Hogni

A Giuking. Hogni of Troja was the son of Giuki and Grimhild. He was the brother of Gunnar, Guttorm and Gudrun. But in the Thiðrekssaga, Högni of Troja was the son of an incubus and the queen, so he was only a half-brother of Gunnar, Gernoz, Gisler and Grimhild.

Gunnar and Hogni became the blood brothers of Sigurd when the hero married their sister Gudrun. Brynhild tricked and lied to them that Sigurd had dishonoured her by sleeping with her, when Sigurd helped Gunnar to woo the valkyrie. So Hogni and his brothers plotted Sigurd's death.

At Sigurd's death, Hogni and Gunnar shared Sigurd's treasure hoard. Brynhild also killed herself on Sigurd's pyre. Since Brynhild was the sister of Atli, they expected Atli to take vengeance upon them. Gunnar and Hogni forced Gudrun to marry Atli, to appease their more powerful neighbour.

Hogni married Kostbera (Kosthera or Beri) and had three sons – Solar, Snaevar and Giuki. Later on, another son named Niflung was mentioned. The horse he rode was named Holkvir, according to Snorri Sturluson's Edda.

When Atli invited Gunnar and Hogni to come visit their sister, they suspected that Atli was after the treasure, so they hid the hoard in the Rhine river. They vowed never to reveal the treasure's location.

Atli's men captured him and his brother, when they were visiting their sister. Neither brother would reveal the location of Sigurd's treasures. Gunnar tricked Atli into cutting Hogni before he would reveal the treasure.

In the Poetic Edda from the poem Atlakvida ("Lay of Atli"), Atli tried to deceive Gunnar by cutting out the heart of Hialli, Atli's cook. But Gunnar immediately knew that the heart did not belong to his brother, but that of the cowardly Hialli, since it still quivered in his hand. When Atli had Hogni's heart cut out, Hogni defiantly laughed at his killer.

Gunnar also died without revealing the treasure. Later, Hogni's sister Gudrun and his son Niflung (also spelt Niflungr or Hniflung) later avenged their deaths by killing Atli and setting fire to the palace.

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In the Germanic saga, Nibelungenlied, Hogni was identified as Hagen, Gunther's (Gunnar) advisor and henchman, not his brother as in the Norse mythology. Hagen played a vital role in the Nibelungenlied. Hagen plotted to murder Siegfried (Sigurd), so he could seize the treasure. Hagen and Gunther arranged Siegfried's death on a hunting trip. At Siegfried's death, Hagen stole the cursed treasure (Rhinegold) that should have belonged to Kriemhild (Gudrun), wife of Siegfried. Knowing that Kriemhild wanted the treasure so she could raise an army to avenge her husband's death, Hagen sank the treasure in the Rhine. When Gunther went to visit his sister, they were captured by Etzel (Atli), Kriemhild's second husband. When Hagen refused to tell Kriemhild where he had hidden Siegfried's treasure, Kriemhild murdered Hagen with Siegfried's sword.

In the various versions of Waltharius (Walther) and Hiltgunt, Hogni was one the young hostages of Atli (Attila).