History Main / TheOldGods

** The Jotnar were descendants of Ymir, the ur-being, who co-existed with (and was kept fed by) a primeval cow named Auðumbla. Auðumbla licked on the salty ice of Niflheim and as the ice melted, a third being was freed: Búri, the first "true" god. Odin, Vili, and Ve (Búri's grandsons) later killed Ymir and [[CreationMyth created the world]] from his corpse (the Jotnar were almost exterminated by the flood of blood from the murder -- only [[AdamAndEvePlot one couple remained to repopulate the race]], making them technically younger than the race of gods). Following this event, Odin became the father and king of the New Gods, the Aesir. The Jotnar were expelled by the Aesir from the central regions of creation but remained puissant and reknowned for their ancient wisdom, the main remaining category of Old Gods.

* In ''Webcomic/{{Aurora2019}}'', the world was formed from the remains of the Primordials, several gigantic space-faring beings who died in a fierce battle over the fate of the sun. Gods are a completely different, newer class of being who arise from ambient soul energy shaped by mortal perception.

* [[ComicBook/TheSandman The Endless]] - older than any god, respected by all of them, personifications of the most fundamental concepts, but not gods per se, as gods require faith and the Endless don't. They also seem to be above nearly all godlike beings of the Franchise/DCUniverse, although in the right situations, other personified entities like the Kindly Ones, Lucifer, and some others have the power to contend their influence.

** ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'' introduces Kronika, the Titan of Time and mother of two Elder Gods, Cetrion and Shinnok. Whereas the Elder Gods have control of the cosmos, they have powers over the very laws of physics themselves. ''VideoGame/MortalKombat1'' clarifies that Titans are the title given to people who created and rule over timelines. This means that Liu Kang was considered a Titan when he became the Keeper of Time of the new timeline (although he voluntarily gave up the power, not wanting it to corrupt his mind as it did Kronika's). Liu Kang's last fight with Shang Tsung in ''11'' shattered the fabric of reality to the point that many new timelines have been created, including one where Shang Tsung rules over a VillainWorld as a Titan, one where Raiden became a Titan instead of Liu Kang, plus others ruled by deified versions of Kitana and Kung Lao.

** In turn, said Elder Gods are afraid of a Primordial Titan, "The Old One", who is prophesized to eat the Elder Gods if the balance maintained by Mortal Kombat is not upheld.
** And ''VideoGame/MortalKombat11'' reveals there are ''other'' Titans, such as Kronika, the Titan of Time. Whereas the Elder Gods have control of the cosmos, they have powers over the very laws of physics themselves.

* The Unexplored-Class Materials of ''LightNovel/TheUnexploredSummonBloodSign'', who represent the fundamental laws of the universe that even gods must follow. For example, they are the reason that Cronus is fated to be killed by Zeus. They are all female, and each of them is associated with a particular color. The Red-Eyed Lady, Wicked Green Woman and Spirit of the Fluttering Yellow Gills are above most of the remaining Unexplored-Class, while [[TopGod the White Queen]] stands above even them. [[spoiler:Unfortunately, the White Queen is also evil. Prior to the start of the series, she forced the other Unexplored-Class to submit to her, giving her complete authority over the entire universe]].

* In the ''Website/SCPFoundation'' universe, the Old Gods are a loose pantheon of eldritch deities. Members of this Lovecraftian pantheon include is the Scarlet King, Yaldabaoth, Mekhane, the Hanged King and several other deities.

* ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'' establishes that in the Film/{{Monsterverse}}, {{kaiju}} were the first gods, worshipped since the earliest Palaeolithic human civilizations and known in legends worldwide (for example, King Ghidorah is said to be the basis of serpent deities such as the Lernean Hydra, the Aži Dahāka, and the Rainbow Serpent). To drive this point home, they're referred to as Titans, and midway through the film [[spoiler: a sunken city older than Ancient Egypt is discovered beneath the Atlantic, and carved upon a vast wall within it is Godzilla surrounded by human figures]].

** ''Literature/TheDreamers'' has the original male and female creative powers embodied as [[spoiler:the peasant couple Ara and Omago.]]

* In the ''Wiki/SCPFoundation'' universe, the Old Gods are a loose pantheon of eldritch deities. Members of this Lovecraftian pantheon include is the Scarlet King, Yaldabaoth, Mekhane, the Hanged King and several other deities.

** The Old Gods were eventually given their ''own'' old gods in the [[UltimateEvil Void]] [[DarkIsEvil Lords]], who were revealed to have sent the Old Gods into the universe to begin with in order to corrupt unborn titans and take over the universe with them.

* ''ComicBook/NewGods'' opens with the declaration, "There came a time when the old gods died!" The very phrase "Fourth World" is because the New Gods are merely the most recent iteration of pantheons that have risen and fallen multiple times, and will themselves eventually die off to make way for a new pantheon. (Kirby's original intent was that the Old Gods were the Norse pantheon--the series was pitched as a followup to his work on ''ComicBook/{{Thor}}'', and it's fairly easy to read ''New Gods'' as a StealthSequel.)

** Discord, God of Chaos (who already in the show is one of the most powerful beings but here it is cranked UpToEleven)

These Old Gods are often some type of AnthropomorphicPersonification or EldritchAbomination. In fact, they usually are in most mythologies. They also have a large overlap with {{Precursors}}, for gods at least. They occasionally appear as the demons of a replacement religion, but compare AngelsDevilsAndSquid for the cases when their [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch-ness]] is played up instead. See also OurTitansAreDifferent, as "Titan" is often used to describe such a being.

These Old Gods are often some type of AnthropomorphicPersonification or EldritchAbomination. In fact, they usually are in most mythologies. They also have a large overlap with {{Precursors}}, for gods at least. They occasionally appear as the demons of a replacement religion, but compare AngelsDevilsAndSquid for the cases when their [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch-ness]] is played up instead. See also OurTitansOurDifferent, as "Titan" is often used to describe such a being.

These Old Gods are often some type of AnthropomorphicPersonification or EldritchAbomination. In fact, they usually are in most mythologies. They also have a large overlap with {{Precursors}}, for gods at least. They occasionally appear as the demons of a replacement religion, but compare AngelsDevilsAndSquid for the cases when their [[EldritchAbomination Eldritch-ness]] is played up instead.