God of War (2018) - Entry 9: Family Business

From the Landsuther Mines, we head to Fafnir’s storeroom, following the tip from Sindri. We’re hoping to find resources the hoarding dwarf may have collected during his travels across realms. Fafnir had repurposed an abandoned temple to store his treasures. On our way through the woods to the entrance, we deal with a handful of draugr.

Upon entering the storeroom, I warn Atreus to stay alert. The layout is circular, with a central platform suspended over a chasm and a bridge leading to a locked door. We place the entrance stone into the pedestal at the platform’s center, unlocking the door. Remembering Sindri’s caution about creatures taking up residence inside, we brace ourselves for the enemies waiting in the first room. After clearing them out, I notice most of the chests have already been opened and looted. Expecting little of value, I keep my hopes low, assuming Reavers have plundered the temple before us. Still, I retrieve another keystone and return it to the center pedestal.

When I place the keystone into the pillar, the bridge shifts, aligning with another door. More draugr ambush us, catching Atreus off guard. I remind him that he needs to balance being prepared for the worst while expecting nothing. Like the first room, we clear out enemies, retrieve another keystone, and unlock the next area. This pattern continues as we fight our way through the storeroom, room by room, until we finally reach the last one.

The final room is larger, featuring a shallow pool at its center surrounded by cascading waterfalls. Across from us stands a chest, beside which is a spirit hovering over a body with a knife lodged in its back.

The spirit explains that he was murdered by his own son in an act of mutiny to seize leadership of the Reaver crew. Atreus asks about the whetstone Sindri was seeking, and the spirit confirms that his son took it. Despite being betrayed, the spirit refuses to reveal his son’s whereabouts. In response, I pull the knife from the corpse, considering whether Sindri can make use of it, ignoring the spirit’s angry protests.

As we turn to leave, two ogres ambush us. We deal with them swiftly.

On our way out of the storeroom, we encounter a Forest Ancient. I decide to engage it, seeing an opportunity to further Atreus’s training.

When we return to Sindri, we inform him about the whetstone and hand him the knife. He examines it and notes the insignia, recognizing it as belonging to a crew of Reavers based at the North Stronghold. He suggests we head there to see about that whetstone.

Finding these favors from the dwarves valuable for both training Atreus and gathering resources, we set course for the North Stronghold to locate the Reaver clan that had looted Fafnir’s storeroom.

While canoeing through the channel, Atreus mentions he can’t believe someone would kill their own father. I remind him that we’ve only heard one side of the story and should refrain from judgment. He then admits that, while he sometimes gets mad at me, he would never go that far. Intrigued, I press him about what angers him. He confesses it’s when I doubt his abilities.

We arrive at a cove that appears to be the Reaver crew’s hideout. As we search for a way to open the gate, we’re confronted by revenants and poison draugr. After clearing the area, we find a way inside, only to be met by an ogre and more draugr demanding our attention. When the battle is won, we explore the hideout for resources.

During our search, we discover the son’s motive for killing his father. His writings reveal he believed he was better suited to lead but felt held back. His resentment ran deeper, stemming from the fact that he never forgave his father for killing his grandfather—the man who had raised him while his father was too consumed with Reaver business.

After further exploration, we come across the Reavers’ ship—and find the son impaled on the mast, killed by his own crew. The grim discovery is quickly followed by an attack from a Traveler, though we’ve grown more accustomed to facing them and dispatch it without much trouble.

Aboard the ship, we find the whetstone—bloodied and repurposed as the weapon used to bludgeon the son. Nearby lies another note from him, this one filled with regret for his actions. We gather any remaining useful resources and prepare to leave the hideout. Reflecting on what we’ve found, I tell Atreus that had the son listened to his father, none of this would have happened.

On our way out, we spot Sindri and stop to hand him the whetstone. Atreus suggests we return to Fafnir’s storeroom to inform the spirit of what we’ve learned—so it might find peace. I grunt in response—the father in me agreeing to the detour.

As we journey back, Atreus asks Mimir how he knows the dwarves, noting the familiarity—albeit cold—between them. Mimir explains that Brok and Sindri are quite renowned, or infamous depending on one’s perspective, largely because they crafted Thor’s hammer. He suspects that the outcome of that creation, especially its consequences for the Giants, contributed to the brothers’ falling out.

We arrive at Fafnir's storeroom and return to the room where the spirit awaits. Atreus tells him about his son's fate and shows him a note revealing that his son regretted killing his father. The spirit, unmoved, remarks that it doesn’t help him now. He then asks if his son died fighting, and I tell him there were four decapitated bodies around him. Despite the grim scene, we can hear the pride in his voice as he reflects on how his son always kept his sword sharp—a lesson he had learned from him.

As we leave, Atreus comments that it felt good to help the spirit, even though he was dead. I tell him he is just like his mother.