As Valheim rockets past two million sales in two weeks, new players will undoubtedly be looking for the quickest ways to level their characters. The game boasts a skill system similar to the one seen in The Elder Scrolls franchise. In short, every time you attempt a skill, you gain experience. While this system tends to lend itself to a nice natural progression during your playthrough, it can be exploited for hasty experience gain. The basic method to cheesing your experience gain in Valheim is to find a rock and beat on it with your preferred weapon, but there are a few tweaks you can make to optimize your time and raise your skill even faster.

What You’ll Need

  • A weapon (club, axe, or bronze sword)
  • A shelter (must be granting “Shelter” status effect)
  • A fire or heat source (must be granting “Warm” status effect)
  • A rock
  • A workbench or forge

The basic setup is simple: build a fire near a rock with a shelter over both of them. You want to build the fire close enough to the rock so that you gain the “Warm” status effect without constantly hitting the fire or taking damage. When combined with the “Shelter” status effect, you will gain “Rested.” This will provide a significant stamina increase which in turn will allow you to dish out more strikes and gain more experience. Once your weapon breaks, head to your workbench or forge (if you’re using metal weapons), and repair it.

NOTE: Valheim will only grant the “Shelter” status to a structure using a designated roof tile (e.g., the thatch roof pieces). You cannot use a floor as an impromptu roof.

What is Nice to Have

  • Medium stamina mead
  • Strong food (lox meat, sausages, and cooked meat)
  • Eikthyr’s Forsaken Power

While you can do it with less, these additional items add a lot of utility to your grind. The food and the stamina mead allow you to get more hits in before getting fatigued. Also, Eikthyr’s power allows you to move around should you have to leave the spot. This is important if you are playing in a group and have other tasks to attend to. To obtain stronger food such as lox meat or sausages, you will need to learn how to build a boat as these items can only be found in the Plains and Swamp regions.

Other Valheim Guides

  • How to Get a Pickaxe
  • How to Make a Boat
  • All Console Commands and Cheats