Styrbjörn the Strong

Styrbjörn the Strong (died c. 985) was a legendary Scandinavian prince and the son of the Swedish King Olof who was immortalized in the Norse sagas. His original name was Björn Olofsson and Styr- was added by his uncle Eric the Victorious when he grew up, as an epithet meaning that he was restless and violent.

Styrbjörn and his sister, Gyrid, became famous for their feud against their father's successor, their uncle King Eric, gathering allies to overthrow him during the 10th century. Their efforts culminated in the Battle of Fýrisvellir, where Styrbjörn's army was ultimately defeated by Eric's, and the prince perished in combat.

Through his relationship with Thyra Haraldsdottir, the daughter of the Danish king Harald Bluetooth, he became an ancestor of the 21st-century teenager Sean Molloy.

History

Early life

In 975, Styrbjörn's father, King Olof Björnsson, died under mysterious circumstances while his brother and co-ruler King Eric the Victorious succeeded him. Due to his combative and ruthless behavior, Styrbjörn was later ousted from the kingdom along with his sister Gyrid. However, Styrbjörn blamed Eric for his father's death as he surmised that he had been poisoned, yet he remained unaware of the true assailants.

Building his army

Within ten years, Styrbjörn, Gyrid, and his men decided to sail the sea towards Jomsborg to garner the aid of the Jomsvikings for his cause. Upon entry, he called for an audience with their leader Palnatoke. Brought to him, Styrbjörn challenged Palnatoke to a duel for leadership of the Jomsvikings. After emerging victorious, Styrbjörn, having earned the loyalty of Palnatoke and his men, sailed with his new army to confront Jutland's Christian King Harald Bluetooth.

Along the Danish coast, Styrbjörn, the Jomsvikings, and Palnatoke managed to win battles across the waters. Gaining headway, Styrbjörn ordered his men to sail towards Harald's kingdom. Nearing its coast, he caught sight of the resigned looks of Bluetooth and his children waiting to meet Styrbjörn and his army. During their initial meeting, Styrbjörn promised an alliance through marriage with Gyrid, which Harald accepted. However, the king still refused to aid Styrbjörn in his efforts to regain his throne. Thus, Styrbjörn declared war against the Danish king.

Despite Harald's far superior numbers, Styrbjörn solely fought through all of Harald's men while sustaining injuries. Reaching the king, he slew two of his guards easily and threatened Harald's life with his axe to his throat. Harald then surrendered his army to Styrbjörn. Afterwards, within a conference room, Styrbjörn spoke with Gyrid about sailing back to Sweden to reclaim his throne. Ignoring Harald's warning of his probable demise, Styrbjörn decided to take Bluetooth with him to ensure his army's compliance.

Sailing to Uppsala

Sailing across Lake Mälaren, Styrbjörn stood beside Palnatoke and a reluctant Harald on his ship. Noticing Harald touching his dagger, he questioned the king on the importance of the dagger. Harald explained how it was a gift from Bishop Poppa during his confirmation and how it was worth more than his and his men's freedom. Suddenly, they were stopped by a palisade set up by Eric's men, forcing their ships to come to a halt. Although Palnatoke and Harald argued to go around the palisade, Styrbjörn decided to march forward and abandon their ships.

Before their march, they all intended to rest, but Styrbjörn stopped Harald as he was convinced that the king would flee with his army in the night. Telling him to hand over his dagger as assurance that he would not abandon him, Harald ignored him. When a furious Styrbjörn attacked the king, Harald was forced to comply and tossed his dagger before leaving to rest. The next day, Styrbjörn learned from Palnatoke that Harald had left with his army.

Traversing through the Mirkwood

With his army reduced, Styrbjörn led his men north through the Mirkwood towards Uppsala. Camping within the woods, Styrbjörn noticed some of his men had been caught within poisoned snares and traps. Within his tent, he talked with Palnatoke about their next step until they were interrupted by the shieldmaiden Thyra Haraldsdottir, the illegitimate daughter of Harald. While both questioned her being here, Thyra explained that she loathed her father and believed in Styrbjörn's plan. Convincing them, she stayed with his army.

During the night, Styrbjörn heard war cries as his army was being attacked. Running out to aid his men, Styrbjörn was followed by Palnatoke, who went to defend him. At his warriors' camps, he found and attacked the intruders, who were being led by Östen Jorundsson. Killing three men, including Östen's friend Alferth, Styrbjörn exclaimed that he would burn down the Mirkwood to ensure victory. With this, the attackers fled but not before Styrbjörn realized that Palnatoke had perished during the attack.

Before continuing with their march, Styrbjörn spoke with Gorm, the new de-facto leader of the Jomsvikings, who blamed him for Palnatoke's death. However, Thyra calmed tensions and explained that Styrbjörn had Palnatoke's loyalty and that his men must follow the oath too. Soon, they all marched to Uppsala but noticed none of Eric's men in their way. However, an army breaker, made of weaponized cattle, was unleashed upon them. Styrbjörn solely attempted to release the cattle but was injured on his thigh. Although managing to break the cattle apart, some of his men fell to the weapon. While breaking the weapon, Styrbjörn and his men were then attacked by Eric's warriors from the ledung.

With Gorm and the Jomsviking guarding him, Styrbjörn stood his ground and fought alongside his remaining men and Thyra. Pushing back Eric's men and forcing them to retreat, Styrbjörn and his army regressed back to their camps and killed the remaining cattle for nourishment. While being treated for his wounds by Thyra, Styrbjörn received Gorm, who apologized and swore fealty to him after his impressive display of strength and leadership skills in the earlier fight. Talking with Thyra again, they spoke highly of each other while Thyra admitted to wanting to be his queen. Sharing the same feelings, Styrbjörn agreed to a quick wedding ceremony.

Creating their ceremony, Styrbjörn gave up the dagger as a gift to the gods and placed it well into the ceremonial mound. However, after they left the ceremony, the Icelandic skald and Hidden One Thorvald Hjaltason, who was spying on them, stole the dagger but missed his chance to assassinate the prince.

Battle of Fýrisvellir and death

With his remaining men, Styrbjörn marched towards the fields south of Uppsala while they saw his uncle Eric and his forces waiting for them. Soon enough, Styrbjörn and his men fought against Eric's forces. Styrbjörn pushed and killed anyone who came in his way towards his uncle. Confronting his uncle, he was soon challenged by Östen, who claimed vengeance for his fallen friend Alferth. Fighting brutally, Styrbjörn managed to destroy Östen's shield as they fought axe to axe. However, with his thigh injury proving to be a factor, he took a blow to the shoulder.

Bleeding, Styrbjörn still fought and wounded Östen just as bad. However, he fell and grew weaker as he determined that he was poisoned from the silver he had been given before the battle. Giving his respects to Östen, he stated that he wanted to die with honor. At that moment, Thyra came and almost ran to him but was stopped by Eric's housecarls. Although Östen was commanded to kill Styrbjörn, he refused while Thyra was released and then able to hold her lover. With his last breath, Styrbjörn died in Thyra's arms while the rest of his men and the Jomsvikings were slain by Eric's army.

Afterwards, Eric rewarded Östen with Thyra as his thrall but the farmer-warrior did not intend to keep her as his slave. Away from prying eyes, Östen released Thyra but she intended to stay to recover Styrbjörn's sword, which had been a gift for their wedding.

Legacy

In late 2016, Styrbjörn's descendant Sean Molloy relived his memories under the supervision of the Templars Victoria Bibeau and Isaiah at the Aerie facility. After Isaiah went rogue, he kidnapped Sean to further explore his memories in a secluded and secured area. In time, Sean began to suffer from an extreme case of the Bleeding Effect. After Isaiah betrayed his trust, Sean experienced a hallucination of Styrbjörn, who appeared in the abandoned Animus room and convinced him to free himself from his restraints.

Later, during Sean and Isaiah's final confrontation, Sean challenged him to a duel, prompting Isaiah to ask whether he was speaking as Styrbjörn or himself.

Personality and traits

Harald Bluetooth attempted multiple times to use his dagger—in reality the Trident of Eden's Devotion Prong—to influence Styrbjörn, but to no avail. The prince appeared unaffected by the artifact's powers, swearing loyalty only to himself. This immunity to the Piece of Eden surprised Harald, who repeatedly tried and failed to control him. It is likely that Styrbjörn possessed a high concentration of Isu DNA, granting him resistance to the artifact's effects, though this remains unconfirmed.

Gallery

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  Concept art by Studio Lounak

Appearances

• Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants – Tomb of the Khan (first appearance)
• Assassin's Creed: Last Descendants – Fate of the Gods