Myth unit. The fire-breathing dragon that lives beneath the roots of the world. He can only be attacked by ranged units. Good against everything.
”
—In-game description
Nidhogg is a Norsemyth unit who spews flames in a deadly splash attack that deals both hack and crush damage. As a flying unit, only ranged attacks can harm him.
In the Extended Edition, Nidhogg takes ×0.12 damage from the Bolt god power. Bolt will deal 1,032 points of damage if Nidhogg does not have the benefit of Scales of a Catoblepas, and 1,030 points of damage if he does.
Special abilities[]
Blazing Strafe (Charged): Breathes fire while swooping downwards in a straight line; blast radius of 6 dealing 15 divine damage (2× vs. buildings) while moving 9.5 tiles forward in 3 seconds. Recharge time: 90 seconds. (since Retold)
Divine Protection (Passive): Cannot be targeted by enemy god powers which must be used on a particular target, such as Bolt, Traitor, etc.
Nature's Eyes (Passive, requires Eyes in the Forest): Animals and natural objects within the unit's Line of Sight reveal their surroundings (30-tile radius) for 6 seconds.
The Nidhogg has 50 pierce armor, 80 hack armor, 4.3 speed, Line of Sight 40, and an Area of Effect radius of 8.
The Nidhogg gains the Blazing Strafe and Divine Protection abilities, the latter granting him immunity to Bolt and several other god powers.
He can be summoned again four minutes after being summoned, albeit for a very high Favor cost that progressively increases with each reuse of the god power. This makes it possible to have multiple Nidhoggs in one game.
Tactics[]
Nidhogg's devastating attack, huge number of hit points, and high armor almost make him a one-unit army. He can slaughter units and take down buildings with ease, and, being a flying unit, can even take on Titans with impunity. Despite being airborne, the Nidhogg will, however, take splash damage from a Titan while it attacks ground troops. Ranged human units will eventually prevail over Nidhogg, but with dreadful losses, and ranged heroes, his main weakness, can be hard to come by.
However, Nidhogg is not invincible. He cannot regenerate or be healed by any means, so sustained attacks will finish him. Towers and fortresses gain a massive attack bonus against flying units, so keeping Nidhogg in an enemy town too long will eventually wear him down. Ranged heroes such as the Pharaoh (especially the Son of Osiris), Immortal, and Odysseus do serious damage to Nidhogg, and he can die fairly quickly if unsupported. Zeus' Bolt can kill Nidhogg instantly except in the Extended Edition where it only deals damage equal to 2% of his health and in Retold where he is completely immune to it. The player should therefore protect Nidhogg with an army and avoid direct engagements with Zeus players. If players find themselves losing a battle, they should command Nidhogg to retreat as soon as possible because his slow speed leaves him vulnerable to pursuits from his counters. He is also vulnerable to large masses of powerful ranged myth units like the Vermilion Bird and Phoenix.
Mythology[]
“
Scientific name -- Draco niflheimus Size -- 20' wingspan Diet -- corpses, roots of Yggdrasil
In Niflheim, the Norse Underworld, lives a great dragon or serpent, Nidhogg, whose name means "tearer of corpses". He gnaws on the roots of the world ash, Yggdrasil, waiting for Ragnarok. Yggdrasil is also home to an eagle and to an anthropomorphic squirrel named Ratatosk. Ratatosk ferries insults back and forth between Nidhogg at the ash's roots and the eagle living up in the branches.
Other dragons tasked to destroy the world tree are Grabak, Grafvolluth, Goin and Moin.
”
—In-game help section
Campaign appearances[]
Fall of the Trident[]
Unlikely Heroes - Nidhogg appears as one of Gargarensis' powerful units that will attack the player early into the game. The Nidhogg is directly mentioned by Brokk during its attack.
The New Atlantis[]
Rampage - King Folstag has already tamed Nidhogg during the events of The New Atlantis. During the scenario, King Folstag will attempt to summon Nidhogg to aid them in their battle against Ymir. If the player can hold long enough, Nidhogg will be summoned and come under the player's control. It is worth noting that in this scenario, Nidhogg has a significantly increased attack bonus against the enemy Titan. It is possible for the player to obtain victory by killing the Titan before Nidhogg is summoned. Whether this is the same Nidhogg from Fall of the Trident or a different creature of the same species is unknown.
Trivia[]
Nidhogg has the second highest number of hit points of any unit accessible in random map games, tied with the Earth Dragon and behind the Titan.
After being invoked, Nidhogg can be attacked during his descent.
All players are notified when a Nidhogg dies.
While the mythology section states that Nidhogg's name means "tearer of corpses", the actual translation of the Old Norse Níðhǫggr is "Malice Striker". It is true, however, that in the Poetic Edda, Nidhogg is said to chew on the corpses of murderers and oath-breakers in Nástrǫnd ("Corpse Shore"), a location in Hel.
Gallery[]
Nidhogg using his Blazing Strafe ability in Retold