Hálfdanar saga Brönufóstra to his father's kingdom and defeats and kills Soti and his Vikings. Although numerous sagas contain analogs to the iconic cave battle with Grendel and his mother in "Beowulf," none is closer to the Old English epic than is Hálfdan’s cave battle with Járnnefr and his wife. The saga is found in three, 15th-century vellum manuscripts, but its post-medieval popularity is evidenced by its preservation in over four dozen paper manuscripts. In the 18th century it served as the source for the first known saga forgery. "Hálfdanar saga Brönufóstra" has a sequel in "Sörla saga sterka", where it becomes clear
The dragon (Beowulf) of a "heroic society" which "depends upon the honouring of mutual obligations between lord and thane". Wiglaf remains loyal to his king and stays to confront the dragon. The parallel in the story lies with the similarity to Beowulf's hero Sigemund and his companion: Wiglaf is a younger companion to Beowulf and, in his courage, shows himself to be Beowulf's successor. The presence of a companion is seen as a motif in other dragon stories, but the "Beowulf" poet breaks hagiographic tradition with the hero's suffering (hacking, burning, stabbing) and subsequent death. Moreover, the dragon is vanquished through Wiglaf's actions: