Guide: Ships in Valheim

From the start, the water in Valheim becomes an insurmountable obstacle on the way to new lands. But this is precisely until you finally get a swimming device. In this guide, we tell you how to create your ship and how to control it.

What ships are there in Valheim?

Players can create three types of water transport:

• The Raft is the most straightforward ship. It is flimsy, not designed for long distances, and moves slowly.
• Karve is a good sailboat, which is almost twice as strong and faster than a raft and, at the same time, has slots for storing items.
• Drakkar (Longship) is the best ship in the game—very durable and fast, with 18 cargo slots.

How to create a ship in Valheim

How to create a raft

For construction, you need:

• hammer;
• a workbench installed on the shore of a reservoir;
• 20 pieces of wood (can be obtained by cutting trees);
• Six leather scraps (knocked out of the boars);
• Six units of resin (obtained for logging and liquidation of Graydworths).

To create a raft and any other ship, you need to:

1. Go to the "Construction" menu.
2. Select the "Other" tab.
3. Click on the required option.
4. Place the swimming device and confirm the action.

How to create a carve

For construction, you need:

• a hammer;
• a workbench installed on the shore of a reservoir;
• 30 units of high-quality wood (can be obtained by chopping oaks and birches with a bronze axe);
• Ten deer skins (knocked out of deer);
• 80 bronze nails (can be created in a forge);
• Twenty units of resin (obtained for logging and liquidation of Graydworths).

How to create a Drakkar

For construction, you need:

• hammer;
• a workbench installed on the shore of a reservoir;
• 40 units of high-quality wood (can be obtained by chopping oaks and birches with a bronze axe);
• Ten deer skins (knocked out of deer);
• 100 bronze nails (can be created in a forge);
• Forty units of ancient bark (obtained for logging trees in the swamp).

How to control a ship in Valheim

As with everything else in the game, you must figure out how to move on the water yourself. This is quite tricky because there are a lot of tricks and non-obvious points in this process.

Study the ship before you set sail. Each swimming facility has a ladder with which you can return to the board in an emergency. 

Remember where she is so as not to die during the journey. And if you are traveling as a passenger, then hold on to the mast during a storm (to do this, interact with it). Each ship has a ladder and a mast that the second player can hold onto.

You can control the ship using the steering wheel. It is always located in the back of your floating vehicle. Please note that you cannot use the steering wheel if you are overloaded.

The movement is controlled by the same WASD, taking into account the type of movement. The W and S buttons adjust the sails, and A and D — turn the ship.

When controlling the ship, you can see a sail icon under the minimap, indicating the movement type. There are five types of movement on the water:

• Rowing is a mode for cases when the wind is blowing in the wrong direction;
• Half sail - needed for maximum maneuverability (one press of W);
• Full sail — appropriate for when you have favorable winds (press W twice);
• Reverse gear is for extreme cases when you need to move as carefully as possible;
• No movement — necessary when you need to stop (press W or S until the corresponding symbol appears).