Valheim World modifiers and presets

Where to change them

World modifiers live on the world create / configure screen before you enter. On a dedicated server they are startup flags (-preset, -modifier, -setkey) or the host panel equivalents. You can also apply them from the F5 console on a world you control with setworldpreset and setworldmodifier — that is an admin change, not a silent client tweak. Changing a preset overwrites every slider, so set the preset first, then override one category if you must.

The five sliders:

• Combat — Very Easy through Very Hard. Scales how hard enemies hit, how much they take, and how often they level up. Hard is a veteran crew setting, not a loot buff.
• Death Penalty — Casual (keep equipped gear, tiny skill loss) through Hardcore (brutal loss; treat it as permadeath-grade). Most social servers land on Casual or Easy because default skill drain after a swamp run feels steep.
• Resources — Much Less through Most. Raises or cuts what trees, rocks, and drops give you. Building-focused worlds often pick More or Much More so the longhouse happens this month.
• Raids — None through Much More. Turns the event timer. Night events can still surprise you even when you wanted “no raids”; test before you AFK next to a portal hub.
• Portals — Default Valheim blocks metals and ores. Casual lets those stacks through. Harder portal settings restrict more, up to shutting portals down. If your wiki advice says “haul iron by longship,” that assumes default portal rules.

Presets and extra toggles

Presets in 1.0 include Normal, Casual, Easy, Hard, Hardcore, and Hammer. Casual bunches easier combat, kinder death, more resources, fewer raids, and relaxed portals. Hard / Hardcore swing the other way. Hammer is the creative bundle: think no-cost building energy, quiet raids, and a world that wants a longhouse more than a boss ladder. Hammer counts as a temporary cheat for achievements — keep a second survival seed if you still want the 53 1.0 badges.

Extras you can mix in:

• No Build Cost — pieces place without eating the stack. Screenshot servers love it. Survival clans should not enable it “just for the roof.”
• Player-Based Raids — events scale around who is online rather than punishing an empty hall as hard. Useful for staggered co-op.
• Passive Enemies — creatures stop hunting you. Fine for photography; pointless if you still wanted to learn parries.
• No Map — minimap and map UI go away. Navigate by coast and cairns. Do this on purpose with the whole players group, not as a prank.
• Fire Hazards — fire becomes a real base killer. Wooden palisades next to a pit fire are now a decision.

An Immersive-style bundle (no map, harsher travel) exists as a related preset in the same menu. Name it at the table so nobody assumes Normal.

Solo versus co-op

Solo on Normal is the intended Iron Gate curve: Eikthyr to Kall Fimbulbringer with metal boats and default portals. If you only have four hours a week, bump Resources up or Death Penalty down rather than spawning iron. The getting started guide assumes that kind of honest curve.

Co-op of 6–10 people often wants the opposite of what a streamer uses. More players already drain a forest. You might lower Resources so the Meadows is not stripped in a night, or raise them so ten builders are not fighting over copper. Player-Based Raids plus a slightly kinder Death Penalty keeps the session fun when someone joins after work and immediately meets a troll. Hardcore plus Very Hard combat is a specialist run; it is a terrible default for a mixed-skill Discord.

Creative building nights belong on Hammer or No Build Cost, ideally a throwaway seed. Then copy ideas onto the survival world by hand. The building guide is written for survival pieces; nocost is how you prototype stairs.

Dedicated servers should set modifiers in the host panel so they survive a reboot. Do not rely on one admin typing console commands after every crash. Document the preset in your Discord so a new admin does not setworldpreset normal and wipe Casual portals by accident.

Default metal-locked portals are part of the game’s pacing. Turning Casual portals on is a valid house rule, not a bug. Turning them on silently while half the clan still rows iron is how arguments start. Say the modifier names before you summon Eikthyr.

If a slider “does nothing,” you probably tried to set Portals back to a value the console ignores. Reset with setworldpreset normal (or your chosen preset) and re-apply the one change. Backup the world file first. Then go play: modifiers are a setup tool, not content. The content is still in biomes and bosses.