Best Valheim Boats: Mastering The Seas

Valheim is a vast, procedurally generated purgatory inspired by Viking culture. As such, sea travel is an integral part of the game. There are four boats available in the game: the Raft, the Karve, the Longship, and the Trailer Ship.

The Raft is the simplest and most basic boat, serving as a temporary vessel for fishing or for decorative purposes. The Karve is the first real ship that players can craft, offering improved speed, durability, and four inventory slots. However, the Longship is considered the best boat in the game. It is the fastest and most durable ship with the largest storage capacity, making it ideal for large-scale explorations and transporting large amounts of resources.

Raft: Basic vessel, wooden base, small sail, piloted by rudder

The Raft is the first boat you can craft in Valheim. It is a basic vessel with a wooden base and a small sail. You can pilot the raft using the rudder, which is located at the back of the boat. The raft also has a ladder at the back, which you can use to climb back on board if you fall into the water.

The raft is simple to craft and only requires materials that can be found in the Meadow: wood, resin, and leather scraps. To build the raft, you need to have access to a workbench. You can use the hammer's building menu to select the raft and then place it into the water.

The raft is slow and not very durable, so it is best suited for small rivers and waters close to land. It is not recommended for travelling on the open ocean, as it cannot withstand attacks from enemies or serpents. However, it can be useful for fishing or for decorative purposes in water-heavy village builds.

The raft is controlled using the W, S, A, and D keys. These keys allow you to move forward, backward, left, and right, respectively. The speed of the raft can be adjusted using the W key, which controls the sails. The raft has three speed settings: propelled by the player, half mast, and full mast. The direction of the wind can impact the speed of the raft, and it may not move at all if the wind is blowing in the opposite direction.

Overall, the raft is a basic and simple boat that can be useful in certain situations, but it is not the best option for long-distance travel or exploring the open ocean.

Karve: Faster than raft, four inventory slots, made from bronze nails and fine wood

The Karve is the first "real" ship that players can craft in Valheim. It is faster than the raft in all speed settings and can carry up to four stacks of items in its four inventory slots. This makes it a good option for medium and large-scale exploration, as well as for transporting a small number of people.

To craft the Karve, players will need access to the Black Forest to obtain Bronze Nails and Fine Wood. They will also need to have defeated the first boss, Eikthyr, to gather the necessary materials.

The full list of crafting materials for the Karve includes:

• 30 Fine Wood (from Birch Trees)
• 10 Deer Hide
• 20 Resin
• 80 Bronze Nails (made from Bronze, which is a combination of Tin and Copper)

With these materials, players can build a workbench near a body of water and use their hammer to select and place the Karve into the water.

The Karve is a significant upgrade from the Raft and is a good choice for players who need to explore farther areas, transport items that can't be teleported, or simply want a more durable boat.

Longship: Largest vessel, most cargo room, durable, made from iron nails, deer hide, fine wood, ancient bark

The Longship is the largest vessel in Valheim, boasting the most cargo room with 18 slots. It is also the fastest boat, reaching speeds of over nine meters per second with a tailwind. Its durability is twice that of the Karve, with a durability of 1,000. The Longship is made from 100 iron nails, 10 deer hide, 40 fine wood, and 40 ancient bark.

To craft the Longship, players will need to have progressed far in the game to obtain the necessary resources. The iron nails and ancient bark can be found in the Swamp biome, while the fine wood can be obtained from Birch and Oak trees in the Meadows biome.

The Longship is ideal for hunting serpents in the ocean biome or for escaping them. It is also perfect for ore transportation, as it can carry a large number of items. Additionally, the Longship has more space for passengers, with one pilot seat and four additional seats.

The Longship is the ultimate mode of transport in Valheim, offering speed, durability, and ample storage space. Its size and power make it a formidable vessel for exploration and resource gathering in the game.

Drakkar: Reinforced hull, large cargo hold, made from iron nails, fine wood, Yggdrasil wood, ceramic plates

The Drakkar is the biggest and best boat in Valheim, introduced as part of the same update that launched the Ashlands Biome.

To craft the Drakkar, you'll need a fair amount of iron nails and fine wood, which you should have plenty of by the time you reach this stage of the game. You'll also need Yggdrasil wood from the Mistlands Biome, and you'll need to convert black marble into ceramic plates at an artisan table.

The Drakkar has a reinforced hull that can withstand the heat of the boiling oceans surrounding the Ashlands, making it the only boat capable of withstanding the conditions in this biome. It also has a large cargo hold with 32 inventory spaces, which is the same amount as your inventory.

The Drakkar is much larger than any other boat in the game, but it can still get stuck in some spots. If this happens, you'll need to get out and push it, or swim in front of it so the wind will push it along.

The Drakkar is the ideal vessel for exploring the Ashlands, and with its large cargo hold, it's perfect for transporting large amounts of resources.

Trader Ship: Unusable, appears in trailer, same size and features as longship

The Trader Ship in Valheim is a large boat that appears in the game's trailer. However, it is currently unusable and can only be obtained through commands. As of March 7, 2021, the Trader Ship cannot sail and serves only as a storage and decoration piece. It is speculated to be an earlier version of the longship or a leftover from the game files. The Trader Ship is the same size as the longship and has similar features, but it cannot be sailed or destroyed.

The Trader Ship has no ability to sail and can only be spawned with all textures for decoration purposes. It is an artifact in the game, left over from its use in the trailer. Once spawned, it cannot be moved or deleted, becoming a permanent fixture in the world.

The Trader Ship is similar in size and features to the Longship, Valheim's largest and fastest boat. The Longship has a striped sail and unique wood-carved details, including a serpent-like head and a wooden spiral representing a serpent's tail. It has superior durability, storage space, and passenger capacity compared to other vessels.

While the Trader Ship is not usable for sailing, the Longship is an excellent choice for players seeking speed, storage, and durability. It is the ideal vessel for hunting serpents or escaping danger in the ocean biome. With its impressive capabilities, the Longship is a powerful mode of transport in the vast world of Valheim.

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