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General
A nest of dragons far from Berk which has lived free of Drago pressing dragons into his service. However, after the massive damage done to the Glacial Sanctuary during the battle there and the death of their alpha, they moved to Berk.
- Beware the Nice Ones: Most of them seem to be gentle and friendly dragons living out peacefully among each other. When Drago’s forces attacks the sanctuary, they try their hardest to fight them off.
- Decapitated Army: While able to hold their own, without their Bewilderbeast to protect them from Drago's they were helpless to resist his alpha's call.
Valka
Valka in How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World.
Click here to see Valka in How to Train Your Dragon 2.
Click here to see her armored persona
Appearances: Dragons: Riders of Berk | How to Train Your Dragon 2 | How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
Voiced by: Cate Blanchett
A master dragon rider that appears in How to Train Your Dragon 2, and Hiccup's long-lost mother.
- Action Mom: One of the best dragon riders, if not the best, in the series.
- Action Survivor: While she was the chieftain's wife, she was a
lithe woman carried off by a large dragon. Valka befriended her captor and became a dragon master. - Adaptational Attractiveness: In the books, Hiccup's mother is a stereotypical fat Viking woman. Here, she's a slender Statuesque Stunner (voiced by the equally slender and stunning Cate Blanchett).
- Adaptation Name Change: From "Valhallarama" in the books.
- Admiring the Abomination: Surprisingly invoked by herself. She came to love dragons after Cloudjumper took her, but she was worried that if she returned to Stoick, she'd be labeled as such. After reuniting with him twenty years later, she expects to hear this until Stoick gives her a piece of his mind...Stoick: You're as beautiful as the day I lost you.
- Age-Gap Romance: There is a ten year difference between her and Stoick.
- Ambiguous Gender: It can be difficult to tell that Valka is a woman when in full armor, since she is 6'3", wears an intimidating dragon-like helmet, and rarely speaks to command dragons.
- Animal Lover: Dragon lover in this case. She does take kindly to anyone harming dragons and believes they are pure creatures.
- Badass Normal: Let's see. Charged a dragon breaking into her home with no back-up (despite being a pacifist)... check. Not only survived being kidnapped by said dragon, but forged a deep friendship with that dragon... check. Lived among other dragons, and befriended and cared for countless others for twenty years... check. Became a dragon tamer leagues beyond Hiccup, an unequaled rider, and a skilled hand-to-hand combatant... check, check and check.
- Badass Family: She's Stoick's wife and seems to have tamed hundreds of dragons. Her son takes after her.
- Battle Couple: With Stoick. They fight together against Drago's army in the movie, and the comics reveal that Stoick first took notice of her while they were fighting off the Berserker Tribe.
- The Beastmaster: She has been training and guarding an entire secret island of dragons.
- Braids of Action: Wears her hair in three braids, which is hard to notice with her cloak.
- Broken Ace: She's an even more experienced dragon tamer than Hiccup but felt like an outcast among the people of Berk and feels immense guilt for not being there for her husband and son.
- Charles Atlas Superpower: Despite the fact that Hiccup very clearly got his body proportions from his mother, in the third film she's shown casually beating Spitelout in an arm wrestling match. Spitelout's nearly as large as Stoick was.
- Contralto of Strength: Definitely. Her voice is incredibly deep for a female. Fitting for a badass Mama Bear Viking.
- Crusading Widower: Even though she was still grieving from Stoick's death, Valka managed to give Hiccup a pep talk and help her son fight against Drago.
- Dark and Troubled Past: She grew up in a Berk that was at constant war with dragons, something she was against. One night, a dragon (Cloudjumper) broke into her home where her infant son was. Thankfully, the dragon didn't harm him, but he did take Valka away from her home.
- Dragon Tamer: Valka has worked with dragons for over 20 years after deciding to leave Berk with Cloudjumper, her personal bonded dragon. She and Cloudjumper are so bonded that she doesn't even need to give him direct commands, as he'll just instinctively do what she wants.
- Easily Forgiven: Her husband and son aren't angry or resentful of her for disappearing on them for twenty years, leaving Stoick to raise Hiccup as a single parent—ultimately, Stoick and Hiccup are just happy that Valka's still alive.
- Fiery Redhead: Downplayed. Valka has greying, auburn hair and while she's usually calm, she's also the most impulsive between her, Stoick, and their son.
- Foil: To Stoick. Both are the stubborn, but good-hearted parents of Hiccup who also act as his mentors. However, Stoick's hatred for dragons contrasted Valka's love for them. He was stoic about his feelings while Valka is emotional. Stoick raised Hiccup for most of his life but they had difficulty understanding one another. On the other hand, despite being away for most of her son's life, she and Hiccup immediately form a connection upon meeting again.
- Freudian Trio: With her husband, Stoick and son, Hiccup. She is the Id to her husband's Ego and son's Superego, as Valka is the most emotional of them.
- Friend to All Living Things: Specifically to dragons. Her most notable trait is her skill to connect with dragons after living among them for twenty years. She does not need words to command them and even moves like one at times. She also makes most dragons calm down through simple gestures and most feel comfortable in her presence. She is a true dragon expert, knowing more about dragons of their behaviors and their abilities than even Hiccup
- Gadgeteer Genius: Valka's other notable trait is her skill of crafting. Like her son, she is capable of building various items for herself like her armor, her home in the sanctuary and Hiccup's stuffed animal. She also invented her own staff that she uses for creating a noise that mimics the Bewilderbeast's vibrations for the dragons.
- Girliness Upgrade: Seems to be wearing lipstick, has a smoother face and looks several years younger in the third film.
- Lethal Chef: Valka apparently isn't a very good cook, at least when it comes to making meatballs—Gobber goes so far as to claim that Valka's meatballs could kill more people than a battleaxe.
- The Lost Lenore: Subverted. Valka was thought to have been killed by dragons after a raid and her presumed death hurt Stoick deeply and he never remarried because he only loved her. However, the second movie shows she's been alive this whole time.
- Malevolent Masked Man: She appears to be this when Hiccup first encounters her.
- Mama Bear: As mentioned above, Cloudjumper broke into Valka and Stoick's house twenty years prior to How To Train Your Dragon 2. With Stoick saving the village, Valka stormed off alone to protect her son. Keep in mind, Cloudjumper is 48 feet long, dwarfing most Berk dragons.
- Meaningful Name: Valka is the feminine form of Valkr, meaning "Hawk." It is also the name of the mount of the Gemano-Norse deity Morn. It also sounds similar to "valkyrie", a type of flying female warrior in Norse Mythology.
- Missing Mom: Or at least was missing for a very long time.
- Older Than They Look: Valka disappeared twenty years ago, but apart from some minor differences, she doesn't look that much older. Lampshaded by Stoick himself:Stoick: You're as beautiful as the day I lost you.
- Parental Abandonment: Valka spent 20 years away from Hiccup because she felt her presence would only cause her family more problems.
- Parents Know Their Children: She was taken away from her family when Hiccup was just a baby. When they reunite twenty years later, she gets a closer look at his face and recognizes him because of the small scar on his chin, which he obtained due to Cloudjumper accidentally scratching him.
- Platonic Life-Partners: With her dragon partner, Cloudjumper.
- Raised by Wolves: Downplayed. While she wasn't raised by dragons at a young age, she is mentioned to be "feral" by the creators, having lived with dragons as her only company for about twenty years. She easily crawls on all fours and gives commands with body language rather than speaking. Hiccup actually refers to her as being "feral" in the second film when he sees what she's done in the Glacial Sanctuary.
- Samus Is a Girl: Her mask and armor fully conceal her face, figure, size, and thus gender from the viewer (and Hiccup) when she's first introduced.
- Savvy Guy, Energetic Girl: In a deleted scene from The Hidden World, Valka tells Astrid that she was the flightier and more adventurous partner to Stoick when they were married to each other.
- Shipper on Deck: Despite not having any direct contact in the sequel, Valka is shown to be very fond of Astrid's relationship with Hiccup especially when the two kissed right in front of her. In Rise of Berk, the two interact with each other a lot, including training dragons or talking about Hiccup. Valka even says she sees why Hiccup is so fond of her, and helps Astrid with emotionally supporting Hiccup various times in The Hidden World.
- Statuesque Stunner: According to the official website, she's 6'3" at her full height. Stoick very clearly considers her beautiful despite (or maybe even because of) that. Admittedly, Stoick himself is of a size that she's still shorter than him.
- Steel Ear Drums: Valka must have some really resilient ear drums to stand in front of a mountain-sized Bewilderbeast letting out a Mighty Roar and not go deaf on the spot.
- Trauma Button: Becomes anxious and breaks down when she is reminded (usually indirectly) about abandoning her family. She even backs away from Stoick as he calmly walks toward her, begging him to say or do anything, believing she deserves whatever is coming to her.Valka: I know that I left you to raise Hiccup alone... but I thought he’d be better off without me. And I was wrong, I see that now, but… oh stop being so stoic, Stoick. Go on... SHOUT, SCREAM, SAY SOMETHING!
- Walking Spoiler: Revealing anymore about her other than her name spoils half of the sequel.
- What the Hell Is That Accent?: In a world where young Vikings speak with American accents, and grown-up Vikings speak with Scottish accents, Valka's accent is a mixture of Scottish and Scandinavian (which would be more accurate). To add to the confusion, her voice actress is Australian.
- Women Prefer Strong Men: A tie-in comic has Valka reveals how she and Stoick knew they were right for each other when they fought off Berserkers. She commented that "Stoick had a right cross that would make you weak in the knees...in more ways than one".
- Worthy Opponent: Drago seems to think of her as one upon seeing her summon her Alpha and fighting her one-on-one. The feeling is not mutual.
Cloudjumper
"Oh, Cloudjumper never meant to hurt me. He must have thought I belonged here..."
Cloudjumper is Valka's Stormcutter companion. Despite having stolen Valka away from Berk twenty years before How To Train Your Dragon 2, their bond runs just as deep as any dragon rider's.
- Abnormal Limb Rotation Range: Much like an owl, he can turn his head fully backwards.
- Animal Motif: His flat face, brow crest and talons give him an owl-like appearance. There's also subtle signs of bat about him; the nasal crests invoke a bat's overdeveloped nose, his wings are used as forelegs like one, and his wings have a bat-like thumb-claw.
- Cuteness Proximity: In Valka's flashback, his demeanor and posture go from aggressive, to almost puppy-like, when he sees baby Hiccup—even affectionately playing with him.
- Defrosting Ice King: Is initially aloof to Toothless's antics, but he warms up to him. He even retaliates a few times, like dumping snow on Toothless after the young Night Fury covered him with some.
- Giant Flyer: Is 48 feet long, according to the official website
. When in flight, he dwarfs Toothless in body mass and wingspan. - Large and in Charge: According to the website, Cloudjumper likes to think himself this, second only to the Bewilderbeast. But in the end, when Toothless defeats Drago's Bewilderbeast and subsequently becomes the new Alpha, Cloudjumper is the first to acknowledge this by bowing to him.
- Platonic Life-Partners: With Valka.
- Vertebrate with Extra Limbs: A unique case. Most of the dragons are the iconic "four legs, pair of wings" variety, with a small minority that avert it by having just hindlimbs and wings (Monstrous Nightmares and Deadly Nadders from the first film, for example). Cloudjumper, like all Stormcutters, has a pair of hindlegs and four wings, though these lay flat atop of each other when he's gliding and so can be missed until you watch him flapping.
- Wouldn't Hurt a Child: When Cloudjumper broke into Valka and Stoick's house twenty years ago, Valka definitely thought he'd hurt Hiccup and went after him. However, after seeing that he wasn't going to hurt her baby and was even fascinated by him, she realized that dragons weren't the mindless beasts everyone thought they were. Though Cloudjumper does scratch Hiccup, it's entirely by accident.
Valka's Bewilderbeast
"He likes you."
Appearances: How to Train Your Dragon 2
Valka's Bewilderbeast, called the White Alpha on this page, is the benevolent king of the Glacial Sanctuary dragons.
- Animal Motif: Has some leonine characteristics, including a certain majesty and a large mane.
- Benevolent Boss: Builds homes for the dragons around him, brings them food, and goes out to rescue them from Drago.
- Beware the Nice Ones: He might be a tolerant king, but he's fearsome when roused.
- Big Good: For Valka and the Glacial Sanctuary dragons.
- Bizarrchitecture: Bewilderbeasts make these for a living, fashioning near-impenetrable nests out of their ice breath. You wouldn't guess that if you're outside.
- Breath Weapon: In a world filled with fire-breathing dragons, Bewilderbeasts deserve special notice for having ice breath. The White Alpha uses his to create an icy nest, a safe haven for dragons everywhere.
- The Comically Serious: Outside of battle, the Alpha is always a stoic visage. He keeps this face even when a bunch of baby dragons land on his face and head. He only gives a small huff to shake them off.
- Cool Crown: His spines give the allusion of this.
- Gentle Giant: The Alpha, which allowed a swarm of baby dragons to fly all over him and greets Hiccup with a light frost breath that just puts some snow on his hair. This from a creature that can shatter islands with ice crystals.
- The Good King: Rules over his subjects without bias or malice. Particularly highlighted by the feeding scene — unlike the Red Death from the first movie, who used its power to compel other dragons to feed it, the White Alpha instead brings food to his subjects.
- The High King: See the below quote.Valka: "Every nest has its queen, but this is the king of all dragons!"
- Hive Queen: An utterly massive white dragon with an icy breath, who is the "Alpha" and can compel all other dragons to his will. Fortunately, he's far more of The Good King and looks out for his subjects.
- Icy Blue Eyes: He’s a large stoic dragon who also breathes ice.
- Impaled with Extreme Prejudice: Drago's Bewilderbeast kills him by stabbing him with both its tusks.
- Kaiju: Bewilderbeasts are nothing short of titanic. They're 160 feet tall according to the official website.
- Killed Off for Real: Is killed by Drago's Bewilderbeast.
- Lantern Jaw of Justice: He has a very large chin, and is no doubt a benevolent dragon.
- Light Is Good: He's mostly white with red and gray tipped fins and serves as the dragons' Big Good.
- Lightning Bruiser: A fully-grown Bewilderbeast swims at incredible speeds according to the ''How To Train Your Dragon'' website.
- Nice Guy: He genuinely cares for his subjects, even those who harry him. When meeting Hiccup for the first time, he only uses enough of his ice breath to put frost in Hiccup's hair, which Valka says is a sign that he likes him.
- Our Dragons Are Different: Bewilderbeasts are unique among dozens of dragon species for having ice breath, tusks and the ability to command other dragons.
- Royals Who Actually Do Something: The official website states that Bewilderbeasts are not born into alpha status; it is earned through combat, vigilance and most importantly, a desire to protect the dragons in its nest.
- Sacrificial Lion: He is slain by Drago's Bewilderbeast.
- Universally Beloved Leader: From what we've seen of the Glacial Sanctuary dragons, all of them respect him, save the baby dragons, but that's because they're rambunctious babies.
Gruff, Lump, Thump, Gustnudger and Pestbud
Appearances: How to Train Your Dragon 2
A group of dragons that Valka introduces to Hiccup and Toothless when they first enter the Glacial Sanctuary. Gruff is a Hobblegrunt, Lump is a Snafflefang, Thump is a Raincutter, Gustnudger is a Windgnasher, and Pestbud is a Snifflehunch.
- All There in the Manual: All their names are only given in outside material like the tie-in games.
- An Arm and a Leg: Lump lost his right leg to a dragon hunter trap, and Thump's left wing was sliced by dragon hunter razor nets.
- Every Scar Has a Story: Gruff, Lump, and Thump each have injuries related to past experiences with dragon trappers.
- Eye Scream: Gruff has been blinded after being caught in a tree snare. Some small scars can even be seen over his eyes.
- Flat Character: Gruff is the only one of them to get any sort of extended description in outside material, and all of them, Gruff included, don't have any significant appearances in the movie beyond their first scene.
- Gentle Giant: All of them are pretty big dragons who don’t have an aggressive bone in their body.
- No Sense of Personal Space: Gustnudger and Pestbud, who get into Toothless' personal space before being intimidated into backing off.
- Uniformity Exception: Gruff has blind eyes, which makes him stand out from other Hobblegrunts. Lump and Thump also have a missing leg and a cut up wing respectively. Averted with Pestbud and Gustnudger, who look identical to other members of their species with the same coloration.
