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- Svartaljofurr Boss Fight Guide
- Phase One
- Phase Two
- Phase Three
- Phase Four
- Rewards
The once-Playstation exclusive God of War’s arrival on PC has been a great success as the game became Sony's biggest launch on the platform so far. Kratos and his son Atreus face many tough challenges in their quest to scatter Faye’s ashes atop the highest peak of the Nine Realms. One of these challenges is the Dark Elf King Svartaljofurr who is waging a one-sided war against the Light Elves of Alfheim, and his ambush is one of the harder boss battles you will have faced so far.
Svartaljofurr puts up a tough fight against the now-retired God of War, but it’s mainly because he has more than a few tricks up his sleeve and at each stage, he comes up with a new move to surprise you. This guide includes all the tips and tricks you need to know to take down Svartaljofurr in less than a few minutes and all the rewards you’ll get after defeating him.
Svartaljofurr Boss Fight Guide
The Dark Elf King boss fight kicks off with Svartaljofurr ambushing Kratos and Atreus as they’re about to leave Alfheim after capturing the Light of Alfheim in the Bitfröst. The Dark Elf King will grab Kratos and you’ll have to quickly tap the right button a few times to escape his grasp.
This is the only time he will try to grab you, so you don’t have to worry about life-draining grab attacks. You’ll have to worry about them later in the game when fighting the imprisoned Valkyries, but luckily he is more of a straightforward enemy who prefers attacking you relentlessly.
Svartaljofurr boss battle has four phases based on his health, and the first three phases are relatively easier to survive than the last one. If you already haven’t done so, we strongly recommend you equip up to three Fragmented Heart of Alfheim enchantments. These are rare enchantments you earn fighting in Alfheim, and each one will reduce all damage from Dark Elves’ attacks by 12 percent. We say up to three because the bonus stacks up to 36 percent max.
Phase One
Svartaljofurr’s attacks are quite similar to regular Dark Elf Soldiers’. In a way, the game prepares you for this fight throughout Alfheim, and this is the moment where you put your skills to the test.
In the first phase, he charges you head-on, but most of his attacks are blockable, and if you parry with your shield just as he is about to strike, he’ll be left open to heavy punishment.
One thing you should always keep in mind is avoiding overcommitting to a combo. You can land about four hits on him before he jumps back in the air, but be aware as he also drops a glowy orb on the ground when he finally comes back to his senses and flies away from you. This orb is a ticking time bomb that will do considerable damage and blind you for a time. Despite it being glowy and eye-catching, you can easily miss it if you’re too focused on the Dark Elf himself.
Many God of War players take too long to realize that Atreus is a great companion and he is incredibly helpful in fights. Make sure he shoots all his arrows at the Dark Elf King whenever possible.
Just watch out for when Svartaljofurr is ready to block range attacks. While Atreus has an infinite number of arrows in his quiver, it takes some time before he’s ready to shoot again and you don’t want to waste your chances.
Don’t forget to unleash your runic attacks as soon as Svartaljofurr leaves himself open. We recommend opting for runic attacks that deal high damage. As long as you start the Runic Attack the moment Dark Elf misses, you’ll have more than enough time to land it.
Leviathan’s Wake is a great light runic attack against most bosses and Svartaljofurr is no exception. This is a powerful axe throw that can make him stumble and even stop him when he’s charging at you.
Ivaldi’s Anvil is also a decent choice as a heavy runic attack. It will stun Svartaljofurr momentarily and will give you a breathing room.
Phase Two
In the second phase, in addition to his regular moves, Svartaljofurr will start shooting three projectiles simultaneously at you from the tip of his staff, which are identical to the glowy orb things he leaves on the ground after backing away.
If you get hit by these you’ll be blinded for about ten seconds, so you should be extra careful when he starts shooting them at you. However, they’re also quite easy to dodge and he leaves himself completely open for any type of ranged attacks since he’s locked in animation during this move.
You don’t have to dodge or roll, you can simply walk around them. Don’t worry about stepping on these glowy orbs as they’re timed to blow and nothing else can trigger them. Once you take a few steps away from the orbs focus on landing a few axe throws on him and spam arrows with Atreus.
At this stage, it’s still somewhat easy to recognize the signs of his attacks and respond accordingly.
Phase Three
Once he has lower than 50 percent HP, the third phase starts seamlessly, and this is where the fight gets trickier. Svartaljofurr will add a new attack combination to his repertoire which can take you out almost immediately. The new move is a swing first, ground slam after combination and both attacks are unblockable.
Be ready to dodge both the initial attack and the follow-up that comes immediately afterward.
Phase Four
The last phase is even more challenging as Svartaljofurr becomes more aggressive and desperate. He’ll use a new unblockable attack, an air-dive that is the most dangerous move you’ll face in this fight. He may launch up to four of these in a row and if you’re playing on ‘Give Me God of War’ difficulty this can one-shot you, depending on your build.
This is the phase Svartaljofurr goes all out. You may want to use Spartan Rage at this point to replenish your health or finish the fight early.
His air-dives are extremely fast and leave you a very small window to dodge, and if that wasn’t enough they deal area of effect damage. Roll in any direction too early and he will hit you no matter what. The key is to time it right but worry not if you suck at timing your moves, because we have a life-saving tip: do the good old dodge and roll trick.
The moment you see Svartaljofurr in midair with the red flashes around him, dodge first and then do a roll to either side. This will always result in you successfully avoiding his killer move. It also works great against Valkyries.
Keep hammering away at Svartaljofurr and he’ll eventually drop down allowing you to do a very satisfying finisher move. We won’t describe the scene, it’s graphic, business as usual for Kratos. There is going to be a mysterious cutscene following your victory and lots of rewards to collect.
Rewards
For defeating the Dark Elf King, you’ll get the Wrath of the Wolf runic summon for Atreus, an enchantment, and 1,000 XP.
Wrath of the Wolf is the first runic summon you unlock for Atreus out of six. It summons a few wolves to attack any enemy on sight three times while staggering them. The wolves' attack also applies either light or shock attack, depending on which type of arrows Atreus is using at the time of summoning.
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