Alva is a light elf boss that you will encounter early on in God of War: Ragnarok.
She wields two swords that will make quick work of you. Her movements and attacks are incredibly fast. She can easily charge to drain your health before you can move.
Knowing how to defeat Alva is important because you will be facing a lot of light elves later on in the game. Sometimes two or even three at a time.
The following guide will explain all of her attacks and abilities in God of War: Ragnarok.
Where to find Alva
You will face Alva in the Temple of Light in the Alfheim realm. This will be during the Groa’s Secret quest, the fourth chapter of the game. She will be waiting for you as you make your way down the Temple.
Best strategy to defeat Alva
Alva uses various unblockable attacks, indicated through a blue ring that pops up around her. When you notice this indicator, it should be your cue to interrupt it by double-tapping L1 quickly.
This will allow Kratos to perform a shield strike, successfully preventing the players from taking a huge amount of damage.
However, suppose you’re too slow and miss the timing window. In that case, Alva will leap toward you before sending her sword into the ground, creating a large AoE shockwave.
One thing to note is that if you’re close enough to her while she initiates this attack, it will slow down time, providing the players a better chance to perform a shield strike.
Furthermore, suppose you’ve been unable to interrupt this attack. In that case, the player must create as much distance between Kratos and Alva since, otherwise, they’ll soak up a massive amount of damage.
Added to that, Alva makes use of her two standard melee attacks. An unblockable finisher follows both these attacks if her health has been drained below 50%. So, it is required for the players to dodge the last attack in the combo to avoid taking any damage.
The first melee attack is followed by a flurry of light attacks, all of which can be blocked, requiring the players to master blocking perfectly.
Remember to dodge the second attack
The second attack will have Alva charge toward the player, launching an unblockable spinning kick. Players must get out of the way to avoid getting hit; otherwise, this’ll soak up a tremendous amount of health.
She can also utilize two ranged attacks against Kratos. The first is indicated through a yellow circle, meaning this attack can be blocked or parried if your reflexes are quick enough. This attack involves Alva tossing her blades toward Kratos, requiring the players to react quickly.
The second ranged attack has a red circle that pops up around her. This attack involves Alva creating an X-shaped light beam and throwing it toward Kratos. Since this is an unblockable attack, the only option left is to dodge the attack to avoid taking damage.
Since Alva is lightning quick, you can use your Frost Awaken buff to slow her down. This will give you enough room to plan your next move. In addition, remember Atreus and his bow, so whenever Alva moves back for her ranged attacks, command Atreus to keep shooting his arrows at her.
Alva’s rewards and loot
- 500x Kratos XP
- 335x Atreus XP
- Frozen Flame (Leviathan Axe upgrade)
- Round of Expedition (Shield attachment)
