Warning: Everything here will be spoilers-off. Proceed at your own risk.
- The three Daughters of Lerion are Goneril, Regan, and Cordelia, each named after the three daughters of King Lear.
- On the Isle of Skye you'll be required to kill Macbeth to finish the main quest. It's implied that Macbeth's actions were due to an artifact invading his dreams.
- The Achievement/Trophy list has these shoutouts.
- Ubisoft Connect also has the challenge named "The Definition of Insanity."
- The Jötnar have blue skin, similar to their depiction in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
- The "Twit Saga" quest chain features two idiot Vikings Eivor nicknames Dull and Duller.
- One mission is called Alisa in Wunderlandscire.
- One World Event deals with a bald warrior in yellow who can take Eivor down in a single "wallop" and laments how his power has cursed him.
- After Eivor-as-Odin talks to Odin's dwarven smith in Valhalla the first time, said smith rattles off a bunch of names of famous dwarves that partook in an epic adventure to reclaim lost treasure. The list includes, among others, names like Thorin, Gloin, and Gandalf. Though, worth noting these names were taken by Tolkien from the Prose Edda, adding an additional layer.
- Another Lord of the Rings reference, is a note which Eivor can find describing Thor's rampage after Mjlonir was stolen, the note ends with: "I cannot get out. He is coming. I cannot get out."
- Avgos Spearhand's White Room scene ends with him being riddled with about two dozen arrows from the front, all while remaining standing upright, followed by one last arrow to the forehead that finally knocks him over. This mirrors an (in)famous scene in American Gods where something very similar happens to the first unfortunate Viking to set foot on North American soil.
- More than one to Harry Potter:
- There's an offering altar that demands some pieces of fabric. It's named Dobby's Altar.
- The name of the fishing manuals you can buy from traders? Fantastic Fishes and Where to Find Them
- A house in Lundun is guarded by a single snake and, aside from a minor loot chest, contains a note called "Strange List". It reads: "1. Diary; 2. Ring; 3. Locket; 4. Cup; 5. Diadem; 6. Snake; 7. ???"
- One world event giver in Essexe promises Eivor cake if they solve three of his riddles, but when you do so it turns out that the cake was a lie.
- Also the name of that world event? "The Riddler"!
- After assassinating "The Quill", Eivor can find some children at the Wincestre Seminary. One child mentions how he admires Eivor for being an a great warrior who has fought many battles, unlike his father who took an arrow to the knee.
- One of the Cent World Events involves Eivor acquiring some honey at a child's request, and then waiting for someone called "Winifred" to give the honey to. Only "Winifred" happens to be a friendly bear, and if Eivor follows the child and Winifred to the lake, they can find a a donkey and a pig nearby.
- Robin Hood:
- In the quest "Firing the Arrow", in order for Eivor to draw out the Arrow (a member of the Order of the Ancients) to assassinate him, Eivor has to participate in an archery contest, and does so in disguise.
- A World Event in Sherwood Forest has Eivor encounter a hooded man wielding a bow named Ryce Sherwind who steals from rich nobles to give to the poor and even has his own band of Merry Men.
- Another World Event in Sherwood Forest has Eivor encounter a small group of Anglo-Saxons training their archery skills so they can fight against a pictish king they're opposed to. The only named member of the group is "Little John", a large, hulking man, but it also includes a friar and a woman, who seem to be Friar Tuck and Maid Marian, respectively.
- In the quest "An Uncommon Proposition", Birstan suggests that Eivor tell his wife and thegns that he died in a sudden bear attack like the one he just got rescued from.Birstan: "Poor Birstan, his exit, pursued by a bear!"
- A world event in Essexe called The Prodigy has a bard named Keith, right to the same hair and all, being hassled by a Bishop to stop playing. Eivor gets into a brawl with him where Keith says "Smack my bishop!" (if Eivor takes out his torch, he also screams "You are a firestarter!"). According to one of the game's writers on Twitter
, the sidequest was made as a tribute to the actual Keith Flint, who died the year before the game's release.- Keith the bard also references Prodigy songs in his dialogue by saying they just wanted to bring joy to the "jilted Generation" and calls the protagonist's help an "omen."
- After completing "Pit of Slaughter" in Jotunheim, Dugr the Bold gives you a list of Dugr's Clues.
- Near Brunton Turret, there are lakes shaped like the main island of Singapore and its southern island of Sentosa.
- You can find a list of "Tove's Tattoo Ideas", one of which is "A dragon, breathing fire, with the wings of a bat and the arms of a man", which sounds suspiciously like Trogdor the Burninator (especially with the additional note "The dragon's arms are very muscular").
- A World Event in Hamtunscire is titled The Devil Has All The Best Tunes.
- A quest in the game is called "Under the Skin".
- While it might fly over the heads of those unfamiliar, the Ledecestrescire BBB fight club could be a medieval Fight Club.
- Eivor's second bout in the Ledecestrescire BBB fight club is against a tall, skinny man who fights with Luigi's moves from Super Smash Bros., including the windmill flail, the flying headbutt, and the rear charge.
- One of the things you can get to decorate your settlement is a small scale recreation of the ill-fated Gävle Goat.
- A woman in Suthsexe mentions how if the source of a water monster isn't found she may become "a watery tart"
- One of Reda's contracts that you can pick up is named "Toss a Coin to your Traitor".
- During the Yule festival in Ravensthorpe, Sunniva can shout this.
- The "Gothic Set" available from the Animus Store is more or less Sauron's armor as it was depicted in the films, with some tattered cloth and the Nazgûl's famous black hood added in. As if to ensure it is not just a coincidence, the description of the gauntlets mention a ring."Gauntlets in good condition aside from a finger which bears marks of a burning ring. No one knows what really happened".
- The set also seems to homage Middle-earth: Shadow of War, as the added cloth makes the armor almost identical to the Nazgûl armor set from that game, and the "Gothic (Head)" tattoo from the accompanying tattoo pack even turns Eivor's face white with Tainted Veins - which the main character of SoW gains alongside the Nazgûl armor. While this could be a coincidence, the AC games have history of implementing mechanics from that series.note
- A quest in "The Dawn of Ragnarok" has Odin having to escort a dwarf looking to throw a cursed ring into a volcano, who then gets sidetracked by some mushrooms.
- In one mission, Basim calls Eivor an agent of chaos.
- In Siege of Paris, one of the main story missions is called "The Queen's Gambit."
- A world event in Hamtunschire has a proselytiser telling a bunch of locals "You might think it's a long way to the markets, but that's nothing compared to eternity"
- King Aelle in the prequel comic Assassin's Creed Valhalla: Blood Brothers is closely based in appearance and presentation on Ivan Kaye's portrayal of the king in Vikings.
- One of the sidequests has Eivor hunt some boars for an NPC named Bristan. Bristan will say that “I once knew a strong-armed shield maiden who rode a boar into battle! She named it Bristle-Bold.”note
- The headpiece for the "Hel's Damnation" armor is a horned helmet with a crown of fire between the horns.
- At the end of the "Dawn of Ragnarok" DLC, Odin takes the time to face the camera and declare that whatever happens in the future, he will not forget a single moment of his time, much like the Eleventh Doctor's final speech in Doctor Who (the original idea of the Sages themselves being inspired by the Master).
- One world event has you investigate the events of the Pardoner's Tale by Chaucer.
- Another world event is a twist on the Prince and the Pauper, with a commoner being abducted because he looks just like a noble.
