North Guardians Slot Review
Two carved guardians stand watch over a frozen Norse harbour, and for once in a Viking slot they’re not just decoration. North Guardians puts its most interesting work into the spins between bonuses rather than the bonus itself, which makes it a rarer thing than the theme suggests: a base game you actually watch. Most slots in this crowded corner of the market save their imagination for the free spins and let the reels idle until then.
Pragmatic Play built this one as a 5×5 grid with 50 paylines, running at 96.38% RTP with medium volatility and a win ceiling of 5,000x the bet. That cap sits below the heights of bigger Pragmatic titles like Book of Vikings or Gates of Valhalla, and Viking Forge covers similar ground for players who want more heat.
Symbols and Pays
Wins pay left to right across the 50 paylines, with only the highest combination counting on each line and multiple line wins added together. All wins are multiplied by the bet per line, and the free spins win is added to any payline win before the round’s total is awarded. Stakes run from 0.50 to 250 per spin.
The paytable splits into character symbols and gems. At the top sit the dwarf, the shield-maiden, a coin, a horn, a shield amulet and an axe; below them, five coloured gems in two tiers fill out the low end. All values below are multiples of the total bet.
- Wild – 0.6x, 4x, 15x for three, four, five
- Man (Dwarf) – 0.52x, 3x, 10x
- Woman – 0.4x, 2.4x, 6x
- Coin – 0.24x, 1.6x, 3.6x
- Horn – 0.2x, 0.8x, 2.4x
- Shield/Amulet – 0.16x, 0.4x, 1.6x
- Axe – 0.12x, 0.24x, 1.2x
- Red and Green Gems – 0.08x, 0.2x, 0.8x
- Blue, Purple and Light Green Gems – 0.04x, 0.12x, 0.48x
The wild is the richest symbol on the grid, out-paying even the dwarf at five of a kind. It appears on all reels and substitutes for everything except the FREE SPINS symbol.
The gap between tiers is steep: the dwarf’s five-of-a-kind pays more than twenty times what a blue gem’s does, so line wins range from small change to genuinely useful.
The FREE SPINS scatter also appears on all reels and pays in any position, not just on paylines: three awards 2x the total bet, four pays 10x, and five pays 100x. Those scatter prizes are paid on top of triggering the round, not instead of it.
The Wild Patterns Wheel
The feature that gives North Guardians its identity plays out in the base game. Two halves of a marking rectangle drift under the reels as an underlay, shifting to random positions on every spin. If the two halves land on the same position and merge into a full rectangle, the Wild Patterns Wheel spins after that spin resolves.
The wheel stops on either a wild pattern or a LEVEL UP. A pattern drops wild symbols onto the grid in the shape and quantity that pattern specifies, at a random position. The wheel has five levels, each carrying different possible patterns, and every trigger in the base game selects one of those levels at random.
Level 5 is the one to want: it contains only pattern slices with no level-up option, meaning bigger wild coverage when it arrives. In the base game the level is redrawn on every trigger, so a Level 5 drop can come at any time. Levels 1 to 4 mix pattern slices with level-up slices, so the same merge can produce a modest pattern or a generous one.
The two rectangle halves are always somewhere on screen, which keeps even non-winning spins worth a glance. It’s a small touch, but it means the base game has a second outcome to watch on every spin: the payline result, and where the halves land.
Free Spins Round
Three or more FREE SPINS symbols trigger the round, which opens with five free spins and switches to a special set of reels. The wheel is the engine here: it spins and stops on every single free spin, and the round begins with the wheel at Level 1.
Any LEVEL UP during the round raises the wheel’s level permanently for the rest of the round, up to Level 5, and every level up also awards extra spins:
- Level 1 to Level 2 – three additional free spins
- Level 2 to Level 3 – two additional free spins
- Level 3 to Level 4 – two additional free spins
- Level 4 to Level 5 – one additional free spin
Climb all the way and the round pays out eight bonus spins on top of the original five. An early run of level ups means more spins and richer wild patterns for everything that follows, so a round that climbs quickly can snowball.
Unlike the base game, where each trigger redraws the level, the round’s level only ever climbs. A wheel that reaches Level 3 stays there even if the next spins land plain patterns.
One cap governs everything. Wins are limited to 5,000x the bet in both the base game and free spins, and a free spins round that reaches that total ends immediately with the full amount awarded.
Buy Free Spins
Players who’d rather skip the scatter chase can trigger the free spins round instantly from the base game for 100x the current total bet. The bought round plays identically to a triggered one: five starting spins, the wheel at Level 1, special reels, and the same level-up ladder awarding extra spins as it climbs.
Buying changes the maths slightly: the RTP for the buy route is 96.29%, a small step down from the standard 96.38%. The 5,000x cap applies to bought rounds too.
It’s a fair price for a round whose value depends almost entirely on how quickly the wheel climbs, though at 100x the entry cost is on the steeper side for a round that opens with just five spins.
Our Honest Verdict
Overall Rating: 7/10
Playing North Guardians is a patient sort of fun: the reels turn steadily, the medium volatility keeps small wins ticking over, and there’s always something moving under the surface worth an eye. The reason to pick it is that second layer. No other Viking slot makes the space between bonuses this watchable.
Its strength is the free spins ladder, because a round that climbs early keeps paying twice over, in extra spins and in fatter wild patterns. Its weakness is that everything funnels towards the wheel: plain base game wins are thin, and the 5,000x ceiling is tight for a build this elaborate.
This is a slot for steady sessions and modest expectations, not for the five-figure-multiplier hunt. Players after that ceiling will find it elsewhere in the Pragmatic catalogue. For the rest, the guardians hold their post well.
North Guardians FAQs
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What is the RTP of North Guardians?
The RTP is 96.38%. If you use the Buy Free Spins option, the RTP is slightly lower at 96.29%. -
Is North Guardians high volatility?
No. North Guardians is a medium volatility slot, so payouts tend to come steadily with a range that runs from low to very high wins. -
How many paylines does North Guardians have?
North Guardians has 50 paylines on a 5×5 grid, with all symbols paying from left to right. -
How many free spins does North Guardians start with?
The free spins round starts with five spins. Level ups on the Wild Patterns Wheel award more: three at Level 2, two more at Level 3, two more at Level 4 and one more at Level 5. -
How does the Wild Patterns Wheel work?
Two halves of a marking rectangle move to random positions on every spin. If they merge into a full rectangle, a wheel spins and either drops wild symbols onto the grid in a pattern or awards a level up. The wheel has five levels, each with different wild patterns. -
Can you buy the bonus on North Guardians?
Yes. The free spins round can be triggered instantly from the base game for 100x your current total bet, with an RTP of 96.29% on the buy route. -
What is the maximum win on North Guardians?
The maximum win is capped at 5,000x your bet, in both the base game and the free spins round. If a free spins round reaches that cap, the round ends immediately and the win is awarded in full. -
When is North Guardians released?
North Guardians was released on 28 April 2022.
