If you’re looking to sharpen your skills and survive longer in Valheim, you’ve come to the right place. After spending over a year and a half exploring, battling, and building in this Norse survival game, I’ve compiled 20 essential tips that will help you navigate the dangers of this vast world. From basic survival techniques to advanced combat strategies, this guide will ensure that you’re always prepared for what Valheim throws your way.

1. Sleep Through the Night for Safety

Valheim’s nights are treacherous, bringing more and tougher enemies. Whenever possible, sleep through the night to avoid unnecessary danger. If you’re on a multiplayer server, keep in mind that all online players must sleep simultaneously for time to progress. Staying awake at night increases the likelihood of attacks, so make sure you have a bed and a secure shelter ready.

2. Always Keep the Rested Buff Active

The Rested buff is one of the most powerful passive bonuses in Valheim, granting:

• 50% increased health regeneration
• 100% increased stamina regeneration
• 50% bonus skill experience gain

You can gain this buff by standing near a fire or sitting inside a well-built base. The duration of the buff depends on the comfort level of your surroundings—decorating with furniture, banners, and rugs increases this. Maintaining the Rested buff at all times will make a significant difference in your survivability and efficiency.

3. Food Matters – Eat Three Items at Once

Unlike many survival games, Valheim allows you to eat three different food items simultaneously, each boosting health and stamina. Pay attention to food categories:

• Red icon = Health-focused
• Yellow icon = Stamina-focused
• White icon = Balanced

Early on, you’ll rely on Raspberries and Mushrooms, but as you progress, cooking meat and crafting more advanced meals will become crucial for tougher battles.

4. Farm Honey as Early as Possible

Honey is one of the best early-game food sources, offering passive health regeneration. Beehives are commonly found in abandoned shacks and watchtowers in the Meadows biome. To efficiently collect a Queen Bee (needed for building your own beehives), craft a workbench next to the structure and demolish the section holding the hive. This method ensures you get both Honey and the Queen Bee for future hive farming.

5. Loot Boat Graves for Early Riches

Boat Graves—marked by half-buried shipwrecks—contain hidden treasures. However, you’ll need a pickaxe, which is only obtainable after defeating the first boss, Eikthyr. Expect to find gems, gold coins, fire arrows, and bones inside these graves. Silver Necklaces, a rare treasure, are needed for decorative chests later in the game.

6. Bones Are Scarce – Collect Them When Possible

Bones are a valuable crafting resource for armor upgrades and clubs but can be tricky to farm early on. Aside from Boat Graves, they can be found in Burial Chambers in the Black Forest. Look for raised cover stones—loot is often just beneath them.

7. Use Large Stone Circles as Foundations

Occasionally, you’ll find large, unbreakable stone circles in the Meadows biome. While they no longer serve a purpose for hidden loot, they are excellent as natural foundations for bases. Their durability prevents Greylings and other mobs from easily destroying your structures.

8. Master Digging Techniques

Terraforming and digging trenches are key aspects of Valheim’s building system. The pickaxe removes ground horizontally based on the level it initially hits. To ensure a level excavation:

• Stand back slightly to hit the lowest possible point on a wall.
• Avoid digging too high, or you’ll create an uneven surface.

Farming stone by digging ground is generally inefficient, so focus on mining rock formations instead.

9. Watch Out for Falling Trees

Falling trees are one of the biggest causes of accidental death in Valheim. When chopping, always be aware of the direction the tree will fall. Large logs deal massive damage, and an unlucky hit can one-shot you, especially early in the game.

10. Death Penalty & Grave Mechanics

Dying in Valheim results in a 5% skill loss across all abilities, making deaths increasingly costly as you progress. Upon respawn, you’ll have a 10-minute “No Skill Drain” buff to recover your items safely. Keep backup weapons and armor near your respawn point in case you need to fight your way back to your gravestone.

11. Leather Armor Is Your First Real Protection

Your first proper armor set should be Leather Armor, crafted from Deer Hide. Since deer are skittish and difficult to catch early on, a Level 2 Stone Axe can one-shot them if you sneak up behind them.

12. Learn Bow Mechanics

Bows are powerful but require adjustment. Keep in mind:

• Arrows land slightly left of your crosshair
• Arrows drop over long distances
• To cancel a drawn shot and save an arrow, press Block (Right Mouse Button on PC)

13. Staggering Enemies for Double Damage

Enemies stagger when their hidden stagger bar fills up. Hitting them in quick succession will stagger them faster, making them take double damage. Parrying with a Round Wooden Shield is one of the best ways to achieve this, similar to Soulslike games.

14. Multiplayer Increases Enemy Strength

In multiplayer, enemies become tougher:

• 4% more damage per extra player
• More HP based on nearby players

A dedicated tank is highly recommended for large groups.

15. Prepare for Raids

After defeating the first boss, expect raids—hordes of enemies attacking your base. To prepare:

• Build wooden stake walls or moats
• Create elevated shooting platforms
• Expect harder raids as you kill more bosses

16. Maintain the Rested Buff Inside Dungeons

Dungeons have safe entry zones where you can place a fire to reset your Rested buff. Keeping this active while exploring caves significantly boosts your performance.

17. Use the Map to Mark Important Locations

Valheim allows you to place and name map markers. Use this feature to track:

• Renewable resources (Raspberries, Mushrooms)
• Important locations (Boat Graves, Copper Deposits, dungeons)
• Consumed resources (Red Cross toggle to mark depleted zones)

18. Center Your Map Markers for Accuracy

To place precise markers, select a marker type, exit, then re-enter the map to center the cursor exactly on your position.

19. Avoid Using Map Generators

While tempting, map generators ruin exploration—one of Valheim’s core experiences. Avoid spoilers by resisting the urge to reveal your world seed online.

20. Keep Your World Seed Private

Sharing your world seed can lead to exploits and ruin surprises. Keep it private for a more immersive experience.

Final Thoughts

Mastering Valheim requires patience, strategy, and a keen sense of survival. By following these tips, you’ll be well on your way to building mighty fortresses, defeating legendary foes, and uncovering the game’s many secrets. Good luck, warrior!