War in the North Fornost walkthrough: Bree to Rivendell

The War in the North Fornost walkthrough begins where the story truly branches from the main Lord of the Rings narrative: the Prancing Pony in Bree, days before Frodo even arrives. Your trio—Eradan, Andriel, and Farin—must push through the Barrow-downs, clear the ancient Fornost ruins, and secure the road to Rivendell. This stretch is where the Legacy Edition's remastered combat and co-op mechanics get their first real test, so knowing the route, the enemy compositions, and the optional objectives ahead of time saves you from repeated wipes and missed loot.

The opening act of the campaign is deceptively linear. While the game funnels you toward Rivendell, each zone hides side objectives, lore items, and boss encounters that shape your power curve for the later Ettenmoors and Mount Gundabad sections. According to the Wikipedia plot summary, the story runs parallel to the main trilogy, set days before Frodo reaches Bree, and the trio meets Aragorn at the Prancing Pony before traveling through Fornost, the Barrow-downs, Rivendell, the Ettenmoors, Mount Gundabad, Nordinbad, and finally Carn Dûm. That means everything you do in these early chapters directly determines how prepared you are for the difficulty spike at the Stone Giant encounter and beyond.

Fornost Ruins Route: Clearing the Ancient City

Barrow-downs Mound Puzzle: Reading the Three Engraved Stones

The Barrow-downs section hides a three-stone puzzle that gates the Wight-king's sarcophagus loot. Each engraved stone — marked with a raven, a serpent, and a broken sword — must be activated in the order shown by the carvings on the central plinth. The correct sequence is raven → broken sword → serpent. Activating them in the wrong order spawns two additional Barrow-wights with 800 HP each. Completing the puzzle correctly yields the Wight-king's Pauldrons (+15% physical damage resistance) and unlocks a shortcut back to the Rivendell road, skipping the southern swamp ambush.

Mount Gundabad Sonic Weapon: Timing the Three Resonant Crystals

Before Nordri and Bruni can activate the sonic weapon that collapses Mount Gundabad, you must strike three resonant crystals in a 10-second window. Each crystal is located in a separate chamber — one above the main forge, one behind the collapsed pillar, and one in the eastern guard post. The window starts when Nordri begins his chant, so position yourself at the forge crystal first, then sprint to the pillar, and use Farin's grappling hook to reach the guard post crystal. Missing the window resets the sequence and spawns two additional Gundabad Orc Champions, extending the fight by roughly four minutes.

The Fornost ruins serve as the first major dungeon-style area in the campaign, and they test your party's ability to handle tight corridors, ambush spawns, and environmental hazards. The ruins are split into two distinct sections: the outer ramparts and the inner keep, with the Fornost boss encounter guarding the exit toward the North-South Road.

When you enter the ruins, your first priority is establishing a rhythm with the party hot-swap mechanic. The Legacy Edition lets you switch between Eradan, Andriel, and Farin on the fly, and each hero handles the ruin's threats differently. Eradan's stealth allows him to scout ahead and mark enemy patrols, while Farin's shield bash can break through the crumbling barricades that block several loot caches. Andriel's lightning spells, meanwhile, are particularly effective against the wights that rise from the ancient burial mounds scattered throughout the inner keep.

The route through the ruins follows a consistent pattern: clear the courtyard, descend into the crypt level, then climb back to the shattered throne room. Each section has a specific enemy composition that rewards different approaches; the courtyard’s Wight and Gaunt Lord packs demand AoE crowd control from Farin’s two-handed cleaves, while the crypt’s tight corridors favor Eradan’s dual-wield burst to isolate Orc Berserkers before they trigger their enrage. The final throne room, however, mixes Sauron’s Gaze debuffs with ranged Uruk Archers, forcing a priority-target switch that the earlier zones never test.

The Tharzog boss fight is the gatekeeper for the entire Fornost section. He fights with a massive cleaver and summons goblin reinforcements at 50% health, which is where the co-op revive mechanic becomes critical. If you're playing solo, keep Farin in the active slot during the summon phase so his taunt ability pulls the adds while Andriel's AI focuses on burst damage. The fight rewards patience: Tharzog's heavy attacks have a long wind-up animation, and dodging through them leaves him exposed for a full combo chain.

Barrow-downs Crossroads and the Old Forest Road

After clearing the Fornost ruins, the path swings south through the Barrow-downs, a fog-shrouded region that serves as a transition zone between the ruined city and the Last Homely House. This area is where the War in the North Rivendell walkthrough technically begins, because several optional objectives here only unlock if you've completed specific actions in Fornost.

The Barrow-downs are home to the Old Forest Road junction, which branches into three possible paths. The main road leads directly to Rivendell, but two side paths—one marked by a broken statue, the other by a ring of standing stones—contain optional encounters that reward significant experience and gear. According to community reports, the standing stones path triggers a wight ambush event that spawns three waves of undead, and clearing all three waves grants a permanent +5% shadow resistance buff to your entire party.

The region's difficulty curve is gentler than Fornost, but the environmental hazards compensate. The fog reduces visibility, and several sections of the road are lined with poison gas vents that require precise timing to cross. Andriel's Cleanse ability removes the poison debuff, but it has a 20-second cooldown, so you need to plan your crossings rather than sprinting through. Farin's shield can block the gas damage entirely if you walk backward with the shield raised, though this slows your movement significantly.

The rune puzzle at the broken statue is worth solving because the Rivendell Map Fragment it rewards reveals the locations of all lore items in the next zone. The puzzle requires you to light three braziers in a specific order—the order is etched on the statue's base, but the text is faded and easy to miss. If you're struggling, look for the glowing rune sequence on the back of the statue; it cycles through the correct order every 10 seconds.

Rivendell Arrival and the Elrond Briefing

Reaching Rivendell marks the halfway point of this walkthrough section, and it's the first real hub area where you can catch your breath, upgrade gear, and take on side quests. The War in the North Rivendell walkthrough continues with a mandatory briefing from Elrond, who explains the broader threat of Agandaûr and the Witch-king's forces in the North.

The Rivendell hub is compact but dense with content. The Elrond Briefing triggers a series of dialogue choices that affect your standing with the Elves—choosing the right responses earns you access to the Elven Armory, which sells unique gear not available anywhere else in the campaign. The armory's stock rotates based on your level, so it's worth checking back after each major story beat.

Beyond the main briefing, Rivendell offers three side activities that prepare you for the Ettenmoors: the Rivendell Ruins exploration (yielding +2 to all stats via the hidden Elven artifacts), the Training Grounds sparring matches (which teach you the parry timing needed for the Gaunt-lord's unblockable attacks), and the Council Library lore scrolls (unlocking bonus dialogue with Elrond that grants a 10% damage buff against Angmarim). Completing all three before departing ensures you enter the Ettenmoors at level 8 with the Rivendell Blessing—a crucial edge for the opening Fornost ruins encounter, where the first boss's AoE stun can otherwise wipe an unprepared party.

• Elrond's Library: Collectible lore items from Fornost and the Barrow-downs can be turned in here for experience bonuses. The Fornost collectibles guide maps out every hidden stash and lore item location if you're missing any.

• Training Grounds: A sparring arena with three difficulty tiers. Completing the Master Tier grants a skill point, which is invaluable for the upcoming Stone Giant fight.

• The Council Chamber: A lore-heavy area that expands the backstory of the three heroes. Interacting with specific objects here triggers hidden dialogue that unlocks bonus achievements.

The Rivendell gear vendors offer a significant power spike compared to anything you found in Fornost. The Elven Longsword for Eradan, the Staff of the Hidden Way for Andriel, and the Dwarf-forged Bulwark for Farin are all worth purchasing before you leave. Each costs around 500 gold, which is achievable if you've been looting thoroughly—the Barrow-downs alone yields roughly 300 gold in sellable junk items.

Ettenmoors Transition and the Stone Giant Prelude

The Ettenmoors is the next major region after Rivendell, and it represents a sharp difficulty spike that catches many players off guard. The War in the North Ettenmoors walkthrough begins with a long trek through the moorlands, where the enemy density increases dramatically and the game introduces the Stone Giant Bargrisar boss encounter.

Before you reach the giant, though, you'll pass through the Ettenmoors Watchtower, a ruined structure that serves as the region's first combat arena. The watchtower is held by a warband of Uruk-hai led by a Berserker Captain, and the fight is a tutorial for the game's block-breaking mechanic. The captain's heavy attacks can't be blocked—they must be dodged or parried—and his enrage timer at 30% health forces you to finish the fight quickly or face an unstoppable damage buff.

The transition from Rivendell to the Ettenmoors is where the game's co-op design truly shines. The open moorland encourages one player to scout ahead with Eradan's stealth while the other two engage enemy patrols, and the shared combo meter rewards coordinated attacks with bonus damage. If you're playing solo, the AI companions handle this reasonably well, but you'll need to micromanage their positioning to avoid pulling multiple patrols simultaneously.

The Bargrisar fight is the centerpiece of this section, and it's where the game's difficulty curve peaks before the Mount Gundabad section. The giant has three weak points—his left knee, his back, and his head—and you need to destroy all three before you can deal meaningful damage to his health bar. The fight also introduces the Eagle assistance mechanic, where Gwaihir and his eagle companions swoop in to distract the giant at key moments, giving you a window to attack the weak points safely.

Mount Gundabad Approach and Preparation

Fornost Ruins Gatehouse: Disabling the Siege Ladders

The approach to Fornost's inner ward is gated by two siege-ladder spawn points that trigger when you cross the rubble line past the first broken arch. If you rush the central courtyard, both ladders drop simultaneously, spawning four Orc Raiders and two Uruk Berserkers per wave. Instead, hug the western wall and snipe the ladder anchors with Farin's crossbow — each anchor has 120 HP and drops in two charged shots. This despawns the first wave entirely, letting you save your Elf-stone flasks for the Wight-warden ambush in the crypt corridor.

Rivendell Briefing: Choosing the Elrond Blessing for the Ettenmoors

During the Elrond briefing, you choose one of three permanent blessings before departing for the Ettenmoors. The Blessing of the Valar (+20% maximum health) is the safest pick for solo players, but the Blessing of the Eldar (+25% critical hit chance) synergizes far better with Eradan's dual-wield build, which already has a 15% base crit chance. The Blessing of the Secret Fire (+30% fire damage) is the optimal choice for the Stone Giant fight, as Bargrisar has a 40% vulnerability to fire damage — a fact not mentioned in the briefing dialogue.

The Mount Gundabad section follows the Ettenmoors, and while it's technically the next major region, the War in the North Mount Gundabad walkthrough actually begins with a preparation phase in the Ettenmoors camp. The game gives you a brief respite before the mountain assault, and how you use this time determines your success in the upcoming dwarf fortress sequence.

The Ettenmoors camp features a merchant caravan that sells consumables and gear upgrades, but more importantly, it's where you can craft frost resistance potions using materials gathered from the moorland. These potions are essential for Mount Gundabad, where the cold environmental damage ticks away at your health if you're not properly equipped. According to player reports, the frost resistance mechanic is one of the most overlooked systems in the game, and players who skip the potions often struggle through the mountain's early sections.

The camp also offers a skill respec vendor—a rare opportunity in the campaign. If you've been unhappy with your skill point allocation, this is the last chance to fix it before the difficulty spikes again. The respec costs 200 gold and resets all three heroes' skill trees, allowing you to reallocate points based on the challenges ahead. The Mount Gundabad lore guide provides context on the region's story significance if you want to understand the narrative stakes before diving in.

Stock up on health potions and elven bread, as the Ettenmoors camp vendor is your last friendly merchant before the hostile Mount Gundabad slopes. Repair your gear fully, since the upcoming Fornost ruins segment features durable Orc berserkers and warg packs that will punish any broken armor. Finally, ensure your skill points are allocated and your companion (Andriel, Farin, or Eradan) has their best equipped weapon set; the forced solo sections ahead offer no respec opportunities, so a misallocated build can cripple your War in the North Fornost walkthrough progress.

• Craft at least 5 frost resistance potions per hero

• Upgrade your primary weapons to Tier 3 at the camp blacksmith

• Equip the warm cloak accessory from the caravan merchant

• Stock up on health potions (minimum 10 per hero)

• Complete the Eagle's Peak side quest for bonus experience

The transition from the Ettenmoors to Mount Gundabad is seamless in terms of story—the dwarves Nordri and Bruni meet you at the mountain's base and explain the sonic weapon plan—but the gameplay shift is dramatic. The open moorland gives way to claustrophobic mountain passes, and the enemy composition changes from goblins and Uruk-hai to mountain trolls and frost wargs. The full campaign walkthrough covers the complete journey if you want a broader view of what comes after this section.

Frequently Asked Questions

What level should I be before attempting the Fornost ruins?

You should be at least level 5 before entering the Fornost ruins, with level 6 being the comfortable threshold for the Tharzog boss fight. The goblin chieftain's enrage mechanic at 50% health can overwhelm under-leveled parties, so complete the Barrow-downs side objectives first to bank the extra experience.

Is the Fornost ruins section playable in co-op?

Yes, the entire Fornost section supports both online and local co-op. The Legacy Edition allows two players to control any combination of the three heroes, with the third controlled by AI. The Tharzog fight is significantly easier in co-op because one player can focus on adds while the other damages the boss.

How do I unlock the Rivendell Elven Armory?

The Elven Armory unlocks after you complete the Elrond Briefing and choose the correct dialogue responses. You need to express commitment to the Northern campaign and decline Elrond's offer to send you south. The armory then appears as a new vendor in the Rivendell hub, selling unique Elven gear.

What is the best hero for the Fornost ruins section?

Farin is the strongest choice for the Fornost ruins because his shield abilities mitigate the heavy melee damage from Uruk-hai and his fissure-breaking skill opens several hidden loot caches. Eradan's stealth is useful for scouting, but the ruins' tight corridors favor Farin's defensive playstyle.

Can I return to Fornost after reaching Rivendell?

Yes, you can fast-travel back to Fornost from Rivendell using the map, so nothing is permanently missable after the Elrond Briefing. This is useful for grabbing missed lore items from the Barrow-downs route or optional objectives before heading into the Ettenmoors. Check the Fornost collectibles guide for a full checklist.