Nidavangr is a land of windswept moors and frozen mountains. This cold and inhospitable land once belonged to the Jotuns or perhaps the Vanir, but it was conquered and settled by strong and fierce men in ages past. Ever since they have fought bitter wars with the former inhabitants of the land. Centuries of war have tempered the will and the ways of the Nidings of Nidavangr. Men as well as women are taught to fight at an early age and failure to survive combat or the harsh climate is more prevalent than dying from disease or old age. To most Nidings, death in a bed is a failure of life as a whole. Nidavangr is composed of three clans, named after their totemic animals, the Bear, the Wolf and the Crow. The warriors of the clans adopt the battle tactics of their totem. The clans are ruled by Jarls, but it is the Seithberenders, the clan shamans, who are the true masters of Nidavangr and the ones who perform the Nidalögning, Nidbath, on the sacred warriors of the Jarldom. The Nidbathed are ghastly warriors who are not even stopped by death. Should a Nidbathed be killed he rises again, and continues to fight, for he has several lives. Out of necessity, the perpetual conflict with the Vanir has made the Nidings search for ways to avoid the effects of glamour in their lands. And so the Awakening God taught the clan shamans the art of seith and how to scry their lands for that which cannot be seen.
"Nidavangr is a nation based on three main sources. Two of them are derivatives of rpg settings of mine. The first setting was a land inhabited by barbarians divided into seven clans named after their totemic animals. At the center of this land was a kettle hole at which unholy rites were performed to create Nidlögade, warriors with several lives, which together with their raven clan shamans served as the final antagonists of the campaign. I reused and reworked the totemic tribes for my current pathfinder campaign. In this setting there are only three clans: wolf, bear and raven. The shape shifting seithberenders of Nidavangr closely resemble the clan druids of that campaign. Nidavangr is a mix of these two settings with some added mood of the novel Midnight Tides of the Malazan Book of the Fallen. My impressions of the frozen waste and the undying Rhulad have trickled into Nidavangr and the Nidbathed, but I can't say for sure how much of the mood you would recognize. Finally Nidavangr was set in a Dominions context with jotuns and vanir as ancestral enemies of the clans." -Illwinter
If you are considering picking this nation to play, what should you know?
Born in a land that once belonged to the Joton or Vanir, The nation is a love child of Rus's shapeshifting shamans and berserkers, Ulmish raiding tactics and (improved) ubiquity, and plundered and modified Helheim death magic, despite Nidvangr having no confirmed lore origins from any of those nations.
Magic Access | Alt. Access | Unit Summary | Core Abilities | Buildings |
---|---|---|---|---|
3 (uncommon 4, rare 5) 3 (uncommon 4, rare 5) 2 (uncommon 3, rare 4) 2 2 1 1 (uncommon 2, rare 3) 1 | Hero 231 2321 2341 | Barbarians stealthy raiding infantry berserking infantry semi-immortal sacreds | Cold Resistance Snow Move Skirmisher Ambidextrous Stealthy Mountain Survival Forest Survival Shapechanger Cub-Mother | Standard Forts Temples cost 300 |
Capitol Gems: 113
Turmoil Limit + 1
Cold Limit + 1
Prefers Cold Scale + 2
Blood Sacrifice: Priests can sacrifice a blood slave at a temple to help extend the dominion.
Scry: Arcoscephale will scry on all provinces under its dominion. This scrying is very accurate and will also reveal enemy units using the glamour ability to hide. The information gained from this will also be available to disciple players.
scar souls: The scar souls of their sacred unit and one sacred commander are determined through the dominion score of the province they are created in on that turn. After that, every time they die, they lose one of those scar souls, never to be regained. You can see how many scar souls your units have by holding 'Tab' in the army management screen.
Regardless of the pretender's dominion score chosen at the start of the game, you can choose a prophet and preach your capital's dominion up to 7, giving the Nidbathed 3 scar souls when recruited while Nidhere get the full 7.
The Nidings of Nidavangr are somewhat-barbaric humans of Size 3 (three units to a square). They come in three clans: the fervently defensive Bear Clan, the plundering Wolf Clan, and the attentive Crow Clan. Their society lives in an icy hell of sorts, giving them 5 Cold Resistance and inuring them to Mountains, Forests, and Snow. Most Nidings are especially eager to fight, having at least 11 HP and 11 Morale (unless they've dedicated themselves to the Shaman's life), and striding with a full 16 Map Movement while naked. These are just the baselines for the troops; many are better, in these areas or in others.
Sprite | Unit Name | Special Attributes | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
Crow Clan Scout 35 6 1 Non-fort Recruit Available | Stealthy (40) | Commentary here. | |
Bear Clan Cub-Mother 35 16 1 Non-fort Recruit Available | Berserker (3) Skirmisher Cub-Mother Female | Commentary here. | |
Nidherse 60 22 1 Non-fort Recruit Available | Stealthy (40) pillager (5) | Commentary here. | |
Nidajarl 95 13 1 | Commentary here. | ||
Seithberender Apprentice 75 2 2 Non-fort Recruit Available | 1100% 5 Sacred | Commentary here. | |
Wolf Clan Seithberender 245 5 2 Non-fort Recruit Available | 21111 Sacred Supply Bonus (10) Shapechanger (Wolf) | Commentary here. | |
Wolf | Adds: Stealthy (40) Animal Replaces: Shapechanger (Wolf Clan Seithberender) |
||
Bear Clan Seithberender 245 5 2 Non-fort Recruit Available | 12111 Sacred Supply Bonus (20) Shapechanger (Great Bear) | Commentary Here. | |
Great Bear | Adds: Animal |
||
Crow Clan Seithberender 490 2 4 Capital Only | 12212100% 100% 10%19 Sacred Shapechanger (Crow) | Commentary Here. | |
Crow | Adds: Stealthy (40) Animal Flying Replaces: Shapechanger (Crow Clan Seithberender) | ||
Nidhere 170 12 2 Capital Only | 1 Sacred Inspirational (+1) Scar Souls (100%) | Commentary Here. |
Sprite | Unit Name | Special Attributes | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
Cub-Warrior 9 3 _ Non-fort Recruit Available | Skirmisher undisciplined | Commentary here. | |
Crow Clan Archer 10 8 _ Non-fort Recruit Available | Stealthy (40) | Commentary here. | |
Wolf Clan Reaver 11 14 _ Non-fort Recruit Available | Stealthy (40) pillager (1) | Commentary here. | |
Bear Clan Warrior 12 16 _ Non-fort Recruit Available | Berserker (3) Skirmisher Undisciplined Bad Formation Fighter (-2) | Commentary here. | |
Nidylva 14 12 _ | Ambidextrous (1) pillager (1) Formation Fighter (2) Female | Commentary here. | |
Nidbathed 45 12 _ Capital Only | Sacred Scar Souls (50%) | Commentary here. |
Sprite | Unit Name | Special Attributes | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
Seithmathr Wolf | 232119 Sacred Supply Bonus (20) Summons in Battle (Skeletal Wolf) Shapechanger (Wolf) | Commentary here. | |
Wolf | Adds: Stealthy (40) Animal Replaces: Shapechanger (Seithmathr Wolf) | ||
Seithmathr Bear | 23115 Sacred Poison Resistance (5) Berserker (3) Supply Bonus (30) Shapechanger (Great Bear) | Commentary Here. | |
Great Bear | Adds: Animal | ||
Seithmathr Crow | 234123 Sacred Shapechanger (Crow) | Commentary Here. | |
Crow | Adds: Stealthy (40) Animal Flying Replaces: Shapechanger (Seithmathr Crow) |
Summon Spell | Unit | Special Attributes | Comments |
---|---|---|---|
Sloth of Bears (Conjuration 3) 2 and 6 | Great Bear x 15+ | Undisciplined Animal Mountain Survival Forest Survival | Commentary here. |
Command Draugar (Conjuration 4) 2 and 12 | Draug x 4 | Resist Cold (25) Resist Poison (25) Cold Aura (3) Fear (5) Undead Amphibious Need Not Eat Spirit Sight Shapechanger Below HP (20) (Draug) | Commentary here. |
Draug | Same As Above Shapechanger Above HP (25) (Draug) |
See Magic Access. These guides supplement the summaries at the top.
Crow clan Seithberender uncommon random 4. Craft unique Tome of High Power, The Void Sphere, and The Oath Rod of Kurgi.
Crow clan Seithberender uncommon random 4 or the Seithmathr Crow. The Black Book of Secrets.
Bear Clan Seithberender has fix 21. but Wolf clan 21 can Contact Naiad or Seithmathr Bear can make The Tome of Gaia. Enough for Awaken Treelord (1 in 3 is a 5 before the The Tome of Gaia.
How to win as the nation. Feel free to use the following sections, or delete them, or change them.
Different expansion options.
Early game options.
Mid game options.
Late game options.
Chassis: Awake Titan of Crossroads
Paths: 457
Bless: MW/Arcane Finesse, Invuln 10, Regen.
Scales: 6203123
What are the nation's weaknesses?
Add links to guides or other overviews for this nation here.