Loki
| Religion in NetHack |
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In NetHack, Loki is the chaotic god of the Valkyrie pantheon.
Origin
Loki is a deity in Norse mythology: he is the son of the jötunn Fárbauti and Laufey (mentioned as a goddess), and the brother of Helblindi and Býleistr. Loki is married to Sigyn, with who he has two sons, Narfi (or Nari) and Váli; he is the father of Hel, the wolf Fenrir, and the world serpent Jörmungandr by the jötunn Angrboða. In the form of a mare, Loki was impregnated by the stallion Svaðilfari and gave birth to the eight-legged horse Sleipnir, the steed of Odin. Loki is a trickster god and shape shifter - he sometimes assists the other gods, and other times he behaves maliciously towards them. Loki's positive relations towards the gods are ended when he engineers the death of the god Baldr.
Baldr and his mother Frigg had a prophetic dream of his death, and Frigg made every object on earth vow never to hurt Baldr, except for the mistletoe (which was either too young to make a legal vow, or else considered too unimportant to ask). Loki hears of this, and during a gathering where the gods hurled objects at the otherwise-invulnerable Baldr, he tricks Baldr's brother Höðr into shooting a mistletoe arrow at him; after the arrow slays the otherwise-invulnerable Baldr, Loki is bound as punishment. The goddess Skaði (or Skadi) places a venom-dripping serpent above the bound Loki, and Sigyn uses a bowl to collect the venom, but must empty it once it becomes full; in the meantime, the venom that drips onto Loki caused him to writhe in pain, which is explained as the source of earthquakes. With the onset of Ragnarök, Loki is foretold to slip free from his bonds and join the jötnar in fighting against the gods - Heimdallr, the watchman of the gods, and Loki are fated to slay each other.
Variants
dNetHack
In dNetHack, notdNetHack and notnotdNetHack, Loki is a chaotic god of unholiness, and his minions consist of hell hound pups, adult hell hounds, fire giants, and Brighid Eladrin. He does not have a crowning gift of his own, but will give a crowned Valkyrie The Bow of Skadi.
Encyclopedia entry
Loki, or Lopt, is described in Snorri's _Edda_ as being
"pleasing and handsome in appearance, evil in character, and
very capricious in behaviour". He is the son of the giant
Farbauti and of Laufey.
Loki is the Norse god of cunning, evil, thieves, and fire.
He hated the other gods and wanted to ruin them and overthrow
the universe. He committed many murders. As a thief, he
stole Freyja's necklace, Thor's belt and gauntlets of power,
and the apples of youth. Able to shapechange at will, he is
said to have impersonated at various times a mare, flea, fly,
falcon, seal, and an old crone. As a mare he gave birth to
Odin's horse Sleipnir. He also allegedly sired the serpent
Midgard, the mistress of the netherworld, Hel, and the wolf
Fenrir, who will devour the sun at Ragnarok.
