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God of War guide: Behind the Lock walkthrough and collectibles

You can finally get through those magic locks. Now what?

By Jeffrey Parkin
Jeffrey Parkin (he/him) has been writing video game guides for Polygon for almost seven years. He has learned to love just about every genre of game that exists.

God of War’s “Behind the Lock” Journey begins after you get your chunk of the magic chisel. You have a lot of options, but you have to get out of the arena where you fought Magni and Modi first. This part of your journey picks up immediately after the end of the last — you’re still in the same room and everything.

A note on God of War spoilers

God of War is full of surprises, and that makes guides particularly tricky to write. We want to help you with the game. We don’t want to spoil it. So we want you to know that we’ve written every guide with spoilers in mind. 

If our guide doesn’t appear to get you every item (a chest, for example), there’s a reason for that. Rather than spoil that reason, our tables of contents and a big image in the guide indicating spoilers ahead will tell you when and why you find yourself in that situation — in the least spoilery way possible. 

Table of contents

Your first magic lock

Items in this area: coffin (solid Svartalfheim steel), wooden chest, Glacial Catalyst, coffin (solid Svartalfheim steel), coffin (solid Svartalfheim steel, Symbol of Shadows), Realm Tear

  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon

Now that you’ve got your very own magic chisel, you can start opening all those magic locks you’ve been finding. These first few you open aren’t like the rest out in the world — these are just to introduce you to the concept and get you out of the Thamur’s Corpse region. The rest of them will have a tough fight on the other side (we’ll get to one of those in a few minutes).

Make sure you’ve picked up everything the brothers dropped, then turn around from the chisel. Follow along the wall on your right to find a magically locked door. Pass the chisel over the lock with the left thumbstick. When it glows and there’s a fiery dot under it, hit R2 to stab the lock. You’ll have to do this twice for this lock — other locks require more stabbing.

On the other side, you’ll find a tunnel that leads you to a little canyon. Look to the right of the rune-sealed door first. There’s a coffin tied up with roots. Look above it for a shatter crystal. Have Atreus shoot it to knock it down, then have him shoot it again to free the coffin. You’ll get some solid Svartalfheim steel when you open it.

  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon

Now let’s open the rune door. Face the door, then turn to the left and look high above you to find the first rune. Turn to the right and start climbing up the knobs sticking out of the ice wall. At the top, drop to the ledge, then turn around. Take a couple of steps to your right and you’ll see the second rune through a hole in the ruins on the other side of the canyon. Continue to the right and drop down to the next platform. Walk all the way to the edge, then turn left. There’s a tall pillar of ice in front of you — the third seal is a the very top.

The gate at the bottom of the canyon will open and you can grab the wooden chest and the loot in front of the dead troll — some hacksilver and a Glacial Catalyst crafting resource (for the Charm of Infinite Storms talisman).

  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon

Climb back up those knobs on the right to the first platform. Kick down the chain ahead of you and you’ll drop back down to the Dining Hall and Sindri’s shop. Have him upgrade your Leviathan Axe with the Frozen Flame you got from Magni and Modi.

Drop back into the main part of the Dining Hall and look for the magically locked door that you can open the same way as before.

  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon

There’s a hallway on the other side. Jump the first low ledge and note the root-locked coffin on your left and the empty light crystal socket ahead of you.

Take the first right you can into another hallway. Turn left at the first alcove you come to and smash the crate. Grab a shatter crystal from the root there, then carry it back to the coffin to blast it open. This will get you some more solid Svartalfheim steel and a Symbol of Shadows enchantment.

Head back to get some another shatter crystal from the root. This time, look directly above you when you come out of the alcove. Throw the crystal up and have the boy shoot it to knock down the light crystal. Carry it back to the empty socket from earlier. Have the boy shoot this crystal with a light arrow to reveal a realm tear. There’s no fight, so just grab your Dust of Realms and close the tear.

Head back into the second hallway and run past the root alcove. Continue to the end of this hall to find some doors to the next area.

The port contraption

Items in this area: wooden chest

  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon

From the doors, head to the left side of the room. Break the disc that’s holding the platform in place and use the wheel to move it to the right side of the room.

Run over to the right side and look for a place to hoist the boy up. Head back to the wheel and shuttle the boy to the left side. Have him throw down the chain so you can climb up, then freeze the wheel on top of the platform so it won’t move.

Climb the chain and hop onto the platform. Recall your axe to let the platform slide down to the right side of the room.

When it stops, turn right for a wooden chest. Turn left and hop across the gap. Loop around to the right to kick down a chain — this is just a shortcut if you ever come back this way again.

Open the magic lock to open the doors back to the Northern Dock area.

Northern Dock

  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon

Climb the chain out of this area and go through the tunnel to get back to the beach. You’ve got a few choices here: You can turn to your right to open your first real hidden chamber door that leads to the Valkyrie Gunnr, you can hop in the canoe and paddle back to Tyr’s Temple, or you can take the Mystic Gateway shortcut back to the Bridge.

However you decide to get there, the next step of this journey goal is to get to the bridge, so that’s what we’re going to focus on.

Tyr’s Bridge Interior

  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon
  • SIE Santa Monica Studio/Sony Interactive Entertainment via Polygon

Head down to the lowest level of the bridge. If you canoed here, this is where the boat dock is. The door to Tyr’s Vault is right next to the boat dock. Use your chisel to get inside.

After Atreus checks out the remains of the shrine on the left, have him investigate the sand bowl in the middle of the room.

There’s nothing to pick up in here, so just focus on how totally fine everything goes in the cutscene. We’ll meet you on the other side.

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