God of War Ragnarok: Reaching the Crater in Vanaheim

Exploring the entire map of Vanaheim in God of War Ragnarok involves unlocking and searching the hidden Crater region. This page of the guide explains how to get to the Crater for the first time by completing the Scent of Survival favour. You will learn how much progress is needed in the game and what steps are required to take the boat ride.

• Required progress in the main storyline
• Chase after Helka - the Scent of Survival quest
• Flight from the main part of Vanaheim to the Crater region

Required progress in the main storyline

The Crater is a huge hidden part of Vanaheim - it is located in the northern part of the land and initially you will not know that it even exists.

You have to advance quite far in the main storyline - complete the Creatures of Prophecy main quest. During the quest you will visit Vanaheim for the second time and you will complete it when you return to Freyr's Camp.

Chase after Helka - the Scent of Survival quest

Choose the western exit from the camp. Along the way, you will learn that Helka (a friendly animal) has picked up a lead. You will unlock a favour related to it, Scent of Survival.

Once you reach the shore, you will be able to find Helka's blue footprints. They will lead north. You have to jump into a boat and sail towards the Northern Wilds region.

The path will lead you to Helka waiting on the upper shelf (above image). You can't get there at night, because the climbing spot will be blocked by branches.

There is a Celestial Altar in the area - use it to change the time to daylight. Return to the same place - you can now use the Blades of Chaos to grab the top edge.

Flight from the main part of Vanaheim to the Crater region

Reach the viewpoint at which Helka will stop. You can interact here and summon a flying boat obtained as part of your progress in the main storyline.

The main characters will hop on a flight to the hidden Crater region. After the "emergency landing" you will end up near the first Mystic Gateway of the Crater. This means that from now on you can use fast travel to travel between the Crater and the main part of Vanaheim.

The Plains, The Sinkholes and The Jungle will become available for exploration. Each of them features a multitude of collectibles and activities. This can be a great way to get valuable loot and locate secrets required to complete the entire Vanaheim map.