As you progress through God of War Ragnarok, you’ll earn Kratos XP and Atreus XP for defeating enemies and completing quests and side missions. This XP can then be spent upgrading Runic Attacks as well as unlocking new Skills for both characters. In this guide, we’ll run you through the best skills for Kratos and Atreus early on in God of War Ragnarok, to give you the upper hand from the get-go.
Skills can be found in the ‘Skills’ tab over the touchpad menu. These range from both active and passive abilities or ‘skills.’ For example, some will unlock a new combo for you to use with the Leviathan Axe or Chaos Blades, while others provide more of a passive ‘stat’ boost when using that weapon.
A lot of the skills will be locked when you start playing through the game and can only be unlocked by upgrading your Chaos Blades and Leviathan Axe, respectively. Skills are tied to a specific ‘upgrade level’ of each weapon, indicated by the number on the locked node.
In our lists below, we’ve included a mix of skills that will be unlocked from the very beginning, alongside skills that will be unlocked within the first one or two upgrades you perform to both Chaos Blades and Leviathan Axe, as well as Atreus’ bow. There are certainly more powerful skills to be unlocked later on in your adventure, but by that point, XP doesn’t feel quite as hard to come by, and you’ll already know what kind of route you’ll want to take with your ability unlocks.
Best Skills to Get Early for Kratos in God of War Ragnarok
As noted above, Kratos has a skill tree for each of his weapon types. Here, we’ll be focusing on the skills for the Leviathan Axe and Chaos Blades that we think you should be unlocking first.
Leviathan Axe Skills to Get First
- Extinguish Flames – Axe Melee Attacks against Burning enemies deal bonus damage.
- Cost: 250 XP
- Vengeful Sickle – Aim and hold R1 to charge up the Leviathan Axe, causing it to spin and slice for multiple hits against an enemy when thrown.
- Cost: 500 XP
- Glacial Rake – Hold R1 to drag the Axe through the ground and ripe out ice shards that travel forward and strike repeatedly with high Frost.
- Cost: 750 XP
- Serpent’s Snare – Hold R2 for a brutal Axe attack that throws the enemy to apply massive damage. Weaker foes are thrown to create an explosion of Frost on impact that Launches other nearby enemies.
- Requirement: Leviathan Axe Upgrade 2
- Frozen Ascent – Press R2 during Frost Awaken to slash upwards with a chilling wave to launch enemies in an area and apply high Frost.
- Requirement: Leviathan Axe Upgrade 2.
Kratos’ Leviathan Axe deals significant damage but at a slower rate than the Blades of Chaos. However, with Extinguish Flames, you can really increase the damage dealt by the axe to any ‘Burning’ enemies. These are the enemies with a red health bar that’s on fire. For a small amount of XP, Extinguish Flames is absolutely worth grabbing first.
Glacial Rake, Serpent’s Snare and Frozen Ascent, on the other hand, are special moves or attacks that really do deal huge damage, and in the case of Glacial Rake and Frozen Ascent, also deal heavy Frost status too. These are just handy attacks to have in your repertoire for when you’re taking on tougher enemies or need a bit of crowd control.
Finally, Vengeful Sickle is a particularly powerful ranged attack with the Leviathan Axe that we’re a big fan of. It essentially hits your target and then repeatedly hits them multiple times. It packs more of a punch than a standard axe throw, and as it’s sometimes better to whittle your enemies away from a safe distance, we’d recommend unlocking this skill early on in your adventure.
Chaos Blades Skills to Get First
- Chaotic Rampage – Hold R1 to unleash a high damage flurry of attacks on a single enemy with the Blades in hand.
- Cost: 750 XP
- Vaporize Frost – Blades Melee Attacks against Frosted enemies deal bonus damage.
- Cost: 250 XP
- Scorched Earth 1 – Press R2 during Flame Whiplash to spike the Blade down and create a heavy Burn explosion. If Flame Whiplash is fully charged, trigger a hazard of smaller follow-up explosions.
- Cost: 500 XP
- Immolation – Perform Melee attacks in quick succession without sustaining damage to power up the Blades of Chaos and inflict Burn damage on every hit. Bonus to Luck and Runic while active.
- Cost: 1000 XP
- Chaos Slam – While sprinting, press R2 to leap into the air and perform a powerful chain slam attack that launches weaker enemies.
- Cost: 250 XP
The Chaos Blades were my go-to weapon throughout my entire playthrough of God of War Ragnarok thanks to their crowd-control capabilities and fast-paced combat style. As such, it’s where I spent a lot of my Kratos XP first.
Much like the Leviathan Axe’s Extinguish Flames, Vaporize Frost is well worth purchasing early on in order to quickly slice through Frost enemies with ease. We’re also a big fan of the Immolation skill, as the Burn damage you inflict on every hit with it active can stack fairly quickly and easily whittle down an enemy’s health bar.
Chaos Slam is another special attack that’s great for crowd control, sending any nearby enemies flying through the air, giving you a moment to heal, activate Rage, or unleash a Runic Attack to keep the pain train rolling.
Chaotic Rampage, on the other hand, is just a great combo of attacks that can easily be activated in the heat of battle and whittle away an enemy’s health with relative ease.
Finally, Scorched Earth 1 is the beginning of a series of skills all based around this particular move, and while its subsequent upgrades make this even more powerful, the first skill is still incredibly handy for dealing with groups of enemies or giving you a bit of breathing room against larger, relentless enemy types. Plus, the follow-up, minor explosions if you have Flame Whiplash fully charged is just the icing on the rather firey cake.
Best Skills to Get Early for Atreus in God of War Ragnarok
- Breaching Bash – Atreus can strike an enemy with a quick Shield swipe for high Stun.
- Cost: 500 XP
- Focus Volley – After commanding Atreus to fire three arrows in quick succession, a Square occasionally appears above his head. If pressed, Atreus will fire a volley of arrows at the target.
- Cost: 1000 XP (Requires Focus Shot)
- Rushing Ascent – Atreus sprint to an enemy and launches them into the air with a heavy vertical attack.
- Cost: 500 XP
- Dexterous Shot – Bow shots deal more damage occasionally.
- Cost: 1000 XP
- Youthful Independence – Atreus can assist with Kratos’ combo, matching hit-for-hit while both are targeting the same foe.
- Cost: 250 XP
Our picks for Atreus’ skills to get early are all based around him essentially being that little bit more useful in battle. While he’ll get involved from the beginning, the likes of Breaching Bash and Rushing Ascent are great moves to have in his arsenal, as they can stagger or stun enemies and leave them wide open for Kratos to come in and finish off with a flurry of attacks.
We’re also a big fan of Focus Volley and Dexterous Shot, granting Atreus’ bow that little extra bit of firepower with every arrow he fires. Focus Volley, in particular, will really pack a punch if you manage to activate it before the button prompt disappears.
Finally, Youthful Independence can help you really deliver a huge amount of damage and stagger to an enemy in a short space of time. It can also distract enemies from focusing on Kratos, giving you time to switch weapons or activate one of your Runic Attacks.
That’s everything you need to know on the best skills to get early in God of War Ragnarok. Looking for more where that came from? Well, we’ve got guides on how to change difficulty, how to redeem preorder DLC, and explain things you should know before starting God of War Ragnarok.
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Comments
FAQs
What skills should I unlock first in God of War? ›
The first skill player should get is Glacial Rake, a Leviathan Axe melee skill that inflicts a large amount of frost damage to enemies in an area in front of Kratos. This is an amazing skill to have and will get the Frost status applied to a lot of enemies early on in combat, which the player can then capitalize on.
What skills should I upgrade in God of War? ›- Glacial Rake (Axe skill)
- Leviathon's Fury (Axe skill)
- Serpent's Snare (Axe skill)
- Vaproise Frost (Blades skill)
- Evasive Embers (Blades skill)
- Plume of Chaos (Blades skill)
- Watchful Protector (Atreus skill)
- Sonic Resonance (Atreus skill)
- Dragon Scaled Breastplate (Chest Armor)
- Dragon Scaled Bracers (Wrist Armor)
- Berserker Waist Guard (Waist Armor)
- Hunter's Pauldron (Chest Armor)
- Surtr's Scorched Cuirass (Chest Armor)
- Steinbjörn Plackart (Chest Armor)
- Breastplate of Guiding Light (Chest Armor)
Upgrading Rage in God of War Ragnarok
Out of the three paths for Spartan Rage, the most useful is the Valor option. It can be helpful for those who have difficulty with parries as well as giving a health boost.
- 10/10 Break Everything In Sight For Hacksilver.
- 9/10 Never Sell Crafting Materials And Resources.
- 8/10 Make Sure To Pick Up Artifacts.
- 7/10 Read Every Rune In Sight.
1/8 Leviathan Axe
The Leviathan Axe is the definitive weapon for Kratos. It's his most iconic device of destruction and thus the best weapon in God of War: Ragnarök because it has become a focal point. With its elemental ice abilities, it adds a unique dynamic to any skirmish.
Atreus' Tunic of the Champion
If obtained, though, the Tunic of the Champion will boost Atreus' overall attack damage, recharge time, and recovery, as well as replicate all the perks that tie in with the Legendary Fighter Tunic, Legendary Runic Vestment, and the Legendary Sharpshooter Garb.
Look to the left of the Nornir Chest to find a wooden wall next to a raised chain. Hit the planks at the top and boost Atreus up so he can lower the chain.
What are the best skills in God of War? ›- 8/10 Blazing Explosion II.
- 7/10 Vengeful Sickle II.
- 6/10 Chaotic Rampage III.
- 5/10 Rising Wind II.
- 4/10 Frost Awakened IV.
- 3/10 Draupnir's Call III.
- 2/10 Furious Immolation.
- 1/10 Glacial Permafrost.
The Cuirass of Zeus is acquired by defeating Sigrun in Midgard. The Gauntlets of Zeus are acquired by defeating Gondul in Muspelheim. The War Belt of Zeus is acquired by defeating Hildr in Niflheim.
What is the rarest armor in God of War? ›
The best armor in God of War is the Mist Armor, and you can obtain it using Mist Echoes in Niflheim. You can find out how to learn the language of Niflheim through the link.
Is the old gods armor good? ›The Armor of the Old Gods is perhaps the best piece of light body armor in the game. It offers a 24 armor rating and Fortifies Destruction by 15 points. This is fantastic for Spellsword builds or players that enjoy wearing light armor while using Destruction magic.
Is Kratos weaker in Ragnarok? ›In the latest entry in Santa Monica Studios' epic saga, God of War Ragnarok, Kratos seems weaker than he used to be. Not only is the Ghost of Sparta a bit easier to pummel this time around, but it seems like the other gods are having a much easier time standing up to him than their Greek counterparts.
Can you upgrade Atreus armor? ›In addition to Kratos' armor sets, you can also buy Atreus' armor at Sindri's Shop. His armor will also boost his skills and arrow abilities. On this page, you'll find a list of all the armor sets in God of War Ragnarok. All armor can be upgraded to a max level 9 and can only be upgraded at the shop.
What's the best armor in God of War Ragnarok? ›- Best Early Game Armor God of War Ragnarok – Nidavellir Armor Set.
- Honorable Mentions – Early-Game Armor Sets:
- Best Mid-Game Armor God of War Ragnarok – Lunda's Lost Armor Set.
- Honorable Mentions – Mid-Game Armor Sets:
- Best Late Game – Steinbjorn Armor Set.
The level cap in God of War Ragnarok is level 9 - this applies to weapons, armour, and Kratos.
What is the hardest mode in God of War? ›God Mode is the hardest difficulty setting in God of War, Chains of Olympus, Ghost of Sparta, God of War (2018) and God of War Ragnarök, as well as the second hardest setting in God of War II, and the normal difficulty in God of War III.
Is NG+ harder Gow? ›New Game+ is an unlockable game mode that is common in modern action-adventure games. In most cases, New Game+ lets players start a new campaign but with their upgrades and armor still intact - it's not all good news, however, as most New Game+ modes also ramp up the difficulty.
What is Kratos's axe name? ›The Leviathan is a two-handed war axe that is Kratos' main offensive weapon in God of War.
Can Kratos wield Mjolnir? ›Prior to the release of God of War: Ragnarök, many fans found themselves thrilled at the idea of using Mjölnir after defeating Thor. While it is true that the hammer would have been an incredible asset for the player, it cannot be wielded or even picked up by Kratos (nor Atreus) for several reasons.
What is Kratos swords called? ›
Blades of Chaos: Powerful chained blades given to Kratos by Ares after he pledged his allegiance to him.
Is Atreus a god or a giant? ›Faye was a giant, which makes Atreus half giant and half god. A prophecy reveals that Kratos is not long for this world and that Atreus, known as Loki among the giants, will somehow be involved in his death. Understandably, Atreus has questions about his lineage.
Is Atreus a villain? ›Type of Villain
Atreus was an antagonist in Greek mythology. He was the patriarch of the infamous House of Atreus, the brother of Thyestes and the father of Menelaus and Agamemnon.
Remember to upgrade Atreus' Runic Summons too! Keep in mind that every time you upgrade your gear, Kratos' Power Level will slightly increase. Take the time to do this as regularly as you can to ensure you're able to face the next threat the game throws at you.
How do I turn fast in Gow? ›To perform a quick turn in God of War Ragnarok, hold L1 and press down on the D-pad. In the previous game, you didn't need to hold L1 to do the quick turn. However, there's a reason for the extra step this time, which we won't get into for fear of spoilers.
How do you get strong fast in God of War? ›Equipping more powerful gear, enchantments, and talismans will increase your level in God of War. This is somewhat similar to games like Destiny, where it's your equipment that determines your Light Level.
Are the blades or AXE better in God of War? ›When playing on the normal difficulty, GR writers have found that the Blades of Chaos are worth upgrading first due to how well they handle crowds. With Ragnarok pitting players against more groups of enemies, the Blades outshine the Leviathan Axe, especially early into the game.
Can you learn all skills in God of War? ›There's not a lot of wiggle room early on, so it's important to start thinking about which skills best suit your playstyle. But don't fret, you're not forced to unlock certain skills over others the whole way through; you'll eventually nab enough XP to unlock every ability on the skill tree.
What is the easiest difficulty in God of War? ›God of War Ragnarok: Give Me Story Is the Easiest Easy Mode Available. Most games include a “very easy” mode, and “Give Me Story” is basically that for God of War Ragnarok. Simply put, this mode makes combat easy and accessible.
Is Ares armor worth? ›For those wanting to be the real God of War, Ares' armor provides up to 137 Strength, 200 Defense, 76 Luck, and 100 Cooldown. Those stats alone should be enough to convince players to tackle the game's New Game Plus mode in order to obtain it, but where it really shines is through its perks.
Who drops Zeus armor? ›
The Zeus armor comes from defeating each of the Valkyries and the Queen, which will lead to the acquisition of The Cuirass of Zeus, The Gauntlets of Zeus, and The War Belt of Zeus.
How old is Kratos? ›Since Fimbulwinter lasted three years, Atreus should be 14 years old by the time Ragnarok takes place. Therefore, these years could be added to the 1,050-year estimate, making Kratos around 1,064 years old in God of War Ragnarok.
Is Zeus armor good? ›The Zeus Armor Set is, without a doubt, the best armor set in the entire game. It's also the most dangerous and hardest to obtain since you'll need to defeat all the Valkyries in New Game Plus. What makes it such a dangerous set is the Glass Ballista perk (see what they did there).
Can you upgrade Zeus armor in God of War? ›Unfortunately, that means that the Armor of Zeus is also among the most expensive armor sets to upgrade in God of War. However, by the time players reach the ability to unlock the Armor of Zeus set, it's unlikely that they'll have to worry about getting more Hacksilver in God of War.
Is ancient armor worth getting? ›According to VG247, each piece of the armor will cost you 2,000 rupees, 20 ancient gears, 5 ancient shafts and 3 ancient cores. All those parts will drop from guardians, but you'll have to scrounge up the rupees somewhere else. It's definitely not cheap, but the benefits are well worth it.
What ancient armor was the best? ›The best armour in Breath of the Wild is the Ancient set - the Ancient Helm, Cuirass, and Greaves - and is only obtainable after you complete a specific side quest - Robbie's Research - and you've then collected the right materials to be traded in at the Akkala Ancient Tech Lab.
Is Ancient armor good base? ›It is the most powerful form of armor in the game as far as defense goes in normal mode, though it pays for this with a high strength requirement.
What stats should I focus on God of War? ›Although players will ultimately want to increase each of Kratos' stats, they only really need to focus on a couple of stats in order to upgrade the God of War's skills and usability. The first skills that players should upgrade in God of War are Strength, Luck, and Runic.
What should I upgrade first God of War ps4? ›The best skills to upgrade first in God of War are a mix of improvements for the Leviathan Axe, Guardian Shield, and Talon Bow, including some ranged and close combat options for the Leviathan Axe.
What skills should I pick first in Valhalla? ›- 18/18 Idunn's Heart.
- 17/18 Cold Rage.
- 16/18 Advanced Assassination.
- 15/18 Breakfall.
- 14/18 Raven's Loot.
- 13/18 Power Stroke.
- 12/18 Parry Damage.
- 11/18 Fight Ready.
Does Luck matter in God of War? ›
Luck does many things that help Kratos throughout his quest. Most importantly, Luck increases XP gains and Hacksilver acquisitions. This is incredibly useful when considering post-campaign content. The Hacksilver can be used to help players craft new armor for both Kratos and Atreus.
How tall is Kratos? ›As an answer to fans' inquiry about the protagonist's height, Kratos is about 193 centimeters tall in God of War: Ragnarok. In terms of American measurement, this height converts to six feet and four inches, slightly taller than the average male in most countries, varying by diet and other environmental factors.
Is it worth buying armor in God of War? ›Sell early armor, but consider keeping late-game armor if you're the sort of person who wants to change entire sets of gear to suit different battles. Very high-quality armor comes at you fast in the final push of the game, so don't get too attached to any one piece.
How do I get Varin's AXE? ›The Varin's Axe is a one-handed Bearded Axe style weapon that falls under the bear-aligned skill tree. The Varin's Axe can be found by exploring Avardsnes, in the Rygjafylke area.
How do you unlock adrenaline fiend? ›To get Adrenaline Fiend, take the path through the Parry Damage constellation, as that's another solid skill.
What gender should you choose in Valhalla? ›Which gender should you choose in Assassin's Creed Valhalla? Choosing a male or a female Eivor is equally valid with no major repercussions beyond the character model. Things were very different in Assassin's Creed Odyssey, where choosing one made the other one the villain.