episode I & II, The Gungnir is a partisan type weapon found in Ultimate Mode as drop from enemies from the stages.
In Ragnarok Online, Gungnir is a powerful spear weapon that is dropped by the boss Mistress.
In Gladius (video game) by LucasArts, Gungnir refers to a particular class of gladiator within the "Support" category. The Gungnir class specializes in the use of spears, javelins, and similar hand-thrown, ranged weapons.
In the Touhou series, one of Remilia Scarlet's spell cards is named after the Gungnir.
In Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django, Gungnir can only be obtained from Solar Forging the Black Queen and White Queen together and achieving an 'R' rank. It is the strongest spear in the game.
In Gundam SEED, Gungnir is a ZAFT weapon which disables the Earth Alliance mobile suits in battle.
In Kingdom Hearts 2, Gungnir is a spear gummi which can be mounted on a Gummi Ship, i deals damage when an enemy flies into you.
[edit] See also
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Norse mythology |
|---|---|
| List of Norse gods | Æsir | Vanir | Giants | Elves | Dwarves | Troll | Valkyries | Einherjar | Norns | Odin | Thor | Freyr | Freyja | Loki | Balder | Týr | Yggdrasil | Ginnungagap | Ragnarök | |
| Sources: Poetic Edda | Prose Edda | The Sagas | Volsung Cycle | Tyrfing Cycle | Rune stones | Old Norse language | Orthography | Later influence | |
| Society: Viking Age | Skald | Kenning | Blót | Seid | Numbers | |
| People, places and things |
