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Assassin's Creed Valhalla:
River Raids Guide
By Aaron Young
06/10/21
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Assassin’s Creed Valhalla River Raids mode is an endgame feature designed to extend the life of the game. The Vikings were well known for their plundering of locations throughout England and beyond. During the main game, players experienced raids similar to this, but on a smaller scale.
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This game mode was first added during the Yule festival, but it is not time limited like the festival itself. Although designed as an endgame activity you can actually start the raids during your main play-through.
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The River Raids mode ushers in new ways to farm resources that can be used in the main game to upgrade gear. A new resource known as 'foreign supplies' is a type of wealth that can be used to upgrade the longship and the Jomsviking Hall, specifically tailored to this game mode. In addition to resources, you also have the chance to find new gear and skills throughout the map.
The River Raids mode will unlock once you reach a certain power level, somewhere between 80 and 150. Once you reach this level, the quest ‘A River to Raid’ will appear on screen. You will need to be at the Ravensthorpe settlement to start it. A new Jomsviking called Varn will have arrived at the settlement. He is the chief of the River Raids and will be there to assist you. Varn will take you on a tutorial raid to introduce you to the mechanics of this game mode.
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The tutorial raid with Varn replicates exactly how the raids will playout on your own. It’s important to note that when you are in the River Raids mode, you cannot save. This creates a risk reward situation which spices things up. If you die in the River Raids, you will lose everything, and considering a raid can last anything between 20 to 60 mins, it is important not to get too greedy.
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The River Raids are actually a separate map to the one you normally use. You will have a series of settlements and fortress to visit as you travel up and down a specific river. These raids are more challenging than the ones in the main story, but do offer you greater rewards. Each place you plunder will grant you foreign supplies which can then be used at Ravensthorpe to purchase upgrades. At the start of this mode you will have access to 2 rivers, with a further river unlocking after you have found clues in the first two areas.
Edited by Ashlea Buckley
How the River Raids work
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Varn and the Jomsviking Hall
Jomsvikings
You can select 8 Jomsvikings to accompany you on your longship. Once you pick which river you wish to raid a screen will appear asking you to select your crew. Once all of your Jomsvikings have been assigned you will pay 50 silver to take them on the raid.
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It is important to keep tabs on your Jomsvikings while raiding. If you bring up the option wheel, all the crew members will feature on the left hand side. You can see rations, level and remaining health. Remember that Jomsvikings with additional rations will be able to heal themselves before going down. Once a Jomsviking is downed it will be up to you to use your food sources to pick them back up. You will start with zero food and will need to loot as you raid. It costs one full food ration to revive a crew member.
You need at least one Jomsviking alive to open the big chests on the map. If you don’t mind bending the rules, you can always raid on you own and call you longship in once the fighting is over. This way you won’t lose any crew members but it kind of defeats the point.
Raiding
Hopefully these tips will help you get started on your Viking adventure. Valhalla is a wonderful game full of intrigue and mystery with a story that sucks you in slowly. Be patient and take your time, you will not regret it.
About the Author
Aaron is a passionate Assassin's Creed fan who recently joined TOWCB AC Partnership Program as an Online Article Writer.
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Throughout 2021, Aaron and other writers will be joining the admin team in a collaborative effort to create an Assassin's Creed Valhalla Guide Database, which you can find here.
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Aaron Young
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After the tutorial, you will then be able to speak to Varn regarding cosmetic upgrades to the longship and Jomsviking hall. The Longship you use in the raids is also the same as your main ship, but you can customise it to look different.
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Varn’s shop works similar to the others in the game. The Longship cosmetics also work the same as the ones in the base game. There is a selection of Jomsviking cosmetics for each part of the ship. The most important upgrade is the cargo. You need to get this levelled up as it will allow you to raid for longer. At the start you can only carry 200 foreign supplies which can sometimes be one or two raids. Each upgrade increases your capacity but at a cost of foreign supplies.
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The hall allows you to recruit new Jomsvikings, and a selection will be waiting for you in the hall. You can use your silver to recruit them. It is possible to refresh the selection by ringing the bell outside, something which can be done as many times as you wish. You can upgrade the Hall by using the foreign supplies collected when raiding. By doing this you will unlock higher level Jomsvikings. It will cost 800 foreign supplies to upgrade the hall to level 3. Good to note that the higher rank Jomsvikings cost more silver to recruit.
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Your Jomsviking Lieutenant from the main game will be part of your ship. They will also level up from completing raids. You can amend your crew before each raid, allowing you to pick the best fighters each time. There is an option to dismiss the Jomsviking you no longer want or need. Higher ranked Jomsvikings have additional ration slots and are better at all round fighting. Remember though if a Jomsviking falls in the raids there is a cool down period before you can select them again.
The River Raids can vary in difficulty, but cannot be made easier/harder in the menu. Every time you raid the alert level will increase. Once the Saxons are aware of your presence in the area, their defences will increase - it is not sensible to hang around once this happens. You will encounter chains across rivers to slow you up, alongside archers posted ready to ambush you. The Saxons you meet will also be stronger fighters, and the risk reward really does ramp up.
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If you leave a raid location, the next time you look at the map to select your raid it will most likely be classed as heavily defended. This will drop to moderate and then low once you go and raid somewhere else. The smart thing to do is constantly rotate which river you attack, that way you will encounter easier loot.
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It is important to note once you have raided somewhere, the next time you go there you may not be able to access it as you have to leave some time for the Saxons to rebuild. Another good reason to rotate your raids.
Saxon Defences
The locations are accessed through Varn. The maps are quite similar but the rewards vary. You will find two pieces from the St. George’s armour set at each river. The loot is random though from the large chests found on the map. There will also be one clue on each river that you can return to Varn. The general loot does not vary, each time you enter the river it will be in the same place and grant you the same rewards. Below I have tried to add the locations in order of when you would pass them:
Once in the River Raids, it is all about looting and fighting. You need to focus on collecting food to keep you and your team alive. There are ration chests that will grant you and your Jomsvikings’ rations. Foreign supplies are the most important chest to loot. They are usually heavily guarded in military bases, but can also be found on the map. Each chest will grant you 50/55 foreign supplies, which is why it is so important to upgrade your cargo capacity.
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The smaller chests are just standard like in the main game but you will receive random runes from time to time. The most interesting chest on the raids are the ones that are locked. Be sure to look out for keys when raiding as these can be collected and then later used to open said chests. You won’t always find the chest straight away but the keys will live in you inventory.
The Raiding Locations
To exit a raid you need to be on your ship and access the navigation menu. You will see an option to return to settlement. It is important to remember that there is no save function in the River Raids so leave when you are satisfied with your gains.
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Once selecting return to your settlement a River Raid summary will show. This will show you the current defence level of the river. There will also be the amount of locations you have raided and how many Jomsvikings you have lost. Further to this there will be a review of the rewards you have collected.
River Exe Locations
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Keats Farm
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Small Camp X5
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Twynam Farm
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Yeardley Farm
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Western Fortification
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Fortress on the Exe
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Village of Dumonia
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Village of Simonsbath
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Escanceaster Monastery
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Eastern Fortification
River Severn Locations
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Wyther Farm
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Fishing Docks
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Small Camp X5
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Eastern Fortification
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Llanidloes
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Island Camps
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Smithe Homestead
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Lowlands Camp
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Caersws
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Island Monastery
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Lewin Homestead
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Severn Outpost
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Northern Monastery
River Dee (3rd Raid Location)
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Logging Camp
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Small Camp X3
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Bunce Hideway
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Farnham
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Forward Camp
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Rhuabon Village
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Staging Camp
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Cliffside Monastery
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Hillview Outpost
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Crowder’s Hut
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Ery’s Island
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Erbistock
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Deebury
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Riverside Monastery
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Goodwinlee
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Deva Victrix
Raid Summary
