Hakon

Hakon is a lead Varl Hero character of The Banner Saga series.

Background
Hakon is something of a legend in Varl culture. When he met Vognir it was during the second great war, in which the two become known for cutting a swathe through Dredge where others were struggling just to stay alive. Vognir was always the charismatic leader, but there was no question about which of the two would win in a fight.

Active Ability: Sundering Impact

 * The Warmaster hits even harder than an average Warrior, with no chance to miss.
 * He can wreak havoc with an additional +1 Strength and +1 Break damage to target, plus bonuses to Heavy Impact.


 * Rank 1: +1 Break to Heavy Impact
 * Rank 2: +1 Break and +1 Strength to Heavy Impact
 * Rank 3: +2 Break and +1 Strength to Heavy Impact


 * Sundering Impact is best used when carefully positioned to impact as many enemies around the target as possible, in a single strike.

Second Active Ability: Choice

 * In the second part of The Banner Saga, when Hakon reaches Rank 6, he can choose a second active ability between:


 * Tempest_icon.png Tempest (Warhawk), like Gunnulf, Bersi or Sigbjorn
 * Forgeahead_icon.png Forge Ahead (Warleader), like Krumr

Passive Ability: Heavy Impact

 * The Warrior hits so hard that any enemies standing adjacent to his target on a strength attack take 1 strength damage from the shockwave.


 * Hitting a large target like a Varl or Dredge who takes up four tiles can potentially cause an impact across many more victims than hitting a single-square target such as a human.

Joining the Party
Saga 1:  Hakon is a member of the Varl caravan in Chapter 1 and the main POV character in Chapter 3. He can be used for a single battle in Chapter 5 and then, finally, at last battle of Chapter 7.

Saga 2:  He stays with the Skogr caravan throughout the game.

Possible Death or Departure
Saga 2:  There is no event leading to Hakon's death or departure.

Saga 2:  In Chapter 14, the Sundr Slayer (leader of the Skogr caravan) might find Hakon as an enemy depending on the choices made!

Playstyle

 * Hakon is a versatile character, boasting high Strength, solid Willpower, Exertion and Break. He might not be as good as some specialized units, but he is useful in all stages of any kind of battle.
 * His Armor is rather low, so it should be priority after first promotions.
 * His maximum Strength (18) is the highest of the playable characters along with Gunnulf. Giving him a Strength boosting item can make him capable of one-shooting many types of enemies even at full health.
 * Sundering Impact is particularly destructive when hitting cluttered enemies as it basically boosts the Warrior's passive, Heavy Impact. However, it always causes a minimum 2 Strength- and 1 Armor-damage (with 100% chance) on the target enemy, making Hakon useful even when maimed.
 * When attacking an isolated enemy (no adjacent enemies) there is no reason to use Rank-2 or Rank-3 Sundering Impact.

Trivia

 * Hakon was initially designed as the archetype of the so-called "Wardog" class, which was apparently dumped after early development. The Wardog's active-ability animation, a head-butting, is used by the maimed Iver, replacing the standard Battering Ram animation.
 * His name loosely translates to "High Kinsman", a possible reference to him being kendr to Vognir.