As you explore the nine realms in God of War, you’re going to come across some tough enemies, some of which will take strategy and wit to take down. There are several powerful enemies for you to defeat, and we’re going to show you how to defeat all of the bosses in this boss guide for God of War.
Due to the nature of this boss guide, spoilers will abound. If you want to enjoy the game without any kind of spoilers, then we suggest leaving this page now. This is your only warning. Spoilers will follow below this cute image of Kratos and Atreus having a father and son moment.
How to Defeat All Bosses in God of War
We would like to make one final note before we dive into the guide. Due to the way that God of War handles boss fights, this guide will include information on both main bosses and mini-bosses. We’ll also be going in order of which boss you fight, from Chapter 1: The Marked Trees and onward.
Dauði Kaupmaðr
This fire troll is the first boss enemy that you’ll face off against in God of War and it’s a great introductory fight to how boss fights will work in the game. Dauði Kaupmaðr isn’t the most difficult enemy to defeat, but like most trolls, throwing your axe isn’t going to do much good here. To defeat this boss you will want to get in close and personal, and deal damage with heavy and light attacks.
The attacks you’ll need to look out for with this enemy are a massive slam, where the troll slams down the stone pillar it uses as a weapon. This move can stun Kratos for a moment, so make sure to dodge away and avoid it. Aside from this move, the troll will also slam his foot into the ground, pushing Kratos back and stunning him for a short time, as well as a swing of the pillar that will knock Kratos back and cause a momentary stun.
The best way to take this boss down is to stick a short distance from it, forcing it to swing it’s pillar at you like a battering ram. When this happens, dodge away and hit the troll’s legs a few times before dodging out of the way of the massive slam that follows. You’ll also want to distract the troll by firing Atreus’ arrows at it, which will draw its attention to the boy. This will give you a nice opening to move in and take the troll’s health down some. After a while you should get a prompt to press R3, which will cause Kratos to jump onto Dauði Kaupmaðr and finish the troll off, bringing this battle to an end.
The Stranger
The second boss that you encounter in God of War is much more difficult than Dauði Kaupmaðr. The Stranger, as he is known in this first battle, is a god-like being that will require you to complete several phases in order to finally take him down. We’ve broken up each phase below.
Phase 1
During the opening of this battle all you’ll want to do is focus on dodging The Stranger’s attacks, while also dealing damage to him as much as possible. We suggest focusing on light attacks here, as they are the quickest, and The Stranger has a tendency to quickly rush away before moving into a powerful slam that causes him to glow red. Look out for this tell, and then prepare to move out of the way as quickly as possible. The shockwave from this slam cannot be blocked, so make sure you are dodging away so you don’t take any damage from it.
Another move to look out for is a combination of punches that can deal a good bit of damage to Kratos. Look out for the runes on The Stranger’s body to glow blue, and then be ready to block or dodge away. This combination is usually 2-3 hits, so make sure you are ready. If you get hit by one of them, it will momentarily stun you, making it harder to dodge or block the next attack. Continue dodging, blocking, and then attacking as you can until the next phase is triggered.
Phase 2
Once The Stranger’s health drops to 50%, the second phase of the battle will kick off, and you’ll soon find yourself finding on the rooftop. During this time, look out for the button prompts and hit R1 as much as possible to inflict damage to The Stranger. After a while the fight will crash through the roof and onto the ground, triggering a cutscene that leads to the next phase of the battle.
Phase 3
After being slammed into a rock by the now fully healed boss, players are introduced to Kratos’ special ability, Spartan Rage. You can trigger this by pressing R3 and L3 at the same time. Trigger Spartan Rage to get out of the rock, and then spend as much time as possible just beating The Stranger as you can to whittle down his health. Once the Spartan Rage subsides, go back to how you approached the battle in Phase 1, and make sure you are dodging, blocking, and attacking as much as possible.
When The Stranger’s health reaches zero, Phase 4 will kick off. Now it’s time to really get down to business.
Phase 4
This is the final phase of the battle, and by far the most difficult. The good news is The Stranger’s fighting style is mostly the same as Phase 1, however, you’ll also find yourself dealing with a massive vertical leap that sends The Stranger directly down on top of Kratos. It’s really easy to roll away from this attack, so when you see it happen, just keep dodging and moving to stay away from the area of effect that comes with it.
The goal here is to continue fighting like you did in Phase 1. Keep evading, blocking, and attacking where you can. If your Spartan Rage builds up, activate it and then hit The Stranger with it as much as possible (you might not gain enough Rage to fill up the meter). After The Stranger’s health reaches zero, a cutscene will trigger, bringing this massive boss battle to an end.
Brenna Dauði
Like the first boss you faced in the game, Brenna Dauði is a troll, which means its attacks will be very similar to some you’ve already seen. Unlike the previous troll, though, Brenna Dauði is a Lava Troll, which means any attacks that it uses will most likely follow with molten lava, which will catch Kratos on fire and cause damage over time. This is something you’ll want to avoid, so try to dodge every attack that you can.
This boss’ attacks will include the usual pillar swing, pillar slam, foot stomp, as well as ranged attack that causes the boss to throw lava clumps at Kratos. Make sure to dodge away from these attacks, as they can be devastating if you let them land too much.
The trick here is to make use of the various obstacles around the battle arena. There are several columns of rocks and trees that can block the lava surges, giving you a reprieve from the battle. You’ll also want to use Atreus’ arrows to distract the troll, giving you an opening to move in and attack, just try not to stick around too long or you’ll get hit by a foot slam.
Another thing you’ll need to worry about in this fight are mobs. Unlike previous bosses, Brenna Dauði will spawn a series of enemies to move in and try to attack you. We suggest taking these mobs down as quickly as possible. While they’re just trash mobs, you’ll want to make sure the arena is clear, so you can focus solely on the boss. Once the trash mobs are down, focus back on the boss, keeping him just out of reach behind an obstacle. Distract him, then move in for the kill.
If you don’t want to go the distraction route, you can also just focus on the boss and wait for opportune moments to strike. Either way, continue the fight until you trigger the finishing blow and then take down this massive lava troll.
Stone Ancient
The next boss that you’ll take on is the Stone Ancient. This is the first of the Ancients that you’ll come across, and these massive enemies are one of the more difficult to take down if you don’t know what you’re doing. The good news is this enemy is slower than most, but it makes up for that slowness with some powerful attacks.
The biggest tip we can give you for this battle is to make use of the massive pile of rubble in the middle of the platform. It’s perfect for running around and keeping distance between yourself and the Stone Ancient, which is something you’ll need to avoid the chest blast that the boss sends at you.
The key to winning this fight is to hit the Stone Ancient’s weak spot. This can only be hit when the enemy is blasting you with its chest beam, though, which means you’ll need to be quick if you don’t want to risk getting shredded by the boss’ attack. We suggest hiding behind the pile of rubble until you see the Stone Ancient stop and prepare to attack.
When it starts to open its chest, aim directly at the chest, and throw your axe before hopping behind the rubble once more. This should cause small pieces of the creature’s heart to pop out, which you can run and pick up. Once you have one in your hands, throw it at the Stone Ancient to stun it, giving you a chance to run up, press R3, and trigger an attack sequence where you can press R1 or R2 to deal damage to the Stone Ancient’s heart. After a short period of time, the creature will knock Kratos off, and you’ll need to go back to fighting the same way you were before.
Rinse and repeat this process until a few Dark Elf Warriors join the battle. When this happens, eliminate them as quickly as possible. Once they are taken care of, turn back to the Stone Ancient and finish off the battle with the same process as above. Once it’s dead, grab any items it dropped and move on.
Svartáljǫfurr
If you thought any of the bosses before this were difficult, then you’re going to have fun with Svartáljǫfurr. This is one of the most difficult enemies that you’ll have faced up to this point and dealing with the Dark Elf king is no joke at all.
Phase 1
Right from the offset of this battle, Svartáljǫfurr comes at Kratos with everything he has. Players will need to look out for a heavy swing attack from the boss, which can deal a large amount of damage. Try to dodge this attack as best as possible, as blocking it will open you to more attacks. You’ll also want to look out for a swinging attack that starts with one spin, then follows with another after a short moment. It’s best to dodge this attack as well, as blocking the first hit will leave you open to the second.
When sticking around medium to long range, Svartáljǫfurr will attack with a quick dash attack that can prove very deadly. Wait for the boss to rise into the air and flash. When this happens, be prepared to jump out of the way by dodging, as Svartáljǫfurr is about to dash your way. Getting hit with this attack will also trigger the blinded status, which will only make the fight even more difficult to complete. Avoid the boss’ attacks and focus on hitting him as much as possible.
Phase 2
After the boss’ health drops below 75 percent, a triple-projectile attack is added to the mix. This attack is hard to avoid and can’t be blocked. Three projectile-like mines are placed on the ground where the attack lands. If you happen to step close to one of these it will blow up, inflicting damage and the blind status on Kratos. It’s best to avoid them entirely by dodging backwards and try not to stand too close to them a few moments after they land, as they’ll go off again on their own.
Phase 3
Once you have beaten the boss down to 50 percent health, another set of attacks are added to the boss’ arsenal. Now you’ll need to look out for a heavy uppercut that deals insane amounts of damage. You’ll also find the boss extending his swinging attack by adding a massive staff slam onto the end, so watch out for this attack as well.
Phase 4
Finally, once you reach 30 percent health, an air-dive is added to the mix, making the boss even more formidable.
The real trick to this fight is to avoid the blinding attacks and keep hammering away at the boss. It’s a tough fight, that’s for sure, but in the end, it will be worth it. Continue through the fight by using your Runic abilities to break off the boss’ attacks, and make sure you’re always making use of Atreus to distract the Dark Elf King as the battle rages on. After a worthy bout the Elf King finally falls, rewarding you with a nice cutscene and some goodies to collect.
Járn Fótr
Next up is another troll boss. This time around you’ll go face to face with Járn Fótr, a frost troll. His attacks are very similar to the trolls that you have already faced off against in God of war, except this time you’ll need to worry about Frost damage.
Like the previous fights, this troll will mostly work with a slamming pound of its pillar, as well as a battering ram-like attack. Get too close and you’ll find yourself hit with a foot slam. Of course, all of these attacks have added problems, as frost and ice damage will follow behind these attacks, slowing you down if you’re hit too much.
The trick here is to stick out a good distance from the troll and slowly work away at it using the Leviathan Axe. You can use the various obstacles in the yard to create cover for yourself and keep an eye out for any enemies that might spawn around you once the fight carries on. If you damage the boss enough, he’ll eventually drop to his knees, giving you a chance to run up and press R3 and deal a good bit of damage to him. Take advantage of these moments to whittle down his health until you finally get the killing blow.
Hræzlyr
This massive cave-dwelling dragon is the next boss that you’ll take on along your journey, and you’ll need to be quick with your wits to take down this beast without too much trouble.
Phase 1
The trick to defeating Hræzlyr is to look out for Yggdrasil tree roots along the arena. These items will allow you to pick up Shatter Crystals, which you can then toss at Hræzlyr while the creature is preparing to attack you with electric attacks. Wait for the opportune moment, and then strike with the Shatter Crystal to stun the beast, causing it to drop down to the ground, exposing a weak spot along the top of its head. Run up and hit this spot as much as you can until the beast rises up.
At this point, back away and try to avoid the attacks. During this phase of the battle you’ll need to avoid a foot stomp—which can be blocked with your shield—or dodge away from a lightning-based attack. Of course, you should also always try to attack the boss with a Shatter Crystal whenever it rears back for a lightning-based attack. Repeat this same tactic until the second phase of the battle begins.
Phase 2
Once phase 2 starts, you’ll find Hræzlyr changing tactics up a little. After moving to the opposite side of the arena, the massive dragon will focus on stomping and trying to claw away at Kratos. Avoid these attacks—you can dodge the claw swipes—and then rush forward and attack the beast’s claws to inflict small amounts of damage to it. After you damage it enough, it will start to attack with lightning-based attacks, at which point you can change things up and throw Shatter Crystals at the dragon. Once they detonate, they’ll stun the beast, giving you the perfect chance to swoop in for the killing blows.
After you bring the dragon’s health to zero, Kratos will set a plan in motion that ends up with Hræzlyr dead, his massive head just inches away from Kratos as the battle comes to a conclusion. Don’t let this fight fool you, while Hræzlyr may be large, it isn’t the worst boss you’ll fight, and the fight itself is pretty straightforward.
Magni and Modi
Continue Kratos’ journey into the next chapters until you come face to face with Thor’s sons, Magni and Modi. This duo of thunder-based enemies is quite a challenge, so make sure you’re ready and prepared for the fight before you dive in.
Phase 1
Like most major boss battles, you’ll have a few phases to go through here, each of which will be marked by a specific attack type. This is your first time taking on a boss duo in God of War, and there are a few things to keep in mind. First, you’ll need to keep in mind that you must whittle down the health of both enemies to a certain point before you can trigger another phase, so make sure you aren’t focusing all of your attention on one the entire time.
During this first phase of the battle, focus your attacks on Magni, the massive, hulk of a brother with a long broadsword. He’s all about raw power and strength, so a simple attack strategy will work well here. Dodge and attack him before rolling away to avoid any additional attacks. Keep ticking away at Magni’s health until it drops below one notch, and he drops to one knee.
At this point it’s time to change your focus and instead start whittling down Modi’s health. You can’t do anything else to Magni at this point, so turn to Modi and start dodging, block, and counterattacking. This boss focuses on mostly heavy attacks with his mace, so it’s usually pretty easy to get out of the way. Keep dodging and attacking until his health reaches the same level as Magni’s and a short cutscene will play.
Phase 2
The second phase of the battle begins with Kratos and Atreus in a circle of blinding white. You’ll have to fend off the brothers until the blinding white recedes and the arena becomes available once more. When this happens, continue focusing your attacks the way that you did in the first phase of the battle until Magni hits one knee. From here, focus back on Modi until he does the same.
Phase 3
The third phase kicks off very similar to the others, except a few new moves join the battle. At this point Magni will make use of a new dash attack that can be very deadly. Avoid this move as much as possible and look out for Modi flinging lightning bombs from his mace, which you’ll want to dodge as well. Getting hit by any of these moves will stun you for a short time, opening you up to multiple attacks from enemies.
Focus on Magni once more until he goes down, and then turn back to Modi. Continue this same process until another blinding attack is made and you find yourself back to back with Atreus. Block the enemy attacks by pressing the button prompts on the screen, and then finish off the fight to bring this boss battle to a conclusion.
Helheim Bridge Keeper
The next boss that you’ll face off against is the Helheim Bridge Keeper. This troll boss is much more powerful than any trolls that you’ve faced in the past, so be ready for a tough fight. Like most trolls, though, his moveset is very similar to what you’ve already faced off against, so it shouldn’t be too tough to get things started.
Right from the onset of the fight, the Bridge Keeper will focus his attention on Kratos. Unlike previous battles, you won’t have Atreus here to help you, so you won’t be able to distract the enemy in any type of way. The Bridge Keeper’s main attack is a swinging pillar ram, which spawns several orbs that will slowly track Kratos and inflict damage to him if they come into contact with him. The easiest way to get rid of these orbs is to aim at them and then press R1 to destroy them before they can hit you. These orbs will play a crucial part in the battle, so make sure you are always aware of where they are and how close they have become.
Dodge out of the way of the Bridge Keeper’s main attack, and then destroy any orbs. You can also simply evade the orbs—which will be the only option sometimes. They should extinguish after a few seconds, giving you free reign of the arena again.
During the first phase of the battle, stay far enough away from the boss that he can’t hit you easily, but also make sure you can still hit him with the Blades of Chaos. Circle around the Bridge Keeper and strike at him whenever you can. Remember to look out for orbs when he attacks, and always evade or destroy them as quickly as possible. Like the other trolls you’ve faced off against, the Bridge Keeper can also attack using a long-range ground attack. He’ll hammer the ground several times, sending multiple ground-based projectiles rolling towards Kratos. You’ll need to dodge quickly, so pay careful attention when he plans for this attack. After this slam finishes, though, rush up and deal as much damage to the boss while he is weakened and recovering.
Another key thing to remember in this battle is that your Spartan Rage is very useful. If you find yourself low on health, or if you’ve just built up your Rage meter, then unleash it and deal as much damage to the boss as possible. If you play your cards right, you can even take an entire bar of the boss’ health away with one use of the Spartan Rage, giving you a good bit of reprieve from the constant motion needed to win this battle.
When you attack too much, the Bridge Keeper will expel a force of wind, knocking Kratos backwards. Normally when he does this he’ll line up for a new series of ground slams, so watch out for any projectiles coming your way when this happens. You should also pay careful attention to the world around you, as the Bridge Keeper may call in reinforcements during this battle. We had it happen a good few times, and you’ll want to take the trash mobs out as quickly as possible, otherwise you’ll have a lot more trouble staying on the move and out of the Bridge Keeper’s way.
Rinse and repeat the steps we’ve listed above and make sure you stay mobile. Movement is a key part of this battle and stay on the move, constantly evading and attacking is the best course of attack. Once you get the finale prompt, run up and press R3 on the Bridge Keeper to bring his life to an end in one of the most satisfying kills you’ll find throughout the nine realms.
Grendel of Frost and Grendel of Ashe
This duo of massive trolls brings on a few new things to worry about and ups the ante in God of War even more. This is also a good place to get used to swapping between your weapons—the Blades of Chaos and the Leviathan Axe—as you’ll need to change them out to deal more damage to each troll.
During this fight you’ll have to focus on each Grendel separately as much as possible in order to take them down more effectively. Remember to use the Blades of Chaos on the Grendel of Frost and the Leviathan Axe on the Grendel of Ashes. Start the fight off with the Leviathan Axe out and circle both the trolls.
Our first target here is going to be the Grendel of Ashes. Wait until you get an opening for a throw or a dash attack, and then spring at the enemy. Make sure you roll away quickly after attacking, though, as you’ll have two enemies coming after you right away.
There are a few attacks to look out for when you’re dealing with the Grendels. Firstly, watch out for their dash slam, which gives them a sudden three-step burst of attacks across the room. It’s extremely deadly and hard to dodgeif you aren’t paying attention. You’ll also want to look out for a lunge attack that deals extraordinary amounts of damage to Kratos. Pay careful attention to the bosses’ movements and try to dodge any attacks they send your way.
Now that Atreus is back with Kratos, it’s time to make use of his distraction powers again. Use the boy’s arrows to distract the enemy that you aren’t focused on, and then move in for an attack when you can. Take out the Grendel of Ashes first, then swap over to your Blades of Chaos and focus on the Grendel of Frost. This is the best way to take these two trolls out, and it shouldn’t’ take you too long once you get the method down.
Baldur
Having explored the reaches of the nine realms, it’s finally time to go face to face with the mysterious Stranger once more. This time around players already know who the stranger is, and it’s time to really go to town on Baldur and make him pay for what he’s done.
This battle is made up of phases—similar to the first battle—but this time around Baldur isn’t looking to play around, so get ready for a battle that you’ll remember for a long time to come.
Phase 1
During the first phase focus on firing arrows and striking as soon as Baldur starts to taunt Kratos and Atreus. This will cause Freya to intervene, locking the two gods in vines. Baldur breaks out of his bonds and throws a rock at his mother, giving him a chance to approach Kratos—who is still bound.
At this point Atreus steps in front of his father and Baldur punches the young boy in the chest. At this point Baldur’s invincibility and lack of feeling are removed—we won’t spoil why here—giving Kratos a chance to really strike back against the norse god.
At this point Freya will intervene again—taking the form of the giant Thamur—and Mimir will let Kratos and the boy know that the spell has been broken on Baldur. Wait for Freya to drop the two gods down onto the frozen lake, at which point you will need to pay careful attention and wait for Baldur to come in for an attack.
Atreus should warn you when Baldur is close, so make sure you’re using the Left Stick to move around in the circle, waiting for him to attack. Block the attack with Kratos’ shield and Baldur will begin to taunt Kratos. At this point start attacking him until Baldur tackles Kratos, ending the first phase of the battle.
Phase 2
During this phase of the battle, swap over to the Blades of Chaos as Baldur has infused himself with ice magic. Focus your attacks and make sure to avoid the deadly kicks that Baldur tries to land. Like the previous battles, Baldur relies heavily on movement, so being able to follow his dashes and dodge or block his attacks will be paramount here.
You’ll also want to pay careful attention to Freya, who will continue to intervene in the battle as well, sending shockwaves through the ice that can knock you down. On top of that, Baldur will begin to throw ice shards, which you can block with your shield. Continue to block and dodge Baldur’s attacks until you have an opening, and then attack with the Blades of Chaos. If you find yourself caught in a vine trap again, tap Circle repeatedly to break free before Baldur can attack you again.
Once you’ve managed to drop Baldur’s health to 50%, this second phase comes to an end, triggering another cutscene. After the scene, Freya will slam down the Giant’s massive hand, blocking the fighters. Press Circle repeatedly here to raise the hand and take note of the massive crystal ring on the giant’s hand. You’ll need to hit this with an arrow when Baldur rushes at Kratos, otherwise the battle will end with both the gods crushed under the Giant’s hand. The explosion from the crystal marks the end of the second phase, and sends the group tumbling down in a ravine beneath the ice.
Phase 3
The third phase of this battle changes things up once more. This time around Baldur is infused with fire magic, so you’ll want to swap back over to the Leviathan Axe. Freya also starts to drop Brood enemies into the arena during this phase, so make sure you take them out as quickly as possible to keep from being overrun. Atreus will find himself on a tower near the arena, and you can keep him firing Light Arrows down at the enemy while the battle continues. Remember to use this ability as it can make a huge difference in the end.
Unlike before, Baldur’s ground slam will now send up a furry of burning magic. Make sure to avoid this attack or you’ll find your health draining quickly. Keep dodging, blocking, and attacking until you manage to whittle Baldur’s health down to one-third. When this happens his next dash attack will trigger another cutscene, leading to the fourth phase of the battle.
Phase 4
During this phase players find themselves climb up the magical chisel and battle with Baldur once more. Approach the chisel and start climb up it. Along the way Baldur will attack, and you’ll need to block his punches and try to land some of your own. The biggest difference here, though, is that you’ll need to make use of Atreus arrows to break Baldur’s grasp on Kratos’ throat every now and then. Watch out for the prompt and then slam down the Square button when it happens.
After a bit of grappling, Atreus grabs an arrow and locks Baldur in a choke hold with it. Tap Square to tighten the choke and then wait for the prompt to appear for Spartan Rage. Press L3 and R3 at the same time to activate it, triggering the fifth phase of the battle.
Phase 5
Absolutely pummel Baldur with Spartan Rage punches, dealing as much damage to him as you can. During this phase Baldur will swap magics on the fly, so make sure you are ready to do the same with the Leviathan Axe and the Blades of Chaos. Continue fighting, dodging, and blocking attacks until you manage to whittle Baldur’s health to zero. This triggers a final assault on the norse god, so be ready for a quicktime event to kick into play. Tap Square anytime that it appears on your screen and then watch the final cutscene of the battle as it comes to a close.
That’s all of the main bosses that you’ll face off against in God of War. We’ll continue to update this guide if we discover any more bosses from side missions in the game, but for now you should have everything you need to take down all the bosses and walk away victoriously.
For more help, be sure to head over to our God of War walkthrough and guide, where you’ll find plenty of useful information about the game and the various realms you’ll visit.
