God of War: Ragnarök – Best Early Runic Builds

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A Runic Build in God of War: Ragnarök accumulates many useful skills and abilities for Kratos to use throughout the combat of the game, providing players with exceptional tools to deal with many dangerous situations during the early chapters. Whether using the powerful strikes of the Leviathan Axe or the sweeping swings of the Blades of Chaos, the best Runic Builds at the beginning play to the strengths of these tools, emphasizing certain core aspects of the dynamic fighting mechanics for players to emulate. As more XP is gained through the completion of the main narrative or additional sidequests, players are able to spend these points on upgrades that correlate to these Builds in addition to Runic Attacks, special moves that are tied to each weapon.

For players just getting started with God of War: Ragnarök‘s expansive story, the best Runic Builds are dependent on which weapon players prefer, the Leviathan Axe or the Blades of Chaos. Even though both weapons are inevitably needed to progress, the Glacial Rake skill and the Permafrost skill pair well for a sample build on the Axe. Players could also use the Light Runic Attack Skadi’s Edge with this Runic Build, or alternatively combine the Runic Attack Winter’s Bite with Permafrost and the Serpent’s Strike skill for a more focused offensive with the Leviathan Axe. As for the Blades of Chaos, the Immolation and Hyperion Grapple skills are nearly necessary for their utility, while the Flames of Anguish and Atlas Eruption Runic Attacks in God of War: Ragnarök burn enemies continuously for a great crowd control Runic Build early on.

Freeze Enemies with Glacial Rake and Permafrost

Saving XP allows players easy access to Glacial Rake, a great first investment into the Leviathan Axe for dealing with swarms of enemies. Although the Axe has great damage for singular targets, the Glacial Rake skill forms a shockwave of ice that inflicts freezing cold onto many foes at once, getting Kratos out of particularly troublesome encounters. The Permafrost skill unlocks at level 2, and serves to amplify these freezing attacks by charging the Axe while the player does not take damage for even more potent strikes. Players are able to use the L1 and Triangle inputs, assuming PlayStation controls, to activate devastating blasts of frost when fully charged, creating a Build that racks up this damage type enough to lock the new enemies of God of War: Ragnarök in place.

Deal Critical Damage Through Winter’s Bite or Skadi’s Edge with Serpent’s Strike

While Glacial Rake and Permafrost make for an early Runic Build that deals great freezing afflictions, the Light Runic Attack Winter’s Bite eviscerates individual opponents of Kratos, charging up a frost powered strike on the Axe before delivering a huge blow. The heavy damage dealt with Winter’s Bite suits an early Runic Build that favors taking down difficult singular targets, such as sub-bosses or high-leveled enemy types. The Serpent’s Strike skill naturally favors this approach, turning the Axe into a critically damaging detonation of frost, imparted to an enemy of choice when thrown. Freezing an enemy with the thrown Axe upgraded through Serpent’s Strike before using Winter’s Bite in combination deals damage to rival the gods in God of War: Ragnarök.

However, players do not have to feel constricted with a Runic Build for the Axe that demands solely close-range combat techniques. The Serpent’s Strike skill also meshes well with the Skaldi’s Edge Light Runic Attack, which gives players the opportunity to ricochet the Axe off multiple enemies when inputting R1, increasing the effectiveness of its long-range damage. The pace of combat around a Build using Winter’s Bite sometimes can be slower due to the reliance on heavier attacks, while a Build with Skaldi’s Edge equipped focuses more on positioning and range.

Perform Air Combos Using Hyperion Grapple and Flames of Anguish

The Blades of Chaos in God of War: Ragnarök are great weapons for striking down a wide range of opponents using superior space control in comparison to the Leviathan Axe, but the Hyperion Grapple skill really sets a key difference between the two weapons’ strengths. While the Leviathan Axe Runic Builds focus on halting enemies from afar before striking, the Blades use Hyperion Grapple to launch Kratos toward foes to immediately create a flurry of attacks. For extra flair, players should consider building an early advantage with the Flames of Anguish Light Runic Attack, with propels enemies skyward with a powerful flaming uppercut. Kratos then has an opportunity to grapple upward to an enemy with Hyperion Grapple, leading to flashy and enjoyable combos with the Blades.

Apply Burn with Immolation and Atlas Eruption

In the same vein as Permafrost with the Axe, the Blades of Chaos can be upgraded with the Immolation skill, which charges the weapon to be set on fire in God of War: Ragnarök rather than frost when Kratos retains his health. Players can use the same explosive attack on enemies around them when fully charged, but this time foes are afflicted with Burn status that drains their health over time. For players looking to bolster this aspect of Kratos’ arsenal, the Atlas Eruption Heavy Runic Attack works great against bosses in conjunction with Immolation, as this special move sees players slam burning strikes into the ground while erupting fire onto foes. The accumulated damage this causes drains a target’s health quickly and makes it an excellent early Runic Build in God of War: Ragnarök.