On this page7 sections
- Chop Pine trees in the Black Forest with any axe, even a
Stone Axe, for 
Corewood. - Log Poles reach 24m, half again as high as regular
Wood. - There are only six Log pieces (poles and beams): use them as the frame and fill in with Wood walls and roofs.
- Cover poles and straight beams, or rain decays them to 50% durability.
- Hide a Wood Iron Pole inside a Log Pole once you have
Iron for 50m builds.
Why Core Wood Changes Everything
If your regular Wood builds keep collapsing around the fifth story, Core Wood is the fix. Corewood from Black Forest Pine trees counts as "Hardwood" in the stability system, so every Log piece supports more and climbs higher than regular Wood.
The height difference
A column of regular Wood poles tops out at 16 meters. A column of Log Poles reaches 24 meters: a 50% increase, from a material you can harvest with a Stone Axe on your first Black Forest trip. For longhouses, lighthouses or watchtowers before 
The Elder, nothing beats it.
A separate tier, not thicker Wood
The game treats Core Wood as its own material with its own stability values. It loses less support per meter both up and out, so structures stay green longer. Veterans use Log Poles as the backbone of every serious pre-Iron build.
How to Get Corewood
Corewood comes only from Pine trees, the tall conifers of the Black Forest. Any axe works, including the Stone Axe. Each Pine gives plenty of Corewood from its trunk plus regular Wood.
CorewoodMaterial · Black ForestHardwood framing: 24m builds before you ever touch Iron
- Weight
- 2
- Stack size
- 50
Hauling and farming it
Corewood weighs the same as regular Wood, stacks to 50 and is teleportable, so it goes through 
Portals freely. Once you have a 
Cultivator (
Bronze tier, at the Forge), plant 
Pine Cones to grow your own Pine trees near base. This is the best long-term supply.
Keep your surroundings tidy
Chop wild Pines deep in the forest so your base area stays natural, and clear deadfall logs and saplings first. Replant a Pine Cone for every tree you fell.
All 6 Core Wood Building Pieces
Core Wood unlocks exactly six Log structures, all built and repaired near a 
Workbench. There are no Core Wood walls, floors, doors or roofs. Core Wood is framing, not surface: you will always pair it with regular Wood walls and Thatch or Shingle roofs.
Log Structure Recipes
Log Structure Properties
| Durability (all pieces) | 400 HP |
| Support Type | Hardwood (10 to 140) |
| Vertical Stability Loss | 1/10 per meter |
| Horizontal Stability Loss | 1/6 per meter |
| Max Vertical Height | 24 meters |
| Weak To | Chop damage |
| Resistant To | Pierce damage |
| Immune To | Poison, Spirit damage |
Four of the six Log pieces (both Poles and both straight Beams) are damaged by rain. Left uncovered, they will decay to 50% durability and look rotten. The angled Log Beams (45 degrees and 26 degrees) are the exception and are NOT damaged by rain. If you are using Core Wood outdoors for docks, fences, or exposed framing, either cover the pieces with roofing or plan to repair them periodically.
Understanding Core Wood Stability
Hover a piece with the Hammer to see its stability color:
- Blue: grounded (touching terrain, a boulder or a tree).
- Green: healthy.
- Yellow: getting shaky.
- Orange: near the limit.
- Red: anything attached breaks instantly.
Why it climbs higher
Core Wood starts with more support (MaxSupport 140 versus 100) AND loses it more slowly upward (1/10 per meter versus 1/8). Together, those give the 24m ceiling.
Better spans too
Horizontally it loses 1/6 per meter versus Wood's 1/5. That makes Log Beams the best pre-Iron choice for dock supports, bridge frames and long roof trusses where you cannot add a middle support.
Building Material Stability Comparison
| Stat | Regular Wood | Core Wood (Hardwood) | Wood Iron |
|---|---|---|---|
| Max Support | 100 | 140 | 1500 |
| Vertical Loss | 1/8 per meter | 1/10 per meter | 1/13 per meter |
| Horizontal Loss | 1/5 per meter | 1/6 per meter | 1/13 per meter |
| Max Height | 16m | 24m | 50m |
| Rain Decay | Yes | Yes (angled beams: No) | No |
“Core Wood poles are the backbone of any serious build before Iron. If your structure is collapsing, the fix is almost always more Core Wood vertical supports, not more walls.
How to Use Core Wood: Practical Techniques
Treat Log structures as the skeleton: pillars, trusses and diagonal braces. Fill walls with regular Wood and roofs with Thatch.
Framing a multi-story building
- Place Log Pole 4m pieces at every corner and at regular intervals along the walls.
- Connect them with Log Beam 4m pieces to form a rigid frame at each floor.
- Fill the gaps with Wood Walls, Wood Floors and your roof of choice.
The result shows off exposed log framing and reaches heights regular Wood cannot.
Chimneys and lighting
Frame a rectangular roof opening with regular beams, then extend Log Poles above the roofline: the thick logs contrast nicely with thin planks. Short poles hanging from ceiling beams make good mounts for Hanging Braziers, giving a classic Viking hall look.
Docks
Drive Log Pole 4m pieces to the seabed, join them with Log Beams and lay Wood Floors on top. Hardwood's extra stability means fewer columns. Submerged Wood takes rain-style decay, so repair dock supports now and then.
Core Wood pieces have two snap points at the same height, one on the inside and one on the outside of the log. If you inconsistently use different snap points when attaching roof pieces, your roof will end up misaligned. The fix: snap your first roof piece to the Core Wood beam, then align all subsequent roof pieces to that "mother piece" and its children. Consistency is everything.
Building a Two-Story Core Wood Longhouse
- 1
Lay the Foundation
Level the ground with a
Hoe, then place Log Pole 4m pieces at every corner and every 4 meters along the walls. These should show blue (grounded). Do NOT bury them deep underground. As long as a piece shows blue, it is fully grounded. Burying half the pole wastes structural height for zero benefit. - 2
Frame the First Floor
Connect the tops of your ground-floor Log Poles with Log Beam 4m pieces running horizontally. These beams form the frame for your second floor. Fill in Wood Floor 2x2 pieces between the beams. Add Wood Walls between the poles to enclose the first story.
- 3
Raise the Second Story
Stack another set of Log Pole 4m pieces on top of the first-floor poles. At this point you are 8 meters up and your poles should still show green. Frame the second floor walls with Log Beams and fill with Wood Walls. For an authentic Viking hall look, leave the Core Wood framing exposed on the exterior.
- 4
Add the Roof
Place a Log Beam 4m as a ridge beam running along the center peak of your roof. Use Log Beam 45 degree or Log Beam 26 degree pieces as angled support braces. Then attach Thatch Roof pieces, snapping consistently to one "mother" roof piece to avoid misalignment. The 26 degree roof gives a shallower, wider look suited to longhouses, while 45 degree creates a steeper, more compact profile.
- 5
Add Interior Supports and Details
Place interior Log Pole 4m columns around your Hearth area to support the center of the roof. Extend short Log Poles downward from ceiling beams and attach Hanging Braziers for lighting. Add a Core Wood chimney frame above the hearth by extending poles through an opening in the roof, capped with roof cross pieces to keep rain out while letting smoke escape.
Most Log structures take rain damage and will decay to 50% durability if left uncovered. Always build your roof before completing the walls to protect your framing during construction. Repairing with a Hammer is free (no materials required, just stamina), but you need a Workbench nearby. For permanently exposed outdoor pieces, consider upgrading to Darkwood structures later. Darkwood uses Wood plus 
Tar and is immune to rain decay, though it has the same stability class as regular Wood, not Hardwood.
Advanced Core Wood Techniques
Curves and circular builds
Short beams angled in sequence (Log Beam 2m pieces with creative snapping) approximate curves that flat Wood Walls cannot: round towers, pagoda rooflines and spires. It takes practice but produces striking builds.
The tree trick
Raise the ground with a Hoe, plant a Pine Cone on top with the Cultivator, and build around the grown tree. Trees, including planted ones, count as ground, so anything touching the trunk is blue-grounded. It is a bit cheesy, but great for lighthouses and observation towers.
Iron hidden in logs
Place a Wood Iron Pole inside a Log Pole. The thick log hides the thin Iron completely, giving Iron-tier support (up to 50 meters) with a log cabin look. This needs Iron, so it comes after the Swamp.
Watch your instance count
Building everything from Core Wood pushes instance counts up faster than regular Wood, and beyond about 10,000 instances in the loaded area FPS drops. Use Regular Wood for bulk and Core Wood for the skeleton and accents.
The best builders mix all available materials for visual depth. Use Core Wood for the structural frame and visual accents, regular Wood for walls and floors, 
Stone for foundations and fireplaces (once you have Iron for the Stonecutter), and eventually Darkwood for rain-exposed sections. A building that uses four materials looks vastly more interesting than one made from a single type, and the mixed approach is also more structurally efficient.
Other Uses for Corewood
Corewood is a common crafting ingredient in the early and mid game:
Stagbreaker: your first area-of-effect weapon (20 Corewood).
Finewood Bow: a big ranged upgrade (10 Corewood).- Cultivator: farming and tree planting (5 Corewood).
Bronze Pickaxe and 
Iron Pickaxe: 3 Corewood each.- Sharp Stakes: a defensive structure.
- Bonfire (Swamp tier) and
Butcher's Table (Mountain tier).
Fuel and storage
A 
Charcoal Kiln turns spare Corewood into 
Coal for smelting. The Corewood Stack building piece stores and displays 50 Corewood as a tidy log pile.
Building Material Progression
Core Wood Building FAQ
Does burying Core Wood poles underground improve stability?
No. Any piece that shows blue in the stability indicator is fully grounded. Burying a Log Pole deeper underground wastes its structural height for no benefit. The buried portion counts against your 24m budget. Keep your foundations at ground level and build upward from there.
Can I build an entire house from Core Wood?
Not really. Core Wood only has poles and beams, with no walls, floors, doors, or roof pieces. You must combine it with regular Wood (or other materials) for surface coverage. Think of Core Wood as the skeleton and regular Wood as the skin.
Is Darkwood better than Core Wood for building?
It depends on what you need. Darkwood is immune to rain decay, making it excellent for exposed outdoor pieces. However, Darkwood has the same stability values as regular Wood (MaxSupport 100, not 140), so it does NOT build taller than normal Wood. For structural height, Core Wood is superior. For weather resistance, Darkwood wins. The ideal approach is to use both: Core Wood for the structural frame and Darkwood for rain-exposed accents.
How many stories can I build with Core Wood?
With a standard 4m floor-to-floor height, you can comfortably build 5 full stories plus a roof. By story 6, your pieces will be turning orange and you will struggle to attach roofing without things breaking. For practical purposes, plan for 5 stories maximum with Core Wood poles as your primary vertical support.
Can I use Core Wood for log cabin style horizontal walls?
Yes. Stacking Log Beam 4m pieces horizontally creates a convincing log cabin wall effect. Place vertical Log Poles at the corners first, then stack horizontal Log Beams between them. This is one of the most popular aesthetic uses for Core Wood, especially in Black Forest and Mountain biome builds.
Recent Updates
- Updated for Valheim 1.0: verified Corewood recipes and uses, and reorganised the guide for easier reading.