Before you start
- Black cores banked from Infested Mines, plus a marked root and giant skull.
- A Black metal axe, a sheltered level-2 forge, black metal and a physical shipping route.
- A defensible workshop site and a deliberate plan for the component crate before damaging any dvergr property.
Collect wood, marble and soft tissue in the right order
- Chop Yggdrasil shoots with the Black metal axe. Bring three Yggdrasil wood to a level-2 forge with twenty-five black metal to craft the Black metal pickaxe.
- Return to a marked giant skull, clear ticks and other nearby threats, then mine through the petrified skull to the soft tissue inside. The remains also provide black marble. Keep both materials; black marble is used in stations and the kitchen upgrade.
- Bring samples home to unlock recipes and store the load before doing another mining task. Take enough ordinary building supplies to repair the route, but do not turn the main portal area into an active excavation that draws every nearby enemy.
| Make | Materials per craft | Station |
|---|---|---|
| 1 × Black metal axe | 6 Fine wood + 20 Black metal + 5 Linen thread | Forge level 4 |
| 1 × Black metal pickaxe | 3 Yggdrasil wood + 25 Black metal | Forge level 2 |
Mechanics sources: Valheim Wiki: Black metal pickaxeValheim Wiki: Materials
Choose how to obtain the Dvergr extractor
A Dvergr extractor drops from a component crate in dvergr sites; there is no crafting substitute in this route. The first exploration policy remains useful: leave friendly camps intact until you have a plan. Direct player damage to a protected crate or ward can anger the nearby dvergr.
The lower-conflict opportunity is a crate or dropped extractor left after non-player enemies damage the site. Scout the aftermath from a safe distance, confirm surviving threats and collect only when the route is clear. Do not assume an abandoned-looking building contains a crate or that a hostile creature will break the right object.
If no such opportunity exists, a direct raid is the deliberate alternative. Prepare a separate retreat away from the main base, identify ranged rogues and mages, and engage manageable targets from cover before entering enclosed rooms. Treat a starred mage or several defenders as a reason to leave. Once the defenders are dealt with, break the component crate and recover the extractor. Mark that camp hostile rather than returning later as if it were friendly.
Do not base this progression on cart collision, loose-eitr or other indirect-damage tricks. Extractor acquisition is a genuine combat/logistics decision; if you cannot yet survive it, bank your mine loot and return after improving food and equipment.
Mechanics sources: Valheim Wiki: Dvergr component crateValheim Wiki: Dvergr (race)Valheim Wiki: Aggressive creature strategies
Ship the construction materials to a glowing root
The Dvergr extractor and black metal cannot pass through a normal wood portal in the default route. Move them by boat or land to the selected Ancient Root. Build a workbench, then attach a Sap extractor to the glowing root and protect the approach.
Collect sap periodically. A depleted root replenishes slowly; use another marked root while it recovers. Empty the extractor before dismantling it because stored sap does not drop when the structure is removed. Sap itself can portal home, so the workshop does not have to sit beside the root.
| Make | Materials per craft | Station |
|---|---|---|
| 1 × Sap extractor | 10 Yggdrasil wood + 5 Black metal + 1 Dvergr extractor | Hammer; within workbench range |
Mechanics sources: Valheim Wiki: Sap extractorValheim Wiki: Progression guideValheim Wiki: Sap
Budget the three stations before using the first cores
Fifteen cores let all three remain built. With only five, you can use the hammer to dismantle an emptied station and reuse the recovered construction materials for the next one; gather every other ingredient first. Produce and store refined eitr before replacing the refinery with the Galdr table, and rebuild the appropriate station whenever repairs are needed. Keeping all three is more convenient, not a hidden requirement for the first batch.
The Galdr table needs five refined eitr for its own construction, in addition to the eitr intended for items. Reserve that amount first. A Black forge alone does not remove the refinery dependency of carapace equipment.
| Station | Black cores | Role |
|---|---|---|
| Black forge | 5 | Melee armor, weapons and repairs. |
| Eitr refinery | 5 | Converts sap and soft tissue into the crafting material. |
| Galdr table | 5 | Uses the first refined eitr to unlock the Sealbreaker, cape and magic equipment. |
| Make | Materials per craft | Station |
|---|---|---|
| 1 × Black forge | 10 Black marble + 10 Yggdrasil wood + 5 Black core | Hammer; within workbench range |
| 1 × Eitr refinery | 20 Black marble + 5 Black metal + 10 Yggdrasil wood + 5 Black core + 3 Sap | Hammer; within workbench range |
| 1 × Refined eitr | 1 Sap + 1 Soft tissue | Eitr refinery |
| 1 × Galdr table | 20 Yggdrasil wood + 10 Black metal + 5 Black core + 5 Refined eitr | Hammer; within workbench range |
Mechanics sources: Valheim Wiki: Black forgeValheim Wiki: Eitr refineryValheim Wiki: Refined eitrValheim Wiki: Galdr table
Run the refinery away from the occupied base
- Place it on suitable flat ground with access to the front sap inlet, upper soft-tissue grinder and output. Keep beds, animals, storage and wooden crafting rooms away from its operating area.
- Add sap at the front and soft tissue at the top. Budget one of each per refined eitr rather than depending on a small fuel-timing remainder. Collect the output promptly: loose refined eitr also emits damaging sparks.
- If enclosing the refinery, use black marble or metal cage pieces that resist its elemental discharges. Ordinary stone and wood are vulnerable. Leave the equipment accessible without standing in the output stream.
- Store refined eitr in a chest, build the sheltered Galdr table and Black forge, and check that each is usable before crafting. Refined eitr is an inventory material; the eitr bar for spellcasting comes from food.
Mechanics sources: Valheim Wiki: Eitr refineryValheim Wiki: Refined eitrValheim Wiki: Galdr tableValheim Wiki: Black forge
You are ready when…
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Saved in this browserWhen something goes wrong
I cannot mine the skull.
Use the Black metal pickaxe, not the earlier iron pickaxe. Obtain Yggdrasil wood with the Black metal axe first and craft at forge level 2.
The refinery is destroying nearby structures.
Collect loose eitr and stop loading it. Move operation away from vulnerable structures or rebuild its enclosure in black marble/metal cage pieces; ordinary stone is not adequate containment.
The Galdr table recipe is missing.
Pick up refined eitr yourself and check all construction ingredients, including its separate five-eitr and five-core allocation.
Sources & checks
- Valheim Wiki: Black metal pickaxe
Forge level 2 and materials; mining black marble and soft tissue.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Dvergr component crate
Component-crate extractor drop, player-damage hostility and non-player damage distinction.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Dvergr (race)
Dvergr neutrality and hostility from player damage to nearby inhabitants or protected property.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Aggressive creature strategies
Combat-roll response to attached ticks; soldier rear weak point and risks from direct dvergr combat.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Sap extractor
Root placement, workbench and material requirements, sap depletion and empty-before-dismantling behavior.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Eitr refinery
Construction cost, input locations, discharge hazards, suitable containment and approximate fuel ratio.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Refined eitr
Sap/soft tissue inputs, crafting role, wood-portal permission and damaging loose sparks.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Black forge
Construction, shelter, repair and Black forge cooler requirements.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Galdr table
Construction, shelter, repair and Sealbreaker/magic crafting roles.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Materials
Soft tissue in giant skulls and Yggdrasil wood as Mistlands resources.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Progression guide
Dvergr extractor wood-portal restriction and physical shipping requirement.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- Valheim Wiki: Sap
Sap is obtained from roots and can use a normal wood portal.
Community reference · Checked . Substantive indexed page text and relevant tables inspected on 8 September UTC; direct Fandom access was blocked. Research-based guidance, not gameplay, combat testing or installed-build verification.
- SteamDB: Valheim 1.0 patch notes (build 25185596)
Announced changes to mist clearing, gear durability, Bear and Ashlands encounters, base-piece tags, rare drops, menus, pockets and trinkets.
Community reference · Checked . Build-indexed record of the official 1.0 update notes, published via Steam Community and tied to build 25185596. Confirms only the stated changes; no new numeric values, recipes or tag list is inferred.