** Monster Discussion ** Einherji

Oddly, that's not how I think of them. A berserker is a nigh-mindless warrior, an unstoppable force, completely out of their tiny little minds - and wearing a bear skin. Maybe little else (depending on the source one prefers). Certainly not a shield. It's right there in the name; bear-coat. Or their mates, the úlfhéðnar (wolf-coats).

In a magical world, a berserker (if I were to design them myself rather than using the Pathfinder ones) would literally take on aspects of the animal whose hide he or she wore - becoming literally beast-like and inhuman. Úlfhéðnar using pack tactics, and berserkers becoming black bears, brown bears, or even polar bears.

In fact, they'd have aspects of the Totem warriors in that sense.

An einherjar (ein: one, herjar: who fights - put together, "one who fights alone") wouldn't be a disciplined formation fighter - they would tend to fight because of the love of battle, and I would likely use them as being easier to call to "good sport".

They might fight in groups, but they would never use phalanx tactics or anything similar - every battle where several einherjar are involved would likely be individual duels as they are "those who fight alone".

/r/Pathfinder_RPG Thread Parent