Terry Gunnell has similarly challenged the concept of all Germanic pagans throughout the Viking Age believing in a single, universal pantheon of gods that all lived in Asgard and were ruled by Odin.
[54] In the Early Medieval period, Odin was principally a god of the warrior elite, however, due to his close association with skalds, whose poetry was preserved in works such as the Prose Edda and Heimskringla, he is highly represented in extant sources on Nordic pre-Christian religion.
This variation may be the cause of the apparent conflicts between sources, such as the most closely associated female god to Odin, which Gunnell suggests never formed a single unified system.
Gunnell suggests that Freyr, whose cult was centred in Uppland in Sweden, as another figure who acts more as an allfather (Old Norse: alfǫðr) than Odin, based on his diverse roles in farming, ruling and warfare.
He notes that Thor would fit well into the role of a chief god, being associated with trees, high-seat pillars and rain, and is called upon for help at sea and against Christian missionaries.