FAQ / Jotunheim Manual

Note: This guide will be updated after each major content update to account for relevant changes.

This is a community server, meaning that there are a lot of players and it will feel very different from playing in a solo world. Some changes have to be made to support the massive number of players that keeps growing.

This also means that the way of progression and getting resources is very different than in a solo game, so to get to what you need, you might need to interact with other players!

After you’re whitelisted, it’s also important that you switch on your notifications and read all of the recent posts in the #announcements and #aesir-whispers channels in Discord. There may be special rules or tweaks set for the current seed that you’ll want to be made aware of. For example we may currently be on a special seed, like a No Map Seed, Limited Portal Seed, or Temp Hardcore Seed, or we may have introduced changes to the code that affects the way you connect to the server.

A seed is the map that the server hosts for a designated time period. On Jotunheim, seeds are normally reset with the release of every major game update, such as a new biome or NPC. When this happens, everyone’s characters get reset and a new map is introduced.

It is not possible to bring over any items or skills from the previous seed into the new one. This is an exciting time that most players look forward to, because it means that they get to experience new game content and explore an entirely new world!

You can disappear for up to 30 days without notice and your base will be safe. After 30 days, if you have not played, your base can be deleted and the terrain around it reset. If the base is determined at Admin discretion to be valuable for some purpose, it may be saved with all resources and materials deleted, just left as an empty beautiful art piece.

If you know you will be gone for longer than 30 days, please let us know. We will keep a record of all players who have notified us of an extended absence, and will not wipe their base.

However, we can only hold a base for up to 90 days. Anything longer than that will require special permission that would only be granted for the most extreme circumstances. For any such situation where you expect to be gone longer than 30 days, please use the #support-tickets to create a ticket to inform the staff of all of your bases and when you expect to return. If you do not return as expected after the timeframe, your base will be forfeit.

The players on Jotunheim are very friendly and more than willing to help, so if you’re ever stuck, frustrated, can’t find any resources, or just looking for someone to hang out with, feel free to reach out. Here’s how:

In-Game

• Press Enter to open/close the chat.
• Type /s before your message in chat to “shout”, so everyone in-game can see what you are saying. This is very common, so don’t be shy.
• If you type normally, only the people close to you can see what you are saying.
• Press PageUp/PageDown with the chat open to scroll up/down.
• If you need help or have a question, don’t hesitate to shout out, there are always players that may help you with your issue.

Discord

• This server provides a lot of opportunities to be active when not in-game, and you can get all the information you need via the different channels.
• There are many different channels you can use, please make sure you are in the right one according to what you have to say.
• Regularly check our community and announcement channels for up to date info and announcements about the map or events.
• If you have an issue or need help that requires assistance from a mod or admin, please open a ticket in #support-tickets.
• There are voice channels too! Feel free to hop into any one of them and hang out with other community members!
• Special Note: This server is family-friendly, so please keep that in mind when chatting or posting anything in-game or on Discord. Staff will remove any posts that are deemed inappropriate.

Mobs are a real danger in a multiplayer server. As a new player, lurking outside at night is extremely dangerous, and often lethal. Find/build a shelter as soon as possible, and schedule your day properly. Go hunting, collecting resources in daytime, and craft or improve your base at night.

Night Spawns

• We’ve created a 2800m range Safe Zone around spawn where night spawns will not occur.
• Every time you progress through the game by killing a boss, it updates the kind of night spawns that will appear for your character.
• For example, when you kill The Elder, mobs from the Black Forest will spawn at night for you.
• This varies for each player, but you may still be in danger from another player’s night spawns if you are around them at the time.
• If you run into trouble, reach out to your fellow players as they are more than likely to help you out!

Tamed Animals

• It is completely against the rules to take any tamed animals without buying/trading them or getting permission. Report any wandering animals by opening a support ticket.
• If you tame an animal, keep them confined to an enclosed space at your base, and do not let them roam wild.
• If an admin/moderator finds a random tamed animal roaming around it will be killed without warning.

A Valheim world has a limited supply of resources. Because we share the same world that means we might sometimes have resource shortages (copper, tin, fine wood, etc.). This affects dungeons like burial chambers, crypts, and more too. This will be the biggest blocker in your progress. However, we have many systems in place to help with this:

• Remember, you are playing on a community server. We have a lot of helpful players who will help you out. Some will offer trade, and some will offer to guide you to a location where you can find resources naturally.
• The server admins regularly replace depleted resources, so don’t assume that because you’ve been somewhere once that it won’t ever have resources again.
• There is custom code in place to automatically (and at random intervals) restore dungeons, crypts, draugr villages, goblin camps, etc.
• Bees: Dvergr Villages in Meadows will sometimes hide beehives in their buildings, which will also respawn. The admins occasionally place them high up in trees as well.
• Trees and rocks: The admins have a tool to restore trees from stumps and partially mined rocks to their full form. If you fully mine a rock or destroy a tree stump, this tool won’t restore it.
• Mining: Depending on the ore, a big part of the deposit may be underground (like an iceberg), so dig carefully around it to reveal the whole node or vein.

Building on Resources

You cannot build on or block access to any of the following: Copper, Tin, Iron, Silver, Obsidian, Burial Chambers, Sunken Crypts, Draugr Villages, Fuling Camps, Troll Caves, Mountain Caves, Tar Pits, Dragon Eggs, Giant Bones, Giant Armor, and Giant Weapons, etc.

Regular rocks, trees, and Mistland Roots do not count towards this rule. Any base or wards that break this rule will be destroyed without notice and there will be no base materials left behind.

The only exception is if you are actively harvesting the resource yourself. However, you cannot block or hide a resource and then log off so you can harvest it later. If you’re ever unsure, just ask!

Sailing Guidelines

• All boats constructed by you can be broken down with the hammer — it’s encouraged that you do when you dock to prevent boat thefts.
• If a bridge is blocking a waterway, you may make it taller without permission from its owner. However you can’t just destroy it. If there is a ward blocking you, let the staff team know via #support-tickets.
• You are granted one free Karve, which you may claim from the dock at Spawn Island. If you lose this boat, you may NOT claim another one.
• On the server, boats have 1.2x health of what they do normally.
• You can destroy boats and carts with a hammer if nobody is standing on the ship or using the cart, and the containers inside are empty.

Server Portal Hub

• A place built by the staff that will take you to various directions around the map, important event areas, Trader NPCs, and Forsaken Power Stones.
• Access via the portal at Spawn Island or through one of the Waystations.
• To unlock waystation or NPC trader portals, you must travel to them in person first, then go through the server hub portal from that location.
• You have one free portal unlock each seed for an Inner or Middle ring waystation.
• To unlock boss power stone portals, you must defeat the boss first.

Waystations

• Portal stations at various cardinal directions around the map, connected to major islands and landmasses.
• Currently 20 waystations divided into Inner, Middle, and Outer rings.
• Portal Huts at each waystation offer quick access — each player or group may claim ONE portal hut at ONE waystation only.

Bosses

• Find the Forsaken Altars around the map to locate boss summon locations.
• If you are within 80m of a boss kill, you get credit for it. Otherwise, you don’t. This affects item drops and Haldor unlocks.
• Do not hang around bosses if you are not part of the fight. Claiming credit for a boss you weren’t a part of is against the rules.

Powers

• Unlike a normal game, sacrificial stones that grant powers are NOT at spawn.
• All sacrificial stones are hidden around the world. The first person who finds and mounts a trophy should submit a support ticket.
• The boss power stone can be accessed via its portal at the Server Portal Hub after defeating that boss.

Trader NPC Unlocks

• Progressing through the game by defeating bosses will occasionally unlock new items at the Haldor (Trader) store.
• Hildir offers miniquests to defeat various minibosses. When turning in a Hildir Chest as a group, all players must be within 20m of Hildir to get credit.
• It is against the rules to claim credit for a Hildir’s Quest turn-in when you were not part of it.

Coordinates

You can check your current coordinates by opening the console (F5) and typing pos. In Valheim there are 3 coordinates: X (latitude), Y (altitude), Z (longitude). The X=0 Z=0 point is the center of the map (spawn).

Request Support

To request support while in game, press F5 and type report. This will send staff your coordinates and include any message you attach. Once complete, open Discord and open a Support Ticket with the Report ID.

Dungeons/Crypts/Caves/Villages/etc. are crucial to the progression of the game for newer players. Do not build on, block off, or ward any of the above in any way. This includes large structures in the Mistlands.

Portals and other structures found on top of or within a ward’s distance (32m) of any of the above will be destroyed with or without notice and there will be no compensation. Repeat offenders will be banned.

All of the above mentioned things respawn automatically on this server at random intervals. When they are respawned, any player builds placed there will be destroyed and no resources will be left behind.

Abandoned Bases

If there is a base you believe to be abandoned, use #support-tickets to create a ticket with details, a screenshot of the base, and coordinates (press F5 and type pos).

You may not do anything to any abandoned base without first getting permission via a support ticket. Even if the owner has told you that you may have it, you must first reach out via a support ticket. Failure to follow this process may result in a ban.

Reserved Islands

If you see an island surrounded by giant ‘X’ building pieces all along the coast, do not go there. Turn around and go somewhere else. Entering the island, building on it, or taking resources without permission may result in a ban. You should also not place X’s around anything to mark your territory. These islands are blocked for community event purposes.

• Location: Meadows are the best place for a new player’s base. We recommend sailing to a different island as soon as possible — resources on inner islands are meager and the population is dense.
• Instances: Many players start experiencing performance decline at 10k instances, and it becomes unplayable beyond 15k. Check before you build and plan accordingly. Players may be asked to reduce their base instances if it’s causing lag.
• Lighting & Decorations: Items with particles, reflective surfaces, smoke, lights, and moving elements can reduce performance if overused. Be strategic when placing wisp torches, wards, fires, iron/copper cage walls, trees, and crops.
• Neighbors: Be considerate when building near others. Communicate with your neighbors about base limits and future plans. You can ward the area around your base, but you cannot ward after a player has already settled nearby.
• Trenches: Build on high ground and dig around so it looks natural rather than an unnatural ditch. Add walls for further protection.
• Walls: For maximum security, build a wall around your base on the inner side of your trench. Some mobs have projectile or AoE attacks.
• Aggro: Mobs mostly go for torches, crafting stations, wards. Stay out of sight and keep valuables behind walls. Some mobs are afraid of fire.
• Shoreline: Building at the shoreline means mobs can only attack from one direction, and you get quick boat access.
• Islands: Building on a small island or artificial island is another great option (though artificial islands need a lot of stone).

When editing signs, you may use special formatting codes to change their colors, sizes or symbols creatively. However:

• No sign should exceed the border or area of a base, and should not be offensive or disturbing.
• Any giant floating text that is significantly offset from a structure is not allowed. Text can be large, but should be attached to a structure you built.
• Signs and their text cannot interfere with the Viking theme of Valheim.
• Cannot block scenic views or the visibility of resources. Cannot be used as an exploit or to gain advantage.
• Cannot be used to mark the borders of a base (such as floating circles or painted circles on the ground).
• Creative uses of signs are allowed and can be integrated with builds, so long as they respect the theme of the game.

Special Note: If you are ever unsure about whether the way you want to use your sign is allowed, open a support ticket. All signs can undergo review by staff at any time.

On Jotunheim, we have a unique portal system that differs slightly from the base game to better cater to our large community.

Portal Types

• Private Portals: Yours alone. Nobody else can use them, even if they enter the same name tag. Each player has a limit of 10 private portals.
• Group Portals: Shared quota with your group, shared usage with your group. See Group Management section for details.
• Public Portals: Can connect to any other public portal and anyone can use them. Expensive to make (cost a queen drop) but no limit on quantity.

Additional Guidelines

• Each portal type has a separate resource cost and quota — you can have a mix of all of them.
• Portals have icons on the map that you can toggle on/off. Icons vary based on portal type and display the portal tag.
• Taking other players’ public portals without their permission is frowned upon. Always ask the owner first.
• Use unique tags like 432_farm or a few letters from your character name. Portal names are case-sensitive.
• Emergency portal: Build an extra portal at your base with a unique name that doesn’t connect anywhere. Carry materials to build another portal with you. If you’re ever stuck, build a new portal with that same name to return home.

When you play in a group, you can share portals with group members and build group wards. This is designed for a group of friends who wish to play together and share everything. It is not meant for large groups of players who don’t all know and trust each other. Warning: never join a group with anyone you don’t trust fully!

Important: Guilds cannot use the Group Manager.

Group Creation

• Place the Group Manager (Misc tab of the hammer, looks like Hildir’s Wagon). Materials are similar to a Portal.
• Once created, it cannot be moved or broken unless you disband the group. Choose its location wisely.
• Group name must be unique, visible to everyone, and can never be changed.
• Main action (E): Add a member (they must be nearby and accept the invite).
• Shift + E: Remove a member.
• Ctrl + E: View member list.

Adding/Removing Members

• Anyone in the group can remove or add anyone. There is no designated group leader.
• You can only join 1 group at a time. To leave, ‘remove a member’ and type your own name.
• If you leave or are removed, you lose access to any group portals you’ve built.
• Removing a player without good reason may be considered a rule violation.
• Group members can access each other’s Tombstones.

Disbanding

• If the last member is removed, the Group Manager breaks and the group is disbanded.
• All group portals will break, and their materials drop where the Group Manager was.
• Group wards will remain but be inaccessible. Break all group wards before disbanding. You can re-create a group with the same name to regain access.

Group Portals

• A group’s base portal amount is 0. You get 4 Group Portals per group member.
• Example: 2 members = 8 group portals, 5 members = 20 group portals.
• If you’ve maxed out portals, you cannot remove a group member until you reduce the portal count.
• Members can still build their own private portals separately.

Group Wards

• Two new ward types: 30m Radius (Group Ward) and 8m Radius (Small Group Ward).
• You must be in a group to create them. They automatically add every group member.

Group Discord Channels

• Any group of 10 or more can submit a support ticket to request a group forum.
• After 30 days of no activity the group forum will be deleted without notice.

Yes, you can share/use cartography tables you find — with the owner’s permission.

Players are responsible for their own progression. Touching other cartography tables is their own choice.

If you inadvertently touch a cartography table and want to remove the information, press F5 to open the console and type resetsharedmap. All marks and shared map exploration from a cartography table will be erased from your personal map.

In-Game Commands

• F2: Opens a window for map/connection data and who is online. Press Tab before F2 or Escape to get a cursor for scrolling the player list.
• F5: Opens the game console. Available commands:
  • help – displays info about available commands
  • die – kills yourself, use with caution
  • pos – get X/Y/Z coordinates
  • resetspawn – reset your spawn location
  • unbind / resetbinds / bind / printbinds – custom keybinding commands
  • showgizmo – enables/disables rotation direction visualization when placing objects with Vidar’s Hammer
  • portalcount – summary of your current portal state/limits

Discord Commands

• /my-spells – get a list of your Admin Shop Spell purchases (only visible to you)
• /price-check – search for an item’s price, includes quantity option and trade info (only visible to you)
• /link-socials – link your social accounts for event raffles

• Tombstones can only be looted by the person who died, or by someone in their group.
• All tombstones will automatically despawn after 30 days.
• Group members are able to access each other’s Tombstones.

The following resources respawn in the Ashlands (do not build too close to these):

• Putrid Hole
• Charred Fortress
• Flametal
• Ashland Mob Spawners
• Volture Nest
• Mysterious Locations
• Ashlands Boss Area

How to Earn Gold

Gold is the main currency for trade. You can get Gold from Burial Chambers, Troll Caves, Sunken Crypts, certain mobs (Troll, Fuling, Dvergr), and trading.

General Trading Guidelines

• If you have items you don’t need, sell them or barter them for something else.
• The Market is a server trading hub that allows players to book stalls for free.
• There is a regular Pop-Up Shop hosted by the staff team that will buy surplus resources. Stay tuned to #events in Discord.

Reminders

• Never throw items when trading or exchanging items in any way.
• Never open a chest when someone else is using it — this can cause items to disappear.
• Always use a cart or the trading chests at admin-run stores.

There is an official Server Pricelist pinned in the Discord trading channel and on the website. Use /price-check on Discord to search for prices.

We offer a wide variety of server quests, special challenges and treasure hunts at different levels of difficulty, every player can do them at any point.

Clues & Starting Points

• Quest Ruin at Spawn Island
• Challenges info board at Spawn Island
• Treasure Hunt Wagon at Spawn Island
• Some server builds also contain hidden treasure chests you can look for and claim!

Additional Info

• Quests are made with great effort and reward you by the experience. Most are made by staff, but players are welcome to create them too.
• Quests may be located across the whole map and are marked with an exclamation mark (!) if not obvious. Start at the Quest Ruin at Spawn.
• Please do not take or destroy anything at quest locations if you are not actively doing the quest. Sharing solutions is forbidden.
• You might need coordinates (F5 → pos) or a rune translator for some quests.

On the server you will find a variety of services offered by other players:

• Hotels & hostels for new players
• Building services
• Trading shops
• Shipping (sailing) services
• Combat & exploration assistance
• Fishing lessons
• Gravestone recovery assistance
• Guild services

Check the following Discord channels: #in-game-advertising, #trading, #hire-a-group

Staff-Run Events

• Flea Market: Our biggest event — players sell wares, play games, hunt for treasures. Unique seasonal themes every time!
• Server Shops: Pop-Up Shop, Market, Beehive, Serpent Hut, HaldOre Store.
• Games & Competitions: PvP, PvE, building, strategy or racing games such as Thor’s Chariot, The Great Hunt, Siege Siblings, The Arena.
• Home Tour: Usually takes place towards the end of the seed, showcasing the best builds.
• Mini Workshops: Building tips-and-tricks sessions on Discord Voice Chat.
• Ragnarok: End-of-the-world event at the end of a seed. Chaos and mayhem!
• Volur: A roleplay character that offers secrets no player will find anywhere else on the server.

Player-Run Events

• Players are welcome to propose and run their own events — boat races, tamed animal races, building competitions, hunts, PvP tournaments, and more!
• Suggest events in #suggestions on Discord. Admins may assist with materials or protection spells.
• Use #in-game-advertising to promote your event.

Social Media Events

Use /link-socials on Discord to link your accounts for raffle entries. One entry per account you follow!

These shops open on different days and times depending on staff availability, announced in #events on Discord and in-game. The accepted currency is Gold Coins and Ymir flesh only. You can exchange Coins to Ymir and vice-versa at Haldor the Trader (Ymir is worth 120 Gold).

• Aesir Shop: Unique spells and items — Unbreakable Oath, Vidar’s Hammer, renewable pickables, seasonal items.
• Pop-Up Shop: Buys predefined items and all Boss Trophies from players. Held regularly every second week. One player may sell items for one other player (support ticket required). Guild property cannot be sold here.
• Flea Market: Held at least once per seed. Features player stalls, carnival-style games with rare prizes, and unique themed builds.
• The Market: Public trading hub with stalls that players may book for free.
• The Beehive: Sells Queen Bees only. Opens randomly at spawn island.
• HaldOre Store: Raw ore in exchange for other items. Located at spawn island.
• Serpent Hut: Exchanges fish of all kinds and levels for tree seeds.
• The Queenbreaker Shop: Exchanges Sealbreakers for Seeker Soldier Trophies.

Important notes:

• Use /my-spells on Discord to get a list of your Admin Shop Spell purchases.
• Vidar’s Hammer cannot be purchased for another player using your own or group funds. It must be purchased with money earned by that player directly.
• You may not gift Admin Shop items, but you can designate someone to purchase it for you with your own money if you can’t attend an event.
• Aesir Shop items can be given as a reward for an approved event. Submit a support ticket to host/sponsor one. A viking must have been on the server for 30+ days to qualify.

We have a program that allows player-made public builds to be submitted for protection by Admin spells — becoming eternally-flamed and completely indestructible.

Examples: Bridges, Public Docks, Public Portal Hubs, Landmarks.

Conditions

• All builds are subject to staff approval. Contact the staff team with your idea before getting too far along.
• All builds must be for the greater improvement of the Jotunheim community.
• Staff may request changes before the build can be protected.
• Once approved and protected, it receives a sign declaring official approval. No further changes are allowed.
• When you submit a build for public use, you are responsible to maintain it, but it is no longer considered yours — it is now server infrastructure.

General Standards

• Overall design must be unique (a square box base won’t be accepted).
• Bridges must have proper clearance for longboats.
• Portal Hubs must link to general locations, not player homes.
• Builds should be connected to an official road if possible, with clear boundaries between public and private areas.

How to Submit

Open a #support-ticket with: Name of Project/Build, Location (coordinates), Description, and anything else to consider.

A building challenge for master builders. Completing it earns 16x snap angles on your Vidar’s Hammer and your name immortalized in The Hall of Stoosh!

Requirements

• Played on Jotunheim for at least two seeds.
• Member of the community for at least 6 months.
• Has claimed Vidar’s Hammer at least 2 times and claimed on the current seed.
• No rule issues within the last year.
• Has made a contribution to the server this seed in the form of one public building (approved by an admin).

How It Works

• Open a support ticket stating you’d like to take on the challenge. Provide a screenshot and POS of your approved public build.
• Only one player can undergo the challenge at a time.
• You must replicate a specific building at the challenge area.
• When finished, ping @Admin in your support ticket for review.
• You get two chances to pass. No hints are provided after a failed first inspection.
• If you fail twice, you must wait until the next seed to try again.
• Do not share any hints, screenshots, or information about the test area.

A ban is only reserved for clear violation of the rules, and no ban goes without a ‘thread’ of evidence including logs, screenshots and/or player testimonies.

• Stealing: Do not take anything that is not yours. We don’t like thieves, and we try our best to make sure you don’t end up being a victim.
• Unauthorized base take-over: Staff can check when someone last logged in and reach out to the owner. Always use a support ticket first.
• Cheating: Cheaters are blatantly obvious. We’ve been here long enough to know what a regular player looks like and what’s unusual.
• Griefing: We take griefing very seriously. We have tools like base roll-backs to help affected players.

Just follow the rules. If you are unsure or feel uncertain about a rule, open a ticket and discuss it with staff. We’re more than happy to explain how the rules work and the reasoning behind them.

Do NOT assume some rules are ‘irrelevant’ or ‘small time’. Everyone is welcome to discuss the rules, but until they are changed, follow them as they are.

Do not assume you will get away with breaking the rules because no one is watching. Many made this mistake and paid dearly for it. It may take time for us to catch offenders, but we eventually get them.

Everyone that is banned has the opportunity to make an appeal. Admins are not perfect, and sometimes we make mistakes.

What we expect from players during the appeal is to provide the reason behind their actions. Whatever the reason is, now would be a good time to speak up. We expect this conversation to remain civil and calm. If the reasons seem justified, we might consider lifting the ban.

The most common mistake people make during an appeal is lying. When offenders lie, we put forward the evidence, then they change their story. Lying on the appeal tells us the offender is being deceptive and we cannot trust they won’t re-offend. As the saying goes, ‘Lies are the shovel that digs your hole deeper.’