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God of War Ragnarok’s stunning vistas are packed with exploratory options and tasks to complete along your mainline adventure. The realms are often surreal and grand by design offering players the sensation of truly existing in strange alien worlds.
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Alfheim offers a treasure trove of secrets and mysteries if you’re willing to hunt for them. It’s a realm where nearly two-thirds of the map is optional according to your heart’s adventurous desires. If you have pioneered the far reaches of The Forbidden Sands, you may have discovered a locked door that begins the quest, The Desert Door.
Freyr’s Gift Favor
In order to locate the two halves of the key needed to open the Desert Door, you will have tolight Freyr’s statue by completing the Freyr’s Gift favor. Lighting the statue will cause the key pieces to illuminate in the sands across the area enabling you to pick them up.
Beginning Freyr’s Gift
To begin the favor, you will need to travel to theNorthwest side of the Forbidden Sands. You’ll see the massive statue of Freyr holding his sword, you can’t miss it.
As you travel toward the statue, you’ll find glowing roots that will obviously need to be severed as well and Mimir will make a comment about how the runes are dark.
Breaking Through The Barriers
The first set of roots is easy enough to clear. You simply head right up the elevated walkway for a better vantage point angling downward as pictured below.
If you head back down you will see that the roots were blockingan orange barrier that can be opened with sonic arrows. Opening it will reveal another set of roots behind it that Kratos can tackle if you position him to the right of the opening.
Lighting The Statue
This will allow you to travel around the path and gain access to a crystal that you will need to take to a pedestal. Pick it up and thenhead back up to the vantage pointyou used to destroy the first set of roots.
Place the crystal on the pedestal on that cliffside, and this will shine a beam of light at Freyr’s statue.
Head down to the base level once again, and the left side will show a light bridge.Remove the crystal from the pedestaland set it on the ground, which will deactivate the light bridge.
Then, position Kratos opposite the barrier andthrow his axe at the reflective purple surfaceto destroy the barrier.
Place the crystal back on its pedestalto reactivate the light bridge. Before heading up the bridge, head back toward the area where you collected the first crystal.
But instead of heading into that little alcove on the left,continue down the path to the rightwhere you will find another crystal. This one is powering the original light bridge you used to descend into this area.
Pick up the crystal, and thenhead to the light bridge on the left side of the areawith the newly shattered barrier.
Once youplace the crystal on the pedestal on this cliff side, it will light the other side of Freyr’s statue. It will also light up the Lore Marker and a new item will be glowing in the middle of a glassy surface in the sand.
Picking up the items which include aFolkvangr Whetstone, Whispering Slab, a Runic Summon called Invoke The Storm, and XPwill end the favor “Freyr’s Gift”.
Finding The Two Key Halves
Now, it’s time to find the two key halves out in The Forbidden Sands. To leave, you will have to take the crystal from the light bridge currently activated anduse it on the pedestal in the back to reactivate the bridgeyou entered the area through.
Just like the glassy surface in front of Freyr’s Statue, there are also patches of these glassy surfaces out in The Forbidden Sands which now have items available for the taking thanks to the lighting of Freyr’s statue.Two of them, of course, contain the two halves of the key you need for the Desert Door. There are others that also just contain items.
The first key half can be found at the location on the map. Go to this point and loot the item from the glassy patch of sand.Collecting the first Alfheim Barrens Key halfshould activate The Desert Door favor.
Thesecond key half can be found on the South sideof The Forbidden Sands close to the pathway that leads back to The Barrens. Just find the location on the map below, and you will see it.
Unlocking The Door
If you hadn’t already located the massive locked Desert Door, it’s inThe Burrows,at the Northern point of the map in The Forbidden Sands.
You’ll have to use the grappling points on the rock faces in front of the area in order to reach the plateau where the door is located. If you’ve never been here before, you may have some bad guys to take care of.
Head to the massive door that is also highlighted by your mission indicator and use the keys, then prepare yourself for scrap with a gnarly beast.
Fighting The Gravel Belly Drake
Surprise! There’s a massive drake behind the door, and it’s up to you to take down this beast. If you’ve fought any of the game’s other drakes, then this fight is pretty straightforward and nothing all that new. However,if this is your first Drake encounter, see below for a few tips to be mindful of.
Upon defeating the drake, The Desert Door Favor will be complete.
