Santa Monica Studio's Ragnarok reached PC on 19 September 2024 with the free Valhalla add-on included in the package. Kratos and Atreus travel all Nine Realms during Fimbulwinter, and the Draupnir Spear, forged at Surtr's fire in Muspelheim, joins the Leviathan Axe and the Blades of Chaos as a genuine third weapon rather than a gadget. There are 35 Nornir Chests scattered across the game and 30 of them are enough to cap health and rage, which leaves room to skip the worst puzzles.
These tips go beyond the basics. They're the strategies experienced players use to play more efficiently, the hidden mechanics most people miss, and the optimizations that compound over a full playthrough. If you're just starting, check our beginner's guide first.
Essential Tips
1. Nornir Chests are the only permanent health and rage increases, and there are 35 of them
Nornir Chests are the only permanent health and rage increases, and there are 35 of them. Thirty is enough to cap both bars, so the five most annoying puzzles can be skipped without penalty.
2. Swap Spartan Rage at any workbench, for free, as often as you like
Swap Spartan Rage at any workbench, for free, as often as you like. Valor for its healing shockwave carries hard runs, Wrath suits boss damage windows, and Fury suits crowds, so treat it as a per fight choice.
3. Upgrade one armour set to its maximum rather than spreading resources across three
Upgrade one armour set to its maximum rather than spreading resources across three. Enemy scaling in Ragnarok tracks your gear level, so half upgraded gear across three sets leaves you underlevelled everywhere.
4. Blunt damage builds the stun meter far faster than blade damage
Blunt damage builds the stun meter far faster than blade damage. Shield bashes, the axe's heavy attacks and the spear's shaft strikes open grab finishers that skip the rest of an enemy's health bar entirely.
5. The 48 Odin's Ravens are not just a checklist
The 48 Odin's Ravens are not just a checklist. Turning them in at Ratatoskr rewards materials and Enchantments that are difficult to obtain any other way, and they cluster near main story paths.
6. Berserker Gravestones are the hardest optional content in the game and they are meant to be revisited
Berserker Gravestones are the hardest optional content in the game and they are meant to be revisited. Come back at gear level 7 or higher for King Hrolf Kraki, who rewards the Hilt of Skofnung relic.
7. The Draupnir Spear's charges detonate all at once, so stacking six into a single armoured target and triggering them removes more armour than any sustained melee combo will
The Draupnir Spear's charges detonate all at once, so stacking six into a single armoured target and triggering them removes more armour than any sustained melee combo will.
8. Read enemy attack rings before choosing a response
Read enemy attack rings before choosing a response. Yellow rings can be parried or blocked, red rings must be dodged, and getting that wrong is what makes Give Me God of War feel unfair rather than hard.
9. The Crater in Vanaheim opens as a post story area with some of the best gear in the base game
The Crater in Vanaheim opens as a post story area with some of the best gear in the base game. It is worth clearing before starting Valhalla, since it feeds directly into that content.
10. Muspelheim and Niflheim are both optional and both worth doing
Muspelheim and Niflheim are both optional and both worth doing. Muspelheim hosts the Crucible combat challenges, and clearing them supplies the materials the highest armour tiers need.
Advanced Strategies
Role Optimization
The difference between an average build and an optimized one is massive. See our builds guide for full breakdowns.
For Leviathan Axe Frost Build (A-Tier):
- Focus on Three weapon rotation combinations for maximum output.
- Core gear: Leviathan Axe
- Stat priority: Offensive stats first
For Blades of Chaos Burn Build (A-Tier):
- Versatile approach that handles any situation.
- Core gear: Blades of Chaos
- Stat priority: Balanced stats
Mechanic Interactions
Understanding how God of War Ragnarok's systems interact is where the real optimization lives. Our combat guide covers this in detail.
Three weapon rotation + Stun meter and grabs: The Leviathan Axe applies Frost, the Blades of Chaos apply Burn, and the Draupnir Spear plants explosive charges you detonate on command. Combined with Stun meter and grabs, every enemy carries a health bar plus a separate stun meter beneath it.
Shield loadouts + Armour stats and Enchantments: Five shields play completely differently. When paired with Armour stats and Enchantments, chest, wrist and waist pieces distribute six stats: strength, runic, defence, vitality, cooldown and luck.
Spartan Rage modes scaling: Rage comes in three forms swapped at any workbench. Fury is the original berserk punching, Valor trades damage for a healing shockwave that also breaks a combo you are trapped in, and Wrath is a short high damage burst. Valor is the standard pick on Give Me God of War because healing is otherwise rationed.
Weapons Efficiency
| Weapon | Best Use Case | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Leviathan Axe | Group control, ranged pressure, and slowing large enemies before committing to melee. | The throwing axe that applies Frost, slows enemies and detonates when the Frost meter fills. |
| Blades of Chaos | Damage races, packed groups, and any fight where staying inside the enemy's reach is safe. | Chained blades applying Burn, with the widest sweeps and the fastest damage output. |
| Draupnir Spear | Armoured Einherjar in Asgard, shielded enemies, and Berserker fights where reach matters. | Forged at Surtr's fire in Muspelheim and thrown in stacks that detonate together. |
| Dauntless Shield | Players who prefer to parry than dodge, and the Berserker Gravestone fights where openings are narrow. | The parry focused shield, with a wide timing window and a bash that grows stronger after a clean parry. |
| Talon Bow | The Atreus playable chapters and interrupting casters during Kratos fights. | Atreus's bow, used directly during the sections where you play as him and called in as support arrows while playing as Kratos. |
Location Efficiency
Svartalfheim (Gear level 1 to 3): The dwarven mining region and the first large open area, built around Nidavellir, the Bay of Bounty and a set of rigs connected by boat. Water levels change with the tide, which opens and closes routes as the story moves.
Alfheim (Gear level 2 to 4): The elf home split between the Light and Dark Elves, with The Barrens desert sitting between the Temple and the Forbidden Sands. It is far larger here than it was in the 2018 game and holds a heavy share of the optional content.
Vanaheim (Gear level 3 to 5, with the Crater at 7 and above): The largest area in the game, green and overgrown, with Freyr's Camp as its hub and the Crater opening up as a post story region. The Sinkholes and Noatun's Garden hold some of the best optional fights.
Helheim (Gear level 4 to 6): Cold, grey and built around the Garm storyline. It is more linear than Vanaheim and it holds one of the game's better boss fights, along with the shield that most aggressive builds end up wearing.
Asgard (Gear level 5 to 7): Odin's seat, visited under a truce that nobody is honouring, with heavily armoured Einherjar guarding every hall. The story chapters here are tightly scripted, which makes them the point where a weak build finally fails.
Mistakes Even Veterans Make
- Sticking to the Leviathan Axe because it feels familiar from the 2018 game, then hitting Asgard's armoured Einherjar with no Draupnir Spear skills invested.
- Ignoring the stun meter and grinding enemy health bars down with light attacks, when a grab finisher after a shield bash would have ended the fight in half the time.
- Spreading upgrade resources across several armour sets so no set reaches its full stat block, which leaves your gear level lagging behind the region you are in.
- Leaving Spartan Rage on Fury for the whole campaign without ever testing Valor, whose healing shockwave is the single biggest survivability change available.
- Attempting Berserker Gravestones at the gear level of the surrounding area, when most of them are tuned several levels above the story content around them.
Pro Quick Tips
- Nornir Chests are the only permanent health and rage increases, and there are 35 of them. Thirty is enough to cap both bars, so the five most annoying puzzles can be skipped without penalty.
- Swap Spartan Rage at any workbench, for free, as often as you like. Valor for its healing shockwave carries hard runs, Wrath suits boss damage windows, and Fury suits crowds, so treat it as a per fight choice.
- Upgrade one armour set to its maximum rather than spreading resources across three. Enemy scaling in Ragnarok tracks your gear level, so half upgraded gear across three sets leaves you underlevelled everywhere.
- Start with Blades of Chaos Burn Build, switch to Leviathan Axe Frost Build when ready
- Invest in Leviathan Axe above everything else
- Clear areas in order: Svartalfheim → Alfheim → Vanaheim → Helheim → Asgard. See our maps guide
- Three weapon rotation + Stun meter and grabs together are stronger than either alone
More God of War Ragnarok Guides
- God of War Ragnarok God of War Ragnarok Overview
- God of War Ragnarok Best Builds
- God of War Ragnarok Tier List
- God of War Ragnarok Walkthrough
- God of War Ragnarok Beginner's Guide
- God of War Ragnarok Weapons Guide
- God of War Ragnarok Combat Guide
- God of War Ragnarok Boss Guide
- God of War Ragnarok Maps & Locations
- God of War Ragnarok Crafting Guide
- God of War Ragnarok Classes & Characters
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