After arriving in Alfheim for the first time in God of War Ragnarok, you will find yourself in The Strond, a new area previously unvisited in God of War (2018). You’re approach the familiar Temple of Light, but this time from the desert side.
Along this fairly linear path, you will come across a Nornir Chest on your approach to the temple. If you’re having trouble solving this one, you’ve come to the right place.
How To Reach The Strond’s First Nornir Chest
After completing the main Path quest, Old Friends, you will initiate the main Path quest, Groa’s Secret. This quest will see you return to Alfheim for the first time since your visit during God of War (2018). After arriving, you’ll be on a pretty straightforward path. Right after squeezing through a gap, Atreus will run a bit to the left and say:
“Hold on. I hear something out there. Something big. It’s in pain.”
You’ll find a small chest to break open near him, but the true prize is just a little further. You can drop down the nearby ledge. Below, you will come face-to-face with The Strond’s first Nornir Chest.
What Are Nornir Chests
Nornir Chests are magically sealed chests you will find dotted through the realms in God of War Ragnarok. You will recognize them by their distinct look, with three glowing blue runes emblazoned on their front — until they’re unlocked, that is; then, they will glow gold, like in the image above. Nornir Chests are sealed and require you to solve some form of puzzle in order to open them. Some of these puzzles can be a bit tricky, but they’re well worth solving to gain one of their two possible rewards:
- Idunn Apple: This green item can increase your maximum Health, greatly expanding your health bar throughout the game as you collect more and more.
- Horn of Blood Mead: This common-looking drinking horn will increase your maximum Rage, greatly expanding how long your Rage will last throughout the game as you collect more and more.
Light Three Runic Braziers
Each Nornir Chest comes with a puzzle to solve — some will require you to destroy runic totems, while others require you to rotate devices or light braziers. For this first Nornir Chest in The Strond, you will have to light three runic braziers hidden around the immediate area.
First Runic Brazier
The first runic brazier can be found just to the left of the Nornir Chest itself. Turn to the left, almost fully away from the Nornir Chest, to find it partially hidden behind some rocks. Using your Blades of Chaos, use L2+R2 to target and light the brazier.
Second Runic Brazier
From the Nornir Chest, head to the right, further along the lower path you are on. When you reach the end, look down and to the left, below the ledge, and you will spot the second runic brazier. Use your Blades of Chaos to light this one. You’re almost there!
Third Runic Brazier
This brazier might frustrate you a bit. Looking up from the second runic brazier’s location, you should be able to spot the third runic brazier. Unfortunately, it’s just out of reach of your Blades of Chaos. There’s no way to light it from down here, so save yourself some time and return to the main path, above and past the Nornir Chest.
After climbing up a series of ledges, keep an eye out for the first ledge off to your left. You can grapple down this ledge, which will drop you just above the third runic brazier. You can easily use your Blades of Chaos to light it from this angle, and you can now drop down the rest of the way to open the now unsealed Nornir Chest.
Inside, you will find a Horn of Blood Mead, which will contribute toward increasing your maximum Rage.
