The Best in Fictional Weaponry: Mjolnir

*Originally published on 3/8/12




We've talked about weapons forged by gods before, but now we come to a weapon that was not only forged by gods, but is wielded by one as well. The weapon in question is Mjolnir (commonly pronounced as "Myull-Neer" in case you were curious), the hammer wielded by Thor, the Norse god of Thunder.

Whether talking about the original, as seen in Norse lore, or the iteration we see wielded by Marvel Comics' version of Thor, Mjolnir is a fearsome weapon to behold. In both instances, it is a weapon that is said to be capable of leveling mountains. If Thor were to throw the weapon, it would always hit its target. More than that, it would come back to him, much like fellow Marvel Comics superhero, Captain America's shield. While Mjolnir is often depicted as being large in order to indicate its power, the hammer was capable of changing size to make it more portable.

Not surprisingly, the writers at Marvel Comics kicked things up a notch and gave the mythical hammer an array of abilities that befit a warrior god. The ability to level mountains, as well as all of the other abilities listed, is still present and it is said that Adamantium (the indestructible metal that laces X-Man, Wolverine's bones and claws) is the only thing capable of withstanding a blow from said weapon.

In addition to massive amounts of concussive power, the Marvel comics iteration of Mjolnir is capable of creating force fields, shooting bolts of mystical energy (some of which are capable of harming planet sized entities), and can even manipulate molecules.

Mjolnir is especially potent against the undead. As Mjolnir is a religious item, vampires and other such abominations quickly burst into flame when struck by the hammer. Granted, this didn't help Thor much in the Marvel Zombies series, but it is still a benefit to possessing the legendary weapon.

Mjolnir has shown to be capable of doing a wide variety of other things. It can create anti-matter, project images, and can absorb massive amounts of energy. By massive, I'm talking on a galactic scale. As such, the hammer itself is quite resilient. Mjolnir has been broken or damaged before, but that was usually when it was on the receiving ends of either incredibly intense attacks or attacks by other mystical weapons.

As Thor is often touted as the "god of thunder" it should come as no surprise that Mjolnir also grants him the ability to call forth thunder, as well as rain and lightning. It can manipulate the weather on a global scale, as opposed to simply operating on a local level like the X-Man, Storm's ability to manipulate the elements.

It is also said that Mjolnir can open portals and vortexes into other dimensions. I'll grant you, some of these abilities seem to be pushing it. I get the feeling that Mjolnir wanted to try to compete with the sonic screwdriver in terms of developing new abilities on the fly. Regardless of the fact, Mjolnir has proven to be one of the more powerful weapons out there and, as such, is more than worthy of being considered one of the best.