Iron

Iron is a metal resource used throughout Valheim for a wide range of late- and midgame crafting recipes. It is one of the most important materials in the game, since it is required for durable building pieces, essential workstations, and many weapons, tools, shields, and armor sets that remain relevant well past the Swamp tier.

Iron is normally obtained by smelting Scrap Iron in a Smelter, with each bar taking 30 seconds to produce. It can also be found in some special locations, including massive gates in Ice Caves and certain holes in the Ashlands. Like other metals, Iron cannot be teleported through portals unless a Portal stone is used.

A large amount of Iron is consumed across progression. One complete set of base Swamp-tier equipment, including armor, weapons, and tools, requires 297 Iron, and fully upgrading that set takes an additional 742 Iron, for a total of 1039 Iron. If every base equipment item across all biome tiers is crafted, the cost is 464 Iron, with another 909 Iron needed for full upgrades, for a total of 1373 Iron.

Iron is used in many crafting and construction recipes, including:

• Tools and weapons: Iron Pickaxe, Iron Axe, Battleaxe, Iron Mace, Iron Sledge, Iron Atgeir, Iron Sword, Huntsman Bow
• Armor and shields: Iron Helmet, Iron Scale Mail, Iron Greaves, Iron Buckler, Banded Shield, Iron Tower Shield, Serpent Scale Shield
• Late-game gear: Silver Knife, Silver Sword, Porcupine, Jotun Bane, Arbalest, Demolisher, Mistwalker, Skoll and Hati, Carapace Breastplate, Carapace Greaves, Eitr-weave Hood
• Crafting and utility items: Iron Nails, Ironhead Arrow, Iron Bolt, Mechanical spring, Horn of plenty
• Stations and structures: Reinforced Chest, Personal Chest, Iron Cooking Station, Forge Tool Rack, Food Preparation Table, Smith's Anvil, Tool Shelf, Stonecutter, Forge Cooler, Vice, Blast Furnace, Stone Oven, Hot Tub, darkwood gate, and multiple heavy iron building pieces and iron torch variants

Iron also appears in several heavy building parts and furniture pieces, such as iron grates, iron gates, and iron-beam structures, making it useful not only for equipment but also for base construction. Its weight is higher than that of Scrap iron, which is physically impossible in real life, but consistent with Valheim’s material handling.