Skoll and Hati: Crafting, Stats & Dual-Wield Combat Guide

Skoll and Hati are the most divisive weapon in Valheim. They are the Mistlands knife, the first two-handed knife, and the only dual-wielded blades in the knife category. Named after the wolves who chase the Sun and Moon, they reward pure aggression with zero safety net.

You give up your shield entirely. In return you get the fastest, most fluid melee weapon of the Mistlands tier, with a 6x backstab multiplier that can delete enemies before they know you are there.

The honest take

Skoll and Hati are not the strongest, safest or most versatile weapon in their tier. They are the most fun. If you are bored of sword-and-shield or atgeir, they will change how you play. If you have run knives since the Meadows, this is the weapon you have been waiting for.

How to Craft Skoll and Hati

You need a Black Forge, the Mistlands crafting station that handles Mistlands and Ashlands gear. It costs 10 Black Marble, 10 Yggdrasil Wood and 5 Black Cores, with a Workbench nearby.

Surprisingly cheap

The recipe is just Finewood, Iron and Black Metal. No Carapace, no Refined Eitr, no rare Mistlands drops, so you can craft them the day your Black Forge goes up, using Plains and Swamp stockpiles.

Upgrades

Upgrades need only Iron and Black Metal, and each level costs more than the last: 4, then 8, then 12 of each. Craft plus all three upgrades comes to 4 Finewood, 34 Iron and 34 Black Metal. Quality 4 needs Black Forge level 4, which means adding the Black Forge Cooler, Vice and Metal Cutter.

Full Stats and Damage Breakdown

Every attack splits damage evenly between Slash and Pierce. Very few enemies resist both, so you almost always land at least neutral damage.

Primary combo

A rapid 3-hit combo that finishes in 1.72 seconds. The third hit deals double damage with 20% extra knockback. At quality 1 a full combo delivers 360 combined damage for 42 stamina, exceptional damage per stamina for a melee weapon.

Secondary leap

A forward leap of roughly 5 meters dealing 3x damage (270 at quality 1) for 42 stamina. It is both a gap closer and a burst tool. From stealth, the 6x backstab turns it into a theoretical 1,620-damage opener at base quality.

Blocking and Parrying: The Hidden Advantage

Skoll and Hati block far better than any one-handed knife. Their parry block armor is 96 at 0 skill against just 8 for the Black Metal Knife, a 12x improvement, and the 4x parry bonus rewards good timing.

What you can parry

With solid block skill and food you can parry most zero-star Mistlands enemies; players with 35+ block skill report parrying the majority of them. Block force is low, though, so sustained blocking gets you staggered. Parrying is viable; turtling is not.

Dodging is the real defense

At 0.3 weight there is no movement penalty, so you are the fastest melee fighter on the field. Land your combo, roll out before the counterattack and repeat. Light armor suits this: Carapace for defense, or Fenris for its speed bonus at a big armor cost.

Combat Techniques and Playstyle

You are not trading blows or face-tanking. You are an assassin who darts in, bursts, and is gone before the enemy can respond.

The core loop

1. Wait for the enemy to commit to an attack animation.
2. Dodge or sidestep it.
3. Land your 3-hit combo while it recovers.
4. Roll out and repeat.

Most Mistlands and Ashlands enemies have slow, telegraphed attacks. With swords you end up trading blows; with knives you get two or three hits in and roll out untouched.

Sneak attacks

The 6x backstab is double the 3x most weapons get. A quality 4 sneak leap deals 144 Slash and 144 Pierce, times six, for a theoretical 1,728 damage. In practice veterans report around 800 on a Lox from one sneak attack, then a few swipes to finish. Seekers, Gjall or wandering Fulings can die before the fight starts.

Using the leap well

The leap is also a repositioning tool: close on ranged enemies, jump through a pack, or catch a fleeing target. In extended fights it is underwhelming, since three primary swings cost the same 42 stamina and give comparable damage with more control.

Skoll and Hati vs Black Metal Knife: Is the Upgrade Worth It?

The Black Metal Knife is the Plains one-handed knife, and losing your shield hand looks like a downgrade. The numbers say otherwise: Skoll and Hati hit about 32% harder per swing, and the double-damage combo finisher widens the DPS gap further.

Parry closes the shield gap

The 12x parry armor gives the weapon real parry capability one-handed knives never had. If you already rely on dodge rolls, the switch is an upgrade in every stat.

Best Gear Pairings and Loadout

Pick armor that keeps you mobile. Carapace is the natural Mistlands pairing. Fenris, from the Mountain, adds a speed bonus that stacks with the knives' zero weight penalty, but you sacrifice a lot of armor.

Food

Run one health food and two stamina foods. You dodge constantly and each primary swing costs 14 stamina, so a deep stamina pool keeps combos going. Enough HP to survive a slipped dodge is the only other requirement.

Carry a crowd-control backup

The knives have no AoE. Keep an atgeir for its spin attack when you get surrounded, for example by a pack of Seekers in an Infested Mine corridor.

Skoll and Hati in the Ashlands and Beyond

There is no Ashlands knife, so you bring a Mistlands weapon to Ashlands content, and you feel it.

Ashlands

Enemies have far more health, so stamina per kill suffers. Your parry, fine against zero-star foes, struggles with one-star Asksvin and Charred Warriors, and your margin for dodge errors shrinks.

They still work for fast exploration and hit-and-run fights, especially with the light Ask armor and a high knife skill. Most players switch to the Berserkir Axes, the closest Ashlands equivalent: dual-wielded, much higher damage, though they use the Axes skill.

Deep North (1.0)

The knife line returns with the Nord Dagger, crafted at Black Forge level 4 from Bloodgold, Timberwood and a Mould: Nord Dagger. It is one-handed, so you get your shield back. The Frostfire Dagger and Thunderblood Dagger are infused versions made from a Nord Dagger.

Norse Mythology: The Wolves Behind the Name

In Norse myth, Skoll and Hati are wolves, sons of Fenrir, who chase Sol (the Sun) and Mani (the Moon) across the sky. The in-game description, "Stab once for those who've betrayed you, and twice for those you hate," nods to their names: Skoll means "Treachery" or "Mockery", and Hati means "He Who Hates".

It is one of Valheim's more thoughtful lore touches: a pair of blades tied to a pair of predators who hunt in concert, each chasing its own prey.