When playing Assassin’s Creed Valhalla for the first time, the skill tree can be incredibly overwhelming. Knowing where to start, what skills to aim for, and how to upgrade will make the game easier to play early on. The feeling of being lost is not uncommon, so this guide will help you decide how you want Evior to develop through using the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Skill Tree as you play through the fantastic Viking inspired world of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.
How to Get Skill Points in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Skill points are easy to come by in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. Where Assassin’s Creed Odyssey had an experience and level up system like traditional RPGs, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla has a simpler system. The question of how to get skill points in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is quite easy to answer – simply play the game. Not only will you receive points, but your Assassin’s Creed Valhalla skills will also be honed. Completing tasks, missions, and actions will lead to a small skill meter filling up.
As the meter fills, it will reward you with 2 skill points and then go back to zero for you to start the process again. You may select any direction and begin to upgrade the skills of Evior. Every now and then, an ability will be unlocked on the skill tree rather than just a stat update, and these abilities will let you perform special attacks and actions that will serve you well in your battles.
Best skills to unlock in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla
Even with a handle on how the system works, which skills to choose to pursue in the early portions of the game can be a difficult choice. A lot of how you pursue the skills will come down to how you want to play the game. The best skills to unlock in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla largely depend on the style with which you play.
A more stealth based playstyle would benefit from unlocking skills relating to the Way of the Raven, while a more combat oriented style would benefit from unlocking skills in the Way of the Bear path. The Way of the Wolf offers a more balanced approach, focusing on ranged attacks with the bow & arrow. All three sections are important for different parts of the game as well, especially as you attempt the Mastery Challenges that were released in updates of the game.
With that said, here are several skills you may find valuable as you play the game.
Recommended Way of the Raven Skills
Advanced Assassination: Advanced assassination is a skill that allows you to kill even Elite level enemies with one shot with a timing based minigame that pops up as you assassinate the. This skill is easy to master and will make your silent approaches to forts and other enemy locations far easier. Grabbing this early on in the game will give you a significant advantage if you approach places stealthily, isolating difficult targets and taking them out with ease.
Brush With Death: The time slowing effects of this skill are very helpful when engaged in close combat with difficult foes. Sometimes you are unable to avoid face to face battle, but are against some heavy hitting enemies. In order to make the battle easier on yourself, focusing on unlocking this skill will allow you to slow down time with a perfect dodge of an enemy attack. Dodging at the right time will trigger a time slowdown effect that lets Evior strike back against the enemy several times before they have a change to recover or block. Combining this with backstab and doing a dodge to slip behind them can be devastating to enemy health.
Counter Roll: Sometimes when fighting enemies, you will see them or their melee weapons glow red. This is called a Rune Attack, and it means that the next attack cannot be parried and must be dodged. Counter roll assists in making that happen. If you hit the dodge button towards an enemy who is about to attack with a Rune Attack with this skill enabled, you will dodge over the back of the enemy, leaving yourself behind them. Add in the upgrade just beyond it for the Master Counter Roll, and you’ll be set, as you attack with the hidden blade in the middle of the dodge, land behind them, and can deal massive damage to their back before they even have a chance to realize what happened.
Recommended Way of the Wolf Skills
Stealth Recon: Stealth recon is a simple skill, but one that is useful for infiltration into enemy camps. As you are crouched and hidden, you can look at an enemy and they will be automatically tagged and viewable on your screen. This is helpful for keeping track of enemy movements and planning when to attack at just the right moment.
Emergency Aim: Emergency Aim allows you to snap immediately to an enemy that is detecting you, slows down time slightly, and lets you fire an arrow before you are fully detected. If you press the aim button on your system, the camera will snap to the enemy who is in the middle of detecting you, and you can silence them with an arrow.
Bow Stun Finisher: There is nothing more satisfying than hitting an enemy weak point with an arrow (which glows in gold as you aim at them) and seeing them collapse to the ground, ready to be defeated. It is even more satisfying to have Bow Stun Finisher learned so you can then tap push the right joystick down and shoot a finishing arrow automatically at them, finishing them off. It’s flashy and fun!
Recommended Way of the Bear Skills
Heavy Duel Wield: There are few things more intimidating than a Viking running full speed at you with a two handed weapon ready to knock your block off. Except a Viking running full speed holding a two handed weapon in each hand ready to knock your block off. This skill allows you to do the latter. You can also pair this with holding a shield in one hand with a heavy sword or another weapon in the other. The possibilities for equipping Evior with your preferred weaponry opens up tremendously with this skill learned.
Warrior Takedown: While this skill is a very loud one that will alert all the enemies to your location, it also charges an adrenaline slot, which allows you to activate abilities from the ability menu. Timing this correctly to take out a tough enemy and then activating some abilities to target the lesser enemies can give you a significant advantage against large enemy numbers.
Parry Damage: If you are accustomed to face to face battles, you will learn how to parry eventually. Adding some damage to those parries can be the difference between surviving a fight and having to reload after another death.
All Way of the Raven skills
These are all of the Way of the Raven skills that you can unlock in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, including what they do and where to find them on the skill tree, as shown above.
| Skill | Skill Definition | Location on Skill Tree | Links to |
| Backstab | Blows directly on enemy backs inflict increased defence damage and cause them to stagger. | First skill cluster in the Raven path from the centre. | |
| Brush with Death | Dodging just before an attack lands will slow enemy movement for a time. | Upper left from the Backstab skill cluster. | Way of the Bear, Dual Swap skill cluster |
| Predator Bow Combo | Consecutive headshots with a Predator Bow deal extra damage. | Left from the Brush with Death skill cluster. | Way of the Bear, Berserker’s Mettle skill cluster |
| Counter Roll | Dodge towards an enemy Rune attack just before it lands to vault directly behind them. | Left of the Predator Bow Combo skill cluster. | Way of the Bear, Heavy Dual Wield skill cluster |
| Guided Arrow | Shots with the Predator Bow can be adjusted mid-flight using R1/RB. | Left of the Backstab skill cluster. | |
| Explosive Corpse | Booby-trap a dead body to damage anyone who investigates it, using R3. | Left of the Guided Arrow skill cluster. | |
| Miasma | Enemies who die from your poison attacks release a toxic cloud around them, infecting those who enter. | Left of the Explosive Corpse skill cluster. | |
| Advanced Assassination | Have the ability to assassinate high-level targets with a timing-based attack. | Directly below the Backstab skill cluster. | Way of the Wolf, Sprint Attack skill cluster |
| Chain Assassination | After performing a successful assassination, throw an axe at a second target standing nearby. | Bottom of the two left paths from the Advanced Assassination skill cluster. | Adrenaline Upgrade – included in skill cluster |
| Assassin’s Cantrip | Following a successful parry, quickly press Triangle/Y to throw a smoke bomb at your feet and disappear. | Left of the Chain Assassination skill cluster. | |
| Breakfall | Eivor automatically rolls when landing from a dangerous height, reducing the amount of damage taken. | Directly below the Advanced Assassination skill cluster. | Way of the Wolf, Last Chance Healing skill cluster |
| Auto-Loot | Loot an enemy automatically after a melee kill or a stealth takedown. | Left of the Breakfall skill cluster. | |
| Missile Reversal | Catch and throw back virtually any projectile to its sender by pressing L1/LB just before it hits you. | Directly below the Breakfall skill cluster. | Way of the Wolf, Adrenaline Upgrade |
| New Skills Added | A new cluster of skills at the bottom left of the Way of the Raven skill tree. | |||
| Assassin Carry | Hold R1 to automatically carry a body after a successful assassination. | |||
| Mounted Archer | Evior can use their bow abilities while mounted. | |||
| Assassin Slide | Press O while sprinting to slide into enemies and knock them off balance. | |||
| Slide Focus | Aiming L2 while sprinting will heighten your senses, making others around you appear to move slower. | |||
| Light Fingered | Evior will now pick up nearby loot with a quick flick of the wrist. | |||
| Raven’s Loot | Your raven gathers loot from targets killed with ranged attacks. | |||
| Master Chef | Holding the right d-pad button will fill an adrenaline slot at the cost of one ration. | |||
| Thrill of War | Vikings live for the fight. Gain adrenaline as long as you remain in conflict. | |||
| Riposte | With your off-hand free, hitting an enemy immediately after a successful parry deals critical damage. | |||
| Single-Hand Versatility | Within seconds of an ability ending, and with your off-hand free, using another ability from the opposite ability wheel will not cost any adrenaline. | |||
| Intense Rage | Ignore hit interruptions while performing your next off-hand parry or special attack. This effect recharges after a few seconds. | |||
All Way of the Wolf skills
Here are the Way of the Wolk skills that can be unlocked in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, including their associated abilities and their skill tree location – which is also shown above.
| Skill | Skill Definition | Location on Skill Tree | Links to |
| Stealth Recon | Automatically highlight enemies when crouched and undetected. | First skill cluster in the Wolf path from the centre. | |
| Emergency Aim | Holding L2/LT will snap your aim to an enemy as they detect you, giving you an opportunity to kill them and remain undetected. | Up and to the right of the Stealth Recon skill cluster. | |
| Hunter Bow Combo | Release your arrow as you finish drawing it to make the next one draw faster. | Up and to the right of the Emergency Aim skill cluster. | Way of the Bear, Adrenaline Fiend skill cluster |
| Arrow Reinforcement | Loosed arrows will never break and can be collected from fallen enemies. | Up from the Hunter Bow Combo. | Way of the Bear, Arrow Volley skill cluster |
| Bow to Melee Link | Alternating between bow and melee attacks deals extra damage for a short time. | Right of the Stealth Recon skill cluster. | |
| Stealth Adrenaline | While in stealth, gain adrenaline by looting a chest or pick-pocketing in a restricted area. | Up and to the right of the Bow to Melee Link skill cluster. | |
| Bow Stun Finisher | Press R3 when aiming at a stunned enemy’s head to trigger a Bow Stun Finisher. | Right of the Stealth Adrenaline skill cluster. | |
| Sprint Attack | Press R1/RB while sprinting to perform a sprint attack. | Directly below the Stealth Recon skill cluster. | Way of the Raven, Advanced Assassination skill cluster |
| Battleground Bolt | Press Triangle/Y to pick-up the nearest discarded weapon, and automatically throw it at an enemy in sight. | Right of the Sprint Attack skill cluster. | |
| Charged Shot | Fire two fully charged arrows by pressing R1/RB with the Hunter Bow. This attack cannot be cancelled. | Right of the Battleground Bolt skill cluster. | |
| Last Chance Healing | When your health reaches a critical state in conflict, everything around you will appear to move slower, giving you time to heal or flee. | Directly below the Sprint Attack skill cluster. | Way of the Raven, Breakfall skill cluster |
| Grit | Regain the red portion of your health bar when successfully landing melee hits on enemies. | Right of the Last Chance Healing skill cluster. | |
| Adrenaline Upgrade | +1 Adrenaline slot. | Below Last Chance Healing skill cluster. | Way of the Raven, Missile Reversal skill cluster |
| New Skills Added | To the right of the Way of the Wolf skill tree, there is a new cluster of skills | |
| Power Stroke | Press the left joystick down to trigger a speed boost on the longship at the cost of stamina. | |
| Arrow Looter | Evior has a greater chance of looting arrows from archers. | |
| Survival Instinct | When at less than a third of health, hold down the right d-pad button for partial healing. | |
| Loot Food | Evior now has a higher chance of looting food from dead bodies. | |
| Unstoppable | While in combat, Evior’s sprint becomes unblockable and knocks enemies back at the cost of stamina. | |
| Wolf Warrior | Fight with increasing fury as death draws near. Your damage increases the lower your health. | |
| Cunning Shot | Performing an R1 alternate shot with any kind of bow will award some adrenaline. | |
| Combat Dive | You’re immune to all damage while performing a roll. | |
| Eye of the North | Prevents flinching from hits while aiming with your bow. This effect recharges after a few seconds. |
All Way of the Bear skills
Below, you’ll find all of the Way of the Bear skills in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, including what unlocking the skill grants you as well as where each upgrade sits on the skill tree, as shown above.
| Skill | Skill Definition | Location on Skill Tree | Links to |
| Stomp | When an enemy falls to the ground, press R3 to stomp on their face. | First skill cluster on the Bear path from the centre. | |
| Dual Swap | When dual-wielding, hold R2/RT and press R3 to swap weapon hands. | Left of the Stomp skill cluster. | Way of the Raven, Brush with Death skill cluster |
| Berserker’s Mettle | A partially filled Adrenaline Slot will not be affected by an enemy’s first strike. | Left of the Dual Swap skill cluster. | Way of the Raven, Predator Bow Combo skill cluster. Adrenaline Upgrade included in the skill cluster. |
| Heavy Dual Wield | You can dual wield heavy weapons. This alters the stats and handling of each weapon. | Right of the Berserker’s Mettle skill cluster. | Way of the Raven, Counter Roll skill cluster |
| Perfect Attack | Press R1/RB again during a weapon swing to do more damage on the next swing. | Above the Stomp skill cluster. | |
| Light Bow Combo | Consecutive shots with a Light Bow deal extra damage. | Left of the Perfect Attack skill cluster. | |
| Terror | After a Stun Finisher, weak enemies nearby may cower in fear. | Left of the Light Bow Combo skill cluster. | |
| Warrior Takedown | Attempt an R2/RT takedown on an unaware enemy with your melee weapon. It will alert all enemies around you but will fill your Adrenaline for every one of them. | Above the Perfect Attack skill cluster. | |
| Battlefield Cremation | Enemies who perish from one of your fire attacks will continue to burn, dealing fire damage to enemies nearby. | Left of the Warrior Takedown skill cluster. | |
| Sprint Bash | Unlocks the ability to bash through breakable objects and push NPCs to the ground while sprinting. | Above the Warrior Takedown skill cluster. | |
| Parry Damage | Successful parries also deal damage to the attacker. | Right of the Stomp skill cluster. | |
| Adrenaline Fiend | When one or more Adrenaline slots are filled, you gain a damage boost and attack speed boost. This effect augments with each slot filled. | Above the Parry Damage skill cluster. | Way of the Wolf, Hunter Bow Combo skill cluster |
| Arrow Volley | Discharge all loaded arrows at once by holding and releasing R1/RB with a Light Bow. Each Volley has a stamina cost. | Right of the Adrenaline Fiend skill cluster. | Way of the Wolf, Arrow Reinforcement skill cluster |
| New Skills Added | Just above the Way of the Bear skill tree is a new cluster of skills. | |
| Longship Brace | When you are in command of the longship, the crew will raise their shield with you. | |
| Perfect Parry | Parry in the nick of time to deal additional damage to the attacker. | |
| Shield Master | Evior automatically rotates to block incoming attacks by holding up their shield. | |
| Fearless Leaper | When activated, the leap attack damage has a larger area of effect and can be done at any height. | |
| Fight Ready | Always start a fight with an adrenaline slot filled | |
| Heidrun Slam | Press R2 while sprinting to knock enemies back with a powerful knee slam. | |
| Cold Rage | Ignore hit interruptions while performing successive regular melee attacks. The effect recharges after a few seconds. | |
| Heal on Kill | Killing an enemy restores some health if you are at low health and have no rations. | |
| Single-Hand Defense | When at full health and with your off-hand free, the first successful enemy attack deals no damage to you and knocks them back. |
Now, you can plan ahead and get the skills that are best suited to your playstyle, enabling you to become the most famous Viking England’s ever seen, in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.
Can I Max Out on Assassin’s Creed Valhalla Skills?
With all the skills available in the game, the question of being able to max out the skill tree is a common one. In short, yes, you can max out the skill tree, and it is not overly difficult to do so. There are more than enough missions in the game along with side activities that will allow you to unlock every part of the skill tree. After you have maxed out the Assassin’s Creed Valhalla skills skills tree, you will continue collecting points that can be placed into a brand new mastery category for reach of the Ways that enhance your stats. Once you max out the tree and begin investing in the mastery categories, you will certainly be an unstoppable force in the world of Assassin’s Creed Valhalla.
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