Source-reviewed guide
Valheim Progression Roadmap: What to Do in Order
A full Valheim progression roadmap tying together biomes, bosses, and crafting stations — what unlocks what, in order.
Reviewed 2026-09-17
Valheim's progression is really three tracks moving together: biomes, bosses, and crafting stations. Beating a boss usually unlocks the station or item that lets you survive the next biome, which unlocks the next boss. This page is the map connecting all three — see the world guide and boss guide for the depth on each stop.
The full sequence
| Stage | Biome | Boss | Key unlock |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meadows | Eikthyr | Antler Pickaxe (mining) |
| 2 | Black Forest | The Elder | Swamp Key |
| 3 | Swamp | Bonemass | Wishbone (find Silver) |
| 4 | Mountain | Moder | Dragon Tears → Artisan Table |
| 5 | Plains | Yagluth | Black Metal, elemental resistance |
| 6 | Mistlands | The Queen | Eitr, Majestic Carapace |
| 7 | Ashlands | Fader | Flametal, Stone Portal |
| 8 | Deep North | Kall Fimbulbringer | Frost Foundry and Frigid Kiln named; full unlock chain not published |
Crafting stations alongside biome progress
The biome/boss ladder above is only half the picture — most of what makes each biome survivable comes from a crafting station built well before you get there.
Workbench is the very first station, and almost everything else needs to be built within its range. Once you've mined your first Copper and made Coal, a Forge unlocks Bronze-tier gear — the baseline for surviving Black Forest. A Stonecutter, unlocked with your first Iron from Swamp crypts, opens stone building, which is far more durable than wood. A Smelter and Charcoal Kiln round out the early metalworking chain — ore in, bars out, wood in, coal out.
The Workbench and Forge both have their own upgrade paths — a Chopping Block, Tanning Rack, Adze, and Tool Shelf upgrade the Workbench; the Forge has its own upgrade chain (Anvil, Forge Cooler, Bellows, Grinding Wheel, Smith's Anvil, Forge Toolrack). Each step unlocks higher-tier recipes without building a second station from scratch.
The next real gate is Moder. Her drop, Dragon Tears, builds the Artisan Table, which unlocks the following sub-stations: the Spinning Wheel (Flax → Linen Thread, for Padded Armor), the Windmill (Barley → Flour, for Bread and pies), and the Blast Furnace (smelts Black Metal Scrap into bars, and later Flametal Ore once you reach Ashlands). Black Metal from the Blast Furnace is a hard prerequisite for the Mistlands-tier stations that follow.
In Mistlands, Black Cores from Infested Mines unlock further stations: the Black Forge (Carapace armor, the Mistwalker sword), the Eitr Refinery (turns Sap and Softtissue into Refined Eitr), and the Galdr Table (magic gear and staves, which also needs Refined Eitr from the Refinery). The practical build order is Moder → Artisan Table → Blast Furnace → farm Black Metal and reach Mistlands → Black Forge / Eitr Refinery → Galdr Table.
The ore problem
Standard wood portals can't carry raw ore, metal bars, or a handful of special items like Dragon Eggs — only refined, crafted goods pass through. This shapes a lot of early-to-mid-game planning: rather than hauling ore back to a main base, most players smelt on-site near the ore source and transport the finished bars by boat, or build a small forward camp with its own Workbench right at the deposit. Ashlands finally breaks this rule with the Stone Portal, built at a Stonecutter, which can carry ore and metal.
A rough order of operations
- Build a Workbench and basic shelter in Meadows, then clear nearby Greydwarf nests and summon Eikthyr.
- Push into Black Forest for Copper and Tin, build a Forge, gear up in Bronze, and take down The Elder for the Swamp Key.
- Clear Sunken Crypts in the Swamp for Iron, build a Stonecutter, and fight Bonemass for the Wishbone.
- Head into Mountain with Frost Resistance, mine Silver using the Wishbone, and beat Moder — then build the Artisan Table and Blast Furnace immediately, since everything downstream needs Black Metal.
- Farm Black Metal from Plains Fulings, gear up in Padded Armor, and take on Yagluth with Fire Resistance Mead ready.
- Push into Mistlands for Black Cores, build the Black Forge/Eitr Refinery/Galdr Table chain, and fight The Queen in the Infested Citadel.
- Cross into Ashlands on a Drakkar, mine Flametal, build a Stone Portal to stop hauling ore by boat, and take on Fader.
Deep North progression
Deep North is live in Valheim 1.0. Iron Gate lists Frost Foundry, Frigid Kiln, Standing Loom, and updated Fader Relic functionality, but does not supply their complete unlock sequence. Use the Deep North guide and patch notes.
Sources: Official 1.0 patch notes, September 11 hotfix, 1.0 FAQ, Workbench — Valheim Wiki (Fandom), Artisan Table — Valheim Wiki (Fandom), Portal — Valheim Wiki (Fandom), Blast Furnace Guide — Game8.