Bows

Bows are extremely useful and the only ranged weapon in Valheim. It’s often much safer to engage enemies from a distance. You can also use upgraded arrows and bows to deal serious damage. Bows are two-handed and therefore you cannot use a shield with a bow.

You can first craft the Crude Bow during the Stone Age. You will always need Arrows to use a bow, but Wood Arrows can be crafted with nothing but Wood. Using a Crude Bow is the easiest way to hunt during the beginning of the game and most players never give up using bows.

Higher tier bows are crafted with rare woods and eventually metals. You can craft special arrows very early on as well. You will find great results with a high-level bow and some quality arrows.

Type of DamagePierce + Arrow Damage Type*
WieldingTwo-Handed
SkillBows

*Draugr Fang deals Poison damage in addition to Pierce damage.

Table of Bows

IconItem NameDamageCrafting StationCrafting Recipe
Crude BowPierce: 22Workbench8 Leather Scraps,
10 Wood
Finewood BowPierce: 32Workbench10 Core Wood,
2 Deer Hide,
10 Fine Wood
Huntsman BowPierce: 42Forge2 Deer Hide,
10 Feathers,
10 Fine Wood,
20 Iron
Draugr FangPierce: 47,
Poison: 5
Forge: L210 Ancient Bark
2 Deer Hide,
10 Guck,
20 Silver

Arrows

Check out the full page on Arrows for more detailed information. This table contains all the Arrows in Valheim:

IconItem Name
Wood Arrows
Flinthead Arrows
Fire Arrows
Bronzehead Arrows
Ironhead Arrows
Obsidian Arrows
Silver Arrows
Poison Arrows
Frost Arrows
Needle Arrows

Bows Skill

Bows is a skill in Valheim which improves your character’s effectiveness when using weapons in the bow family. Improving the bows skill will make you deal more damage with bows. Click to learn more about Skills.

Bows in Viking History

It’s said that every Norseman was an archer, skilled in the use of bows.

Boys would learn from a very early age how to use bows for hunting and that would carry with them throughout their life. When Vikings were summoned by a muster of arms, they were expected to bring a spear, an axe or sword, a shield, a bow, and a bundle of arrows.

Although Vikings generally fought as infantry in shield-based formations, there are numerous sagas and historical accounts describing Viking archery. Their shield walls were often abutted by troops hurling spears and loosing arrows. This tactic allowed Viking forces to dominate the battlefield with a deadly combination of protection and aggression.

We also know that Vikings made frequent use of archery during their sieges. Vikings were actually exceptional at siege-warfare, contrary to their hit-and-run depiction. One source describes a yearlong siege of Paris that started in 885, where the Viking forces repeatedly assaulted the Franks with siege towers and rained heavy arrow fire on the defending forces as they approached.

Updated on March 18, 2021

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