How big is Fenrir?
As an avid gamer and Norse mythology buff, I‘ve always wondered – just how colossally huge does Fenrir, the legendary giant wolf, grow? With Ragnarök bringing a resurgence of interest in Norse themes in games like God of War, it‘s a great time to dive into the mythical wolf‘s true monstrous scale.
Big Enough to Reach Between Heaven and Earth
Ancient Norse texts say that when Fenrir gaped his jaws, his upper mouth "touched the heavens" while his lower jaw "scraped along the earth." Given average cloud height, that means a minimum 30,000 ft tall span!
For reference, World of Warcraft‘s Sargeras stands 800 ft tall – Fenrir would be over 37 times that height! And his gullet could easily swallow 100 Sargerases in one gulp.
Heaven Height Analysis
Taking a deeper look:
- Low end heaven height – troposphere: 6,000 – 20,000 ft
- Thunderclouds: 40,000 – 75,000 ft
- Aurora borealis: 60,000 – 200,000+ ft
So by various measures, Fenrir‘s head would stand anywhere from 15,000 miles to over 100,000 miles in height if we take this literally.
Earth Circumference for Comparison
The earth‘s diameter is approx 8,000 miles (13,000 km). So Fenrir‘s length from lower jaw to tail would be many times greater than that of the entire planet!
For reference in gaming terms:
| Game | Boss/Entity | Height (ft) |
|---|---|---|
| Shadow of Colossus | Phalanx | 500 |
| God of War | World Serpent | 4,000 |
Even the largest bosses pale in comparison to Fenrir essentially wrapping around the planet or more!
Devours Gods and Celestial Bodies
This is no mere exaggeration – Fenrir literally grows large enough to swallow gods whole and gulp down the sun and moon!
Gods Height Analysis
The height of a typical Norse god in human form would be at least 6 – 7 ft tall. For Fenrir to swallow them:
- Mouth Gap – 50 ft height
- Gullet Capacity – 500+ cubic ft if curled up
So Fenrir must reach all 3 dimensions on a giant‘s scale – tall enough for 50+ ft mouth gape, length to match prey, and width on a multi-lane freeway level.
In Jormungandr‘s case, as a giant serpent that spans the entire world, this means Fenrir can eventually open his jaws wider than Earth‘s entire 8,000 mile diameter!
Celestial Bodies Size Comparison
| Celestial Body | Diameter |
|---|---|
| The Sun | 865,370 miles |
| The Moon | 2,159 miles |
For Fenrir to chomp down on the flaming sun, his mouth would need to stretch wider than nearly 1 million miles! In terms of gaming analogues, that‘s like trying to stuff the Death Star or entire planets into the wolf king‘s stomach.
Chains and Swords Barely Bind Him
Shackling Fenrir requires magical chains and swords called Gleipnir and Tyrving – the Norse gods clearly struggled to physically restrain the beast.
Some key takeaways:
- The fetter Gleipnir, while slender, is unbreakable even by the gods‘ strength
- The Tyrving sword between his jaws prevents bites strong enough to sever Gleipnir
This hints at Fenrir possessing extreme scale and strength far surpassing a giant wolf that size should have.
Analogous Wildlife Strength Examples
To give a real-world baseline, large crocodiles and lions have bite forces over 2,000 psi. Giant creatures of Fenrir‘s mythic stature could easily produce millions of psi. Gleipnir‘s magic likely enhances its durability exponentially to withstand this – something to keep in mind for Ragnarok game mechanics!
Destined to Stand Over 50 Feet Tall at Ragnarok
Later Norse prophecies foretell that by the arrival of Ragnarok, Fenrir will stand over 50 feet tall at the shoulder.
For reference:
- Largest wolf on record – 7.5 ft tall
- God of War Fenrir – approx 15 ft tall
So a 50 ft Fenrir would be nearly 7 times larger than any known earthly wolf! And that is apparently Fenrir‘s smaller late-stage Ragnarok height rather than his earlier sky-high measurements.
At a minimum, it gives us a baseline target size for gaming depictions to scale up towards as he breaks free.
Scaling Fenrir as an Epic Boss Battle
For developers looking to tackle Fenrir in games, start by modelling him as big as your engine can manage without breaking. Go upwards of at least 50-100 ft tall, and keep pushing the limits over sequel entries as Fenrir grows towards his foretold Ragnarok size.
His attacks need to look hyper-destructive on a huge range reflecting strength far beyond natural giant wolves. Rampaging across entire zones or even worlds as players try to take him down could capture his mythical destructive capabilities.
Pull out all the stops on particles, sound design, terrain deformation and more to sell the visceral impact as he brings about the Viking apocalypse!
The True Giant Wolf King
By cross-referencing Fenrir‘s various legendary size metrics and using real-world data to extrapolate – it becomes clear the mythical Norse wolf grows to literally astronomical proportions.
From height to strength to appetite, Fenrir ultimately embodies the role of the Giant Wolf as few other fictional beasts have. As Ragnarok approaches in the fabled Gylfaginning and later games, witness the unleashing of a miles-long old god beyond any earthly creature‘s power!
