The Deep North introduces more than another metal tier. Its progression uses creature drops, physical moulds, unfinished casts, frost-processing stations, and special encounter items. Understanding what each resource does helps you decide what to bring home and what to prioritize when inventory space runs short.
This guide focuses on the materials and utility items that support exploration, crafting, and progression. Weapons and armor are covered in their dedicated guides.
The Main Deep North Crafting Chain
The central equipment progression begins with Bloodgold, but it does not end at the Blast Furnace.
First, obtain Petrified Tissue from the remains of Gammeltrolls using Ember Charges. Smelt that tissue into Bloodgold. Then use the correct mould and recipe materials to make an equipment cast, and harden that cast using the new frost-processing system.
This makes infrastructure an early priority. A collection of rare moulds is useful only when you can supply the materials and processing steps needed to turn them into equipment.
New Metal, Wood, and Processing Materials
| Material | How to obtain it | Main use |
|---|---|---|
| Petrified Tissue | Break apart petrified Gammeltroll remains with Ember Charges. | Smelt into Bloodgold. |
| Bloodgold | Process Petrified Tissue in a Blast Furnace. | Equipment, casts, and other advanced recipes. |
| Embers | Produced through the Eternal Pyre progression. | Ember Charges and other recipes. |
| Timberwood | Gather northern snow-covered branches and harvest relevant northern wooden resources. | Weapon casts, ammunition, construction, and crafting extensions. |
| Ice | Break ice resources and frozen remains. | Liquid Frost production, recipes, and certain crafted items. |
| Liquid Frost | Process Ice through a Frigid Kiln. | Harden equipment casts in a Frost Foundry. |
| Frostcore | Collect Frostcore deposits; the database also records Frysling drops. | Build the Frigid Kiln and Frost Foundry. |
| Frozen Branch | Defeat Barka. | Selected weapon recipes, including Spirit Caller materials. |
The metal and explosive chain, northern gathering sources, and creature drops are documented separately in the available references.
Priority recommendation: reserve your first 20 Frostcores for one Frigid Kiln and one Frost Foundry. Both buildings require ten, and together they unlock the processing needed for cast-based equipment.
New Creature Materials
Different enemies provide different parts of the crafting system. Farming only one creature will not supply a complete loadout.
| Material | Source | Why to keep it |
|---|---|---|
| Moose Hide | Moose | Armor and other equipment recipes. |
| Moose Sinew | Moose | Selected armor, cape, and utility recipes. |
| Moose Meat | Moose | New food recipes. |
| Seal Pelt | Seals | Ember Charges, equipment, and the Moose Saddle. |
| Seal Blubber | Seals | Food preparation. |
| Elaking Hair Bundle | Elakings | Vanguard armor materials. |
| Leather Straps | Krigen | Armor crafting. |
| Nornathread | Hexen | Magic equipment and other advanced recipes. |
| Long Claws | Eyeless Ones | Nord Knucklechains casts and Neckstabber. |
| Dead Pulp | Shapeless Pulp and Tiny Pulp | Pulp-based bomb crafting. |
| Writhan Roots | Writhan | Shield of Roots, Lox Fur Hood, and other recipes. |
These drops make mixed farming routes valuable: moose and seals support several equipment types, while Krigen and Hexen supply more specialized materials.
Do not assume every new resource is exclusive to the Deep North. Writhan Roots are associated with Writhan in the Swamp, making them part of the update’s additions to earlier progression.
Moulds and Casts: What Is the Difference?
A mould is the item-specific component used in a crafting recipe. A cast is an unfinished item that still needs hardening.
For example, crafting Cast: Nord Sword consumes its mould alongside Bloodgold and Timberwood. The result is not yet an equippable sword; it must go through the Frost Foundry.
Keep duplicate moulds organized by equipment type. For a group, the mould that looks redundant to one player may be the missing component for someone else’s build.
Essences and Progression Items
| Item | How to obtain it | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Frostfire Essence | Defeat Fallen Warriors at northern memorial encounters. | Frostfire weapons and certain magical recipes. |
| Thunderblood Essence | Defeat Fallen Warriors. | Thunderblood weapons and Lightning Strike. |
| Memorial Coal | Obtain from Krigen and relevant Mörkhalla objects. | Associated with memorial encounter progression. |
| Intricate Key | Make its cast using 5 Bloodgold and the matching mould, then harden it. | Access further dungeon progression. |
| Malicious Blood | Obtain from Black Ice Cores associated with Jotun invasions. | Final-boss summoning progression. |
| Sacrificial Blood | Defeat Kall Fimbulbringer. | An endgame progression drop. |
| Crown Jewel | Defeat Kall Fimbulbringer. | Craft the Crown of Valheim. |
These are not interchangeable resources. In particular, ordinary Coal is not a replacement for Memorial Coal, and a mould is not a finished Intricate Key.
Store unusual progression drops separately from routine materials so they are easy to find when a new objective requires them.
New Tools and Utility Items
Grappling Hook and Hook
The Grappling Hook is crafted at a Black Forge from 10 Yggdrasil Wood, 10 Refined Eitr, 4 Mandibles, and 1 Hook. The Hook itself is found in Dvergr treasure chests in the Mistlands.
This makes it an important preparation item rather than something to postpone until you are established in the north.
Snow Shovel
The Snow Shovel clears deep snow. Its recipe is associated with a level 3 Black Forge and uses Finewood, Flametal, and Embers among its listed requirements.
Prioritize access to it when you begin planning a permanent northern settlement.
Ember Charge
Craft 10 Ember Charges from 2 Seal Pelts and 1 Ember at a Workbench. Their role in breaking petrified remains makes them part of resource gathering, not simply an optional combat consumable.
Moose Saddle
The Moose Saddle uses 4 Bloodgold, 5 Seal Pelts, 5 Timberwood, and 15 Linen Thread. Moose can be tamed and ridden, making the saddle a utility investment once your immediate equipment needs are covered.
Salvaged Lantern
The Salvaged Lantern is obtained from the appropriate standing lantern objects in the Deep North rather than through a standard crafting recipe. It provides a reusable light source.
Neckstabber and Witch Crown
Both new trinkets are crafted at a Black Forge:
| Trinket | Materials |
|---|---|
| Neckstabber | 5 Bloodgold, 5 Long Claws, 1 Moose Trophy |
| Witch Crown | 5 Bloodgold, 5 Nornathread, 1 Hexen Trophy |
Neckstabber is the health-oriented option, while Witch Crown is the stamina-oriented one. Despite its name, Witch Crown is categorized as a trinket rather than ordinary helmet armor.
New Crops, Ingredients, and Food
The new food system includes Kale, Oats, and Poteitr. Kale is used in several prepared dishes, Oats can feed into flour and milk production, and Poteitr appears in recipes ranging from meat dishes to baked food.
The launch additions also include Lingonberries and Luminous Larva, alongside prepared foods such as Baked Poteitr, Cooked Moose Meat, Cooked Seal Blubber, Fish Soup, Kale Chips, Lingonberry Juice, Meat in Bread, Meatballs and Poteitr, Oat Milk, Oatmeal, Oven Pancake, Pancakes, Pulled Bear, Seal Meat Soup, Smoked Fish, and Smoked Moose Meat. Northern Morning Fare is the new feast.
Seasoning of the Gourd is a purchasable ingredient used for Northern Morning Fare. Keep it separate from ordinary gathered ingredients when planning feast supplies.
Our recommendation is to preserve enough of each new crop to support ongoing production rather than immediately converting your first harvest into food.
Idols, Trophies, and Valuables
Valheim 1.0 introduces Battle and Protection Idols associated with further equipment upgrades through the Forge of Potential. Treat these as a separate progression system rather than assuming that every item appearing in a recipe database belongs to the initial cast recipe.
New trophies include Barka, Elaking, Eyeless One, Frost Blob, Hexen, Krigen, Lava Blob, Moose, Pulp, Seal, and Writhan. The update also adds valuables such as Ancient Coin, Draumyx, Grimvarn, Solryth, and Veydris.
Keep your first copy of unfamiliar loot until you know whether your planned equipment uses it. Moose and Hexen Trophies, for example, are ingredients in the new trinket recipes rather than purely decorative rewards.
What Should You Farm First?
We recommend working backward from one immediate objective.
For your first weapon, prioritize its mould, Bloodgold, supporting materials, and the processing stations. For armor, identify which creature drops your chosen set uses. For a permanent base, reserve construction and workstation resources before crafting optional equipment.
That approach turns a crowded inventory into a clear progression plan.
