Helheim is a land of shadows, windswept moors and silent mountains. Here lies Gnipahålan, the Stone Cave, where the dead pass through on their way to Hel. The Hanged Kings, ancient Vanir who have hanged themselves to learn the secrets of Death, rule the land from their thrones in Helhalla. Helheim is inhabited by Vanir, a race of tall and innately magical beings who are able to trick mortals with their glamour. The Vanir of Helheim have sequestered themselves from the Vanir of Vanheim and have not been part of the great war with the giants. For ages they have been guiding the dead on their way to Hel in service of a dead god. Now a new God is arising and the old ways are changing. The Valkyries, guides of the dead, have become messengers of death and sacred warriors of the new God. Valkyries, the female Vanir of Helheim, are able to fly, a gift from the dead god they once served. Lesser beings are not held in high regard and their blood is sacrificed to sate the Awakening God. Unlike their cousins in Vanheim, the Vanir of Helheim are not shipwrights and sailors.

"[Helheim] sprung from old Norse myth. The Poetic Edda and some later tales, combined with general conceptions of Iron Age Scandinavia, are the main sources. Vanir, Aesir and Giants are ancient antagonists in these myths. The Aesir, being perceived as gods, have been made pretenders in Dominions. Not that Vanir weren't, but they seem less so than the Aesir in most instances. As with most nations of supernatural origin, it seems fitting that their magic fades with each passing age as humans become more and more numerous." -Illwinter

Helheim is an alternate version of Vanheim, with high levels of Death magic and more-reliable Glamour magic instead of any Blood magic. It's an elf nation that can bog foes down with Dread and skele-spam. Recruit-wise, it's a bit more similar to later Vanheim than current Vanheim; or, in other words, less good at blitzing. Its mages generally have better focus in their paths than Vanheim's, but this also makes them more expensive, while their lack of Blood magic or Master Smiths gives them a more ordinary lategame.

Magic Access	Alt. Access	Unit Summary	Core Abilities	Buildings
4 (Rare 5) 3 (Rare 4) 3 2 1 2	Summons 423 243 432 432 (req. 43)	Flying Elf Vikings Strong Thugs No cheap mages Flying Van sacreds Sacred Van cavalry	Stealthy Flying Glamour Skilled Rider True Sight	Standard Forts

**Capitol Gems: **141

Cold limit +1
Death limit +1
Magic limit +1

Prefers Cold Scale + 1

Blood Sacrifice: Priests can sacrifice a blood slave at a temple to help extend the dominion.

The roster is composed largely of elves, long-lived and glamoured units with high defense skill. The majority of Helheim's armies are therefore invisible on the map to most other players.

: Stealthy (65), Glamour

See Magic Access. These guides supplement the summaries at the top.

• 1 on roughly every fifth Svartalf (capital only)
• 2 on Vanjarls
• No Water magic
• 3 on roughly every fifth Svartalf (capital only)

• No Astral magic
• 4 on one-in-four Hangadrotts (capital only), 1 on Helkarls off-capital
• No Nature magic
• 3 on one-in-four Hangadrotts (capital only), 1 on Vanherses off-capital

• No Blood magic
• 2 on Vanjarls

• 42/33: Dread spells, Unending Nightmare, Vengeance of the Dead
• 132: Wind of Death, Cloud of Death, Cloud of Dreamless Slumber, Wailing Winds, Foul Air, various summons
• 32/23: Eye Pendant, Shadow Brand, Blight, Hidden summons, Fields of the Dead, Poison Golems
• 132/221: Cave Kobolds (and Bluecaps)
• 122: Bane Fire, Skull of Fire, Magma spells (such as Magma Eruption)
• 122: Rain of Stones, Knight's Barding, Brightmail Haubergeon

Summon Dwarf of the Four Directions gives dwarves that widen Helheim's path access, by having a 1/4 chance to provide 2, a 1/4 chance to provide 2, and a 1/4 chance to provide 2. If all four enter the game, the world is plunged into Perpetual Storm and all battles will have Darkness, something Helheim performs better under than Vanheim. These are essentially non-native to Helheim, however. They require a 43 mage and 62; the cost to get those paths without a specially designed pretender is 135 (plus 10 for Earth Boots) on a 122 Svartalf, but one dwarf can summon the rest. Just remember that Vanheim, Niefelheim, and Muspelheim, also get to summon these.

A 1 Svartalf (1 in 5) is the only recruitable source of Fire. It can make a Skull of Fire for 2, but will need a level of empowerment to climb the rest of the ladder (Flame Spirit, Flame Helmet, et cetera)… unless you get the Dwarf of the South, anyway, who can forge the Flame Helmet right away due to his Master Smith abilities.

A Vanjarl has 2. This isn't enough to climb the ladder, requiring two Air empowerments for the Winged Helmet.

No native access. The Dwarf of the North has 2 and Master Smith 1, however, so you could climb the rest of the ladder with him. You can even skip the Sea King in the chase for a Queen of Elemental Water, using the Staff of Elemental Mastery that all four directional dwarves can craft.

3 mages (Hangadrotts or Death Svartalves) can Summon Spectres for a 7 in 16 chance of at least 1.

Each Svartalf has a 20% chance to have 3, bringing access up to 4 with the Earth Boots; if rushed, Construction 9 then offers the Orb of Elemental Earth for 5. You could then theoretically get a King of Elemental Earth for 6, but that would be Level 8 in another school, and Helheim isn't in a great position for spamming researchers.

No native access. 31 (from the Earth Svartalf) can cast Hidden in Sand and Hidden Wasteland for a decent but expensive chance at getting an Astral level; the odds of getting 2 (and not a level lower) are 1-out-of-3 for Hidden in Sand, while the odds of getting at least 1 are 3-out-of-4 for Hidden Underneath, not including how Scales determine the number of mages the Rituals provide.

Alternatively, 3 mages (Hangadrotts or Death Svartalves) can Summon Spectres for a 7 in 16 chance of at least 1; this is cheaper, and in a gem type Helheim has guaranteed income for.

4 on Hangadrotts (1 in 4) makes climbing Death simple. 6 is a Skull Staff and a Skullface away.

EA Helheim can forge The Copper Arm and The Silver Arms to hold extra Death boosters, but the other boosters are artifacts that one should not expect to craft.

No native access. The Dwarf of the East has 2 and Master Smith 1, though, so one who rushes the dwarves can get 3 without much trouble; if they then rush The Tome of Gaia (an artifact), they can craft the Treelord's Staff for 6, 7 if they also use The Copper Arm.

Alternatively, a 23 mage can Summon Gnomes for 2. An Earth Hangadrott with a Gossamer Veil and Earth Boots can do the job; the boots have to be crafted by a Svartalf, of course.

3 on Hangadrotts (1 in 4) means Helheim can attain 4 through the Gossamer Veil. The Mirage Crystal (Glamour's other common booster) is exactly as complex to get as the Gnome, bringing 5 into your grasp. Here's a little trivia: Hangadrotts couldn't wear boots in Dominions 5, since how mounted units were handled meant they were considered to never dismount, not even in labs.

No native access. It's not like bootstrapping into Blood is ruinous, however.

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.

What are the nation's weaknesses?

Add links to guides or other overviews for this nation here.

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