Ending 1 | Chapter 7 The Banner Saga Guide
Last update: 12 August 2016
This ending assumes that it is Alette that uses the silver arrow to weaken the Bellower and the moment of taking this decision itself, has been described on page Boersgard - preparations for the final battle. If it is Rook that you singled out for this task, see the description of Ending 2.
As I have already mentioned, the fight with Bellower consists of two parts and all of the members of both caravans, which you have led throughout the campaign, will be able to take part in the first one. I recommend, of course, that you select the strongest characters, and it would be a good thing if all of the selected characters were at the highest, fifth, experience level. The make-up of the party for the final battles, recommended by me, is: Eyvind (you will, of course, find his special skill very useful), Gunnulf and Iver (you can also select some other high-level giants), Hogun/Mogun, Rook and Alette.
Wait until you get to the battlefield. Apart from Bellower there will be several weaker enemies. Don't focus too much on them, and just use abilities that would lower their attack or make it harder to reach weaker members of your team. You should use the strongest heroes and work on Bellower's armor. Ignore his strikes but make sure that one of his special attacks: Quake or Despair do not reach Alette.
A significant difficulty is the fact that Bellower can regenerate his armor, and it takes place every time his turn begins. This is the main reason why you should not try to kill other monsters too quickly. If Bellower is the last monster standing, he will have a chance to restore the armor more quickly.
Alette should remain in the back at first (but not too close!), away from the boss. Make sure that she does not start her turn right after Bellower, as he can regenerate himself and make it harder for Alette to perform the special task. Continue your attacks until Bellower has about eight points of armor. When you regain control over Alette, she should be able to use the special ability - Silver Arrow. This ability will ONLY be available if the strike has 100% of succeeding (and Bellower is in your range). Besides, you can only use this ability if you have enough Willpower.
Remember - if the game does not allow you to use Silver Arrow (the boss is probably to strong), perform a basic attack on a random enemy and wait for Alette's next turn. In the meantime, defend your sharpshooter, and don't forget about the boss, so that he won't restore too much armor.
The successful use of the Silver Arrow skill will weaken Bellower and end the first part of the battle (there still may remain the weaker monsters, because they are not taken into account). The game will display a cutscene, from which you will learn that, unfortunately, Alette died. Do not worry about that, though, because you will start the second part of the battle, according to the plan.
At the beginning of the battle's second phase, the party will shrink to five characters (unfortunately, you cannot choose anybody to take Alette's place but, on the other hand, Bellower will have only two, very weak, minions and won't be able to regenerate no more. Right after the battle starts, focus your efforts on the boss. I recommend against eliminating his minions because, even after the Pillage Mode is initiated, the boss will, in accordance with Juno's warning, not wait for his turn and will be able to respond to all attacks against him.
Start attacking Bellower and treat him in the same way as you would any strong monster so, first of all weaken his armor. Start attacking his health bar only after you deprive him of, at least, a half of the armor's health points. Attack the boss with all available characters and do not bother, too much, about his special abilities. The fight will draw to an end at the moment at which his health bar drops to zero (even if his minions are still in the battlefield).
The last thing left for you to do, is listen to several conversations and watch the cutscene of Alette's funeral. Congratulations and see you in the next episode of the Banner Saga!