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- Bats have only 10 HP but resist Blunt, Slash and Pierce; Fire and Spirit deal 1.5x.
- Good picks:
Fire Arrows, 
Frostner or the 
Silver Sword (both carry Spirit damage), or an Atgeir spin for swarms. - In Frost Caves, fight with a wall behind you; the real killer is falling down a shaft.
- The "You stirred the cauldron" raid unlocks after Bonemass once any Bat has died, and it can hit any biome.
- Raid Bats fly over walls and do not despawn: seal doors, roof your animal pens and sweep the base afterwards.
What Makes Bats Dangerous in Valheim
On paper the Bat is a pushover. With 10 HP at zero stars it shares the title of weakest creature in the game with the Boar. In practice Bats are arguably the most annoying creature in Valheim, and annoying has a way of becoming deadly.
The problem is never one Bat. It is the combination of:
- Flight: they are small, fast and erratic, lunging from odd angles.
- Swarming: several take turns diving at you.
- Terrain: you meet them in dark, cramped Frost Cave shafts.
- Raids: they fly over your walls and go straight for your tamed animals.
The bite
Bats belong to the Mountain monsters faction and live only in Frost Caves and Howling Caverns. Their lunging bite deals Slash damage in a 1.5-meter, 60-degree arc on a 10-second cooldown. That sounds generous until four of them take turns while you balance on a ledge above a bottomless shaft.
Tiny Mountain cave flyer: resists physical damage, weak to Fire and Spirit
- Health
- 10
- Run speed
- 5
Bat Combat Stats
| Health (0-Star) | 10 |
| Health (1-Star) | 20 |
| Melee Damage (0-Star) | 20 Slash |
| Melee Damage (1-Star) | 30 Slash |
| Attack Range | 1.5 metres (60-degree arc) |
| Attack Cooldown | 10 seconds |
| Stagger Limit | 50% |
| Drop |  Leather Scraps (50%) |
Resistances and Weaknesses
Most weapons you carry into your first Frost Cave are the wrong type. Bats take half damage from Blunt, Slash and Pierce, so an 
Iron Mace or a plain bow works at 50%.
What works
- Fire (1.5x): Fire Arrows, if you can land them on small, fast targets.
- Spirit (1.5x): Frostner and the Silver Sword both carry Spirit damage, so part of every hit lands at full weakness.
What does nothing
Bats are immune to Frost and Poison, so Frostner's Frost portion and poison weapons are wasted. They also ignore Chop and Pickaxe damage.
In practice their low HP means one hit from most mid-game weapons kills a zero-star Bat even through the resistance. The hard part is landing it on a creature that moves like a caffeinated hummingbird in a pitch-black cave.
Damage Type Effectiveness Against Bats
| Stat | Weak (x1.5) | Neutral (x1) | Resistant (x0.5) | Immune (x0) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fire | 150% damage | - | - | - |
| Spirit | 150% damage | - | - | - |
| Lightning | - | 100% damage | - | - |
| Stagger | - | 100% damage | - | - |
| Blunt | - | - | 50% damage | - |
| Slash | - | - | 50% damage | - |
| Pierce | - | - | 50% damage | - |
| Frost | - | - | - | 0% damage |
| Poison | - | - | - | 0% damage |
Spirit-damage weapons for Bat hunting
| Stat | Frostner | Silver Sword |
|---|---|---|
| Blunt damage | 35 | - |
| Frost damage | 40 (+6 per level) | - |
| Spirit damage | 20 | 30 (+5 per level) |
| Block armor | 30 | 30 |
| Skill | Clubs | Swords |
| Attack stamina | 12 | 12 |
| Knockback | 100 | 40 |
| Backstab | 3x | 3x |
| Durability | 200 (+50 per level) | 200 (+50 per level) |
| Max quality | 4 | 4 |
| Movement speed | -5% | -5% |
| Weight | 2 | 1 |
| Slash damage | - | 75 (+6 per level) |
| Crafted at | Forge 3 | Forge 3 |
Frostner seems counterintuitive against a Mountain creature, since its Frost damage does nothing to Bats. Its Spirit damage still makes it one of the best melee options, and the Silver Sword's Spirit damage works the same way. When they swarm, pair either with an Atgeir spin to clip several at once.
Where to Find Bats
Bats spawn in two kinds of Mountain dungeon and nowhere else in the open world, unless a raid brings them to you.
Frost Caves
Frost Caves are the Bat's main home. Look for a spiky rock entrance with large blue icicles hanging from the mouth. Inside are natural passages and worked-stone Cultist lairs, holding Bats, 
Ulvs, 
Cultists and sometimes 
Stone Golems.
Bats lurk in the deep vertical shafts linking the cave levels. A Bat diving at you on a narrow ledge can flinch you off the edge, adding heavy fall damage to the bite. Veterans say gravity causes more Frost Cave deaths than any creature.
Frost Cave Bats are always zero-star one-time spawns. They never respawn, so clearing them is permanent.
Howling Caverns
Howling Caverns are miniboss dungeons in the Mountain, home to Geirrhafa; Hildir's map table shows where they are. Their Bats are always 1-star, with 20 HP and 30 Slash damage. Together with the Ulvs and 
Geirrhafa, that makes them noticeably harder than standard Frost Caves.
“More Viking deaths in Frost Caves are caused by gravity than by any creature's actual damage. The Bat's real weapon is not its bite. It is the dark shaft behind you that you forgot was there.
How to Fight Bats Effectively
- 1
Choose the right weapon
Fire Arrows are the best ranged option, hitting the 1.5x Fire weakness. For melee, Frostner and the Silver Sword both carry Spirit damage. Any Atgeir's spin attack is great for hitting several Bats at once in tight corridors, even at reduced damage.
- 2
Position yourself carefully
In Frost Caves, always fight Bats with your back against a solid wall, never near a ledge or shaft. The knockback from their lunging attack can push you off edges. Find a flat, enclosed area and let them come to you.
- 3
Wait for the lunge
Bats hover and circle before committing to their lunging bite. The lunge brings them within melee range and briefly locks them into a predictable path. Time your swing for that moment. With their 10 HP, one solid hit is all you need.
- 4
Use AoE against swarms
Against several Bats, area attacks shine: the Atgeir's secondary spin and two-handed sledge slams such as the
Iron Sledge can wipe out a cluster in one swing. During raids, a two-handed sledge is arguably the best tool for the job.
The Bat Raid: "You Stirred the Cauldron"
This is where Bats go from cave nuisance to a real threat to your base. "You stirred the cauldron" is one of the most uniquely dangerous raids in Valheim.
Unlock conditions
- You have defeated Bonemass.
- At least one Bat has been killed anywhere in your world.
Kill a single Bat in one Frost Cave and the raid is unlocked for good. It is a non-army event, so it can never leave your raid pool once active.
Why it is different
- Any biome: every other raid is biome-restricted, but Bats will find you in the Meadows, the Plains or the Mistlands. You only need to be within 40 meters of at least 3 base structures.
- Flight: the 120-second raid sends 10 zero-star Bats straight over walls, moats and spikes. They swoop through open doors and windows and often target tamed animals first.
- No despawn: surviving Bats stay after the event ends and keep attacking. Your
Boars, Chickens and 2-star Wolves are at risk long after the music stops, so sweep the base afterwards.
A common mistake is assuming the Bat raid is over when the event timer ends. Unlike other raids, surviving Bats do not despawn. They will linger around your base and continue attacking livestock. Always hunt down every last one after the raid message clears, or you might log in next session to find your entire Boar farm wiped out.
How to Protect Your Base from Bat Raids
Walls and moats are useless against flyers, so Bat defense works differently.
- Close all doors and windows. Bats cannot break doors or walls, so a sealed building is Bat-proof. Shut everything when the raid starts. Iron Bar windows block Bats while letting light in.
- Roof your animal pens. Despite the myth, roofed Boars still breed; the no-roof rule applies to crops, not animals. A barn with full walls and a roof is the single most important Bat defense.
- Use Bonfires as traps. Stand near one when Bats dive. They fly through the flames and take Fire damage, which they are weak to.
- Stand near
Windmills. After Moder unlocks the Artisan Table, Windmill blades chop diving Bats out of the air. - Keep a backup breeding pair. A sealed, roofed pen with two of your best animals (ideally 2-star Boars or Wolves) lets you rebuild if a raid wipes the main herd.
If you never want to deal with Bat raids, there is a nuclear option: never kill a Bat. The raid only becomes available after a Bat has died in your world. You can explore Frost Caves and simply avoid them. Some players even skip Bonemass entirely to prevent Bat, Wolf, and 
Drake raids from activating. This is a legitimate strategy if you are willing to forgo the 
Wishbone.
Are Bats Worth Farming?
No. Bats drop Leather Scraps 50% of the time, and by the Mountain you have been swimming in Leather Scraps from Boars and Muddy Scrap Piles for ages.
Leather Scraps appear in many recipes, from the 
Rag Tunic and 
Crude Bow up to the Silver Sword, 
Fang Spear and Fenris armor, plus the 
Raft, 
Tanning Rack and banners. Boars are a far more reliable source, so there is no reason to hunt Bats for them.
A cauldron raid yields a handful of Scraps from the 10 Bats, but the risk to your livestock makes it a net loss. Treat Bat raids as damage control, not a harvest.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can Bats break through walls or doors?
No. Bats cannot damage structures at all. A fully enclosed building with closed doors is completely Bat-proof. They can only enter through open doors and windows.
Do Bats respawn in Frost Caves?
No. Bats in Frost Caves and Howling Caverns are one-time spawns. Once killed, they do not come back. This makes it worth clearing them out completely on your first visit.
Can I prevent the Bat raid from ever activating?
Yes. The raid requires two conditions: defeating Bonemass and having at least one Bat die in your world. If you avoid killing Bats entirely, or if you skip 
Bonemass, the raid will never activate. Note that the Bat does not need to be killed by you. If any creature or environmental effect kills a Bat, it still counts.
Why do Bats keep attacking after the raid ends?
Unlike most raid creatures, Bats do not despawn when the event timer runs out. Any surviving Bats will remain in the world and continue to be aggressive. You need to manually hunt them down after the event.
Can I put a roof over my Boar pen?
Absolutely. This is one of the most common misconceptions in Valheim. The roof restriction applies to planted crops, not tamed animals. You can fully enclose Boars, Chickens, and Wolves in roofed barns and they will breed normally. Roofing your animal pens is the best defence against Bat and Drake raids.
Bats in Frost Caves often spawn in vertical shafts. Getting hit mid-jump or on a narrow ledge can send you falling to your death. Put solid ground and a wall behind you before engaging, and bring a 
Dverger Circlet or Torches so you can see them coming in the dark.
Bat Data
Exact values from the game files (version 1.0 (build 2026-09-17)).
Stats
| Health | 10 |
| Run speed | 5 |
Resistances & Weaknesses
- chopIgnore
- fireWeak
- bluntResistant
- frostImmune
- slashResistant
- pierceResistant
- poisonImmune
- spiritWeak
- pickaxeIgnore
Attacks
| Melee | 20 slash |
|---|
Base damage on Normal difficulty. 1-star creatures deal 1.5x and 2-star creatures 2x. Spells whose damage comes from a separate projectile are not listed.
Drops
Recent Updates
- Updated for Valheim 1.0: corrected weapon advice (the Silver Sword's Spirit damage works well on Bats), fixed item names, and reorganised the guide for easier reading.