River Raids have arrived in Assassin's Creed Valhalla as part of a free update. Patch 1.012 on PS5 and PS4 released on the 16th February, 2021. In this Assassin's Creed Valhalla guide, we'll go over everything that you need to know about River Raids, including the exclusive rewards that you get from playing through them.
In a nutshell, River Raids are open maps featuring a number locations that you can raid. These maps are separate from the maps of England and Norway in the main game, and can only be accessed by talking to a character named Vagn in your settlement. There are three River Raid maps in total (although more could be added in future updates).
You travel to these maps with your Viking crew, who will help you raid farms, villages, monasteries, and military encampments. The overall goal is to collect Foreign Supplies — a resource that can be spent on upgrading a new building in your settlement. Foreign Supplies can also be used to purchase new cosmetic items from Vagn.
River Raids are built to be replayable. Each map has dynamic elements that change upon repeated visits. For example, locations can summon more enemy reinforcements if the map has been raided previously. Rewards and the type of enemies that you fight can change as well.
In order to begin a River Raid, you need to have Assassin's Creed Valhalla patch 1.012 downloaded and installed.
Once the update's done, you'll find a new character named Vagn in your settlement, down by the old dock. He's marked with a new quest icon on the map. Simply start this quest and you'll soon be raiding.
Needless to say, you'll only be able to find Vagn if you've progressed through the story to the point where Eivor and their clan have settled in England. It's also worth noting that River Raids are designed to be quite difficult. If you're having trouble, consider playing through more of the game's story to upgrade Eivor's skills and equipment.
Anyway, speaking to Vagn will set you off on your first River Raid. You'll learn more about the River Raid system during this quest, which basically acts as a tutorial.
In order to unlock the third River Raid map, you'll need to track down two Saint George's Clues — one in River Exe, and one in River Severn. The quest to find these clues will suggest that you search monasteries.
Once you have both clues, return to Vagn to unlock the third River Raid map.
The River Exe Saint George Clue can be found in Escanceaster Monastery. Activate Odin Vision near the main church and look for a white glow. Simply find the glow and pick up the clue from the table.
The River Severn Saint George Clue can be found in Northern Monastery. Look for a white glow when using Odin Vision in the main church. When inside the main hall of the church, check for a grated wall. Shoot the locked door through the grating, exit the church, and re-enter through the door that you just shot. You'll find the clue on the table.
River Raids have a number of unique rewards, including new abilities, weapons, and armor. You can track all of these rewards down as you go about your raiding business.
However, River Raid treasure chests are randomised. You never know which piece of armor you're going to find, although the chests that do contain armor will always be found in large military camps.
Below, we've listed the treasure that you can find in River Raids.
Saint George's armor set is a unique set of armor that can only be pieced together from playing River Raids. Like other armor sets, it consists of a cape, helmet, torso, bracers, and greaves.
There's also a tower shield and greatsword that go along with the armor set. The greatsword in particular can only be obtained through a specific quest that takes place in the third River Raid map (more on that below.)
These are the Saint George armor pieces that you can find in random treasure chests during River Raids:
For information on all of the armor sets that you can find in Assassin's Creed Valhalla, check out our massive guide on the subject:
Saint George's Holy Sword is a greatsword that can only be obtained through a specific quest called The Sword of Saint George. This quest unlocks automatically once you gain access to the third River Raid map, River Dee.
It's a straightforward quest that tasks you with defeating a boss at the end of a large raid. Win the battle and you'll loot the sword from the boss' body.
Saint George's Holy Sword is arguably the best greatsword in Assassin's Creed Valhalla thanks to its unique ability. With it equipped, critical heavy attacks knock enemies to the ground, leaving them defenceless for a period of time. No wonder old George beat the dragon!
There are multiple Books of Knowledge to find during River Raids, each of them granting Eivor a new ability that cannot be found in the main game.
You can find the following Books of Knowledge exclusively in River Raids:
The Shoulder Bash book can be found in the Island Monastery, in the River Severn map. Look for the rock wall with a gap in it and squeeze through. The book's at the end of the corridor.
Shoulder Bash lets you smash enemies to the ground with a close-range tackle.
The Battle Cry book can be found in the Cliffside Monastery in the River Dee map. You'll need to locate a small hole that's hidden behind some wooden scaffolding. Slide under there and you'll find the book.
When activated, Battle Cry knocks enemies back and increases Eivor's attack power for a short time. It's a good tool to have when you're surrounded by foes.
The Berserker Trap book can be found in the Riverside Monastery in the River Dee map. This is a repeat of the Shoulder Bash book — just look for a gap in the rocky wall that you can squeeze through and the book is yours.
Berserker Trap lets you place a poisonous trap with your bow. Enemies who get too close will trigger it.
Vagn sells a number of longship cosmetics and tattoos for Eivor. Each item costs a certain amount of Foreign Supplies.
Have you been raiding these rivers in Assassin's Creed Valhalla? Check out our full Assassin's Creed Valhalla guide for much more information on the game, with our Assassin's Creed Valhalla: All Armor Sets and Where to Find Them guide telling you everything you need to know about each armor set in the game.
Robert's been a dedicated PlayStation fan since the days of Tekken 2, and he still loves a good dust up. When he's not practising combos, he's usually getting lost in the latest 100-hour RPG, or, y'know, replaying The Witcher 3.
All sounds a bit tame to be honest. This won't get me back in.
I'll just stick with the Activision classic River Raid...
I love this game but after 120+ hours I think I'll wait til the Wrath of The Druids next month. Maybe even till the Siege of Paris is WotD doesn't have a lot.
It's more like live service looter slasher now.....
It is a very disappointing update for me. Got very repetitive after one hour and I don't even feel like getting all the skills and armor pieces.
Boring update pretty much the same grind as before. Wish they would add some stealthy outfits. Sick of my character looking all bulky especially when you add the pongo looking thing to blend in. By far the worst outfits in any game. Add more games to my settlement and fresh content not repetitive filler.
I will give this a try tomorrow.
I'm just finishing the Orlogs challenge to get my 100% Plat trophy.
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