Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Beginner’s Guide#

Settlement Tutorial#

Ravensthorpe is your home base in England, and most of your long-term strength comes from building it up.

What Is the Settlement#

The settlement (Ravensthorpe)

Building	Function	Upgrade Priority
Barracks	Increases raid crew capacity	★★★★★
Blacksmith	Weapon and armor upgrades	★★★★★
Seer’s Hut	Unlocks the Asgard storyline	★★★★☆
Tattoo Shop	Appearance customization	★☆☆☆☆
Hunter’s Hut	Legendary animal hunts	★★★★☆
Shipyard	Ship upgrades	★★★☆☆
Bakery	Feast buffs	★★★☆☆
Stable	Mount upgrades	★★★☆☆
Museum	Displays artifacts	★★☆☆☆
Fishing Hut	Fishing feature	★☆☆☆☆

Building Upgrade Materials#

Material	How to Get It
Wood	Gathered in the wild, looted from chests during raids
Iron Ore	Raiding, mining
Supplies	Raiding large strongholds
Cloth	Dropped by specific strongholds

Combat Basics#

Valhalla’s combat revolves around stamina management and reading enemy tells.

Core Combat Mechanics#

Input	Effect
Light attack	Fast attack, costs a small amount of stamina
Heavy attack	Powerful attack that can break blocks
Block	Stuns the enemy when timed correctly
Dodge	Consumes stamina to evade attacks
Assassination	One-hit kill from behind
Ranged shot	Attack with a bow
Ability	Spend Adrenaline to unleash a special ability

Stamina Management#

Action	Stamina Cost
Light attack	5%
Heavy attack	20%
Dodge	15%
Sprint	Continuous drain
Failed block	25% (extra stagger)

Norway vs. England: Early Choices#

Know which region fits your current power before you set sail.

Stage	Region	Recommended Power	Main Goals
Prologue	Norway (Rygjafylke)	1-20	Finish the tutorial, defeat Kjotve
Chapter 1	England (Ledecestrescire)	20-55	Establish the settlement, meet allies
Exploration phase	All of England	55-340	Forge alliances with each shire, advance the main story

Power Level System#

Power level gates the regions of England, so plan your route across the map.

Power Range	Recommended Regions	Notes
1-20	Norway	Tutorial region
20-55	Ledecestrescire, Grantebridgescire	Starting regions of England
55-90	East Anglia, Oxenefordscire	Early alliance regions
90-130	Ledecestrescire, Cambridgeshire	Mid-game regions
130-190	Essexe, Lunden	Mid-to-late game regions
190-250	Wincestre, Hamtunscire	Late-game regions
250-340	All of England	Endgame content

Controls#

The controls stay consistent across platforms — here are the defaults for both setups.

PC Keyboard and Mouse#

Action	Key
Move	WASD
Light attack	Left mouse button
Heavy attack	Right mouse button
Block	Q
Dodge	Space
Assassinate	F
Shoot	R
Use ability	Number keys 1-4
Interact	E
Odin’s Sight	V
Call mount	X
Open map	M
Open menu	Esc

Controller#

Action	Button
Move	Left stick
Camera	Right stick
Light attack	RB
Heavy attack	RT (Hold)
Block	LB
Dodge	A
Assassinate	Y
Shoot	B
Use ability	D-pad
Interact	X
Odin’s Sight	Right stick (press)

Beginner Tips#

Upgrade the Barracks and Blacksmith first
Use Odin’s Sight liberally while exploring
Complete world events across the map for extra XP
Raid monasteries to stockpile resources
Invest in the Raven skill tree early to boost exploration
Don’t overlook the Fishing Hut
Blocking is more efficient than dodging
Collect every Carbon Ingot to upgrade your weapons
Power level isn’t everything — technique matters more
Enjoy the Viking journey

FAQ#

Question	Answer
How do I raise my Power level quickly?	Complete Mysteries, collect treasures, take down Zealots
Can I respec my skills?	Yes, you can reset them in the skills menu
What’s the advantage of dual-wielding?	Higher damage output and more combo options
Can I go back to Norway?	Yes, you can fast travel there via the map at any time
How long is the game?	About 60 hours for the main story, roughly 150 hours for full completion

Recommended Skill Point Path for New Players#

Power Range	Recommended Skills	Notes
1-10	Raven path: Tracker, Hunter’s Instinct	Improves exploration efficiency
10-20	Wolf path: Slide Attack, Double Assassination	Improves combat ability
20-30	Bear path: Toughness, Block Counter	Boosts survivability
30-50	Back to the Wolf path to deepen your damage output	Builds your core damage loop

Quick Key Reference#

Key	Function	Key	Function
Left mouse button	Light attack	Right mouse button	Heavy attack
Shift	Dodge	Q	Ability bar
E	Assassinate	V	Raven Vision
F	Block	R	Call mount
Space	Jump	C	Odin’s Sight

River Raids Primer#

River Raids are the repeatable loop for stocking your settlement with resources.

Item	Details
Unlock requirement	Complete the settlement quest line
Core gameplay	Sail a longship and raid enemy strongholds
Main rewards	Foreign cargo, wood, food
Crew recruitment	Recruit veterans at the Barracks
Risk warning	Crew members who fall in battle are gone for good

The Three Skill Tree Branches#

Branch	Core Focus	Suited For
Raven	Exploration, ranged, stealth	Players who enjoy stealth and ranged play
Wolf	Assassination, critical hits, combos	Players who enjoy melee damage
Bear	Survival, blocking, heavy armor	Players who like to trade blows head-on

Common Causes of Death and How to Handle Them#

Cause of Death	Solution	Prevention
Getting surrounded	Learn to create distance, use the terrain	Pull only a few enemies at a time
Running out of stamina	Manage your stamina, don’t get greedy with attacks	Ease up between attacks
Archer focus fire	Kill archers first or use cover	Move from cover to cover
Falls from height	Watch for cliffs and platforms below you	Climb down instead of jumping

Recommended Difficulty Settings for New Players#

Difficulty	Best For	Notes
Saga (Story)	Players who just want the story	Extremely weak enemies, simple combat
Skald (Easy)	Casual players	Simple combat, generous margin for error
Vikingr (Default)	Experienced players	A balanced combat experience
Drengr (Very Hard)	Hardcore players	Enemies deal heavy damage and have high health

Initial Settlement Building Priorities#

Priority	Building	Why
1	Barracks	Unlocks raiding and combat training
2	Blacksmith	Upgrade gear to raise your combat power
3	Bakery	Provides food output
4	Seer’s Hut	Unlocks buffs and visions
5	Hidden Ones Bureau	Unlocks assassination missions