Loki is the shape-shifting trickster god of Norse mythology. He is a central figure in many of the stories of Norse myth, as recounted in the Poetic Eddas and the Prose Eddas. At Ragnarok, he will both kill and be killed by Heimdall.
By analyzing quizbowl questions, you can see patterns emerge - patterns that will help you answer more tossups. Qwiz5 is all about those patterns. In each installment of Qwiz5, we take an answer line and look at its five most common clues. Here we explore five clues that will help you answer a tossup on Loki.
FENRIR
Fenrir (the wolf) is the son of Loki and the giantess Angrboda. With Angrboda, Loki also fathers Hel and Jörmungandr (the Midgard Serpent).
BALDR
Loki tricks the blind god Hodr into killing Baldr by throwing a spear of mistletoe at him (mistletoe being the one item on earth that Baldr was not invulnerable to).
SLEIPNIR
Loki is the mother of Sleipnir, the eight-legged mare that Odin rides.
SIGYN
Sigyn is the wife of Loki with whom he fathers Narfi. As punishment for his role in Baldr’s death, Loki is bound with Narfi’s entrails with a snake dripping venom onto him. Sigyn catches the venom, keeping Loki safe.
FIMAFENG
Loki kills Fimafeng, a servant of Aegir, at a large feast, angering many of the gods in attendance. To escape, Loki changes into a salmon and hides behind Franang’s Falls.
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Quizbowl is about learning, not rote memorization, so we encourage you to use this as a springboard for further reading rather than as an endpoint. Here are a few things to check out:
* You can read a good overview of Loki here.
* If you want to go back to the source to read about Loki's murder of Fimafeng and the ensuing conflict with the Aesir, you can find the Prose Edda's account here.
* This video does a nice job of outlining Loki and his role in Norse mythology:
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