Humans in the How to Train Your Dragon movies who have no specific allegiance or affiliation.
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Johann (Unmarked Spoilers)
Appearances: Dragons: Riders of Berk
Voiced by: Michael Goldstrom
A slightly eccentric trader who comes to Berk's port every once in a while, bartering goods from the reaches of the archipelago and beyond. Generally, the goods he brings inadvertently trigger some sort of adventure. However he is not all that he seems at first glance...
Because Season 5 of Race to the Edge reveals that his entire persona prior to that point had been a farce. In truth, Johann is a cut-throat pirate and villainous man who seeks to capture The King of Dragons and become the richest man in the world.
- Ax-Crazy: He is revealed to be this in Season 6. He’s clearly unhinged, and very quick to resort to murder.
- Big Bad Duumvirate: Becomes part of a triumvirate with Viggo Grimborn and Krogan. Midway through Season 6, it becomes a Duumvirate after Johann and Krogan decide Viggo has outlived his usefulness, and attempted to seal him inside a cave.
- Bitch in Sheep's Clothing: Johnann pretended to care about Hiccup and his friends, when he was trying to kill them.
- The Chessmaster: Season 8 reveals that he is practically responsible for most of the conflict in Race to the Edge. He deliberately let Dagur steal his ship way back in Season 3 (as well as likely bribing the guard that let Dagur free) and his plans to kill Hiccup and the riders dates back to the first Dragons series.
- Chew Toy: When he's not simply appearing to drop off some sort of Plot Device, he's constantly getting lost, attacked, or undergoing some other kind of misfortune that the heroes will have to save him from - or end up causing.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: In between his Non-Action Guy cowardice and ridiculous rambles, it turns out that he's actually far more competent than he lets on - namely, it turns out he really did wrestle squid ink from the giant squid. Twice, even. In Season 7, it turns out that the 'Moron' part is an act, and that the real Johann is sufficiently Badass for both Krogan and Viggo to treat with respect and allow to handle the Dragon Eye.
- Deadpan Snarker: He has his moments.Hiccup: Do you know what "trade sanctions" are, Johann?
Johann: Two words that should never be used in the same sentence. - Death by Irony: He's frozen by the very dragon he tried to capture.
- Evil All Along: To the surprise of just about everyone in Season 7.
- Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: He finds Hiccup’s constant heroics completely worthless and infuriating."Such heroism. And... for what? FOR WHAT?!"
- Evil Genius: Takes this slot from Viggo in the last season, to the degree that he and Krogan eventually try to get rid of Viggo due to not needing him any more. In particular, Johann has the same propensity for thinking two steps ahead, misdirecting opponents and predicting their responses that Viggo has, but where Viggo enjoys and draws out the game of the battle of wits, Johann's plans tend to be tricky but brutally harsh and decisive.
- Faux Affably Evil: He speaks in a polite, friendly tone when manipulating everyone around him, but is in fact a ruthless murderer and Dragon Hunter. Even after his true nature is revealed, he still sometimes speaks formally as he tries to kill his enemies.
- From Nobody to Nightmare: After The Reveal. Though in this case, it was more that he was a nightmare pretending to be a nobody.
- Good Scars, Evil Scars: Johann has a long scar under his left eye.
- Hypocrite: Johann disgustingly refers to Hiccup as Stoick's "scrawny heir", but is quite scrawny himself.
- The Informant: One of his roles in the show. He supplied Heather with information on Dagur's movements in "Have Dragon Will Travel", and told Hiccup about how Dagur wiped out Heather's village (reluctantly, after Hiccup mentioned "trade sanctions"; see Deadpan Snarker above).
- Intrepid Merchant: Johann is a trader who has traveled most of the world, casually name-dropping everything up to and including a piece of trivia about The Byzantine Empire. This may qualify as
Fridge Brilliance, since Nordic merchants really did travel the world, and a particular destination was Constantinople, where the Norse/Vikings actually wound up providing the Cadre of Foreign Bodyguards, the Varangian Guard. Although in Season 8 he reveals that all his merchant stories were stolen from actual merchants before he sank them and their ships. - Knight of Cerebus: He is one of the most evil How To Train Your Dragon villains, has no lighthearted or comedic moments after his true nature is revealed, and his search for the "King of Dragons" makes him a threat to the entire archipelago.
- The Münchausen: He's got a billion and one long-winded tall tales about his many exploits, most of which the denizens of Berk seem to be a bit tired of hearing. At least some of them, like his personally wrestling squid ink from a colossal squid - twice, appear to be true, however. He admits to Hiccup after he is revealed to be the Big Bad that almost all of them were in-fact stories other sailors told him before he had them killed, possibly as a means of establishing the guise of an honest trader.
- Nice Guy: Johann is a likable fellow, reasonable businessman, and the people of Berk are happy when he visits. Less so about his stories, but they can put up with those. As revealed at the end of Season 7, this was, in fact, a very good act.
- Noodle Incident: The audience never hears his stories all the way through.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: When it's revealed he was Evil All Along, even lampshading how he forced himself to be a foppish buffoon to win over the trust of the Berkians.
- Only in It for the Money: Much like Viggo, Johann only does what he does if it means turning a profit, seeing Drago as a business partner instead of a boss or lord and Krogan and Viggo as his employees.
- Orphaned Punchline: "But it was not a yak. It was his daughter!"
- Punny Name:
- A possible reference to the Trader Joe's grocery store chain.
- Most likely unintentional, but still - Trader Johann? Traitor Johann?
- The Reveal: In Season 7, it's revealed that he's part of a triumvirate with Viggo and Krogan, and far more dangerous than he pretends to be.
- Seen It All: A variation of the "weary traveler" variety. While he is amazed that Berk managed to make peace with dragons, he otherwise treats it as if it were just another of the many oddities he's come across in his travels.
- Serial Killer: He's killed a lot of real merchants at various points and stole their stories so that he could deceive Berk.
- Sesquipedalian Loquaciousness: His default method of speaking. Retains it, to an extent, even after revealing his true allegiance.
- The Sociopath: Despite his putting up the above Nice Guy act, a lot of Johann's actions (acted or otherwise) towards others can make him this in hindsight.
- Suspiciously Similar Substitute: After he betrays Viggo and tries to have him killed, Johann take his role just as Krogan takes Ryker's, acting as the vitriolic Brains and Brawn antagonists of the series.
- Team Switzerland: As a trader without allegiances, he takes this role up in most appearances - for better or for worse. Though he will give general aid if needed, he takes no sides in the conflict and while he may not like the Outcasts and the Berserkers too much, he appreciates their business. Unfortunately, he also often asks no questions when offered a good enough deal - which Dagur once used to trick him into smuggling Smokebreaths onto Berk, who ran rampant and nearly got the island destroyed. That said, if sufficiently paid or threatened he will support one side over the other. Subverted when it is revealed that he was secretly in league with Viggo and Krogan the entire time.
- You Have Outlived Your Usefulness: He attempted to have Viggo killed and planned on doing the same to Krogan after he captured the King of Dragons.
Savage
Appearances: Dragons: Riders of Berk
Voiced by: Paul Rugg
Alvin's second-in-command. Later becomes one to Dagur in season three and four. By season six, he's struck out on his own to become a bounty hunter.
- Bad with the Bone: Was often seen using a bone as a weapon in Riders/Defenders of Berk.
- Canon Foreigner: Like Astrid, he was made for the franchise. Unlike her, however, he has no counterpart in the books.
- Chuck Cunningham Syndrome: Disappears late in season two of Race to the Edge.
- Deadpan Snarker: Has his moments, not that snarking is a good idea in the face of who he serves.
- The Dog Bites Back: After serving Bad Boss after Bad Boss, Savage becomes a bounty hunter and plays by his own rules.
- The Dragon: The head minion to Alvin and later Dagur.
- Meaningful Name: He's an evil barbarian who delights in the misfortune of others. He was looking forward to Heather's You Have Outlived Your Usefulness fate.
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: Subverted for the most part, as he's less dangerous than his bosses. Then season six rolls out, and Savage starts living up to his name.
- Sanity Slippage: After working for Alvin and Dagur, it's not a surprise that Savage went a little nuts.
- Yes-Man: He learned very quickly that disagreeing with Alvin, unless one has absolute proof Alvin is wrong, is a very poor career choice. Later subverted when he gets fed up with bosses like Alvin and Dagur and becomes a bounty hunter.
Gruffnut Thorston
Appearances: Dragons: Riders of Berk
Voiced by: T.J. Miller
Ruffnut and Tuffnut's supposedly heroic cousin. Tuffnut idolizes him but Ruffnut hates him, as the truth is he's a greedy and amoral con-man who cares only about getting rich. Upon reuniting with his family, he attempts to steal Barf and Belch and sell them to cover gambling debts. To make things worse, he also looks exactly like Tuffnut.
- Fake Ultimate Hero: Tales of Gruffnut's heroic exploits precede him, but they're all full of dung. Ruffnut seems to be the only one who sees him for the jerk he is, while Tuff always believes him until he goes too far.
- Incest-ant Admirer: Constantly makes weird and/or slightly-inappropriate comments toward Ruffnut. These comments probably would've been much much worse if this wasn't a kids tv show.
- Jerkass: Cares only about himself, and sees no problem with stealing his cousin's dragons, or the dragons of their friends. When his cousins try to stop him, he tries to throw them into the ocean to drown.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: Zig-Zagged to hell! He claims to have seen the error of his ways in "A Gruff Seperation", volunteering to oversee Ruffnut and Tuffnut’s Rite of Passage. Hiccup is suspicious the entire time, but Ruffnut and Tuffnut go along with it anyway. It seems as though he is manipulating the twins and pitting them against each other in a multi-step scheme to steal a chest full of treasure, only to reveal that the chest they brought him was actually full of rocks and he really was volunteering for their rite of passage… only to then reveal that there was a secret compartment in the chest and that he really was just manipulating them, having missed out on his own rite of passage and thus is technically unqualified to have them do the rite of passage in the first place.
- Trapped by Gambling Debts: Why he was on Dragon's Edge in the first place.
- Twin Switch: Albeit one that was unwilling on Tuff's part.
- Uncanny Family Resemblance: He and Tuffnut look exactly alike.
The Wingmaidens
Appearances: Dragons: Riders of Berk
Atali Voiced by: Rose McIver
Minden Voiced by: Holly Kagis
A group of Valkyrie-like women who live in harmony with a colony of Razorwhips, raising their young on their backs and giving them the ability of winged flight. Led by Atali.
- Action Girl: All of them.
- Dragon Rider: Inverted, it's technically the baby dragon riding them.
- Equippable Ally: The Wingmaidens wear baby Razorwhips on their backs, granting them flight while protecting the baby Razorwhips until they mature and can defend themselves.
- Hidden Elf Village: Nobody from Berk knew they existed until they rescued Snotlout, leading to first contact.
- Lady Land: The Wingmaidens are a commune of Viking warrior nuns who took an oath to Freya to look after and breed the razorwhips that live with them. They are all female and do not generally allow men onto their island (though they bring Snotlout there because he was lost in a storm and the others because they helped). Naturally, they don't take kindly to Snotlout's rather sexist attitude.
- Mistaken for Afterlife: Snotlout initially mistakes them for actual Valkyries, thinking he's died and gone to Valhalla.
- Not Evil, Just Misunderstood: At first, we are led to believe that they were fattening up Snotlout so that they could eat him via their "sacred stew." In reality, they were simply nursing him back to health and only chained him up just so he wouldn't wander into the Razorwhip nests.
- Only Six Faces: Apart from Atali, all the members of the tribe seen are blatant palette swaps.
- Poor Communication Kills: While he was certainly rude to them, things would have gone smoother if the Wingmaidens had bothered explaining the situation to Snotlout. They apparently think men wouldn't understand or accept what they do but this is proven wrong later, to their own admission.
- Sacred Hospitality: Despite not allowing men onto their islands, the Wingmaidens nurse Snotlout back to health and provide him with tea and food. It is not until after they put up with his sexist comments, poor etiquette and to keep from wandering into the Razorwhip nests do they chain him up.
- Town with a Dark Secret: Subverted. It first appears that they're actually cannibals and intend to eat Snotlout. Of course, this turns out to be a huge misunderstanding.
- Winged Humanoid: The Wingmaidens look like winged humans from a distance, but in reality their wings come from baby Razorwhips who coexist with the maidens until they are strong enough to protect themselves, being strong enough to carry them and act as an organic flightsuit.
Grimmel the Grisly
Grimmel the Grisly
Appearances: How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World
Voiced by: F. Murray Abraham
The main antagonist of the final movie How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World, Grimmel is infamously known for being an exceptionally ruthless and cunning dragon hunter who hunted down numerous dragons, including being the one who brought the near-extinction of the Night Fury dragons, leaving Toothless as the last of his kind. Because of this, he's arguably Hiccup's most dangerous and greatest foe yet.
- Alliterative Name: Grimmel the Grisly.
- And Your Little Dog, Too!: Grimmel threatens to destroy everything Hiccup loves after the latter refuses to give Toothless to him.
- Antagonist Abilities: Played with. He himself is only human and as such has no special abilities, nor does he have a giant dragon to obey his whims like Drago did, which might make him seem underwhelming for a Final Boss. However, he has something very rare among the series' villains - a sharp mind that places him in a league of his own. Add to that some Mind Control and the assistance of six of the most powerful and versatile - if not the most impressive-looking - dragons in the series, and you have one nasty customer on your hands.
- Arch-Enemy: Grimmel is this for Hiccup, and is arguably his most dangerous and personal foe yet. From opposing Hiccup's idea about peace with dragons to endangering the young Chieftain's village and best friend. Furthermore, he mentions about how like Hiccup, he met a Night Fury in its sleep. But unlike Hiccup, who chose to befriend Toothless, Grimmel killed his Night Fury. Establishing how very different the two are. These acts make Grimmel very personal towards Hiccup, only being rivaled by Drago Bludvist killing Hiccup's dad, Stoick. Grimmel is also one of the few villains who can match Hiccup in terms of intelligent nature as well.
- He is also this for Toothless, as he wiped his species, leaving only him and mentally scared his mate.
- Ax-Crazy: It's clearly obvious that he's a psychotic and delusional madman who believes himself as a savior of mankind, when in reality, he actually just enjoys being a dragon-killer. There's also the fact he's willing to attack other humans who sympathize and wish to co-exist with dragons.
- The Bad Guy Wins: At first, it looks like he lost when Hiccup defeated him, but his actions wound up causing the separation of humans and dragons while making the latter group disappear from the (surface) world (at least, for a while). Given that disposing of dragons overall was one of his objectives, Hiccup essentially did his job for him countless times over. Subverted as of How to Train Your Dragon: Homecoming where the Berkians still talk about the dragons while Hiccup and his family get to visit Toothless and Light Fury.
- Badass Longcoat: His apparel consists of long flowing black clothing.
- The Beastmaster: Grimmel has tamed six Deathgrippers. Or so it seemed. He drugged them into obedience with their own venom, and even an Alpha can't break that control.
- Big Bad: He is the main antagonist of the third and final movie. Grimmel is planning the genocide of dragons and threatens Berk in his quest to kill the last Night Fury, Toothless.
- Big "NO!": Lets out one just before he falls into the ocean.
- Bows Versus Crossbows: He uses a crossbow instead of a bow to emphasize his nature as a Gadgeteer Genius just like Hiccup. It also plays into the stereotype of the crossbow as a "sneaky" weapon favored by rogues, allowing him to make a quick first attack without having to nock. The slow reload of the crossbow is usually not an issue since he focuses on making the first shot the last one as well.
- The Chessmaster: Is able to outwit Hiccup twice, even when Hiccup has planned specifically for his ambush for the first time. He also plays the Warlords like a harp.
- Chronic Backstabbing Disorder: So far, he's double-crossed anyone who tries to work with him.
- He used to work with Eir Stormheart, the main villain of Dreamworks Dragons: Dawn of New Riders, before stealing her Chimeragon and all of her research.
- He betrays the Warlords after capturing Toothless.
- Combat Pragmatist: He makes use of traps, poison darts, and chains in his pursuit of exterminating the Night Fury race. Even his first kill was this way, where he found a sleeping Night Fury and killed it when it couldn't fight back.
- Contrasting Sequel Antagonist:
- Drago was a very power-oriented antagonist with dark skin and black hair, having a massive build and an army, being heavily reliant on fear tactics, and using his Bewilderbeast. Grimmel, however, has pale skin and white hair, a lean build, is more intelligent and patient, relying primarily on sneak attacks, and is independent, only having six Deathgrippers. It even extends to the way they abuse their dragons; Drago kept them under control by torturing an alpha into compliance, while Grimmel drugged them so no alpha could have power over them.
- To Viggo Grimborn from Race to the Edge as well. Both start basically the same Egomaniac Hunters that see their tasks as a game, though while Viggo's motivation is mostly about money and power, Grimmel's is Fantastic Racism. Also, while Viggo ultimately performs a Heel–Face Turn and a Heroic Sacrifice for Hiccup's cause, Grimmel remains antagonistic until the very end and falls to his doom while fighting Hiccup.
- Crazy-Prepared: He has emergency chain barricades should someone infiltrate his headquarters, and has numerous redundant backup plans, as shown when he shows in Hiccup's house.
- Cruel Mercy: He has no intention of massacring the people of Berk for protecting the dragons. He's perfectly content to leave them unharmed but guilt-ridden with the knowledge that they've lost their dragons and thus their way of life.
- Dark Is Evil: Definitely evil and wears mostly dark clothes.
- Disney Villain Death: He falls to his death after Hiccup knocks him off the Light Fury. Unlike with Drago, there's no ambiguity about it—we see him hit the water head-on after having fallen straight down for at least two-hundred feet (sixty meters).
- Dissonant Serenity: During his meeting with Hiccup he remains completely calm and even seems to enjoy himself while Hiccup threatens him with his flamming sword. Even after Hiccup reveals that he set a trap for him Grimmel and take his crossbow away from him Grimmel is far more amused than worried until he calls his Deathgrippers.
- Divide and Conquer: It's revealed that the Light Fury is a dragon in his possession, and he unleashes her near Berk in order to lure and distract Toothless. As he knew that Toothless is The Dreaded and the Alpha of Berk's dragons, making Toothless distracted and separating him from Hiccup means Hiccup is left without his dragon and the dragon pack is left without their Alpha - removing one of the most dangerous threats from the picture. Also, when Hiccup and his friends attempt to capture him, he laid a trap in a way that separates the riders from their dragons, leaving Hiccup and his friends more vulnerable.
- Dragon-in-Chief: Despite working for the warlords ruling over Drago’s army, Grimmel is clearly more dangerous than they are. He also backstabs them at the end and they can't do natch about it.
- The Dragonslayer: Prior to the third film, Toothless is the only Night Fury anyone ever saw. The reason? Grimmel hunted them to near-extinction.
- The Dreaded: The way how Eret speaks about him definitely gives off this vibe.
- Egomaniac Hunter: He is arrogant and has convinced himself that he is helping humanity by exterminating the dragons. DeBlois refers to him as a "prize hunter" during the third movie's panel at NYCC 2018. The movie clearly shows that the entirety of the plot is one big game to him. Notably, the Warlords want Toothless for their army. Grimmel betrays them and refuses to hand him over after capturing him, because Grimmel's claim to fame is killing all of the Night Furies, of which Toothless is one that he missed, and he wants to cement that reputation.
- Evil Cannot Comprehend Good: Because of his hatred towards dragons, Grimmel is absolutely incapable of envisioning any genuine bond between a dragon and a human, believing that friendship between the two can only be an illusion. As a result, he was utterly shocked that Hiccup was willing to dislodge his prosthetic leg so they would BOTH fall to save Toothless and to see the Light Fury return to save Hiccup.
- Evil Counterpart: To Hiccup. Both have tall and lean builds and rely on brains rather than muscles, making use of inventions. However, while Hiccup believes that dragons and humans can coexist in peace, Grimmel hates dragons with a passion and has made it his goal to destroy them all. Furthermore, it's later revealed that, like Hiccup, he was once at a similar crossroad in life when he found a Night Fury in a vulnerable state. But instead of befriending it, he killed it in its sleep and later went on to almost wipe out the rest.
- He is also considered an even worse version of Viggo Grimborn, as both wanted to kill all dragons, are master strategists, and have launched an assault on Berk (Grimmel drove the Vikings away so he can track them down and kill their dragons, while Viggo unleashed a Submaripper on Berk to starve the residents). However, Viggo eventually found genuine respect for dragons and redeemed himself, while Grimmel remained hateful and bitter to his very end. Therefore, Grimmel serves as an example of what Viggo could've become had he never let go of his prejudice against dragons.
- Evil Poacher: Grimmel hunts dragons for fun and out of all the dragons in the world, Grimmel enjoys hunting Night Furies and most likely, even Light Furies as well.
- Evil Sounds Deep: According to a Deadline article, F. Murray Abraham gives Grimmel a deep-baritone voice in the "classic villain sense."
- Fantastic Racism: Despite using trained dragons himself, Grimmel is described as being completely intolerant of dragons. This bit from Dean DeBlois' interview with Screenrant pretty much sums it all up:DeBlois: And Grimmel, he's just all about intolerance. [He thinks] dragons are vermin. They are the enemy, they must be suppressed or removed. He cannot tolerate a world in which he has to live with dragons, and the idea that there's some young Viking chief on the island of Berk trying to teach people that they can all live together is personally offensive to him.
- Faux Affably Evil: He has polite manners and a friendly demeanor at the first glance, though behind this polite facade he's generally contemptful and patronizing to others as seen with him stealthily mocking the warlords for their incompetence at taming dragons and conquering the world and him treating Hiccup as a child rather than as a chief, and he likes to threaten others and give them a Sadistic Choice while keeping a calm and polite tone.
- Feeling Oppressed by Their Existence: His hatred towards dragons brings him into conflict with Hiccup and Berk's goal for peaceful coexistence with them.
- Final Boss: He is the final antagonist faced by Hiccup and Toothless in the film trilogy and the entire franchise.
- Final Solution: Toothless is the only Night Fury he hasn't hunted. He wants Toothless so he can finish the job.
- Foil: Just as Drago was a foil to Hiccup in the second film, Grimmel is another one in the third installment; he not only controls dragons using drugs (specifically venom taken from one of the dragon species he controls) but Grimmel actually copied Hiccup's feat of shooting down a Night Fury when he was a child, except that Grimmel freely killed that dragon and all other Night Furies he could find where Hiccup was inspired to bond with the dragon and became a dedicated protector of all dragons.
- Fragile Speedster: Grimmel is by no means, a slow person. In fact, he's pretty fast. Being able to move quickly around his base of operations to avoid getting captured by Hiccup and his team and dodging Toothless' plasma blasts with almost no effort. However, Hiccup is able to knock him down with one hit. To put this in context, Valka dealt blows towards a larger Drago Bludvist but usually, those hits weren't enough to shove the latter down. With Grimmel however, Hiccup, using his wingsuit, manages to hit Grimmel and the poacher is sent multiple feet away.
- Greater-Scope Villain: Grimmel, referred to as “G”, plays this role in the video game Dreamworks Dragons: Dawn of New Riders. Despite only being mentioned, he heavily influences the game's events. He is responsible for the main protagonist having amnesia and is revealed to have been former partners with the game's main villain.
- Hate Sink: Big time. Grimmel is a malicious and selfish hunter and backstabber who thinks of no one but himself. He is shown to be ruthless and proud of the destruction he causes and he doesn't hesitate to mock Hiccup for the latter's friendship with Toothless and other dragons, shows no remorse after burning down Berk, kills dragons just for fun and tries to kill humans who side with dragons. Furthermore, even when he teams up people who have beef with Hiccup, he insults them for their poor progress as well. He doesn't even care about his own Deathgrippers as he sees them only as "dragon killers" instead of actual living beings.
- The Heavy: His actions directly drive the plot forward. For starters, he kicks off Berk's mass exodus by burning down Hiccup's house and threatening Toothless.
- Hell-Bent for Leather: Grimmel appears to be wearing a flight suit made of leather. Justified as he may need it to stay warm while flying. The art book for the third movie mentions that the leather may actually be made of Night Fury skin.
- Hired Guns: He's hired by Drago's old army to capture Toothless.
- Hunter of Monsters: Has dedicated his life to wiping out all dragons, believing that humanity cannot and must not coexist with them.
- Hypocrite: Hiccup accuses him of being one, due to hating dragons and viewing them all as vermin to be exterminated, yet having six Deathgrippers under his thrall. Grimmel reveals that he drugged them into obedience using their own venom and otherwise cares as much about them as disposable tools, in his mind believing humans are the better species.
- The closest Grimmel gets to justifying his Irrational Hatred towards dragons is when he calls them "thieves and murderers", which may be taken seriously...if he weren't perfectly willing himself to steal from and threaten to kill those who oppose his vision.
- Informed Attribute: A common criticism levelled against the film is that, despite intending to show Grimmel as a strategic genius who's always a step ahead of everyone else, most of his advantages come from the other characters making mistakes that he has no control or even any knowledge of.
- Drago's warlords kick off the plot by hiring Grimmel to capture Toothless alive. Even though he holds them in clear contempt, openly states that he is a dragon killer, and is famously responsible for the almost complete extinction of the Night Fury species, they still decide to trust him with this task, and he promptly betrays them the moment he finally has Toothless in his grasp.
- During their first confrontation, Grimmel heavily implies that Hiccup's idea for peaceful co-existance with dragons could easily spread, which would spell disaster for people like himself who make a profit off capturing and killing them. Instead of actually trying to convince other cultures and people of his progressive ideals note , Hiccup and Toothless go out of their way to ensure that no one else can ever take them up.
- When Valka returns from her scout mission to report on the enemy fleet, Hiccup decides to lead the riders to hostile territory to capture Grimmel, despite not knowing the place or if Grimmel is actually there. The mission ends in failure and also results in Ruffnut being captured. The riders don't even notice that Ruffnut is missing until after they've already returned to New Berk, including her brother Tuffnut, even though the two of them share the same dragon.
- Ruffnut, when captured, casually lets it slip that the Berkians have relocated to a new island, and doesn't question Grimmel when he suddenly decides to let her go. She doesn't even look back to see if she's being followed, and ends up inadvertently leading Grimmel and the warlords to New Berk, resulting in the capture of Toothless and the other dragons. It's rather irksome that she never gets any meaningful consequences for her moronic actions.
- Hiccup and Toothless learn early on that Grimmel's weapons of choice are his Instant Sedation darts. Upon seeing the Light Fury hit by one, Toothless' strategy is to run up and stand there slowly charging a plasma blast inches away from Grimmel, getting himself easily shot in the process.
- In the Hood: He is shown to wear a leather jacket with a hood.
- Knight of Cerebus: The synopsis describes him as "the darkest threat they've [Hiccup and Toothless] yet faced". In both trailers, the mood instantly darkens when he’s introduced.
- Laughably Evil: Downplayed. He does get a few moments of humor, but for the most part is played completely seriously.
- Lean and Mean: Like Hiccup, Grimmel has a tall, lean build compared to most of the adult male cast's bulkier bodies.
- Nerves of Steel: He doesn't even flinch while shooting a Rumblehorn that's charging at him.
- "Not So Different" Remark: Subverted. He compares himself to Hiccup, having undergone similar experiences when he was a boy. Then he notes the difference between them. When he had the opportunity to kill a helpless Night Fury, he took it.
- Not So Stoic: While Grimmel generally remains perfectly calm during most situations, even when threatened, not even he can bear Ruffnut's endless talking and attitude. He also panics during his final moments.
- Not-So-Well-Intentioned Extremist: Grimmel justifies his killing of dragons as giving real peace to the people of the world, but it becomes quickly clear that it isn't the truth as his crusade against dragons is motivated by his own hatred towards dragons rather than any desire to help others, and he has little if any regard for anyone but himself having no problems stealing, threatening, betraying or trying to kill other humans. It's also worth noting that unlike Drago it isn't even hinted that he has ever suffered because of dragons, thus making his loathing towards them both outright hypocritical and irrational.
- Obviously Evil: Grimmel has white hair,sunken cheeks, a thin, sharp chin, speaks with a Russian accent, his hideout is a dark fortress in some barren wasteland and his clothes resemble a hooded cloak.
- Poisoned Weapons: He fills his crossbow bolts with poison taken from his Deathgrippers.
- Pragmatic Villainy: What makes him so dangerous is the fact he's smart enough not to commit needlessly evil acts in his campaign against the dragons. For example, he honors the bargain he made with the warlords until they are in a position where they cannot do anything towards him for revenge, thus preventing any possible defection or alliance with Berk that brought down Drago in the second movie.
- Psycho Serum: He distills Deathgripper venom into a concoction that renders dragons receptive to his commands when injected.
- Shadow Archetype: Similarly with Drago, Grimmel is what Hiccup could have turned out if he had chosen to kill Toothless in the first movie.
- Shipper with an Agenda: Grimmel releases the Light Fury so she could distract Toothless and separate the latter from Hiccup.
- Slave Collar: His captive dragons wear special collars fitted with syringe mechanisms for injecting his Psycho Serum.
- Slave Mooks: His dragons are drugged into compliance using their own venom, so even an Alpha can't command them.
- Smug Snake: Highly functional example. While Grimmel is definitely smart, cunning, and legitimately dangerous, he is far too arrogant for his own good. He looks down on Hiccup despite all the latter's past successes, brushing him off as a mere "boy", speaking condescendingly to both enemies and allies, despite the fact that his plans ultimately only succeed because of others' missteps, and even after he catches Toothless, he leaves Hiccup, confident that he is "nothing without his dragon." In the end, Grimmel pays with his life for his overconfidence and arrogance.
- The Sociopath: Let's see: A psychotic and delusional madman? Check. Hunts and kills dragons simply because of a personal belief that dragons are vermin and are the enemy to the world? Check. Has a Lack of Empathy towards others? Check. Believes himself to be saving mankind, when in reality, he only cares about his own personal interests and is willing to kill any human who wishes to co-exist with dragons in peace? DOUBLE CHECK.
- Soft-Spoken Sadist: He rarely loses his composure, and speaks calmly even as you wield a flaming sword in his face, or when he tells you to forfeit your dragons to him.
- Stealth Expert: Even without his army and dragons, Grimmel is surprisingly threatening on his own as well because his enemies just won't see him coming. He manages to lay traps near Berk without anyone knowing, and effortlessly sneaks into Hiccup's home. Even if Hiccup knew he was coming, it turns out that Grimmel also brought his Deathgrippers with him, and they proceed to lay waste on Berk before most Vikings knew they were even there. Later in the film, he also followed Ruffnut back to the Hooligan tribe's new home (though to be fair, Ruffnut never bothered to check if there's anybody following her) and captured both Light Fury and Toothless before Hiccup and Astrid can stop him.
- Teeth-Clenched Teamwork: Despite hiring him themselves, Drago's warlords are untrusting of Grimmel and his methods, and he clearly has little if any respect for them as well. He double-crosses them in the climax.
- Tempting Fate: When Hiccup comes to rescue Toothless from him, he states that Toothless doesn't care for Hiccup anymore now that he has the Light Fury and that coming back for him will lead to the latter's death. Grimmel is proven wrong as Toothless still cares for Hiccup and it leads to a final confrontation that causes his own demise.
- Thin Chin of Sin: He has one of the thinnest chins in the franchise. He's also a ruthless dragon hunter who drove the Night Furies to near-extinction.
- Those Magnificent Flying Machines: His main mode of transportation appears to be some sort of frame held aloft by four chains each attached to one of his Deathgrippers.
- Tranquilizer Dart: His crossbow bolts are filled with a sleep-inducing venom powerful enough to instantly knock most dragons unconscious. This is an effective weapon for a Combat Pragmatist such as Grimmel. Any shot that manages to penetrate the hide of a dragon, even one that would normally only annoy it, leads to rapid drowsiness, whereupon the beast can be either killed off with contemptuous ease or fitted with one of Grimmel's enslavement collars.
- Weak, but Skilled: Physically speaking, Grimmel does not look like a strong hand-to-hand combatant. But he does use a crossbow to shoot darts at enemies from a range so that he doesn't have to engage in a physical confrontation with them. Furthermore, when he and Hiccup fall from the Light Fury, Grimmel never even punches or kicks Hiccup. Instead, targeting Hiccup's armor's wings so that Hiccup won't glide away from him.
- What the Hell Is That Accent?: He has some sort of accent, but it's hard to nail down what kind (it sounds vaguely Russian).
- White Hair, Black Heart: He has light grey hair and appears to be one of the most evil antagonists seen so far.
Nikora Stormheart
A pirate queen and one of the main antagonists of the School of Dragons MMO video game.
- Arc Villain: Of the Rise of Stormheart and Wrath of Stormheart expansions.
- Canon Foreigner: She is an original character exclusive to the School of Dragons game and doesn't appear in either the movies or TV series.
- Cool Boat: The Tempest, a steam-powered, ironclad behemoth equipped with catapults and ballistas that uses dragons to power its engines.
- Enemy Mine:
- Subverted. She agrees to help the Dragon Riders take down Grimmel and uses her ship to provide a distraction while the player sneaks into Grimmel's camp. However, she then abruptly betrays the player mid-mission and abandons them to face Grimmel and the Warlords alone.
- During the "Summarhildr" event, she briefly teams up with the Warlords against the player and Heather after she discovers them spying on their meeting.
- Evil vs. Evil: During The Hidden World expansion, she comes into conflict with Grimmel and the Warlords.
- Exit Villain, Stage Left: After the player defeats her in Dragon Tactics during the Summarhildr event, she flees the scene and abandons her warship.
- Karma Houdini Warranty: After betraying her alliance with the Dragon Riders during The Hidden World expansion and seemingly getting away scot-free, Nikora finally faces her comeuppance during the Summarhildr event where the player stops her from capturing Lumie, forces her to flee after beating her in Dragon Tactics, and sinks her flagship while freeing the dragons she enslaved.
