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Pre-Release
The Aesir are Isu
It's not the first time it's been shown that the world's gods have been Isu, or First Civilization like Minerva or Juno. It would be no surprise that not only is Valhalla real, but also an Isu city like Atlantis was in Odyssey.- Isn't it canon that each Isu represent deities in multiple mythologies, so presumably Minerva and Juno would be among the Aesir.
- Confirmed, but the Norse pantheon is of a different tribe from Minerva /Juno/ Jupiter. Isu belonging to the Roman/ Greek pantheon are represented in Norse myths as the Jotnar.
One of the characters in this game is Otso Berg's ancestor
Way back in "Rogue," he was asked if he ever went into the Animus and that he did indeed see his own Viking ancestors. There is a good chance that not only will you fight with them, but kill them as well.- Or you are them?
- Jossed. Berg explicitly mentioned that the genetic memory he experienced was during the Lindisfarne raid, which occurred decades before the start of Valhalla's story.
Norse Relics would be considered Pieces of Eden
For example, Eivor will find a temple that leads to one that's devoted to Thor where Mjolnir has sat, waiting for someone worthy to pick it up. Order agents are trying everything in their power to lift it, but while fighting for their lift, Eivor picks it up in an emergency and shocks everyone, figuratively and literally, with the hammer of the thunder god.- Confirmed! You can indeed get Mjolnir as a weapon.
- As well as the legendary spear of Odin himself, Gungnir!
- It's not just Norse relics you can find either. Eivor can even wield the Excalibur, albeit as a larger two-handed greatsword.
Someone will be given the Blood Eagle
Whether it's given to an innocent character by a villainous character to show that they deserve to rot in the frozen halls of Hel, or given as justice to a villainous character as Laser-Guided Karma.- There is a Helix Credit skin you can buy for Synin called Blood Eagle.
- Confirmed. It was applied to Rhodri by Ivar the Boneless.
Kassandra will make an appearance in the game
Considering she's the canon Misthios and basically immortal until she passes the Staff of Hermes to Layla in 2018, Eivor would think she's a god after seeing her getting killed multiple times and coming back like nothing happened. There's also a good chance that Eivor is one of her descendants as well.- Jossed.
- Now confirmed. Kassandra and Eivor get into a crossover adventure. Jossed on Eivor being her descendant though.
the Battle of Edington will be an important moment in the game
A battle significant enough it drove the vikings to come to terms for peace with Alfred, who seems to be set up as the Big Bad (possibly templar?) of the game. It will be framed as perhaps a grand defeat for the player character where Failure Is the Only Option, or a revelation where Alfred and Eivor are forced to truly see each other as equals and come to a compromise as humans, and another detente in the great Assassin/Templar conflict.- Jossed. The main story ends before Edington.
Eivor is an Isu descendant, just like the Misthios
If they are, and the above WMG about the Aesir is also true, then making the avian familiar a raven could mean Eivor has the "Sight of Odin", a literal Isu ability.- Jossed. Eivor is actually a Sage of Odin.
Wolf mounts will aid in combat
Hati, Skoll and Fenrir are wolf gods in Norse Mythology, associated with the winter. Hati being specifically named as such could mean that Skoll and Fenrir are also going to be available. With them being wolves, it only makes sense that they act as AI allies in combat.- Partial confirmation. There are premium content wolf mounts, Hati among them, Eivor gets a tamed wolf through a story event that can be summoned in combat, and though Skoll is mentioned, only Fenrir makes an appearance, as a boss fight.
One or more of the Viking characters will be Christian or convert
Historically, there were a number of Vikings who converted to Christianity and given the trailer's indication that this game will be opting for a more historically balanced view of the Vikings than just as stereotypical ravagers and pillagers, this would be a really neat thing to see get acknowledged. Especially possible since it seems it will be focusing on the Viking colonization that went on which, again, resulted in some conversions just by proximity to Christian England. Plot-wise it might lead to some inter-character conflict since the presence of the Aesir is implied to be a driving plot point. Also, King Alfred, the primary antagonist, was famous for converting the Danes to Catholicism.- Implied. Guthrum of Denmark makes an appearance while still opposing the Saxons, and is shown being very interested in Christianity but the story ends before his historical conversion.
The main antagonists will be a secret society of Roman holdouts who has been ruling Britain in secret
Roman rule in Britain just sort of fizzled out at some point in the 5th century. No one knows the concrete date of their collapse and they literally just disappeared from history. What if, in the AC universe, an element of the Roman leadership in Britain survives and keeps on ruling in secret? The distinctively Roman-styled heavy soldier from the trailer could be a member of this group. This is the same series where The Knights Templar survive to the modern age as industrialists and corporations, so anything is possible.- Jossed. The Romans withdrew from Britain just like in real life, but the proto-Assassins admitted that they played a great part as their assassinations heavily destablised Roman rule.
The story will involve elements of Arthurian mythology as well as Norse.
Given the time period and the setting taking place in Viking-era Britain, this seems like a gimme. If the proto-Templar villains take the form of Roman holdouts like the above WMG suggests, they might be the prototype for what eventually became King Arthur and his knights. When the Viking protagonists encounter Isu technology, they might see Valhalla or Asgard, while the Christian proto-Templars see Avalon or Camelot.- Arthurian mythology confirmed but with only one example. Excalibur is in the game as an Isu weapon. Confirmed for Norse mythology.
The protagonist used to be part of the Varangian Guard
This might explain how they managed to get their hands on a Hidden Blade, when the proto-Assassins were likely to be based mostly in the Middle East. They could have encountered an Assassin in Constantinople(perhaps as part of the tutorial mission) and gotten the hidden blade from them. There might also be an Arabic or Byzantine scholar character who traveled up north and joins the Vikings, who introduces them to the Assassins and hidden blades.- Jossed. Eivor was given the Hidden Blade by the proto-Assassins who traveled to Norway along with Sigurd.
Stonehenge is an Isu McGuffin/Superweapon
Stonehenge will be a major location in the main story and will be fought over by the Assassins and Templars. It may be a gateway to another hidden Isu facility.- Jossed. It does appear, but it's more of another Standing Stone type of Mystery that Eivor can go to, following Brendan of Clonfert who had followed visions of the Isu, or as he called them, the Nephilim, even all the way out to Vinland, aka North America to the Vault.
Avalon will appear
This may be late in the story or as DLC, and Eivor will discover that Arthur and the Lady of the Lake are of Isu descent. You will then obtain Excalibur which will be the game's Infinity +1 Sword.- Jossed, in the sense that Excalibur is already in the main game as an Isu weapon, although it is quite strong stats-wise.
Secret superboss of the game: Kratos
Because why not?Odin is one of Aletheia's "like-minded" rebel Isu.
And Eivor is the post-Collapse human he is guiding, like Aletheia did with the Eagle Bearer.- Jossed. Eivor is actually the reincarnation/Sage of Odin, and thus is Aletheia's enemy as she was the wife/lover of Loki.
Arthur is your father.
Just as the last game showed Pythagoras to be Alexios/Kassandra's father, they might continue the trendwith a well know figure to be your father, hence, Arthur. The devs may have a reason why his offspring was Norse. He will also be strong in First Civilization DNA, but maybe in an antithesis to Pythagoras, was more compassionate. And as Pythagoras entrusted the Staff of Hermes Trismegistus to the player character, likewise will Arthur entrust Excalibur to Eivor.- Jossed.
Two of the poets you meet in flyting duels are named Peter and Lloyd
This would basically be Layla having just binged all of ERB and using the Animus to put them into the world, historical accuracy be damned! Both protagonists are canon because of the Animus
Darby revealed both protagonists are canon but did not explain why. So as far as an explanation goes: Shaun has Norse ancestors, so the game opens with him in the animus. Because Shaun is also the resident historian, he is needed in the real world, so Layla can go in as an avatar to relive the memories. The Eivor you choose will determine if Shaun stays in the animus, or if Layla goes in.- Jossed. It is only Layla that is using the Anims The in-universe explanation is that while Eivor's body is female, she's also a Sage of Odin, hence the male DNA, and the Animus is trying to sort both evenly.
Æthelflæd will play a role somewhere down the line
As Aelfred's daughter, she might show up as a child in the base game that you'll eventually have to deal with after a timeskip. She'll either be an uneasy political ally or an antagonist due to her eventually kicking the Danes out of England.- Partly confirmed. Aethelflaed has a cameo as a child during a side quest.
Grendel is the result of corrupted Isu experiments
One of the DLC quests revealed is that a questline revolves around Beowulf. Since Odyssey has shown that the monsters of Greek myth have been experiments from the Isu, Grendel will turn out to have been an escaped test subject from a very much intact Isu lab that managed to escape the destruction of the First Civilization, and the figure of Grendel's Mother will be the head scientist responsible for either unleashing it on the savage barbarians on the surface, or more concerned that they managed to find their way down and now she has to deal with the mess herself.- Jossed. Grendel is a Goliath Manchild and his mother is just someone who tried to keep the village from killing her son. The historic story comes from Eivor's ally during her hunt retelling the true events with significant embellishing while keeping Eivor's name out of it.
Randvi is Kassandra
Kassandra lived until 2018 and spent over 2,000 years exploring the world. Randvi bears a striking resemblance to Kassandra, up to and including reusing her hair model.
Post-Release (open spoilers)
More realms of Norse Mythology will open up for exploration
Whether it's through Eivor exploring Odin's memories or in the present day, they'll be diving into Helheim and Niflheim, especially if it allows them to see the consequences of their choices throughout the main game. They'll also be very much tuned to a highly endgame geared character equipped with weapons like Gungnir, Excalibur or Mjollnir. And yes, there'll be a flyting duel against Hela!- Confirmed actually! There will be a trip to Helheim in a future DLC package.
Related to above; the Nine Realms are a metaphor for distinct Isu sects
Seeing as Eivor's interpretation of Asgard and Jotunheim were her mind rationalizing Isu concepts she didn't understand, and the Jotnar represented the Capitoline Triad and associated Greco-Roman-Etruscan Isu, the remaining Norse Realms, (minus Midgard, as the tribe of Humanity) are all distinct Isu tribes/nations. We already have seen Vanir and Dwarves in the Asgard vision, we just don't know exactly who they are in 'reality.' William Miles is a Sage of Odin
Since Basim/Loki is quite eager for a face to face meeting with the Mentor of the Assassin Brotherhood after being stuck in Yggdrasil for the last 1200+ years, if it turns out William is Odin's new sage, he'll try to kill him. Reda is an Isu, who survived the Great Cataclysm.
Clearly something is going on with Reda, if he is, as the game implies, the same child as the one from Origins then there is a reason he remains a child after more than 900 years. The simplest explanation is that he is an Isu of some form. Juno's message from the end of Brotherhood has been retconned into referring to Layla.
"There is one who would accompany you through the gate. She lies not within our sight," is regarded as Juno getting rid of Lucy because she was a Templar double agent. However Juno later says, as she forces Desmond to kill Lucy, "It is done. The way lies before you. Only she remains to be found. Awaken the sixth. Go, ALONE!" This is usually thought to regard to an abandoned plot thread about Eve. BUT... it could be talking about LAYLA. Juno wants Desmond to go alone through the gate. Ok fine, but she didn't particularly care about Rebecca, Shaun, or William being in the Temple beyond some Isu superiority sneering. So what if she wasn't talking about the gate TO the Eye? What if the Eye IS the gate Juno means? The gate into the Grey, which is where we find the Reader, heavily implied to be Desmond's consciousness. Yggdrasil is operated by a very similar if not identical interface device as the Eye. What if Juno knew that if Lucy survived that she'd try to join Desmond in activating the Eye in the Grand Temple? What if she knew that the only way to get around her reconstituted body's death at the end of the Phoenix Project was to abuse Yggdrasil's reality calculations? What if she knew Lucy joining Desmond would mess up Layla telling the Reader to look at timelines where Desmond refused to release Juno and allowed the Collapse to happen a second time? Juno is far too wily to not be playing Xanatos Speed Chess to give herself a way out of her defeat. Why else would she KEEP SHOWING UP in games long after her death in the comics? To remind us who the true Isu villain is...- Another part of her message is "awaken the Seventh," and it's repeated on a couple of occasions that the method of resurrection that the Valhalla Isu utilized is "the Seventh."
Basim is a furry!
Basim has a strong connection with wolves, his son is a wolf figure in Norse mythology, and he has a wolf shirt in the ending. He will discover the furry fandom at one point and (innocently) make a Loki fursona, with a son named Fenrir. This will never happen, but it would be hilarious, heartwarming and tragic all at once. Ivarr didn't actually kill Ceolbert
If he did his plan doesn't make a lot of sense. It required him to stab Ceolbert but not actually ensure he was dead (and risk Ceolbert revealing the truth) and left his body someplace that would be near impossible to find. Considering he also eggs Eivor on in the fight to kill him its possible that Ivarr, feeling he'd done all he could while also guilt ridden that he didn't protect Ceolbert, tricked Eivor into killing him so he could have a true warrior's death.- He's a bloodthirsty warrior. Shedding blood is the only thing that makes sense to him. Also, he said himself that he viewed Ceolbert like a son, so maybe he couldn't fully commit to his murder. He left him to die in a cave with wolves instead. Besides, the wounds he inflicted were clearly enough to leave the kid on the brink.
Dag overheard Eivor's conversation with Valka.
Hearing the prophecy she laid out, it would explain why Dag was so sure Eivor had betrayed Sigurd. The contents of the scroll Roshan retrieved.
It contains the location of the Apple from the first game. Fulke was trying to turn Sigurd into another Deimos
There are alot of at least surface-level similarities between Sigurd's behavior when he's retrieved from captivity, thinking of himself as a god much like Deimos did before (possibly) getting better in both cases, especially since he already "is" Tyr. Fulke was almost certainly building on what Chrysis did in trying to reshape Sigurd into a human weapon.