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| “ | When Odin sent me here, I just needed answers, but YOU, you had to act all proud. Throw whatever you have at me... I'll keep coming. That old body will give out. But before I end this. I want you to know one thing... I can't feel any of this. You've seen this with your own eyes; you can't hurt me. Nothing can. This fight is pointless. Your struggle is pointless. It didn't have to be this way. Pathetic. You can't win. I feel nothing. but you... you feel everything. Yet you, you keep trying. I'm not my brother. And if you'd given me what I wanted, it wouldn't have ended this way. But no... Let's finish this. | „ |
| ~ Baldur to Kratos during their first encounter. |
| “ | Before you die, I want to thank you. Both of you. You've done what even the Allfather himself could not. I've never felt more alive! Ironic, isn't it? | „ |
| ~ Baldur to Kratos and Atreus for freeing him from his curse. |
| “ | Snow... | „ |
| ~ Baldur's last word before his demise. |
Baldur, initially known as the Stranger, is the main antagonist of the 2018 action-adventure game God of War. Son of Odin and Freya, he is the Norse Aesir God of Light and the half-brother of Thor, as well as the uncle of Magni, Modi and Thrúd.
His fate is intertwined with the prophecy of Ragnarök, for his demise would bring forth Fimbulwinter before the Twilight of the Gods. When the Norns foretold his death, Freya used a powerful enchantment that would leave him immune to all threats, physical or magical. Baldur lost his sanity due to his mother's spell, which drew him closer to Odin after Freya broke her marriage with the All-Father.
The All-Father used his son's invulnerability to his own benefit, making him his personal tracker and closer. Odin heavily relied on Baldur to accomplish the most dangerous missions and lured him into believing that he would eventually find a cure to his curse.
Much like the other Aesir and unlike his classic mythical counterpart, Baldur is depicted in the God of War series as a psychopath whose dignity was robbed from him by a mother who could not let him go. His invulnerability doomed him to a fate worse than death, leaving him miserable and hell bent for revenge.
He was voiced and motion-captured by Jeremy Davies, who also portrayed Malcolm Dreyfuss in Sleepy Hollow and John Deegan in the Arrowverse.
Personality[]
Baldur was once a kind and emotionally stable Aesir god, but he ended up becoming an extremely cruel, ruthless and sadistic monster after his mother Freya, out of misguided love, cursed him with an invulnerability spell to ensure nothing can kill him at the cost of his ability to feel anything. To make matters worse, Freya refused to lift the spell out of fear of his death, which sadly, severed the bond between mother and son. The invulnerability curse soon took its toll on his sanity and turned him into the emotionally unstable monster he is now. According to Modi, Baldur hasn't "seen straight in years".
| “ | What you did to me... WHAT YOU DID TO ME! I'm a coward... I'm... I'm a coward. I'm a worth... worthless coward. | „ |
| ~ Baldur's breakdown after seeing his past while in Helheim. |
Underneath his sadism, Baldur is an extremely miserable Aesir god. Baldur laments that he can no longer taste food or drinks or experience bodily pleasures, and angrily admitted that he would rather die than never feel again. A vision in Helheim reveals Baldur's regret of not killing Freya years ago for what she had done to him, blaming himself for being a coward for running away instead. Even after becoming a mad monster, his sense of honor still remains, as he was supposedly willing to leave Kratos alone without a fight had the Spartan given him the information he wanted. He also implies that, unlike his brother, he is willing to show mercy. When in a conversation with Mimir, Baldur is willing to get his father, Odin to forgive his former advisor if he help him before he was told by Mimir that the Allfather won't release him nor would let Baldur or his nephews kill Mimir. Despite this, Baldur did not have any reservations about taking hostages, using surprise attacks and threatening innocents during his battles with Kratos. He tried to tell Atreus to turn away when "this won't be pretty".
| “ | And here I thought my family was f***ed up... | „ |
| ~ Baldur witnessing when Atreus attacked Kratos. |
Baldur's relationship with other members of his family seemed to be remarkably better. He was loyal to Odin and trusted that his father would fulfill his promise to find a way to break his curse, even though he knew Odin normally couldn't. Although he clearly did not approve of Thor's absolute bloodlust, stating that he was not like the God of Thunder, Baldur still was on good enough terms with him to agree to take his nephews with him, and it was stated by Magni that despite Baldur's insanity, Thor still believed in his brother's ability to complete missions. Baldur seemed to also be the only Aesir who had respect for the pacific Tyr and the only one who had a good relationship with him, as he was likely taught by the God of War how to use the Bifrost in his temple and he even mirrored his brother's peaceful tendencies by first acting diplomatic and only resorting to violence when needed. Baldur has no hesitation in calling his nephews idiots. Baldur is rather talkative in a belligerent manner during a fight, as he taunts, mocks and enrages Kratos throughout all of their battles. The Spartan himself said in their first encounter that he talked too much. According to his half-brother Heimdall, Baldur had the luxury of not caring how badly he got burned due to his curse that Freya placed on him.
| “ | What is this? I can feel this. I can feel everything! | „ |
| ~ Baldur after getting impaled by the mistletoe. |
Baldur's rage and maniacal behavior did not vanish along with the spell and Baldur chose to continue fighting Kratos despite being relentlessly assaulted with punches and arrows from Atreus. He actually enjoyed experiencing pain to his fullest and hated every time his mother tried to protect him. Freed from the spell, Baldur is shown to be graceful when he appreciated both Kratos and Atreus for their efforts which his father, Odin couldn't. Despite being given a warning by Kratos, Baldur still wanted to punish his mother and chose to strangle her even as she professed her love for him. Baldur's obsession for revenge to the point of patricide alarmed Kratos that the Spartan tried to reason with the maddened Aesir God, having understood what he felt too well from his past conflicts with Gods of Olympus which culminates in him murdering Zeus and realizing vengeance will bring nothing to its perpetrator. Sadly, Baldur refused to hear Kratos, and as a result, Kratos reluctantly put Baldur out of his misery by snapping his neck. His final moments were not of anger or rage, but the joy that he could feel the snow on his face.
Powers and Abilities[]
Being the God of Light, Baldur is able to blitz his opponents, darting around them before delivering a powerful punch and uppercut. Baldur has the ability to absorb elemental magics, as shown when he gained the power of cryomancy when he was struck by the mighty Leviathan axe. He gained pyromancy after being in the proximity of a fiery explosion caused by Atreus. Baldur's cryomancy allows him to encrust his attacks with ice, unleash icy projectiles, summon a path of icicles from the ground and leap up into the air and crash down with a blast of ice, which he can also use while being on the ground.
While in this form, Baldur can only take damage from the fire-based attacks. Baldur's pyromancy gives him the power to shoot fireballs, enhance his punches and kicks with fire, set himself on fire without getting hurt, unleash an eruption path of fire and even has the same ability to crash down with a blast of fire, just like his ice form. Baldur can only take damage from ice attacks, such as the Leviathan axe.
Being Odin's best tracker, he's also a skilled tracker and pathfinder, able to find his way out of Helheim despite not having a way out. He was the first to find the Jotunn Guardian's home before the other Aesir gods. While mistletoe makes him vulnerable, Baldur is still immortal and can regenerate from fatal injuries, such as hits from the Leviathan axe. Only a god on his level can kill him.
Quotes[]
| “ | Come on out! It's no use hiding anymore. I know who you are... more importantly, I know what you are! | „ |
| ~ Baldur searching for Kratos and Atreus. |
| “ | Slow and old. You should never have come to Midgard. So... care to try again? | „ |
| ~ Baldur healing his wounds. |
| “ | The tattooed man. Tracks show he now travels with a child. Where would they go next? | „ |
| ~ Baldur asking Mimir. |
| “ | You can't stop me. NO ONE CAN. (...) How touching... This will all be over soon. | „ |
| ~ Baldur before his last fight with Kratos. |
Trivia[]
- Baldur's final word, "snow", might have a dual meaning. It can either mean that Baldur has one last happiness by feeling the snow once more or that Baldur is happy to know that, despise his death, Kratos, Atreus and Freya will all suffer during Ragnarok. This is futher seen as Fimbulwinter, a three year long winter prophesied to precede Ragnarok, begins right after Baldur's death. In the latter meaning, Baldur would have died a fiend, smiling at the prospect of the death of his enemies at an apocalyptic event caused by his very demise. If this is the case, Baldur would possibly be correct, as the Giant's mural depict Kratos dead in Atreus' hands. However, as stated in the game, prophecies are not set in stone. Given such statement, Baldur could have had an hash and unwise final thought.
- Before it is confirmed, there are hints that he and Freya are related, as both have runic tattoos and are constantly barefoot.
- After the invulnerability spell is broken, he displays strong masochistic tendencies, expressing sheer delight at the pain he feels; he may have had masochism before the spell, though it is perhaps more likely that the return of any sensations, even pain, filled him with glee due to the centuries of numbness.
- The deaths of the Greek gods unleashed nationwide destruction, natural disasters, and plagues. Baldur's death didn't cause immediate devastation, however, it either coincided with or triggered Fimbulvetr, the long cold season before Ragnarök.
External Links[]
- Baldur on the God of War Wiki
