Alfheim Nornir Chests - God of War Ragnarok Guide - IGN (2024)

Nornir Chests are puzzle-based chests that ask you to locate and either activate or destroy three Runes in the nearby environment. Nornir Chests will alternate between giving Idunn Apples or Horns of Blood Mead, which can increase Kratos’ maximum Health and Rage, respectively. This page of IGN’s Ragnarok guide reveals all Nornir Chest locations and solutions in Alfheim, the second realm you can visit.

The sections on this page are ordered by when you can visit them earliest in the game. Additionally, there are no Nornir Chests in The Canyons.

Use the list below to jump to a specific region of Alfheim:

• The Strond
• Temple of Light
• The Below Nornir Chests
• The Barrens
• The Forbidden Sands

The Strond - Nornir Chest 1

• Type: Torch

The Strond’s Nornir Chest can be found early in the level, shortly after you come across the campfire and slip through the gap.

On the other side, head left at the fork and drop down the ledge to find the chest. It'll be on your right.

The C Rune can be found to the left of the Nornir Shine on top of the cliff. Luckily, the Blades of Chaos are long enough to reach and light it with a Blazing Surge (L2 then R2 by default).

The N Rune is to the right of the Nornir Chest, just a bit below the edge of the cliff where the wooden scaffolding is.

The R Rune is above the spot where the N Rune is, however it’s too high for the Blades of Chaos to reach, so you’ll need a better vantage point. To get it, return to the split that led you to the Nornir Chest and this time take the right-hand path up the ledges.

At the top, look left and drop down the ledge: the R Rune will be above you. After lighting it, you can drop down again to return to the Nornir Chest’s area so you can open it!

The Strond - Nornir Chest 2

• Prerequisite: Complete the Forging Destiny main quest
• Type: Totem

This Nornir Chest is found shortly after your first fight with Light Elves, but it requires a piece of equipment you receive in the Forging Destiny main quest.

Once you have this equipment, return to The Strond and then make your way back South-West until you can see the door into the Temple of Light. Head down the stairs, and the Nornir Chest will be on your right, close to a yellow Wind Fissure in the Rock.

The F Rune is found behind the Wind Fissure to the left of the Nornir Chest. Use your new equipment to destroy it, where you’ll find a Mystic Gateway on the other side. To the left of the gateway is the F Rune’s totem, slightly off in the distance on the rock wall.

The “angular N Rune” totem can be located just to the right of the Nornir Chest itself, towards the bottom of the stairs leading into this area.

The “rounded N Rune” totem is on the Eastern rocks of this area, to the right of a dead tree. If you’re standing at the Nornir Chest, there may be a dead tree in the middle of the area blocking your view of it.

Temple of Light - Nornir Chest 1

• Type: Bell

This Nornir Chest is found right after Kratos and Tyr push down two giant statues to form a Light Bridge. Ahead on the right will be some stairs up to the next area; the Nornir Chest is at the base of the stairs.

The R Rune is visible just to the left of the chest, while the C Rune is on a tiny balcony up the wall further to the left.

The real trick is the N Rune: it’s part-way down a corridor to the right of the chest, and is covered in Soundstone. Even with it removed, however, there isn’t enough time to run down and strike it. To solve this, stand at the Nornir Chest and line up a throw on the Twilight Stone; this gives you enough time to strafe left and hit the other two Rune Bells.

The Below - Nornir Chest 1

• Type: Bell

This Nornir Chest can be accessed at the spot where you bounce the Axe off a Twilight Stone to cut three Nest Vines in a chasm. However you won’t be able to access all of its bells until you open up two wooden doors made of branches first. The first door is close to the Nornir Chest itself, while the second is to your right after you traverse the chasm and drop down a ledge.

Once you've done this, scout out the three Bells. As shown in the picture above, the C Rune's bell is opposite the Nornir Chest on the left side of the nearby door.

The R Rune's bell is visible through the door close to the Nornir Chest.

The N Rune's bell is through the upper-most door you can open, sitting in the window.

The Barrens - Nornir Chest 1

• Type: Torch

The Nornir Chest in the Barrens can be found on the “island” with the Elf ruins on it. It’ll also have some Dark Elf Nest Vines inside of it.

The first thing you should do is head to the North side of the island: if you stand at the base of the cliff wall East of a dead tree, you can get the angle you need to throw the Leviathan Axe into all three Nest Vines at once: this will remove the vines and get you access to both the R Rune and the Nornir Chest itself on the opposite side of the building.

The C Rune is found on the South-West side of the island, close to the Nornir Chest. The N Rune is located on the North-East side of the island (and close enough to be reachable with the Blades of Chaos).

The R Rune is trickier: it’s up on the roof directly above the Nornir Chest. To light it, look for a Red Pot to the right of the torch and break it with a Leviathan Axe throw!

The Forbidden Sands - Nornir Chest 1

• Type: Torch

This Nornir Chest is found in the South-Western corner of The Forbidden Sands. Look for a falling pillar you can slip under, to the right of a heart graffiti on the wall.

The N Rune is the only one near the Nornir Chest itself; check to the right of it and light it with a Blazing Surge.

The C Rune is found back outside on top of the left-hand rock formation. Set up a chain of Hex Bubbles so that you can set them off with a Blazing Surge, lighting the torch.

The R Rune is also “outside”, partway up a huge rock arch. For this one, set up two maximum-size Hex Bubbles: one below the torch, and one on top of the rock below it. This will let the reaction cross the gap and light the torch!

The Forbidden Sands - Nornir Chest 2

• Prerequisite: Complete the Song of the Sands Favor
• Type: Torch

Lighting all three torches for this Nornir Chest involves setting up at least one Hex Bubble chain with Sigil Arrows under time pressure. To make this easier, we highly recommend purchasing your companion’s Arrow Surplus Skill, which gives them four arrows to work with rather than just three.

This Nornir Chest is found in a spot underground of The Elven Sanctum, however its entryway is blocked with sand until you clear the sandstorm in the Song of the Sands Favor.

Once you’ve completed that, head to the North-East corner of The Forbidden Sands to The Elven Sanctuary. Here, instead of leaping up to the top of the ledge, attack the broken section at the bottom: this reveals a space you can crawl through. You’ll find the Nornir Chest at the bottom.

First you’ll need to clear out the Nest Vines. To do this, look for some Twilight Stone in front of and to the sides of the Nornir Chest (you’ll have two to choose from). Throw your axe into one at the correct angle, and it’ll bounce about the room and cut all three vines. It may take the axe a few laps before it can cut all three in time.

The trick to this Nornir Chest is to use the fireball explosions when Hex Arrows are fired into a lit flame. To begin, look for the N-Rune’s torch off to the left of the Nornir Chest, which has a warm campfire lit next to it. Fire a Sigil Arrow at the campfire, and it’ll place a Hex Bubble that immediately explodes, lighting the torch!

Next is the C Rune’s torch, which is to the right of the Nornir Chest at the base of a column. The campfire is some distance away, so you’ll need to set up a Hex Bubble Chain. Since the arrow you fire at the campfire will also set a Hex Bubble down, this effectively gives you two bubbles to work with.

Start with the bubble closest to the torch. Fire at the same spot three times to make an enlarged Hex Bubble: place it some distance away from the torch as you can while still being in range of the torch. You can tell you’ve done this correctly because the top of the torch will glow pink.

Next, set up another triple-size Hex Bubble between the first one and the campfire: make sure the middle of the second Hex Bubble is close to the edge of the first so that the chain travels correctly. Finally, fire a Sigil Arrow at the campfire itself. If you’ve set things up correctly, the bubbles will ignite each other, and then the torch!

The last and most difficult torch is the R Rune’s, which can only be lit after you’ve lit the C Rune’s torch described above. Look up above the column next to the C Rune torch to see a Nest Wall that you can retract temporarily with a Sonic Arrow.

In order to reach the R Rune’s torch, you’ll have to set up three triple-size Hex Bubbles; you can make one by firing at the same spot three times. The challenge is that enlarged Hex Bubbles will expire after about 10-15 seconds. Thus you’ll have to quickly do the following:

• Set up the two triple-size Hex Bubbles up the column and below the Nest Wall. To give yourself the most time, set up two normal-sized Hex Bubbles, wait for your arrows to recharge, then enlarge them to triple size.
  • Remember, the middle of a bubble has to be close to the edge of another bubble in order for the chain to travel correctly.
• Switch to Sonic Arrows and fire one at the Nest Wall to retract it.
• Switch back to Sigil Arrows and fire one at the C Rune’s torch to set off the chain.