Harald wants to recruit his own mercenaries to establish his Varangian Guard; with these mercenaries he receives large yield gains when defeating his opponents.

Befriend City-States with Harald to create a large army worthy of Valhalla. When Harald levies units from City-States, cheaper with his unique ability, he receives large amounts of Faith, Science, and Culture from killing enemy units. The Stave Church further helps his Faith generation which, if you go with the Monarchy government, allows the purchase of more units for his army. Norway’s Knarr ability allows Harald to send his large army across the Ocean easily since he gains early ocean traversal and ignores embarkation penalties.. The Berserker gives his army an extra punch when you unlock the Military Tactics technology. His best victory is Domination, but he can use his military might for any victory.