As in many survival games, success in Valheim depends on a player's ability to gather and use resources to ensure their basic needs are met and help them craft equipment and gear. In Valheim, players take the role of a Viking who is killed in battle but, rather than being sent to Valhalla, is instead sent to a sort of Norse purgatory, the tenth world, called Valheim. Players will need to ensure their character can survive and explore the expansive world, and, at first, they will need to craft and use crude tools. As the player's base grows into a working settlement, it is likely that stronger, more durable tools will be needed. For that, players will need to find Iron Ore.
While basic tools, like the Stone Axe and Antler Pickaxe are good for a little while, as players move farther from their base and into Valheim's wilderness, they will eventually need something stronger and with better stats. Players can search for Iron Ore, which can be smelted and used to make a series of Iron weapons and tools. Players will find Iron and Iron Ore in Sunken Crypts in the Swamp Biome, but it won't be easy to gather, as many enemies call that location home. Here's how to find more Iron in Valheim.
How to Find More Iron in Valheim
To find more Iron in Valheim, players will need to venture to the Sunken Crypts in the Swamp biomes. They will need a stronger pickaxe, usually the Bronze Pickaxe, to extract Iron Ore and Iron Scraps from stones. Players can also sometimes find Iron in Meteor Craters, but not every Meteor Crater will contain Iron, and most of the craters are guarded by Surtlings.
The Mountains have other valuable ore, like Silver, but it is not as reliable a place to find Iron. Players will have the best luck in the Crypts in the Swamp. They should focus on the swamps on their own island, as they will not be able to take Iron back with them through a portal.
Players will also need a Swamp Key to enter the Sunken Crypts. Swamp Keys are dropped by The Elder. The Elder is the second boss a player will likely encounter, so they will need to defeat this creature first before they set out to get Iron.
Once inside, the Sunken Crypts are heavily guarded, so players will need to prepare for a fight when they want to search for Iron. Players are likely to encounter Blobs, Draugr, and Spawners as they explore these dungeons. It is best to come prepared with weapons and gear and to avoid going to search for Iron until the player character has had a full night of rest and a large meal to ensure maximum health.
Iron is located in Muddy Scrap Piles in the Sunken Crypts. Players will need to destroy these Piles with their pickaxe to gather Scrap Iron and Iron Ore.
Players will need to make sure they have an upgraded Workbench and a Smelter and Forge to craft using Iron. They will need to use the Smelter to get Iron Bars and the Forge to use the Iron Bars to create their Iron tools and weapons, which include the Iron Pickaxe, Iron Axe, and Iron Sword. Because the Forge requires Charcoal, players will also need to invest in building the Charcoal Kiln.
Valheim is in Steam Early Access and is available for PC.