The players of Valheim consistently come up with cool ideas to creatively implement the possibilities of the survival game. Some of these players build functioning sundials that are actually quite useful.
How does the sundial work? A sundial shows the time based on the position of the sun. It works by placing a gnomon in the right position that casts its shadow on a dial.
In Valheim, many players have already presented their versions of a homemade sundial. This works because the sun actually moves there.
Here’s how to build the clock: You only need wood to build a sundial and the basic recipes from your workbench. The construction is already possible very early in the game and is relatively simple, and you do not need any mods:
- stand so that you are facing north (“up” on the map)
- if you want to calculate north yourself, wait until the sun rises
- the sun rises in the east – position yourself so that it is exactly to your right
- now build a beam that points directly away from you – that now indicates north
- build two more beams at right angles in each direction as well as some diagonal beams upwards
- fill the area in front of you with wooden pieces and border it with more beams – this will be your dial
- the left end of the dial indicates about 9:00 AM, the right end about 4:00 PM
- the exact middle indicates 12:00 PM
- between these times, you can place additional beams for display. The closer you get to the center, the closer they need to stand to each other
The sun rises in Valheim between about 8:00 and 9:00 AM and sets around 4:00 PM. Your dial can thus indicate about these times. If you want to make it easier, you can also build the sundial for free with admin commands. This short clip from reddit user HipHopHuman shows how it looks in action:
Video of a sundial in action. from r/valheim
The reddit user ScrapEngineering created a variation with a wall-mounted gnomon that works just the same – at least as long as the wall is facing south. Otherwise, it blocks the sun’s rays. These sundials are not only stylish but also really useful.
Displaying time in Valheim and making the most of the day
This is how you measure time in Valheim: You can accurately calculate how long you have been in the game with the clocks – and do so without tabbing out of Valheim or having to look at a “real” clock.
Just look at the hours. According to the Valheim wiki, a day in Valheim lasts about 21 minutes, with a night lasting another nine minutes. So it takes exactly 30 minutes from one sunrise to the next. You can even build the clock in a circle to display night hours as well:
According to reddit user Ruhart, there are three minutes between each hour in the game. This gives you seven hours of day and three hours of night in the game. It’s useful to know when you want to calculate how much daylight you have left.
What else is the clock useful for? A glance at the sundial tells you how far the day has progressed toward evening. This allows you to estimate quite accurately when night will fall.
This is important because at night you receive the “Cold” debuff. This decreases your stamina and health regeneration if you do not keep warm. Therefore, once the day is nearing its end, you should go to bed before starting larger projects. This way, you preserve more of your stamina.
If you want to make the most of your time, you should also pay attention to your diet. With the right food, you can gain a big bonus to your health and stamina points and even to regeneration in Valheim. In our guide, you can find out what the best food in Valheim is and how to make it.
