— Ch. 1 · Viking Expansion And Settlements —
Assassin's Creed Valhalla.
~6 min read · Ch. 1 of 7
In 873 AD, political pressures in Norway prompt Eivor Varinsdottir and her adoptive older brother Sigurd Styrbjornsson to lead their clan of Vikings to settle new lands in Anglo-Saxon England. The clan comes into conflict with the kingdoms of Wessex, Northumbria, East Anglia, and Mercia over the next several years. They face forces led by rulers including Alfred the Great, the king of Wessex. Eivor's clan establishes a settlement named Ravensthorpe after leaving Norway. This community becomes the hub for all future raids and diplomatic efforts. Eivor aids jarlskona Soma in reclaiming Grantebridge from the Order of the Ancients. She befriends the Sons of Ragnar led by Ivar, Halfdan, and Ubba Ragnarsson. These alliances help install Ceolwulf and Oswald as Kings of Mercia and East Anglia respectively. A conflict with King Rhodri of Wales ends when Eivor kills an increasingly bloodthirsty Ivar. Her hunt for one Order member takes her to Vinland where she recovers a strange artifact. The game explores cities like Winchester, London, and York alongside parts of Norway and dreamscapes of Asgard and Jotunheim.
Modern Day Animus Narrative
In 2020, the unexplained strengthening of Earth's magnetic field negatively affects the planet. Layla Hassan, Shaun Hastings, and Rebecca Crane receive a signal with coordinates in New England. There they exhume a Viking raider's remains. Layla enters the Animus to view the raider's memories while struggling with the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus' influence. In 855 AD in Norway, a young Eivor Varinsdottir witnesses warlord Kjotve the Cruel sacking her hometown. He kills her parents before she is rescued by Sigurd, son of King Styrbjorn of the Raven Clan. Seventeen years later, Eivor pursues vengeance against Kjotve but fails. She recovers her father's axe and touches it to experience a vision of Odin. Valka induces another vision of Sigurd losing an arm before being consumed by a giant wolf. Layla realizes these are actually visions of the Isu shortly before the Great Catastrophe. Loki found another way to ensure his survival after being forbidden to reincarnate himself. Sigurd and Basim discover an Isu relic and Sigurd comes to believe himself a god. Fulke captures Sigurd and tortures him removing his right arm. Eivor rallies allies to kill Fulke and rescue Sigurd who has begun experiencing strange visions. Later Eivor accompanies Sigurd back to Norway to investigate his visions finding an Isu temple with a tree-shaped computer system. The siblings connect themselves to it and are seemingly transported to Valhalla where they enjoy endless battles until Eivor realizes it is just a simulation.