God of War Nornir chests are a welcome sight on your long adventure, as these rare treasure chests that are often hidden away will supply you with special stat-boosting items like Idunn Apples and Horns of Blood Mead, if you can get them open. You see, finding these chests is only half of the battle in God of War, as you then have to complete a puzzle to reveal their contents – often involving hitting bells or pots with your axe within a short timeframe.
It's entirely worth the effort of tracking down these God of War Nornir chests, as the level up items you collect from them will make Kratos extremely powerful, which is a useful trait to have when fighting against epic monsters and the gods themselves. If this sounds like a task you're ready to take on then we've got all of the Nornir chest locations listed for you below, along with solutions to the puzzles so you can crack open every Nornir chest in God of War.
Check out our video below for all of the God of War Nornir chest locations:
So here are the locations and solutions for all 22 God of War Nornir chests, but be warned there are story, power, and weapon spoilers ahead. Below is the written guide to help you, complete with video time codes for each section, but I'd recommend watching the video above for visual cues too.
Midgard Nornir Chests
There are a total of 17 Nornir Chests in Midgard, spread across every area of the map.
Wildwoods
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1. The first Nornir chest serves as a nice introduction to how exactly these sealed chests work and you’ll find it in the very first area of the game, Wildwoods. You’ll reach a circular stone structure with various paths coming off of it. Take the one to the right, smash down the wooden barricade, and there’s the chest. All three of the seals are located in the same room: one directly next to the chest on the right, another in the back corner to the left of the door, and the third in the tomb on the wall left of the chest itself.
The River Pass
Next up, it’s the the River Pass, which is the second area you’ll come to on your story.
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1. As you make your way through the fortified part of the map near your home, you’ll come across another Nornir chest just by following the journey’s path, it’s pretty hard to miss. However, the seals are fairly well hidden. There’s one up in the darkness to the left of the chest; another perched on the cliffs behind you and to the left, and the third is the trickiest. It’s actually on the other side of the bridge, so drop both halves and it’s embedded in a rock on the other side.
2. It’s hard to forget the River Pass’s series of spike traps, especially because it hides away the solution to a Nornir treasure. The chest itself is easy to spot, but the runes very much less so. The best way to tackle it is to make your way through the puzzle and then drop the central spike panel so you can run along its wooden top as you come back on yourself. The first rune is in the cave on the opposite side, the second is behind the central platform and only visible when it’s dropped. The third is a little trickier. Stand on the central platform and then raise it up an axe hit or two, then head over to hit the rune that’s hidden behind the wooden plank on the other side.
3. After you’ve fought your very first giant troll, take a moment to spot the Nornir chest that’s lurking in the same battle arena. For this one you need to hit all three rune bells in quick succession to unlock the chest. There’s one directly behind the chest, another to the left and the third is directly on the other side of the arena. I recommend going for the third first and then the last two.
4. There’s a Nornir chest in the basement of the Lower Levels of the Witch’s Cave, that you won’t be able to solve until you’ve got the Blades of Chaos. When you’ve got them, you’ll be able to access every one of the runes required to unlock it. There’s one in the wall in the well you climb to reach the Witch’s Wood again. Another nestled underneath the bridge leading to the Witch’s Cave door. And the third is in the small room behind the exploding red vines.
5. This one’s a little bit more complicated and not even solvable until you’ve got the winds of hell at your fingertips. The chest is up on the ledge opposite the turtle’s head in the Witch’s Woods. But you’ll actually need to start down by the turtle at the ruins. On the right hand side is the wind source, so take it and move it over to the left hand side of the ruins. Then head back up to the ledge where the chest is and go all the way to the end. Grab the wind from the ruins and move it to the fallen rune pillar back towards the chest, at which point the runes will spin. If you want to check which runes you need to hit, put the wind on the holding point behind the chest. It’s then just a case of matching the runes on the wind turbine and the axe-powered spinner to the ones on the chest.
The Lake of Nine
The next seven Nornir chests are all hidden in areas around the Lake of Nine, although some you won’t be able to access until the level of the water has dropped, you have more powers, or different weapons.
Veithurgard
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1. The chest in Veithurgard is over on the left of the raised area and fairly hard to miss. The first seal is almost behind the chest, accessible from the other side of the valley. The second is just to the left, behind the Stonehenge-like ruins. And the third is in the room just to the right of the chest on the tiny stone ledge.
Light Elf Outpost
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1. You see the chest as soon as you pull up at the Light Elf Outpost, but the runes are a little more hidden. The first seal is on the ledge of the ruins poking out of the water to one side of the island. There’s another at the bottom of the slope near the blue crystal socket. And the last is near the two chains leading down to the dock, near the edge of those watery ruins again. Then the Light Elves’ Nornir chest is yours.
Konunsgard
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1. Solving the chest at the top of the giant door in Konunsgard is easier than it looks. You don’t actually need to find the third seal. Take the wind from the source by the chest and put it in the left hand orb. Hit both sides of the rotating rune ball so they ring (which is as tricky as it looks), and then hit the rune to the right of the door to unlock the chest.
Forgotten Caverns
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1. This one’s a bit different, but it’s easy to find right there by the dock. The Forgotten Caverns’ Nornir chest is more about timing than finding the runes, because all three are right next to the chest. All you’ve got to do is hit all three rune bells as they spin and before they stop ringing.
Fafnir’s Storeroom
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1. In the lush open space just outside Fafnir’s actual storeroom, there’s a Nornir chest, and all three seals are very nearby, but you’ll need to ring them all in quick succession. There are two just behind the chest and the last one is above the waterfall just to your left. Go waterfall first and the other two are easy pickings.
Lookout Tower
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1. Pull up to the boat dock at the Lookout Tower and the Nornir chest is right there, waiting to be opened. But first you’ll need to lower the spikes. Hit the panel above the chest to spin it and retract the pointy bits, and then hit all three visible runes in quick succession.
Cliffs of the Raven
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1. This one requires a bit of manoeuvring, some running and a lot of wind. Yay! It goes without saying that you’ll need to have the winds of hell before you can attempt this one. But when you do the Nornir chest is in the centre of the area. But first, you need the wind. Go to the big gate near the dock, drop hit and use your axe to break the plants inside in one shot. Then go around the other side of the gate through the island to grab the wind, and then place it in the holding orb to the left by the other big gate. Go back up to the chest itself and leap over to the furthest platform on the left where you’ll see your wind.
Move the wind to the rune spinner on the previous platform, and line it up with one of the runes on the chest. Then put the wind on the orb in the centre of this area. Clamber up to the chest again, and take the wind from the centre the rune spinner on the same level as the chest until it matches the rune on the box, then put the wind back in the centre again.
Jump back across the platforms to the left of the chest, and climb to the topmost one. Leap across the gap, grab your wind and fling it into the rune spinner on that level, again waiting until the runes align before returning the wind to the centre. Then just go and claim your prize.
Foothills
After you’ve visited the Lake of Nine for the first time, you’ll head into the Foothills at the bottom of the mountain.
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1. In the area in front of Sindri’s shop in the Foothills, there’s a chest up the path and to the right. The first spinning rune statue is right behind the chest. The second is back down the path and off to the left. And the third is just to the right again, behind a big log and protected by the poison mist. You can hit the turbines first, but you’ll need to freeze the mist to see what rune it’s on. And then the treasure is yours.
The Mountain
Of course, once you’re ready you’ll be able to head into the mountain itself, where two Nornir chests are hiding.
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1. In the area of the Mountain you reach after solving the stag statue riddle, there’s the first Mountain Nornir chest. The spinning rune seals are dotted all around the area though. The chest itself is up in a room over at left of the area, accessible only via triggering the blue pathways. You’ll need to trigger the blue light behind the chest though, as that reveals the rune combination needed to unlock the chest, which is painted in what looks like blood on the wall behind. There’s one rune along the path out the door to the right of the chest rune. The second is visible from the bridge there too. And the third is just outside the entrance to the chest room.
2. The second mountain chest is just after the mini lift puzzle with the bucket full of red explosives - post the big dragon fight. The chest is very easy to spot, but as usual the runes are a little more hidden. The first is across the bridge nestled in a rocky alcove to the right. The second is on the upper level, accessible by raising the bridge, and freezing the mechanism. Then it’s just on the shelf at the top. The third is back on the chest level, in the room to the left with the shrine in it.
Tyr's Vault
The final chest in Midgard is hiding in the bottom of Tyr’s Vault, which you’ll reach in the latter part of the God of War story.
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1. The solution to this Nornir chest isn’t tricky, it’s just well hidden. Down in the blue depths of Tyr’s Vault is a Nornir chest, hidden behind the spike traps to the left of the first room. One of the runes is hiding amongst all the treasure in the room that leads to the chest. There’s another in the struts holding up the spike traps to the left of the second room - the one opposite the Tyr’s Vault entrance. And just in case you miss it, there’s a seal hidden in the back of the second spike trap on your way back out from the chest.
Alfheim Nornir Chests
The realm of Alfheim is home to four Nornir chests, both inside the Temple of Light and in the surrounding area.
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1. Head to Alfheim’s Light Elf Sanctuary and inside you’ll find a circular, almost religious-looking structure, with a Nornir chest at the centre. Around the structure hang the not three, but eight bells, including the one on the floor. You need to work out which ones open the chest, but we’re here to help. Going from left to right, it’s numbers 3, 5 and 8.
2. Down the slope to the left hand side of the door to the Temple of Light, there’s a Nornir chest behind a door blocked by two vines you’ll need to hit with one axe throw. Then you’ll need to hit all three rune bells quickly. There’s one behind the chest, and two in the little courtyard outside. Hit the two outside first, and then head in for the third and the prize.
3. Just inside the door to the Temple of Light is another Nornir chest. Now comes the precision and the speed requirements. There are three awkwardly positioned runes to hit, quickly. One’s behind the chest, another through the window on the left of the platform and the third in the rocks above the platforms you climbed up to get here. Now comes the tricky part, getting all three without any of them stopping ringing. I had the best luck by standing behind the trellis to the right of the chest, hitting window bell, then chest bell and then quickly flipping to the stone bell.
4. Inside the ringed temple trench, inside the actual temple of light right at the bottom. there’s a pesky Nornir chest offset in the left alcove. If you drop the nearby platforms down all the way using the wheel and do a quick 180, there’s one seal that emerges behind you. Getting the other two requires lowering the platform all the way down again, standing in the middle, and then raising just the outer levels before freezing the cog again. Both remaining runes are inside the seams of the raised platforms. Sneaky. Then just raise the platforms all the way again to get your prize.
Helheim Nornir Chests
The last of the Nornir chests is hidden in the realm of Helheim, but thankfully there’s just the one here, but you’ll have to do this as you do the later parts of the story. So if you want all 22 chests for 100% completion, don’t forget to do this one.
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1. When you return to Helheim later with Atreus, you’ll find a Nornir chest just before you jump on the ghost ship, in the area left of the boat ramp. Push the block into the gap to access it, and the chest is directly in front of you. Use your blades on the branches to your right to free the next block and then pull it out a little way. There’s a rune through the gap to the left of the block, perched on the stones. There’s another on the opposite side of the block you’ve pulled. The third though, is a little higher up. Pull the block all the way in line with the ledge to the right of the chest and climb up. Reward yourself with the wooden chest and then smash the last rune, which is perched on the pillar in the water to your right. Then go down and open that pesky chest.
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