The new survival game Valheim is a success on Steam. One of the reasons for this are the tricky boss fights that help you progress in the game. However, the bosses are not just any strong enemies; there is more to it.
What are bosses? Valheim is full of dangerous creatures and enemies that want to take you down. The most dangerous opponents are the bosses, which await you in each of the available biomes:
- Eikthyr, the Thunderdeer in the Meadows
- The Ancient in the Black Forest
- The Bone Mass in the Swamp
- Moder in the Mountains
- Yagluth in the Plains
These opponents represent key points on your journey through Valheim and are also one of the reasons why the game is currently so well received on Steam. They guide you through the world and serve as keys.
In our Boss Guide for Valheim, we also explain how you can find and defeat the bosses.
A long hunt – A great result
How do I find bosses? Your first boss, the deer Eikthyr, will already be marked on the map at the start of the game. At your trophy circle, you will find a Vegvisir, a Nordic compass that reveals the position.
It works similarly with other bosses, but the corresponding Vegvisir is not so easy to find. For the second boss, the Ancient, you first need to find a corresponding rune stone in the Black Forest or his summoning place directly.
Once you have located a boss, you cannot just kill him right away. You must first offer a sacrifice to summon him. This usually involves creatures associated with him on the map or his “offspring” that you must kill to anger the boss.
A hunt precedes the fight against a boss in Valheim
This is why the kill is so satisfying: Killing a boss is like a hunt that you need to prepare well for:
- First, you prepare by crafting strong equipment
- Then you should strengthen yourself, for example with a good meal or even effects from home-brewed mead
- To find the boss, you need to look for tracks
- Finally, you need to find a “bait” to lure him
All this feels like playing through a chapter of the story to prepare for the finale: the boss fight. It stands at the end of a section and also opens a new chapter after its demise, which you can then play through again until the next boss.
The fights themselves are somewhat reminiscent of Dark Souls. The bosses have special abilities that they use against you, which you need to learn to defeat them – in case of doubt, by dying to them. Multiple times.
Boses can hit pretty hard and each one is stronger than the previous. Especially solo, they can be quite tricky.
However, with a little trickery and technique, even the hardest boss can be defeated, and all your hours of preparation are rewarded with another step forward in Valheim.
Boses mark your progress
How important bosses are: Boses mark points in the story where you can progress. Each boss allows you to explore new areas or process new materials. At the beginning, these include:
- Eikthyr, through which you learn the first pickaxe and can mine copper and tin – you can find them in the second biome, the Black Forest
- The Ancient, who “hands over” the key to the Swamp. With the key, you can open crypts in the Swamp where you find iron
- The metals represent the next tier of armor and weapons, but they are also used to build new components and crafting stations
This allows you to explore the vast world of Valheim further and face tougher opponents. Additionally, the bosses provide you with trophies upon their demise, which you can hang up and from which you can receive buffs. Eikthyr, for example, allows you to run longer and jump easier, while the Ancient increases your lumberjack speed.
You don’t just play Valheim aimlessly and “just do stuff” like often happens in survival games. Instead, you have a red thread to follow in order to progress. The bosses create a guideline with fixed points, while you can freely design the path to those points.
By the way, bosses are not the only special beings in Valheim. The gods themselves are apparently wandering around. A player believes he has seen the thunder god Thor in Valheim.
