As you progress through God of War: Ragnarok, you will come across many bosses and mini-bosses that will put your skills to the test. One such mini-boss is the Forest Ancient, which players will recognize from the previous game.
The Forest Ancient, as the name implies, is a tree-like boss that has a thick bark for skin. This makes for his immunity to a lot of external melee attacks. Along with this, he also has a very large health pool and a variety of medium-long rage attacks.
Players very often get confused as to how they should defeat the Forest Ancient. This is where we come in, as, in this guide, we will break down the Forest Ancient and plan how to defeat him.
Where to find the Forest Ancient
The Forest Ancient is first encountered during Chapter 6: The Reckoning, specifically when roaming around the Abandoned Village in Vanaheim right next to Freyr’s Camp.
Best strategy to defeat the Forest Ancient
The Forest Ancient’s thick outer bark makes him immune to any damage. You’ll notice that the Forest Ancient also uses fireballs and lasers to deal damage. However, these attacks also expose its red central core. This is the Ancient’s weak spot, which Kratos can exploit to deliver significant damage to him.
However, considering the apparent catch, players must dodge and avoid getting hit, to prevent soaking up any unnecessary damage.
Once you’ve found cover from the Ancient’s firing attacks, aim at its core and throw a charged Leviathan Axe at him to deal significant damage. If you’re quick enough, you can interrupt the Ancient’s attack by throwing your Axe at him when his chest cavity opens.
Maintain a safe distance
Another thing to remember is that, unlike the other bosses, the players must maintain a safe distance between Kratos and the Forest Ancient. This is because the Ancient can perform an unblockable ground stomp, which can deal a significant amount of damage to Kratos.
Moving on, similar to the last game, each time Kratos throws his Axe at the giant’s heart, it will spew a bunch of icy orbs. These orbs can be picked up and thrown at the giant, preferably while its heart is still exposed to stun him.
Despite being a good strategy, it can backfire easily if the player makes their move too soon. It is essential to wait until the Forest Ancient has finished its current attack before rushing to pick up the orb.
Once you’ve thrown the orb at Ancient, it will stun him, providing Kratos with the perfect opportunity to launch a flurry of melee attacks.
Utilize the right moment
After draining a significant amount of his health, the Ancient will drop onto his knees. You can utilize this moment by dealing a considerable amount of damage to him. Here you will see a prompt to press R3 and R1 or R2 simultaneously, allowing Kratos to drain a large amount of the Ancient’s health.
Once you’ve depleted half of his health, it will prompt a new stage in the battle. At this point, the Forest Ancient will spawn a bunch of Legions. Although they may be misleadingly small, they do a lot of damage, and their attacks are unblockable. Get rid of them before you start fighting the Ancient, preferably with your Blades of Chaos.
Repeat the same process until you’ve successfully downed the giant.
Forest Ancient’s rewards and loot
- Hacksilver
- 25x Shattered Rune
- 5x Bonded Leather
- 1x Chaos Flame
