Epic Mounts of the Hammerlands

Disclaimer: This blog uses the MCDM Arcadia 1 mount system. I highly recommend this system if you want to use mounts in your 5e games.

In a previous post, I presented 4 mounts that are commonly used throughout the Hammerlands. These mounts were widely accessible under the right circumstances. In this post, however, I’ll be detailing 4 unique, one-of-a-kind mounts that are intended for high-level characters. They are epic rarity creatures that could have entire adventures based around acquiring them. How you introduce them to your game is up to you!

Sleipnir

Sleipnir is a majestic, 8-legged horse that is famous for its incredible speed. This creature is rarely seen and in the event anyone tries to get close, Sleipnir flees at a nearly unachievable speed or fades into the Ethereal Plane, becoming unreachable to mortals.

This king of horses has a coat of short, white fur with splashes of pale blue across its hide. Its mane is long and pale, cascading down its neck and back. Sleipnir’s 8 legs create a unique, otherworldly silhouette and it’s these powerful legs that allow it to travel at such high speeds with control and manoeuvrability.

In battle, Sleipnir uses its speed advantage to rush across the battlefield at high speeds, using hit and run tactics. No normal creature can react fast enough to make a swing for the horse as it runs past.

When driven to flee, or requiring a silent approach, Sleipnir can phase into the Ethereal Plane and move at an even more ridiculous speed. Should its rider be dismounted while in this other Plane, they will immediately be thrown back into the Material Plane.

Hildisvíni

Hildisvíni is a towering 14 feet tall brown-furred boar with magical golden patterns trailing along its body. 4 thick tusks capped in gold protrude from its face. Its huge size and extreme weight cause the very ground to shake as it moves and those that stand too close risk being thrown to the ground or at worst, crushed beneath it.

The boar’s tusks are effective weapons against other creatures, yet they are also devastatingly effective against structures. Hildisvíni can rend the earth apart, shattering the ground or launching huge mounds of rock into the air like small meteors.

While no one has sighted Hildisvíni in nearly 3 generations, it is rumoured that he is currently being utilised by a faction of Nidhogg-worshiping cultists in the area below Mjolnir’s Hilt.

Due to his size, Hildisvíni can support up to 6 medium or smaller creatures on its back, however, only one may be assigned as its rider.

Tanngrisnir & Tanngnjostr

Unlike most mounts, Tanngrisnir & Tanngnjostr are not directly ridable themselves, and instead, these magical goats pull an equally magical chariot. For the purposes of streamlining the two creatures into a single stat block, the goats share a single HP and will both fall should it reach 0.

These large goats are pretty unremarkable aside from their size, yet they possess no small number of impressive magical properties. Firstly, they are capable of flight, although this is more akin to running through the air. Whilst in flight, they leave a trail of lightning behind them that can be a painful deterrent for creatures that get too close.

Another shocking trait that Tanngrisnir & Tanngnjostr possess is the rather bizarre ability to be consumed by their rider and provided their bones are kept intact, they simply resurrect at dawn the next day. They can also let out a powerful scream that will stun any unprepared target.

These goats are currently owned by Atli, the powerful representative of Thor, found at the peak of Mjolnir’s Handle. It is unsure if the goats were gifted to him at the creation of the realm or whether Alti had a hand in their existence directly.

Brennandi

Brennandi is a large ever-burning raven of dark feathers and a fiery red crest. The bird’s flames provide light and warmth to those it trusts and burning pain to anything it deems an enemy.

Only someone it completely trusts may take this raven as its mount, yet should their bond be strong enough, Brennandi will gift its rider many blessings. The most powerful is the chance to see through its incredible eyes and peer up to a mile away with clear vision.

Brennandi uses her flaming feathers to repel enemies and can even launch them to the ground, creating burning pillars of incredible heat. Upon receiving significant damage, Brennandi will release a torrent of flames at all nearby creatures, yet shielding its rider from this devastating blast.

The burning raven, Brennandi has no rider currently and belongs to no one. It is a wild creature, sighted very rarely and thought to be a sign of good fortune.

Final Thoughts

Hi! I hoped you enjoyed looking at these high-level mounts and all their fun flavour test! I’m quite happy with how these turned out. Those of you that know your Norse Mythology should recognise the first 3 entries. I made sure to research the reference material when building these mounts as I wanted to include as many authentic abilities as possible, from the myths and stories!

If you use any of these in your games, either as a party mount or an enemy mount, I’d love to hear how it went! Feel free to comment below or join my Discord and chat with me there! You can also find my on Twitch where we design all the content you find on this blog! We just made affiliate too so we’ll have some fun D&D-themed emotes coming soon!

I hope you have a great day and as always, may your next session be filled with glory!