Progressing in Valheim means clearing a variety of biomes, each featuring unique enemies and challenges, and that's where weapons become essential. As you unlock resources from new biomes, you'll also gain access to new weapon types to craft. However, not every weapon is worth making. Some are incredibly useful, while others are simply outclassed by better alternatives.
In this tier list, I'll rank the best to worst weapons to use in each biome, from the Meadows all the way to the Ashlands.
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Valheim Weapon Tier List For Each Biome
In this tier list guide, the weapons are ranked based on what is available in each biome. For example, when starting the game in the Meadows, you only have access to a small selection of weapon types, and those are the weapons that will be ranked for that stage of progression.
As you advance through the biomes, this guide will help you determine which weapons are worth crafting and using in each area.
- S Tier: The best weapons to use in a specific biome. These weapons make dealing with unique biome enemies much easier by exploiting their weaknesses. A must-craft list.
- A Tier: Excellent options that perform well in a variety of situations within a specific biome. However, they are not quite as powerful or efficient as the weapons in S Tier.
- B Tier: Decent weapons that can get the job done, but are clearly outclassed by higher-tier options.
- C Tier: Trash. Unless you particularly enjoy the weapon's playstyle or design, there's little reason to craft or use it.
Note that some weapons from previous biomes may also appear in later biome rankings. This is because certain weapons remain effective against specific enemies even as you progress through the game, making them worth mentioning despite not being the newest options available.
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Valheim Weapon Tier List For Meadows
Starting out in the Meadows, the best weapons to craft are the Club and Flint Spear. Both of these work wonders against Greylings and Boars. The Wood Shield is also a great piece of equipment to craft if you prefer a tankier playstyle.
The Crude Bow, while not very good, is necessary for hunting Deer to obtain Deer Hide, Deer Meat, and Deer Trophies. However, once you unlock the next bow option, just throw it away to the open seas, never touch it again.
The Stagbreaker is one of the best weapons for progressing from the Meadows into the Black Forest. It does require Corewood, which can be obtained by dismantling small campfire structures found throughout the Meadows.
Keep in mind that from this tier onward, all types of axes will be placed in the C Tier because they are generally poor weapons. However, you will still need to craft them for chopping trees. Because of that, it's always worth crafting each new axe variant as you progress through the game.
Valheim Weapon Tier List For Black Forest
Once you enter the Black Forest and reach the Bronze Age, the best weapons to craft are the Bronze Atgeir, Bronze Buckler, and Finewood Bow.
The Atgeir is a beginner-friendly weapon, especially because of its spinning attack, which can help you deal with groups of Greydwarfs or Skeletons.
The Finewood Bow should be crafted as soon as possible. It is significantly better than the Crude Bow.
The Bronze Buckler is also a great investment that will help prepare you for the Swamp biome. You can pair it with either the Bronze Sword or Bronze Mace, both of which are solid weapon choices.
Valheim Weapon Tier List For Swamp
Once you reach the Iron Age in the Swamp, the first weapon you should craft is the Iron Mace. Blunt weapons are the best choice in the Swamp, as nearly every enemy is weak to blunt damage, including the biome's boss, Bonemass.
The Huntsman Bow is also a great weapon for this stage of the game. However, the Finewood Bow remains a viable option and is more than capable of providing ranged support if you primarily play as a melee fighter.
The Battleaxe, while it looks incredibly cool and deals heavy damage, suffers from significant knockback. This often pushes enemies out of range, making it harder to follow up with parry attacks. That's why it ranks slightly below the S Tier options.
Valheim Weapon Tier List For Mountain
The Silver Age introduces one of the best weapons in the entire game: Frostner. This blunt weapon not only deals solid damage but also comes with a powerful slowing effect. You'll need to find a Trader first to purchase one of its required ingredients, but trust me, Frostner is a must-have weapon.
The Draugr Fang is also arguably the best bow in the game. This bow is a must-craft thanks to its additional poison damage. In the Mountain biome, having a strong bow is essential for taking down Drakes and farming their materials.
Both the Silver Sword and Iron Sword perform well against Wolves and Fenrirs. However, blunt weapons remain the best choice overall for tackling the Mountain biome.
Valheim Weapon Tier List For Plains
Frostner and Draugr Fang continue to reign as some of the best weapons to use in the Plains biome. However, the introduction of Black Metal also brings several powerful new options.
Porcupine is arguably the second-best weapon after Frostner. Its combination of blunt and pierce damage makes it especially effective against Lox and other tough enemies.
The Black Metal Atgeir and Black Metal Battleaxe also perform exceptionally well in the Plains, especially when you're being swarmed by a group of Fulings. Their annoying laughter will be their last laugh before you take them down with these weapons.
Valheim Weapon Tier List For Mistland
When you reach the Mistlands, a wide variety of new weapons become available, including powerful magic weapons. This is the point where many players struggle and eventually stop playing. However, with the right weapons, progressing through the Mistlands becomes much more manageable.
The best weapon of them all is the Staff of Protection. At least one person in your party should have this equipped. Its protective bubble is a game-changer, absorbing incoming damage up to a certain threshold. With dangerous enemies like two-star Seeker Soldiers roaming the biome, that extra layer of protection is invaluable.
For the first time, a sword earns a spot in the S Tier. Mistwalker is incredibly useful in the Mistlands thanks to its ability to help clear the fog. Combined with the Carapace Buckler or Carapace Shield, this weapon can help you overcome the challenges of this treacherous biome.
Both the Staff of Frost and Staff of Embers are also excellent weapons to craft and use in the Mistlands. They provide the slowing effects and area-of-effect damage desperately needed to deal with swarms of Seekers and Ticks.
The Arbalest, while capable of dealing heavy damage, suffers from a very slow reload speed. With Seekers constantly chasing and pressuring you, it can be difficult to use the weapon effectively in combat. That's why the Draugr Fang remains the better and more reliable ranged option for most players.
Valheim Weapon Tier List For Ashlands
Now comes the hardest, most chaotic, and deadliest biome in the game: the Ashlands. The enemies here are ruthless, and they often attack in large groups.
The Staff of Protection remains one of the best weapons to use thanks to its protective shield. For offensive magic, the Staff of the Wild is the top choice. With groups of Charred enemies constantly harassing you, the massive roots it summons can be incredibly helpful for crowd control and damage.
The Flametal Mace and Splitnir are also excellent weapons in the Ashlands, especially when infused with the Lightning enchantment. The chain lightning effect is invaluable when dealing with the biome's overwhelming hordes of enemies. That's also why the Berserkir Axes rank so highly, as they can trigger chain lightning very quickly.
The Flametal Shield is a must-have for tank-focused players. The Flametal Tower Shield is also a viable option, but giving up the ability to parry often isn't worth it when you can benefit from powerful parry bonuses instead.
That said, all of the A Tier weapons in the Ashlands tier list are still excellent choices and can perform very well depending on your playstyle. The Silver Sword is a perfect example. Despite being a weapon from an earlier biome, its Spirit damage remains extremely effective because all Charred enemies are weak to that damage type.
That's it for this Valheim weapon tier list covering every biome! Hopefully, this guide helps you decide which weapons are worth crafting as you progress into new biomes.
This tier list will be updated when the Deep North biome arrives with Valheim 1.0 on September 9, so be sure to check back for the latest rankings and recommendations. Stay tuned!
