God Of War PS4 Guide: How Skills, Enchantments, And Armor Work

The 2018 God of War represents a dramatic departure from its predecessors, transforming the series’ traditional linear structure into an expansive, exploration-driven experience. This reinvention introduces complex progression systems that may initially overwhelm players accustomed to the franchise’s earlier installments. Unlike previous games, you’ll navigate semi-open environments, accumulate experience points to unlock abilities through skill trees, and collect comprehensive armor sets that significantly enhance your combat capabilities. Additional customization comes through specialized accessories including Talismans and Enchantments that provide both statistical improvements and unique combat advantages.

With multiple interconnected systems governing character development and combat effectiveness, new players often struggle to optimize their progression path. This guide provides detailed analysis of each major upgrade system, helping you make informed decisions about resource allocation and build specialization. For additional guidance, explore our Complete Guide to mastering complex game mechanics.

Armor Sets: Strategic Specialization

Strategic armor selection requires careful consideration of your preferred combat approach.

Armor serves dual purposes in God of War: providing essential defensive statistics for survival while enabling specialized builds that complement specific playstyles. For instance, players favoring magical combat should prioritize armor that amplifies Runic Attack damage and reduces cooldown times. Early commitment to a specific armor specialization pays significant dividends, as focused resource investment into crafting and upgrading complementary gear yields superior results compared to spreading resources across multiple armor types.

The same strategic principles extend to Atreus’ equipment. At blacksmith shops, you can acquire armor sets that enhance his combat effectiveness in distinct ways—some improve his arrow damage while others strengthen his melee grappling capabilities. Since Atreus contributes substantially to combat success, selecting armor that aligns with how you utilize his abilities dramatically impacts battle outcomes.

Enchantments: Socket Optimization

Enchantments represent specialized enhancements that slot into armor pieces to provide additional statistical bonuses and unique combat perks. Each armor component can accommodate at least one Enchantment provided it has available sockets; upgrading armor at blacksmith shops unlocks additional socket slots. As you progress through the game, you’ll accumulate numerous Enchantments, necessitating regular inventory reviews to identify superior replacements for your current configuration.

Regular inventory management ensures you’re always using optimal enchantments.

Many Enchantments include special perks that grant attack enhancements or defensive resistances, either as permanent attributes or randomly activated during combat encounters. While perk awareness is valuable, prioritizing Enchantments that provide the most substantial statistical improvements typically delivers greater combat effectiveness than chasing situational bonuses.

A critical mistake many players make involves forgetting to transfer Enchantments when upgrading to new armor sets. Always remember to re-equip all Enchantments from your previous armor onto new acquisitions—overlooking this step unnecessarily disadvantages your character.

Axe Pommels: Perk Prioritization

Strategic pommel selection focuses on maximizing combat utility through powerful perks.

Axe Pommels enhance the Leviathan Axe’s combat capabilities, offering unique perks that activate either randomly or following specific combat actions. For example, the Deadly Grip of Fury provides a Rage Burst after achieving successful axe kills. Since you’re limited to equipping a single pommel, prioritizing options with the most impactful combat perks generally proves more beneficial than selecting based solely on minor statistical improvements.

Talismans: Tactical Ability Selection

Talismans function as specialized accessories that grant either active or passive combat abilities. Active Talismans require manual activation through specific button combinations, while passive variants trigger automatically when performing designated combat maneuvers like perfectly timed dodges.

Select talismans that complement your combat approach and provide tactical advantages.

While Talismans provide statistical enhancements, their primary value derives from the unique combat utilities they offer. For instance, the Talisman of Concentrated Vitality enables manual health restoration during combat by pressing L1 and circle. Practical selection focusing on abilities that directly impact combat situations typically yields better results than choosing based solely on marginal stat differences.

Skills: Strategic Ability Unlocking

Combat proficiency in God of War begins limited but expands dramatically as you acquire Skills and Runic Attacks through the progression system. Enemy difficulty escalates throughout your journey, making combat upgrade optimization essential for survival. Below we explore the primary methods for enhancing your offensive and defensive capabilities.

Strategic skill selection requires understanding both immediate needs and long-term build development.

The primary method for strengthening combat effectiveness involves unlocking specialized abilities through the Skill tree using experience points earned in battle. Skills encompass various combat techniques including combination attacks, charged strikes, and temporary combat enhancements. Both Kratos and Atreus possess unique skill trees available from the beginning, with additional abilities unlocking after obtaining or purchasing key items that enhance weapon proficiency levels.

Early game experience point acquisition remains limited, making thoughtful skill selection based on playstyle preferences crucial. However, players needn’t worry about permanent commitment to specific skills—eventually you’ll accumulate sufficient XP to unlock every ability. Until reaching that point, deliberate skill choice significantly impacts combat performance. For comprehensive weapon strategies, consult our Weapons Unlock guide for advanced combat techniques.

Runic Attacks: Power Move Integration

While basic attacks and combos remain serviceable for dispatching standard enemies, Runic Attacks provide essential combat advantages against tougher opponents. These powerful special maneuvers equip to your weapons and activate by holding L1 while pressing either R1 or R2. Two distinct categories exist: Light and Heavy Runic Attacks, each featuring unique effects, attributes, and cooldown periods.

Runic attacks deliver decisive combat advantages that can turn difficult encounters in your favor.

Runic Attacks can be upgraded using experience points to enhance their damage output, stunning capability, and overall effectiveness. Despite the temptation to prioritize standard combat skills, underestimating Runic Attacks’ potential represents a common strategic error. Well-timed Runic Attacks frequently provide tactical advantages when survival appears uncertain. Their upgrade investments consistently deliver substantial combat returns.

Mastering God of War’s upgrade systems requires understanding both individual component functions and their synergistic relationships. Advanced players should focus on creating complementary gear combinations where armor bonuses amplify enchantment effects, and talisman abilities synergize with specialized skills. This approach maximizes combat effectiveness beyond what individual upgrades provide separately.

A frequent mistake involves hoarding resources instead of investing in early-game upgrades. Unlike many RPGs where saving resources for end-game equipment proves optimal, God of War’s progression benefits significantly from early and consistent investment in specialized gear.

Resource management represents another critical strategic consideration. Prioritize upgrading your primary armor set before diversifying into situational alternatives. Similarly, focus XP expenditures on core combat skills that align with your preferred approach before branching into specialized techniques. For class-specific strategies that complement these upgrade systems, see our Class Guide for specialized build recommendations.

Timing your upgrades strategically proves equally important. Rather than upgrading immediately upon resource acquisition, consider saving enhancements for challenging encounters where the statistical improvements provide immediate tactical advantages.

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