Assassin’s Creed Valhalla has allowed players around the world to live out their viking fantasies since launching in late 2020. The gender-fluid hero Eivor has since traveled from the frozen north with their viking brethren on a jolly invasion tour of England and beyond. The main game itself is a beast; you can easily sink well over 100 hours while raiding, delving into political machinations, uprooting hidden members of The Order, discovering mythological connections, and looting your way to a full kit, and still not even finish the main story. But while all that content is normally a strong selling point, ACV can become a bit of a slog because there’s so much to do in a land that, quite frankly, just isn’t as enticing or strikingly beautiful as previous titles like Assassin’s Creed Odyssey. Your mileage may vary. However, the viking adventure game gets a much-needed shot in the arm thanks to the title’s first fully fleshed-out DLC, “The Wrath of the Druids.”
This new campaign, available now, takes you to Ireland at the request of a long-lost cousin who Eivor quite honestly thought was dead. What follows is a relatively quick trip across the Irish Sea to arrive in fair Dublin, where ACV:TWotD lays its scene. For roughly the next 10-15 hours, Eivor will once again make their way into political squabbles among rival regions, uncover the secrets of a mysterious sect of pagans and their power structure, cross paths with a branch of the supernatural, and, of course, engage in all manner of viking raids. “The Wrath of the Druids” is a compact, concise, and generally better-told version of the overall story of Valhalla. Ireland itself is lighter and brighter, traveling to and fro feels less like a punishment, and there are plenty of opportunities to either stick to the main campaign or max out all possibilities and really enjoy your stay in the Emerald Isle. If you’re a fan of ACV or need a reason to get back into it (like I did), I can absolutely recommend checking out the semi-standalone DLC, “The Wrath of the Druids.”
As of this writing, the first DLC for ACV will set you back about $25. That’s a little steep for a 10-15 hour DLC, but not by much. I really enjoyed my playthrough and kept making excuses to come back to it and finish things up. A better option, however, is the Season Pass, currently on sale for $30 but also including the “Wrath of the Druids” DLC, “The Legend of Beowulf” bonus quest, and the upcoming “Siege of Paris” expansion. If SoP is as good as WotD, it’s worth it. (And for full transparency, my playthrough came as part of the comped Ultimate Edition provided by Ubisoft at launch, so take my recommendation with that in mind.)
Honestly, the best way to describe “Wrath of the Druids” is as a compact version of Valhalla‘s sprawling, massive storyline. If you’ve beaten Valhalla, you’ll see a lot of similarities in “Druids” story and setup, though they wisely course-corrected in its execution. Story beats that may have upset some fans in the main game get similar setups but different outcomes in “Druids,” essentially letting Ubisoft have its cake and eat it, too, since multiple narrative paths are covered. And best of all, “Druids” allows for something that Valhalla and a lot of modern RPGs do not: Actual, meaningful choice.
There’s a moment at the end of the main “Druids” campaign that lets Eivor choose whether or not to kill a certain NPC. The choice matters, even if the eventual outcome is pretty much the same. This is a subtle but important difference to moments that seem like they’re giving you agency but are actually just part of the story’s illusion of choice. “Druids” has this as well; there’s a moment where Eivor chooses the fate of a traitor, only to have NPCs make the decision for you no matter what you say. I am happy to say that the final decision in the DLC does rest with Eivor, and you’re treated to two different dialogue performances if you opt to try them both.
All that aside, I actually really enjoyed the “Druids” storyline more so than that of Valhalla. The main game tries to do too much: Improve your settlement and viking relations with every lord and lady in England, raid every available building while you do it, uncover both the secret identities of masked members of the order as well as your own mythological ties to actual gods, and on and on. It’s a lot. “Druids” does something similar, just on a smaller scale befitting the isolated island. You’ll assist your cousin, who happens to be the King of Dublin, and his rowdy son in rooting out traitors while also smoothing things over with Ireland’s High King and other regional nobles in order to unite them all under one banner. You’ll get some help from the druidic poetess Ciara, who not only connects you to Ireland’s pagan roots but might also be a possible romantic interest, should you choose to go that route. And while “Wrath of the Druids” plays fast and loose with the actual, factual history of 9th century Ireland (though respect for a Book of Kells reference), it does focus on the conflicts between raiding vikings, native Irish, and the rise of Christianity in the region. (Just don’t cite “Wrath of the Druids” on your next history test or Jeopardy! response.)
With all of these storylines in play, “Wrath of the Druids” hits the right marks from beginning to end, making for a compact and compelling DLC that is absolutely worth playing. It’s much more worth your time and attention than the seasonal events that were included with the base game. If you need an excuse to sharpen your axe and launch your longship, now’s the perfect time to do so with Assassin’s Creed Valhalla: The Wrath of the Druids.
Rating: B
Read Next
About The Author
More Stories
Donald Trump is back to being besties with his North Korean pal – We Got This Covered
‘Dark Winds’ Seasons 3-4 Get Netflix Release Date Update
Brutal Red‑Band Clip Confirms THE LONG WALK