| “ | I know you. God killer. What is it that you want from me? Is it a God of War you came to find? | ” |
The ”Týr” that Kratos and Atreus had freed in Svartalfheim was actually Odin in disguise, who posed as his own son as a means to infiltrate Kratos' circle of allies and know their plans. This also unexpectedly led him to discover the secret prophecies that the Jötnar had hidden in their shrines. Odin eventually drops his disguise altogether in a moment of anger when he kills Brok.
In the God of War Series[]
God of War Ragnarök[]
As Fimbulwinter came to an end, Faye's husband and the Greek God of War Kratos and their son Atreus began a quest to find Týr in order to prevent the prophecy of Ragnarök from coming to pass. Mimir after learning this told them that though he had heard Týr was dead, Odin particularly seemed to be concerned with making sure that he was never found. Upon discovering a secret in the Sköll and Hati shrine, Kratos and Atreus theorized that Týr was in fact still alive. With the help of clues that Atreus had found, they figured out his exact location; the realm of the Dwarves, Svartalfheim.
Once in the dwarven realm, they discovered his prison in the mines and freed him. However, the duo had no idea that the Týr they had found was actually Odin. Odin apparently already been posing as Tyr long time before Kratos and Atreus found its location, since it was suggested that most of the Aesir and Dwarves of Svartalfheim in general believed that Tyr was locked up in that Asgardian prison located in that kingdom and that only a privileged few knew the whereabouts of the true Tyr in Helheim, where there were other imprisoned people from whom Odin obtained his aspect. To bolster his ruse, the All-father pretended to be delirious and hallucinating, rambling that Kratos and Atreus are not real. When Atreus claimed that he and his father are not on the side of Odin, Kratos uses one of the Blades of Chaos to sever the noose that was around Odin's neck. Upon noticing the blade, the disguised Odin states to the Spartan that he knows his true identity and asks him if he is going to kill him. Though Kratos tried to tell him that he and his son came to free him, the fake Týr fearfully backs away. When Mimir tried to get some sense into him, Odin pretended to be horrified again upon seeing the former ambassador's head, falsely accusing Kratos of killing him. When Atreus tried to explain that they revived him, the disguised Odin fled while at the same time pretending to be terrified and Atreus began going after him.
The fake Týr proceeded to flee into a tunnel, which he unknowingly caved in, with Atreus right behind him, separating themselves from Kratos and Mimir. After the Spartan catches up with the two, he was able to bring some sense into the fake Týr, unaware that he is actually talking to Odin. The All-Father in his Týr disguise then proceeded to make up a lie to Atreus by explaining the reason as to why he ran away; he doesn't always know if anything is real or not. After escaping the Einherjar and throughout the journey, the fake Týr accompanied Kratos and Atreus. In Alfheim, when the trio discovered more details of the real prophecy of Ragnarök, Odin, in his disguise, proceeded to pretend that he cannot the lead the armies of the other realms against Asgard. However, deep inside, he had realized that he has been wrong about the prophecy, and that the pieces of the event that he put together were merely false.
Eventually, much later, after Atreus returned to Sindri's house with the mask, the fake Týr, who now had a sudden change of heart, took the mask and proceeded to reveal that there is another way into Asgard, but they can't reach it from Sindri's house. Suspicious, Brok demands that he reveal it, but the imposter tells him that he has to gather up his things before he can reveal it. Knowing that he is lying, Brok continues prodding Týr over this, having sensed that something is amiss as the Norse God of War had no material possessions in the house and he had called Atreus by his original name Loki. This caused the fake Týr to snap and he stabs Brok in the chest, critically wounding him, while at the same time revealing himself as Odin.
After Odin escapes, both Kratos, Freya, Freyr, and Atreus realized that the Týr that has been with them was actually the All-Father in disguise, and that they had been fooled. Mimir, in particular, could not believe how easily they had been deceived, realizing that the imposter had been continuously traveling to and from Asgard using a Raven he apparently hid inside his room, and looking inside his closet was all it would have taken to expose him.
Fortunately, after Odin's death and the destruction of Asgard, a fragment of the realm which is a prison landed on the realm Niflheim. Should Kratos and his allies visit this prison, they will find and freed the real Týr, who turns out had been imprisoned the whole time. Although Kratos was unsure whether it's true, Mimir assures that since Odin is dead, the Týr they found in this prison is indeed a real one.
Personality[]
Due to him actually being Odin in disguise, the fake Tyr's personality was essentially what the All-Father thought he was: a pacifist and a borderline coward. To gain the trust of others, he would present himself as a shadow of the man he was imitating, having seemingly lost his warrior spirit from years of imprisonment. In reality, however, he likely did so because his fighting style would immediately give him away. To protect his agenda, he repeatedly tried to persuade Kratos against going to war with Asgard, feigning concern for innocents getting caught in the crossfire as a justification. His act was so effective, with others not asking questions and giving him space out of pity, that he was able to successfully spy on them all whilst moving to and from Asgard undetected.
However, there were times when glimpses of the imposter's true identity emerged from behind his act. He referred to Freya and Atreus as "Frigg" and "Loki" respectively, with the latter finally causing Brok to grow suspicious. He also had high standards of cuisine, being disgusted by Brok's low-quality meals. The most prominent trait differentiating the fake Tyr from the real one however was that he had Odin's short temper and superiority complex, generally talking down to others and ultimately blowing his cover by losing his temper and fatally wounding Brok when the dwarf came close to exposing him.
Overall, Mimir would proclaim that Odin's impersonation of Týr to be a cruel mockery of what his son aspired for and believed in.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- In the game, the fake Týr is referred to as Tyr in the subtitles whenever he speaks, notably missing the acute accent over the Y. When the real Týr is met, his name in the subtitles is Týr.
- The earliest, and possibly the latest to be unfolded in-story hint of his imposter status occurred in the Svartalfheim. When Atreus offered fake Týr a spear as a weapon, stating that it's his weapon of prophecy, fake Týr declined it and referred the weapon as a walking stick. Odin is the only character in the story who used his spear as a walking stick, tough it was only late into the game that he revealed his walking stick to be the All-Father's spear, Gungnir.
- Another earliest hint of the fake Týr's true identity is when Kratos found him, the former's neck is wrapped with a noose - a small reference of Odin hanged himself once that earned him "Lord of the hanged" title.
- There is still also an earliest and almost-unnoticeable hint of his true self. After Kratos freed the fake Týr, there are some raven feathers scattered in the cell. This is obviously belongs to Odin's ravens that he often used as a mean of teleportation.
- Throughout the game, there are multiple hints towards the Imposter Týr's true identity, including:
- Becoming distraught by learning the truth of Gróa's prophecy, showing that only Odin and Asgard would be destroyed, then hiding his reaction by pretending to be upset over seemingly killing a Light Elf.
- Calling Atreus “Champion”, causing him and Kratos to argue and driving a wedge between the father and son, so that Atreus would be more inclined to seek Odin out in Asgard.
- Referring to Freya as “Frigg” and bringing up Baldur's death, a subtle attempt to cause tension between her and Kratos.
- Expressing irritation at the reveal that Brok and Sindri had stolen Draupnir instead of Mimir, even though the real Tyr would likely have not cared at all about this.
- Insulting Brok's cooking, prompting the dwarf to ask if he could do better. The imposter Týr asks if that's a challenge to which he gladly accepts. This is Odin showing his controlling nature once again as well as him wanting to flex whatever culinary knowledge he gained over the years.
- When the group discuss Atreus returning to Asgard, Imposter Týr hints at his true nature: Mentioning Atreus will "give us a pair of eyes in the enemy's inner sanctum".
- The fake Týr is shown to be a picky eater, and somewhat had a high-quality-foods tastes, as he asked Sindri to bring him some biscuits with some complicated requirements.
- Throughout the game, the fake Týr always cook braised food for Kratos and his allies in Sindri's House. In Asgard, Odin apparently interested and even praised a stew during Atreus' journey on the realm. This is also hinting his true identity.
- In an interview with IGN, game director Eric Williams reveals that Odin did not only impersonate Týr during the game. When the main trio first arrives in Svartalfheim, a Dwarf walking over a bridge spits at them. This is revealed to be Odin and corresponds to one of the imprisoned corpses within the prison containing Týr as well. Apparently others were also impersonated at other points in the game.
- Though the apparently corresponding Dwarf is dead by the time Kratos and his allies reach the prison in Niflheim, it is heavily implied that a requirement for Odin's impersonation abilities is for the original to still be alive, as is the case with Týr. It may just be the case that the Dwarf had died during his imprisonment and Odin could not use the disguise anymore.
- Odin pretending to be Týr and infiltrating Kratos and his team is similar to Zeus talking to Kratos while disguised as Grave Digger.