God of War Ragnarök Character Skills guide screenshot

Character Skills

Character Skills Guide for God of War Ragnarök



Overview


God of War Ragnarök features two playable characters: Kratos and Atreus. Each has their own skill trees with abilities unlocked by spending XP (Kratos) and using Atreus’s skill points earned from story progression and side content. This guide covers all skills, upgrades, cooldowns, synergies, and recommended builds for both characters.

Kratos Skills


Kratos’s skills are divided into four trees: General, Leviathan Axe, Blades of Chaos, and Draupnir Spear. Each weapon tree contains combat skills, Light Runic Attacks, and Heavy Runic Attacks. General includes Spartan Rage, Shield skills, and Relic skills. All skills can be upgraded using XP and Hacksilver.

#### General Skills
##### Spartan Rage
  • Wrath: (Base) Press L3+R3 to enter rage. Melee attacks deal massive damage and stagger. Duration: 10s. Cooldown: 90s. Upgrades extend duration and add bonus damage.

  • Fury: (Alternate) Instead of raw damage, attacks generate a shockwave that stuns enemies. Great for crowd control. Upgrades increase stun radius.

  • Valor: (Alternate) Rage heals Kratos and allies (Atreus) on activation and during attack hits. Essential for survival. Upgrades increase heal amount.


    • ##### Shield Skills
    Each shield has unique block/parry mechanics and associated skills. The four shields are: Stone Wall (heavy block), Dauntless (perfect parry), Shatter Star (ranged parry), Onslaught (charge block). Skills include:
  • Shield Bash: (Base) Press L1+R1 to bash with shield. Staggers enemies. Stone Wall version also knocks back.

  • Shield Charge: Hold L1+forward+R1 to charge, breaking guard. Upgrades add shield damage.

  • Parry Reprisal: After a perfect parry, press R1 for a counterattack. Different effects per shield (e.g., Dauntless throws a projectile).


    • ##### Relic Skills
    Relics are equippable items with unique active abilities. Notable relics:
  • Hilt of Hofud: Unleash a Bifrost storm that damages and slows enemies. Cooldown: 90s. Upgrades reduce cooldown to 70s and increase Bifrost duration.

  • Hilt of Angrboða: Summon spectral wolves that attack enemies. Cooldown: 120s. Upgrades add Poison status.

  • Hilt of Skofnung: A single-target heavy strike with high Stun. Cooldown: 100s. Upgrades add Frost damage.


    • #### Leviathan Axe Skills
    ##### Combat Skills
  • Frozen Stomp: (Unlocked early) While axe is thrown, press R1 to stomp the axe into the ground, creating a frost explosion. Upgrades increase damage and freeze build-up.

  • Glacial Rake: Hold R1 after a third light attack to drag the axe along the ground, creating a frost shockwave. Upgrades add armor breaking.

  • Permafrost: (Passive) Landing axe hits builds a Frost meter. When full, all Runic Attacks deal bonus frost damage and have reduced cooldown. Upgrades extend the meter duration.

  • Axe Throw Catch: Throw axe (R2 tap) then catch it (R2 again) for a quick follow-up attack. Upgrades add Stun if caught mid-air.

  • Leviathan’s Wake: After a heavy attack hold, release for a spinning frost slash. Upgrades increase range.


    • ##### Light Runic Attacks
  • Njord’s Tempest: A spinning frost whirlwind around Kratos. Damage: 50. Cooldown: 45s. Upgrades add multiple hits and freeze.

  • Hel’s Touch: Quick frost projectile that freezes enemies. Damage: 20. Cooldown: 25s. Upgrades increase freeze duration.

  • Frost Ancient’s Fury: Summon an ancient frost spirit that explodes. Damage: 80. Cooldown: 60s. Upgrades add AoE.


    • ##### Heavy Runic Attacks
  • Ivaldi’s Anvil: Slam the axe into the ground creating a frost geyser. Damage: 70. Cooldown: 60s. Upgrades add stun.

  • Leviathan’s Revenge: A long-range frost beam. Damage: 90. Cooldown: 90s. Upgrades increase beam width.

  • Winter’s Bite: A series of quick frost slashes. Damage: 60. Cooldown: 50s. Upgrades add armor break.


    • #### Blades of Chaos Skills
    ##### Combat Skills
  • Whiplash: (Base) Hold R1 after a combo to spin the blades, hitting multiple enemies. Upgrades increase hit count and add Burn.

  • Rampage of the Furies: Press L2+R2 while sprinting to launch a fiery dive. Upgrades add explosion on landing.

  • Hyperion Grapple: Hold L2+R1 to throw a blade and pull yourself to an enemy (or pull them). Upgrades add Stun.

  • Flame Whirl: After a heavy attack hold, release for a wide fire arc. Upgrades add Burn buildup.

  • Immolation: (Passive) Build a Burn meter when using Blades. At full, next Runic Attack deals bonus fire damage and applies Burn. Upgrades extend meter.


    • ##### Light Runic Attacks
  • Nemean Crush: A fiery slam that creates a shockwave. Damage: 60. Cooldown: 40s. Upgrades add multiple shockwaves.

  • Cyclone of Chaos: Spin blades as a projectile. Damage: 40. Cooldown: 30s. Upgrades add homing.

  • Prometheus’ Flame: A fire pillar from the ground. Damage: 70. Cooldown: 55s. Upgrades add burn duration.


    • ##### Heavy Runic Attacks
  • Rage of the Titans: A series of heavy fiery strikes. Damage: 100. Cooldown: 80s. Upgrades add stun.

  • Spartan Charge: A forward rush with blades spinning. Damage: 80. Cooldown: 70s. Upgrades add knockback.

  • Tartarus’ Rift: Open a fiery rift that damages enemies over time. Damage: 50 per tick. Cooldown: 90s. Upgrades increase rift duration.


    • #### Draupnir Spear Skills
    ##### Combat Skills
  • Spear Dash: (Base) Press R1 while sprinting to dash with the spear, impaling enemies. Upgrades add bleed.

  • Windstorm: Hold R1 after combo to create a tornado of spears. Upgrades add wind damage and pull.

  • Impaling Thrust: Hold R2 for a charged thrust. Upgrades add armor break.

  • Elemental Infusion: (Passive) The spear can be infused with Frost, Fire, or Bifrost by pressing L1+triangle after a combo. Each infusion adds bonus status effects. Upgrades duration.

  • Momentum: (Passive) Landing hits builds a momentum meter. At full, next attack consumes it for bonus damage. Upgrades increase max momentum.


    • ##### Light Runic Attacks
  • Huntsman’s Stride: A quick spear spin that throws out projectiles. Damage: 30. Cooldown: 20s. Upgrades add homing.

  • Spectral Assault: Summon spectral spears that rain down. Damage: 50. Cooldown: 40s. Upgrades add area coverage.


    • ##### Heavy Runic Attacks
  • Odin’s Wrath: A massive spear slam that creates a shockwave. Damage: 90. Cooldown: 75s. Upgrades add Bifrost explosion.

  • Fimbulwinter’s Fury: A multi-stab attack that freezes enemies. Damage: 80. Cooldown: 65s. Upgrades add freeze buildup.


    • Atreus Skills


    Atreus has his own skill tree with Bow Skills and Runic Summons. He uses arrows (Sonic, Hex, or normal) that can be toggled. Skills are unlocked by finding Jotnar Shrines and completing quests.

    #### Bow Skills
  • Sprint Attack: Tap R1 while sprinting to shoot a quick arrow. Upgrades add Stun.

  • Sonic Arrow Volley: Hold R1 to fire a spread of Sonic arrows that stun. Upgrades increase stun duration.

  • Hex Arrow Rain: Hold R2 to fire a volley of Hex arrows that poison. Upgrades increase poison damage over time.

  • Focus: Hold L2 to zoom and fire a single powerful arrow. Upgrades add headshot damage.

  • Double Tap: After a roll, press R1 to fire a quick arrow. Upgrades add speed.

  • Grapple Arrow: (Unlocked later) Shoot a rope arrow to create a zipline or pull levers. No cooldown.

  • Call of the Wild: (Special) Press R3 to command Atreus to perform a unique attack based on equipped summon.


    • #### Runic Summons
    Atreus can equip one summon at a time. Each has an active ability with a cooldown.
  • Wolf Summon (Fenrir): Release a spectral wolf that attacks enemies, dealing Frost damage and slowing. Cooldown: 90s. Upgrades reduce cooldown to 60s and add a second wolf.

  • Bear Summon (Björn): Summon a bear that charges and mauls enemies, dealing heavy Stun. Cooldown: 100s. Upgrades increase charge distance.

  • Hawk Summon (Sköll): A bird of prey that swoops and applies Hex poison to multiple enemies. Cooldown: 70s. Upgrades add Sonic damage.

  • Serpent Summon (Jörmungandr): Summon a venomous snake that poisons a single enemy heavily. Cooldown: 130s. Upgrades spread poison to nearby enemies.

  • Valkyrie Summon (Sigrún): (Endgame) Summon a Valkyrie that performs a powerful area attack with Bifrost damage. Cooldown: 150s. Upgrades reduce cooldown to 110s.


    • Synergies and Recommended Builds


  • Frost/Bifrost Build: Equip Leviathan Axe with Permafrost, Hilt of Hofud, and Atreus with Wolf summon. Use Njord’s Tempest and Ivaldi’s Anvil for massive freeze, then Bifrost storm to shatter. Good for crowd control.

  • Fire/Stun Build: Blades of Chaos with Immolation, Dauntless Shield, and Atreus with Bear summon. Use Rage of the Titans to stun, then shield parry for counter damage. Atreus’s Sonic arrows help break defenses.

  • Spear/Mobility Build: Draupnir Spear with Elemental Infusion (Frost), Onslaught Shield, and Atreus with Hawk summon. Use Spear Dash and Windstorm to weave through enemies. Momentum meter boosts each hit.

  • Survival Build: Spartan Rage (Valor), Stone Wall Shield, and Atreus with Valkyrie summon. Focus on health recovery and tanking hits. Use heavy runic attacks when safe.


    • When to Use Each Skill


  • Frozen Stomp: Use when axe is thrown to create space or freeze small enemies.

  • Whiplash: Ideal for clearing groups of weak enemies.

  • Spartan Charge: Use to close distance on ranged enemies.

  • Atreus’s Focus: Use against bosses for precision damage to weak points.

  • Runic Summons: Use cooldowns at the start of hard encounters for crowd control.

  • Permafrost/Immolation: Build meters during exploration, then unleash on strong enemies.


    • Upgrades Priority


  • Early game: Unlock Frozen Stomp, Whiplash, and Atreus’s Sonic Arrow Volley for stun.

  • Mid game: Focus on Permafrost and Immolation passives, and heavy runic attacks for damage.

  • Late game: Upgrade Spartan Rage to Valor for survivability, and unlock all Relic skills.


This guide provides a comprehensive overview. For the full list of every skill node, refer to the in-game skill menu where each skill shows exact numbers and requirements.