Meadows Guide: Resources, Enemies & How to Survive Valheim's Starting Biome

Welcome to the Meadows

The Meadows is the first biome in Valheim, and arguably the most important to master. You land here naked among rolling green hills, Beech trees and gentle music. Do not let the calm fool you: your first few in-game days set the tone for the whole playthrough.

What the biome looks like

Open grassy fields are broken up by thickets of Beech, Birch and Oak, with streams and rivers cutting through. Deer graze in clearings, Boars root around aggressively, Necks sun themselves on the shore, and Greylings take swings at you and, more annoyingly, your structures.

Your goals here

1. Build a base.
2. Gear up with Flint weapons and Leather armor.
3. Defeat the first boss, Eikthyr.

There is more depth in this "beginner" biome than most players notice on their first run. This guide covers every resource, creature, point of interest and strategy you need before moving on.

Resources and Gathering

Your first minutes

Pick up everything on the ground. Branches and loose Stone give you Wood and Stone without tools. With 5 Wood and 4 Stone, craft a Stone Axe from your inventory and start chopping Beech trees, which give Wood and sometimes Resin, Feathers and Beech Seeds.

Flint and Stone

Flint is critical and found only near water. Walk any shoreline, river or lake edge and grab every flat, pale stone you see, because Flint weapons are the backbone of your Meadows kit. Stone lies around in large amounts, especially near cliffs and river valleys.

Birch, Oak and early Finewood

Birch and Oak need a Bronze Axe from the Black Forest tier. The well-known trick: chop a nearby Beech so it falls into the Birch or Oak, which can be enough to topple it. You can also roll the logs into the tree repeatedly. It is tedious, but it gets you early Finewood for the Finewood Bow and comfort furniture.

Plants and Honey

• Raspberries: grow on bushes and respawn, so pick them as you pass.
• Mushrooms: on the forest floor. Lower foliage quality in the graphics settings to spot them.
• Dandelions: mainly for Mead recipes later.
• Beehives: found in Abandoned Houses. Destroying the structure around one drops a Queen Bee for your own Beehive and steady Honey.

Surviving Early Combat

Combat here is forgiving but teaches skills you will rely on all game. Each of the three regular hostiles teaches something different.

Boars

Boars charge on sight, briefly retreat, then charge again. That predictable pattern is perfect for practicing parrying. Few guides mention that Boars and Greylings are afraid of fire: carry a Torch and they flee. Standing Torches and Campfires around your base or logging area keep them away while you work.

Necks and Greylings

Necks hang out near water. They are weak to fire (1.5x) and drop a Neck Tail 70% of the time, which grills into decent early food. Greylings are the most annoying: they take more hits and love attacking your structures. They are very weak to fire (2x) and drop Resin for Fire Arrows and Torches.

Hunting Deer

Deer are passive and bolt the moment they detect you. The most reliable early method is to crouch-sneak behind one and strike before it flees. Other options:

• Craft a Crude Bow as soon as possible.
• Throw a Flint Spear with the middle mouse button.
• Sneak attack with a Flint Knife: its 6x backstab easily one-shots a Deer.

Deer give Deer Hide and Deer Meat, both essential. You need 2 Deer Trophies (50% drop) to summon Eikthyr, so hunt early and often.

Weapons, Armor and Crafting

Your crafting revolves around the Workbench. Place one under a roof to unlock most early gear. Your very first weapon is the Club (6 Wood, crafted from your inventory), but switch to Flint weapons as soon as you can.

The Flint Knife

The Flint Knife is an underrated powerhouse. Its fast three-slash combo ends with a double-damage swing with knockback, and its secondary attack is a leaping stab. Most importantly, its 6x backstab multiplier makes it devastating for sneak attacks.

Bows and arrows

The Crude Bow is your best ranged option. It is inaccurate at distance but fine for Deer. Arrows come in batches of 20:

• Wood Arrows: 8 Wood.
• Fire Arrows: 8 Wood, 8 Resin and 2 Feathers, at a level 2 Workbench.

Armor

The Rag Tunic and Rag Trousers use only Leather Scraps and give minimal protection. The real goal is the Leather set: Leather Helmet, Leather Tunic, Leather Trousers and Deer Hide Cape. The first three need 6 Deer Hide each, the cape 4 Deer Hide and 5 Bone Fragments. A full quality 1 set gives 7 armor.

Upgrading the Leather pieces takes 6 more Deer Hide and 5 Bone Fragments per level. Find Bone Fragments by digging up Viking Graveyards with a pickaxe, or by fighting Skeletons in the Black Forest. The base set without the cape is the sweet spot before Eikthyr.

Food and the Rested Bonus

Food is not optional. With no food you have 25 health and 50 stamina, barely enough to survive two Boar hits. You can eat three different foods at once, each adding health, stamina or both for a set time.

Best Meadows foods

Before Eikthyr, the best combination is Cooked Deer Meat, Cooked Boar Meat and Honey, for a solid balance of health and stamina. Raspberries and Mushrooms are good fillers while you build up meat, and Grilled Neck Tail is another solid option.

Cook raw meat on a Cooking Station over a Campfire, and watch the timer: overcooked meat turns into Coal.

The Rested bonus

Rested is the most impactful early buff. Sit near a fire under a roof to gain faster health and stamina regeneration for several minutes, scaling with your comfort level. Build a Campfire and bed in your base and sit down before anything dangerous.

Raise comfort with different furniture: a chair, a bench, a rug and a Deer rug all count, and a Finewood chair adds more. Make Rested a habit from day one.

Points of Interest

• Abandoned Houses: chests with Amber, Coins, Feathers, Flint, Flinthead Arrows and Torches. Many hold wild Beehives: shoot the hive from a distance, or place a Workbench and deconstruct the building, to get a Queen Bee.
• Abandoned Villages: clusters of houses with Raspberry bushes, woodpiles for free Wood and sometimes several Beehives.
• Viking Graveyards: boat-shaped rock formations. With the Antler Pickaxe, dig between the stones for chests with Amber Pearls, Coins (20-50), Fire Arrows, Rubies and sometimes a Silver Necklace. Save the valuables for Haldor in the Black Forest.

• Dolmens: small stone structures, sometimes with Skeletal Remains and Bone Fragments underneath.
• Ancient Stone Circles: large rings that are mostly decorative, but their stones count as foundations, so you can attach structures to them for stability during raids.

Boar Taming and Your First Farm

Tamed Boars are a renewable source of Boar Meat and Leather Scraps, which you need all game. To tame one:

1. Build a pen from Roundpole fences.
2. Lure a wild Boar inside; it will chase you.
3. Drop Raspberries, Mushrooms, Blueberries, Carrots or Turnips near it.
4. Stay nearby without frightening it. Taming takes about 30 real-time minutes with food available.

Finding starred Boars

Boar Runestones mention "wild boar who roam these lands". They spawn 1-9 Boars once, each with a 15% chance to be 2-star instead of the usual 1%. Two-star Boars drop four times the meat and Leather Scraps, so they are perfect for breeding. Abandoned farms also have higher star chances.

Breeding

Tame two starred Boars and feed them. Two tamed, fed Boars within 3 meters will breed, until there are 5 Boars within 10 meters.

Preparing for and Defeating Eikthyr

Eikthyr is the first boss and your gateway to the Black Forest. He has 500 health and three attacks:

• Antler swipe: 20 pierce damage, 4.5 meter range.
• Lightning beam: fans out 45 degrees for 20 meters, 15 lightning damage.
• Stomp: hits everything within 10 meters for 15 lightning damage.

All lightning attacks apply the Lightning status effect.

Summoning and preparation

Read the glowing Vegvisir near the Sacrificial Stones at spawn to mark his altar, then place 2 Deer Trophies on the Forsaken Altar. Before the fight:

• Eat your best three foods (Cooked Deer Meat, Cooked Boar Meat and Honey).
• Get the Rested bonus and wear your Leather armor.
• Bring a Crude Bow with Fire Arrows, plus a melee weapon and shield as backup.

The fight

Keep your distance. The lightning beam has a 25-second cooldown and a clear windup, so dodge sideways when you see it coming. Kite him around trees and terrain while you shoot. A Campfire placed under his spawn point before summoning deals passive fire damage, and a small shelter with a bed near the altar is smart insurance.

Rewards

Eikthyr drops 3 Hard Antlers and the Eikthyr Trophy. One antler and 10 Wood make the Antler Pickaxe, which unlocks mining and your trip to the Black Forest for Copper and Tin. Mount the trophy at the Sacrificial Stones for his Forsaken Power: 60% cheaper running, jumping and swimming for 300 seconds.

What Changes After Defeating Bosses

The Meadows does not stay peaceful. Each boss you defeat adds new hostile spawns:

1. Eikthyr: Greydwarfs appear at night.
2. The Elder: Greydwarf Brutes and Greydwarf Shamans join them.
3. Bonemass: Skeletons begin spawning.
4. Yagluth: Fulings appear.
5. The Queen: Seekers and Ticks show up.
6. Fader: Charred Marksmen and Charred Warriors patrol your homeland.

The escalation follows your progression, so you will always be geared for the new threats, but your Meadows base eventually needs defenses: stake walls and raised earth become essential. The upside is convenience: Fulings drop Black Metal and Seekers drop Mistlands materials right on your doorstep.