Valheim world modifiers & difficulty

When you create or edit a world you can pick a preset or set each modifier yourself. Here is exactly what every preset and setting changes, from the game’s own settings screen. Everything on MaxDPS assumes the Normal settings.

7 presets one click each
5 sliders 27 settings
5 toggles on or off
From the game files Valheim 1.0.21

Difficulty presets

A preset sets several modifiers at once; everything it does not mention stays Normal.

Casual

In casual mode combat is a lot easier, enemies will not attack you until provoked, and there are no raids on your base. Resources are more plentiful, and you will not drop items or lose skills on death.

Enemies do not attack until provoked
No raids
Resource drops ×1.5
Creatures take 125% damage
Creatures deal 50% damage
You keep what you are wearing and holding when you die
Death costs 0.8% of each skill
Every item can go through portals
Raids follow each player’s own progress
Creatures are 90% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big

Easy

Combat is easier and there are fewer raids on your base.

Creatures take 110% damage
Creatures deal 75% damage
Raid checks every 69 minutes at a 13.3% chance
Creatures are 95% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big

Reset to normal

The way Valheim is meant to be played, with the intended difficulty balance. Highly recommended for your first playthrough for the best experience.

Hard

Combat is harder and monsters will raid your base more often.

Creatures take 85% damage
Creatures deal 150% damage
Raid checks every 27.6 minutes at a 33.3% chance
Creatures are 110% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big
Star chance ×1.2

Hardcore

Combat is a lot harder and enemies will raid your base more often. When you die, all your skills and all the items you are carrying will be lost forever. You have no map and you may not use portals or exit boss dungeons while a boss is alive.

Creatures take 70% damage
Creatures deal 200% damage
Raid checks every 27.6 minutes at a 33.3% chance
Every skill resets to 0 when you die
Everything you carry is destroyed when you die
No map or minimap
Portals do not work during boss fights or in an active boss dungeon
Creatures are 120% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big
Star chance ×1.4

Immersive

In immersive mode you have no map, and you may not use portals. You will need to use your own wits to keep track of where you are in the world! Other difficulty settings are normal.

No map or minimap
Portals do not work
Wood can catch fire and fires spread outside the Ashlands too

Hammer Mode

In hammer mode you can build all build pieces for free once you have discovered the recipe. There are no raids on your base, and enemies will not attack you until provoked. Other difficulty settings are normal.

Building costs no materials
Enemies do not attack until provoked
No raids

Combat

Governs how much damage you give and take. Also governs how likely you are to encounter higher leveled enemies, and how dangerous they are.

Setting	What changes
Very Easy	Creatures take 125% damage Creatures deal 50% damage Creatures are 90% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big
Easy	Creatures take 110% damage Creatures deal 75% damage Creatures are 95% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big
Normal	Nothing: the normal game.
Hard	Creatures take 85% damage Creatures deal 150% damage Creatures are 110% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big Star chance ×1.2
Very Hard	Creatures take 70% damage Creatures deal 200% damage Creatures are 120% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big Star chance ×1.4

Death penalty

Governs what happens when you die.

Setting	What changes
Casual	You keep what you are wearing and holding when you die Death costs 0.8% of each skill “You do not drop equipped gear, and skills are reduced a lot less than on normal mode.”
Very Easy	Death costs 0.8% of each skill “You drop all items, and skills are reduced a lot less than on normal mode.”
Easy	Death costs 2.5% of each skill “You drop all items, and skills are reduced less than on normal mode.”
Normal	Nothing: the normal game. “You drop all items, and skills are reduced normally.”
Hard	When you die, everything you are not wearing is destroyed and your worn gear goes to the tombstone Death costs 7.5% of each skill “Equipped items are dropped, the rest of your inventory is lost permanently, and skills are reduced faster.”
Hardcore	Everything you carry is destroyed when you die Every skill resets to 0 when you die “You lose all carried items and skills permanently.”

Resource Rate

Governs the amount of resources you gain from the world and from enemies.

Setting	What changes
x 0.5	Resource drops ×0.5
x 0.75	Resource drops ×0.75
Normal	Nothing: the normal game.
x 1.5	Resource drops ×1.5
x 2	Resource drops ×2
x 3	Resource drops ×3

Raid Rate

Governs how often enemies may raid your base.

Setting	What changes
None	No raids
Much Less	Raid checks every 92 minutes at a 10% chance
Less	Raid checks every 69 minutes at a 13.3% chance
Normal	Nothing: the normal game.
More	Raid checks every 27.6 minutes at a 33.3% chance
Much More	Raid checks every 13.8 minutes at a 66.7% chance

Portals

Changes how portals work in the game.

Setting	What changes
Portal Items	Every item can go through portals “Allows you to bring all items with you through portals for a more casual playstyle. This will circumvent the progression and exploration of the world as it is intended.”
Normal	Nothing: the normal game.
No boss portals	Portals do not work during boss fights or in an active boss dungeon “You will not be able to use portals or exit boss dungeons while a boss is active.”
No portals	Portals do not work “You will not be able to use portals to teleport yourself across the world.”

Toggles

On or off, all off by default.

Toggle	What it does
No Build Cost	Building costs no materials“Build pieces require no materials to build. You still need to discover recipes as per usual.”
Player based raids	Raids follow each player’s own progress“Raids are based on the progress of each individual player, rather than on which bosses have been killed on the server. This setting is recommended if you want the game to be slightly friendlier to players with different progress.”
Fire Hazards	Wood can catch fire and fires spread outside the Ashlands too“Wood can catch fire and spread throughout the whole world, not just in the Ashlands.”
Passive enemies	Enemies do not attack until provoked“Enemies won't attack until you provoke them.”
No Map	No map or minimap“You will not have access to the map or the minimap. This makes the game harder than intended.”

Questions

Do world modifiers disable achievements?

Not when you pick them on the settings screen. Only values set through the console that the screen does not offer mark the world as cheated.

Can you change world modifiers on an existing world?

The host, or an admin on a dedicated server, can use the setworldpreset and setworldmodifier console commands.

What does Hardcore change in Valheim?

Creatures take 70% damage; Creatures deal 200% damage; Raid checks every 27.6 minutes at a 33.3% chance; Every skill resets to 0 when you die; Everything you carry is destroyed when you die; No map or minimap; Portals do not work during boss fights or in an active boss dungeon; Creatures are 120% as fast and, outside dungeons, as big; Star chance ×1.4.

What does the Raid Rate do?

It multiplies the time between raid checks and divides their chance by the same amount. None: No raids; Much Less: Raid checks every 92 minutes at a 10% chance; Less: Raid checks every 69 minutes at a 13.3% chance; Normal: normal; More: Raid checks every 27.6 minutes at a 33.3% chance; Much More: Raid checks every 13.8 minutes at a 66.7% chance.

What is Hammer Mode?

Building costs no materials; Enemies do not attack until provoked; No raids.

Presets, sliders and toggles are read from the world settings screen in the start scene of game build 26249040, keeping only the controls the game shows. Each effect restates the code that reads that world key (assembly 9f959c03…).