Valheim’s Long-Awaited “Ashlands” Biome Finally Enters Public Testing

Valheim developer Iron Gate Studio have been teasing the new Ashlands biome for a long time, since early 2023 at least, and lo and behold, it’s finally arrived! The Ashlands are a rather interesting mashup of spooky land of the dead and volcanic themes, with plenty of lava and twisted monstrosities to deal with. The pleasant scenery of earlier Valheim biomes has definitely been left far behind. You can check out a quick trailer for Ashlands, below.

Here's a quick rundown of some of the stuff included in the Valheim Ashlands update (ver. 0.218.9). Warning, some hardcore Valheim fans may consider some of these details SPOILERS…

New Biome – Ashlands

• Location: Ruins (multiple)
• Location: Redbeard Dvergr Outposts
• Location: Putrid Hole
• Location: Charred Fortress
• Event: “The undead army marches”
• Event: “The dead have been summoned”
• Lore: New stones
• Lore: New dreams
• Lore: New Munin dialogue
• New music
• New forsaken power
• Terrain changes for Ashlands (Ashlands cut off from other biomes, only accessible by sea)

New Mechanics

• Beware the skies! Cinders rain down in the Ashlands, causing damage to those who are unprotected
• Wooden build pieces can now catch fire in the Ashlands – and the fire spreads!
• A new world modifier that allows fire to spread outside of the Ashlands (part of the immersive preset)
• Deadly lava takes up large parts of the landscape; traverse it with your very own platforms
• Lay claim to Charred Fortresses with two new Siege Machines
• New plantable Ashvines will grow on the walls of your base
• Combine your Flametal weapons with gems (Bloodstone, Iolite & Jade) in order to upgrade them to magical weapons (giving them blood, storm and nature based effects respectively)
• The waters in and around the Ashlands are boiling hot, and only the sturdiest of ships can sail them

Creatures

• Enemy: Fallen Valkyrie
• Enemy: Charred Warrior
• Enemy: Charred Archer
• Enemy: Charred Warlock
• Enemy: Charred Twitcher
• Enemy Turret: Skugg
• Enemy: Morgen
• Enemy: Bonemaw Serpent
• Enemy/creature: Asksvin (tameable & rideable)
• Creature: Asksvin Calf
• Enemy: Volture
• Enemy: Lava Blob
• NPC/Enemy: Redbeard Dvergr
• Boss: Fader
• Miniboss: Lord Reto
• Spawner: Monument of Torment
• Spawner: Effigy of Malice

Of course, the Ashland update also includes a long list of new crafting materials, craftable items, build pieces and furniture, QoL improvements, and more. You can check out the full, unabridged patch notes here.

Valheim can be played on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. The Ashlands update is available now on public test servers, where it will likely stay for around a month before going live for everyone.

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