Battling in God of War is an inexact science. There are many ways you can approach fighting the waves of enemies across the realms of Norse Mythology, but one aspect of players should be aware of are enemy power levels: green, yellow, orange and purple health bars.
Similar to Kratos' power level, which we'll get into later, enemies also have varying levels and the different colors of their health bars tells players how strong they are. Players can use this information to figure out the best way to fight these enemies, or whether they should just run away until they gain a few more levels.
ENEMY POWER LEVELS: WHAT PURPLE, RED AND OTHER BAR COLORS MEAN
Enemy power levels can be found above the targets once they take damage, showing its health bar. The color of the health bar indicates the enemy's power level. A good practice to take is having Atreus shoot an arrow at an enemy to reveal its power level if you're unsure how strong it is.
The power level of the enemies during the main journey of God of War usually increase alongside Kratos but there will be times when a boss or a sidequest puts you in the crosshairs of some terribly powerful foes.
One color you should absolutely stay away from are purple enemies. Purple indicates the strongest enemies you can come across, in relation to Kratos' current power level.
Here are the various colors and what power level they indicate.
- Light Green - Kratos > Enemy by 2+ levels
- Dark Green - Kratos > Enemy by 1 level
- Yellow - Kratos = Enemy
- Orange - Kratos < Enemy by 1 level
- Purple - Kratos < Enemy by 2 levels
- Purple + Skull - Kratos < Enemy by 3 or more levels
If you're wondering what enemy power levels affect, they determine the amount of damage taken normally and when Kratos is in Spartan Rage mode. How an enemy reacts to attacks changes as well. If you're on par with an enemy, Atreus' arrows have a higher chance to distract or stun it.
The amount of burn, frost, shock and stun damage decreases the higher the enemy's power level is in relation to Kratos. But the most important way power levels affect battle is what can be blocked. If you come across a purple enemy, there's a good chance that it will kill Kratos in one shot even when he's blocking.
HOW TO INCREASE KRATOS' LEVELS
Now that you know what the power level colors for enemies mean, you'll want to increase Kratos' level as soon as possible. The way to do this is to equip Kratos with more powerful gear either by finding it, making it or upgrading what you already have.
Kratos' power level can be found in the menu and is indicated with a number above your stats. This number will increase as you equip/upgrade higher level armor on Kratos. If all of your armor are level 4, for example, then Kratos' level will be 4. A small green up or down arrow next to the level indicates whether or not a new piece of gear will benefit your overall power level; however, new gear that isn't upgraded might be better than current gear once you invest in it. So don't automatically assume something is worse.
Earn Hacksilver and material to purchase and upgrade your armor to its highest points as soon as possible.
God of War is available for PS4 now.
Have you encountered purple enemies in God of War yet? Let us know your approach to them in the comments section below.
Uncommon Knowledge
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