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Alfheim is the fourth area you’ll explore in God of War. In this guide, we’ll take you through the area and the story mission, picking up everything you can — chests, hacksilver, artifacts and more — along the way.
Tyr’s Bridge
There’s very little to watch out for as you make your way down the bridge. Keep an eye on the right side of the bridge for a ring of glowing runes — this is your first lore marker.
Turn to the right of the marker to find a wooden chest. You’ll need to free it first. There’s a root-node-thing between the rocks. Toss your axe and collect your hacksilver.
After you fight your first dark elves (we hate dark elves) go through the doors and take an immediate right. There’s a legendary chest down the stairs with a Symbol of Shadows enchantment inside.
Now you can visit Sindri’s shop and free the boat. Before you move on, there are two useful things to grab nearby. Before you hit the water, climb back onto the ledge on the right side of the beach (back the way you came). There’s a hanging chest you can hit with your axe to knock into the water. It’s a pain, so there’s a GIF of it above.
Set off from the beach in your canoe and swing to the left. You’ll see a drop of Yggdrasil’s Dew of Cooldown which will permanently increase your cooldown stat by two points. (Don’t forget to grab the Aegis gold you knocked down earlier, too.)
Continue along the river to the Lake of Light. You can dock at the sand bowl when you come to it — you can’t actually accomplish anything here yet anyway — but before you continue along to your goal, there are two other locations to visit in the Lake of Light.
Light Elf Shore
Follow the shore to the left. You’ll eventually come to a beach called the Light Elf Shore. Handle the draugr and nightmares waiting for you. To the right of where you parked, there’s a broken chunk of road where you can find Spoils of War artifact 1.
Head down the tunnel next to that piece of road and fight the tatzelwurms waiting for you. There’s a chest on your left, but you can’t get to it yet. Follow the tunnel around to the right. When you come to the gap, toss your axe at the root node blocking your path, then jump across. Climb up onto the ledge and continue along to find a legendary chest with a Frost Giant’s Frenzy heavy runic attack inside.
Turn around and head back to the tunnel. This time, line up your axe throw so you hit all three root nodes and free the wooden chest. We found that an overhand (R2) throw works well here.
When you come out, take the tunnel on your right — the one that was ahead of you when you beached. There’s another hidden chamber at the end. You still can’t get in, but you’ll want to know where it is later.
Head back across to the other side of the beach. There’s a ruin here with three crystals in the floor that you can ignore for now — we’ll be back for them soon. Go through the door on your left and out onto the balcony. Turn to the left and look at the statue pedestal for an Odin’s raven.
Light Elf Sanctuary
Hop back in the canoe and paddle straight back across the lake all the way to the southeast corner to find the Light Elf Sanctuary. Handle the draugr and tatzelwurms waiting for you.
Keep to the right and follow along until you come to a switch and a gap. Throw the switch and rush across the gap and through the gate before it closes. Handle the tatzelwurm, then turn left and go through the tunnel.
At the end of the path, there’s a Nornir chest. The twist this time is that there are no runes on the bells you have to ring so you have to either guess, or keep reading. Stand at the chest, then turn around. The first bell is the one up above you in the doorway you just came through. Starting here with one and turning left, ring the third and sixth bells as well to unlock the chest. You’ll get an Idunn apple for your trouble.
Head back to where you fought the tatzelwurm. Getting through the next gate takes a bit of work. The way we got it to work consistently is in the GIF above. Throw your axe through the closer, lower root node, then wait for the node to regrow. Turn the crank, then recall your axe — it will break the root and let the gate raise. Throw your axe through the other node to free the gate. Turn the crank again and run through the gate before it closes.
On the other side of the gate, you’ll find a realm tear. You’ll have to defeat one level three and one level four draugr to close it. Remember that these are optional, so if you’re not in the mood for this fight, you can just skip it.
Turn right from the tear and head into the tunnel. Break a couple more root nodes and cross the root bridge. While you’re looking down toward the beach where you started, line up an axe throw to break all three root nodes. This will expose a tunnel. Before you drop down, grab Spoils of War artifact 2.
Follow the tunnel you opened into the room at the end. Cross to the far side of the room and use the wheel to spin the root nodes around. Spin the wheel as far as it will go, then take a couple of steps to the right. Line up another axe throw to hit all three root nodes as they rotate past. Open the legendary chest you free to find an Amulet of Kvasir talisman — one of our favorites in the game.
There’s nothing else to pick up until you’re down inside the temple, so just keep following your HUD and murdering dark elves until you’re in the Light Temple Trench.
Ringed Temple Trench
Once the elevator delivers you down into the trench, you’ll have to fight some dark elves. You’ll be fighting a lot of dark elves, so just it’s safe to assume that as an unwritten step between every thing we tell you to pick up here.
After the elves are handled, turn around and look above the doors to your right and left for some hanging hacksilver. There’s nothing you can do in the room on the right (west) side. Head into the room on the left and throw the switch. A draugr will come out of the room on the right.
Go grab the hacksilver out of the room on the left, then run into the draugr’s cell on the right. There’s a passage to the middle cell, but the way is blocked. Throw your axe down that passage and leave it stuck in the wall behind the root node you see there. Now, run back to the main room and stand against the door to the middle cell — the one that’s still blocked with roots. Recall your axe and it should destroy both root nodes, giving you access to the middle room and a legendary chest with Thiazi’s Talon heavy runic attack inside.
Continue along the left side of the trench until you come to a Nornir chest on your left. This is both the next area for some loot and the next step along your journey.
Head to the right to find a wheel. Spin it until only the middle section of the floor is lowered, then freeze it in place. Drop down onto the center section you just lowered. The first two seals are here — one ahead of you and one behind you.
Recall your axe and head back to the wheel. Spin it so the entire floor drops this time and freeze it again. Turn around and climb up onto the platform behind you. You’ll find the final seal here, but don’t jump back down yet.
While standing here, recall your axe and ride the platform up. You’ll stop next to a coffin with the Runic Forearm Bracers inside. Drop down and run across to the Nornir chest for an Idunn apple.
Continue along toward your goal for a bit. After the big fight, look for the root-covered coffin on the southeast end of the bridge. Turn around and run down the lefthand ramp on the west side of the bridge. Turn left at the end of the ramp and look across under the bridge. You’ll really only be able to see one, but there are two root nodes here. Line up an overhand (R2) throw and try to break them both. If you don’t get both, aim a little higher and try again. When they’re destroyed, the coffin will be free and you can pick up some soft Svartalfheim steel.
Keep following your main story marker until you fight an ancient (and a bunch of dark elves). After the fight, look on the left side of the platform for a legendary chest containing a Njord’s Tempest light runic attack.
When you restore the bridges, ignore Atreus and take the bridge on the left. You’ll find Spoils of War artifact 3 at the end.
Follow Atreus and take the elevator (elfavator?) topside to continue your trip.
Ringed Temple
When you reach the unopenable blue doors, turn left and run down the stairs. You’ll see the telltale beruned bells of a Nornir chest. This one is tricky. You need to get the doors to the tunnel open first.
Stand in the gap between the doors, then take a few steps back and one or two to the left — there are two root nodes to hit and you can’t see the second one if you’re standing in the middle. Toss your axe to open the door and reveal the chest and third bell.
Ringing all three bells at once is difficult, so just keep trying. We prefer starting with the R-shaped one in the courtyard and working our way toward the tunnel, but use whatever order works for you. When it’s unlocked, you can pick up a Horn of Blood Mead.
Head back up the stairs, past the blue door and down the stairs on the other side. The first thing you’ll see is Sindri and his shop. There’s also a More than a Myth shrine just to your right.
Head through the tunnel to the left of Sindri’s shop. After you kill some more dark elves, head along the hallway. You’ll pass a coffin on your left, but just keep walking. When you pass under a root node, turn around and look back the way you came. You’ll be able to get an angle on the three root nodes above you and free the coffin. Open it for some more soft Svartalfheim steel.
Continue along the hallway past another fight or two until you come to a tunnel and a gap in the floor. There’s another coffin on your right. Head into the tunnel and jump the two gaps. Turn to the right and loop around to get an angle on the root nodes. There are three of them you have to hit here, so aim a little high and adjust as needed. Backtrack and open the coffin for the Runic War Belt.
Ringed temple interior
There’s nothing special to pick up while you break into the dark elf hive, but getting inside is a bit of a puzzle, so let’s talk about it.
There are a bunch of root nodes on a platform that all need to be broken. There’s no way to hit them all at once, though. Focus on the large branches above you. You only have to worry about the nodes connected to the same branch. Start with the darkest one. That will free you up to take out the nodes along the lightest one, which, in turn, will line you up on the mottled one and get you inside.
There’s some heavy cutscenes coming and nothing to pick up for a few minutes, so we’ll just meet you back here after you retrieve the Light.
Light of Alfheim
Use Atreus’ new Pink Floyd laser light bow to create a bridge away from the Light. Drop down to the courtyard on your left and pick up the crystal on the ground. Turn around and go fit it into the socket at the back of the round room and have the boy shoot it. Climb up the ledges on the right or left and head to the center of the rings for a coffin containing a Fragmented Heart of Alfheim. (This reduces the damage you take from dark elves’ attacks, so it’s probably a good idea to socket this if you have room.)
Grab the crystal out of the middle and go pop it into to the socket near where you picked it up on the left side of this area. Cross the new light bridge and fight the nightmares on the other side. Head to the left and watch for a root-covered wooden chest. There are two nodes you have to hit — the first is obvious, but the second is behind a tiny window in the rock.
Continue along lighting bridges and murdering dark elves until you climb a winding staircase. At the top, you’ll find a legendary chest with the Strike of the Utgard light runic attack inside.
Turn around from the chest and knock down the crystal above you. Drop it into the socket in the middle of the room to active a lore marker for the boy.
Grab the crystal and bring it up the stairs with you. At the top of the stairs, turn left and drop the crystal in the socket there. Once the light bridge appears, turn right and look for some platforms to climb. Use the bridge to get an angle on the root nodes that are blocking the other crystal socket.
In the middle of this light bridge, you’ll find a Nornir chest. This is another bell-based one with some really tricky shots. There’s one bell through a window to the left, one behind the chest and one through another window on the right. There’s no easy trick here. It’s just quick, well-aimed shots and practice (it took us about four minutes even on our second time through the game). When you get the chest open, you’ll get a Horn of Blood Mead.
Drop back down to the main area and use the crystal in the other socket to exit the Temple.
Back in the trench (in the dark)
When you take the elfavator back down into the trench, the doors in room where the elevator lands are open. The room directly behind the elevator switch — to the right when you exit the elevator — has Spoils of War artifact 4. There’s also a wooden chest in the room to the right.
Head back out the the trench and fight off the revenant (in the dark, so, fun!). To continue on, you’ll create and cross a light bridge on the left side. Knock down the crystal above you to open all the rooms around you. Fight off the draugr that come out, then loot the rooms for Spoils of War artifact 5.
Take your crystal and head back to the trench. Cross to the opposite side by the snake head statue-thing you knocked over earlier. Have Atreus create a bridge and carry the crystal across. Handle the draugr, then socket the crystal in the middle of the room.
You only have a limited time to get all the dials to match the door, otherwise the puzzle will reset. Get the door open to find a coffin with Runic Scaled Spaulders inside.
Grab your crystal again, and take it back to the trench. Go down the ramp on the left to find another socket, and have the boy shoot the crystal to create your bridge back toward the beginning.
When you come to the wheel in the floor — where you solved the Nornir chest earlier — use it to drop the floor all the way down. When you go through the tunnel this time, all the cells in the room at the end are open. The cell directly behind the wheel has Spoils of War artifact 6, which should complete your set.
Now you can continue back topside.
Return to Light Elf Shore
Before you go back to Midgard, return to the Light Elf Shore. When you land, turn left and head into that ruin we told you to ignore earlier. Have the boy shoot the three crystals in the floor to reveal a realm tear.
Two level 4 draugr will come out. Try to toss them off the balcony to make the fight quick. Close the tear when you’re done and claim your Pure Essence of the Realms.
Now you can head back home.
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You can’t collect everything on your first trip through Alfheim. Late in the game, when you can open Hidden Chambers, you can return and get everything else.
Everything is in the northwest of the map. Get in your boat, and paddle through the Lake of Light, hugging the left bank. Dock your boat as indicated in the images above, and open the Hidden Chambers door.
Alfheim Hidden Chamber
This is a sparse area. Once you take the elevator down, check your surroundings for a few wooden treasure chests, which you can smash to collect hacksilver. You’ll also discover a Mystic Gateway. Open the red coffin at the top of the stairs for an Etched Crest of Shadows. (Browse the gallery above for the details on this Legendary enchantment.)
Then it’s time for a supremely tough fight with a Valkyrie.
Valkyrie Olrun boss fight
Olrun, God of War’s Alfheim Valkyrie, doesn’t react well to aggressive offense. To win, you need to learn her attack patterns and unleash Kratos’ might when she’s vulnerable, recovering or distracted. In this guide, we’ll show you how to read Olrun’s attacks so you can respond and defeat her.
Be prepared
Before you begin a Valkyrie fight, do three things:
- Fill your Runic attack meters. Begin every Valkyrie fight with back-to-back Runic attacks (L1 + R1 and L1 + R2). As Valkyries descend from their winged cocoons, they’re vulnerable. Attack then, and you’ll chip away a big portion of her health without resistance. (If your meters aren’t full, you can just stand around and wait for them to fill up.)
- Fill your Spartan Rage meters. Spartan Rage does two things. The obvious one is inflict massive amounts of damage. The less obvious one is restore your health as you attack. You can use it to finish off a Valkyrie or restore your low health — or both! (If your meters aren’t full, go find some enemies to kill. You can warp right back to the Mystic Gateway.)
- Bring a Resurrection Stone. If you die while you’re holding a Resurrection Stone, press Square and Atreus will bring him back to life. Any Resurrection Stone will do, and you can buy them at Brok or Sindri’s shop. Just remember that you can only hold one at a time.
Olrun attacks and strategies
The trick to defeating a Valkyrie is identifying and responding to her attacks. Then the fight becomes an if-then statement: If she does this, then I do this. In this section, we’ll show you Olrun’s attacks (the “if” part) and how to respond (the “then” part).
Wing-based attacks
Olrun has two flavors of wing-based attacks:
- She’ll twirl couple of times, hitting Kratos with her wings as she spins. She’ll end with an unblockable punch. Block the wings. Dodge when you see the telltale red circle to avoid the final attack.
- She’ll twirl a couple of times, back away and then close the gap she created with a spinning attack. Block all of these.
Wait out her wing-based attacks. Olrun is vulnerable after she’s done with her flurry, and that’s your opportunity to attack.
Dash attack
While she’s on the ground, Olrun will dash and attack Kratos like she’s trying to shiv him. She can do this from across the arena. You can’t block it, but you can dodge it.
Before this attack, she’ll put distance between Kratos and her. She’ll strafe. Watch for the strafe followed by the telltale red circle, and dodge as she slides across the arena.
Ranged attacks
Olrun will spin in place and shoot black clouds of smoke. Block them.
Vertical leap and stomp
Olrun’s vertical leap and stomp is her strongest attack. She’ll disappear from your screen and reappear wherever you’re standing. If you don’t move out of the way, she’ll take most of your health away. To avoid it, dodge to the side as soon as she jumps.
The good news is that she kneels to recover at the end of this attack, creating a period of vulnerability. Attack when she kneels — chained Runic attacks are perfect here.
Collect Olrun’s loot
Defeat Olrun, and you’ll receive Olrun’s Helmet, the Ivaldi’s Corrupted Mind Epic enchantment, the Waist Guard of the Valkyrie Epic waist armor and Asgardian steel. Browse the gallery above for the details on each item.