Jötnar were the Giants in Nordic Mythology and they occupy the realm of Jötunheim. They were also the enemies of the Norse Gods, primarily to Odin and Thor. They made their first appearance in God of War (2018), where they were often referred to as "Giants".
Odin desired (and continues to desire) the chance to reached this realm, because he coveted the Giants' ability of precognition (the ability to foresee the future).
Notable Jötnar
- Faye - Also known as Laufey the Just. She was the second wife of Kratos and the mother of Atreus. In God of War, she is deceased. There is only mention of her and her ashes are carried by Kratos through most of the story. At the highest summit in all of the Nine Realms, her son and widowed husband releases her ashes into the wind. She was also responsible for the artwork discovered by Atreus in Jötunheim that depicted events of the story and future events.
- Atreus - Also known as Loki (to Faye and the other Giants). He is only part-Giant, since his is mother is a Giantess and his father is a demi-god. This makes him part-Giant, part-God, and part-mortal. Following his mother's death and funeral, he journeys with his father to fulfill his mother's final wish of having her ashes scattered at the summit of the highest mountain in all the Nine Realms (located in Jötunheim). During his journey, his father mentors and tests him on his readiness to survive in the harsh Nordic world. When in Jötunheim, he (along with his father) learns that his mother was a Giantess and she foresaw all of the events in his and his father's journey to the summit. He is also a skilled combatant, specializing in bow-and-arrows (both physical and magical) and daggers.
- Thamur - He was a Frost Giant who died when ambushed by Thor, a fight that ended with him landing on his own chisel. His corpse makes an appearance in God of War as an explorable location. In the final battle against Baldur, the Vanir/Æsir Goddess, Freya, takes control of Thamur's corpse and uses it in an attempt to prevent further bloodshed between Kratos and her son.
- Jörmungandr - The world serpent and a non-humanoid Giant. Mimir talks to it in an "obscure tongue that more ancient that these mountains", and is apparently rather chatty. It is temporally displaced.
Trivia
- The Jötnar are similar to the Titans in Greek Mythology due to their strong dislike of the Gods of their world (with an exception to the Nordic God of War, Tyr).
- Unlike the Titans, however, the Jötnar were never imprisoned by the Gods. Rather, they hid any access to their realm with the help of Tyr. Furthermore, the Jötnar were peaceful creatures and the Titans were violent.