Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is loaded with challenging enemies to combat with some of the hardest being the Zealots. Zealots are warriors for the Order of the Ancients, a cultist group who have their loyal Zealot warriors roaming around the world of Assassin's Creed Valhalla. Depending on the player's choice after defeating Leofrith, Zealots may actively hunt the player, or they may only attack if provoked.
Players will need to defeat all fifteen Zealots in Assassin's Creed Valhalla in order to finish out the Order of the Ancients quest. Zealots are challenging fights focused on one-on-one combat rather than a group of enemies. It should be noted that if players engage in a Zealot fight around other enemy soldiers, the enemy soldiers will aid the Zealot, making for a much more difficult fight. One of the lowest level Zealots, Redwalda, is power level 90. Zealots range in power level reaching a power level of 340. Players are recommended to wait to hunt Zealots until they are at least at power level 90.
Abilities
Hunting Zealots is easier when the player has unlocked the majority of Eivor’s abilities and skill points. Some helpful melee abilities that players should aim to unlock for fighting Zealots are: Dive of the Valkyries, Kick of Tyr, and both the melee/ranged versions of the Poison Strike and Fire Strike abilities. As for ranged abilities, players may find Piercing Shot and Man’s Best Friend to be useful.
Skills
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla has a variety of helpful skills broken down into three main skill trees: Bear, Raven, and Wolf. When it comes to fighting Zealots, players will want to focus on skills that are useful against single targets. The below skills, broken down by tree, can all be obtained by power level 81, if players build into the Wolf tree from the Breakfall and Missile Reversal skill clusters found in the Raven tree. The remaining skill points can be allocated into any skills Valhalla players find useful.
BEAR TREE
- Stomp
- Adrenaline Upgrade
- Berserker’s Mettle
- Heavy Dual Wield
RAVEN TREE
- Backstab
- Brush With Death
- Missile Reversal
- Adrenaline Upgrade
WOLF TREE
- Last Chance Healing
- Adrenaline Upgrade
- Grit
Gear
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla players have plenty of choices when it comes to weapons and armor and once again should focus on selecting gear that benefits one on one fights. The Thegn’s armor set, the Mentor’s armor set, and Thor’s armor set are all useful sets with perks that benefit single combat fights.
When choosing weapons, players should take note of what weapon combination the Zealot they are targeting is using and select weapons the player is most comfortable countering with. The Heavy Dual Wield skill is useful in expanding the player's weapon combination options.
Upgrade the armor set and weapons of choice and fill them with the best runes currently available to Eivor. Resistance and health runes are great choices for armor while damage and build-up based runes pair well with many weapons and inflicting status ailments.
Zealot Fighting Strategy
When Valhalla players are ready to hunt down a Zealot, they can open the Order menu and find the Zealots on the outer edge. Players can learn more about each Zealot here as well as mark them for tracking if they have uncovered enough information. Zealots found while roaming the land can be marked with Odin’s Sight as well.
Every Zealot fight in Assassin's Creed Valhalla is slightly different because every Zealot uses a different combination of weapons that will vary their attack tactics. Some Zealots use Great Swords with Shields, others will use Spears, some even rely on poison or fire attacks. Eivor should also focus on keeping their Poison Strike or Fire Strike attacks active; having all the Adrenaline Upgrades will help with this.
Regardless of the weapon combination a Zealot is using, they all follow the same basic tactics. If Eivor keeps their distance, Zealots will use ranged attacks such as spears and toss landmines while moving towards the player. When Eivor is close to the Zealot, the Zealot will become more aggressive using both blockable and unblockable attacks.
Defensively Distanced
Assassin's Creed Valhalla players will want to approach their target Zealot from a distance. Use an arrow to shoot one of the Zealot’s weak points, knocking them off their horse if they are riding one. Players that go for a defensively distanced route should focus on shooting any weak points on the Zealot or aim for the head. Playing at bow and arrow range will cause the Zealot to throw a spear, landmines, or other ranged attacks at Eivor. Landmines will stay on the ground until triggered. The Missile Reversal skill allows players to grab a Zealot's ranged attacks from midair and throw them back at the Zealot to deal massive damage.
Zealots that do not carry Shields in Valhalla, can more easily be shot with arrows, making the ranged Poison Strike and Fire Strike abilities useful here. The Piercing Shot ability is useful against Zealots with Shields. Players may also summon their wolf to attack alongside them by using the Man’s Best Friend ability.
Up Close And Personal
If Valhalla players run out of arrows or otherwise prefer a more aggressive option, they can close the gap for a close-quarters oriented fight. Fighting up close means players need to focus on what type of attacks the Zealot is about to use. If players see a yellowish glow above the Zealot’s head, they should be prepared to parry the incoming attack to create an opening to deal damage. If a red glow appears above the Zealot’s head, then the next attack will be unblockable and players should be prepared to dodge. Players with the Brush with Death skill can slow down time when dodging just before being hit by an incoming attack, opening a small window to attack the Zealot.
Using the Dive of the Valkyries and the Kick of Tyr abilities in between basic attacks can allow players to attack aggressively and have a chance to knock down the Zealot. When Eivor knocks down a Zealot, players should quickly use the Stomp skill on the Zealot for a large amount of damage and disrespect.
Keeping up status ailments while landing well-timed parries and dodges will prove most useful while fighting the Zealots in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla. When all fifteen Zealots are defeated, players will be one step closer to solving the mystery behind the Order of the Ancients.
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla is available now for PC, PS4, PS5, Stadia, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.