Updated November 7, 2026. Applies to Valheim 1.0, patch 1.0.21. Health, damage and cooldown numbers come from the community Valheim Wiki. We checked Iron Gate's patch notes on Steam up to patch 1.0.21. None of the 1.0.x patch notes posted on Steam mention Eikthyr. The completion rates are Steam's own global achievement data, pulled on November 7, 2026.
Eikthyr is the first Forsaken and the boss of the Meadows. He's the fight that teaches you blocking, dodging and stamina. He's also the normal gate to the rest of the game, because his antlers make your first pickaxe and the pickaxe is how you mine metal.
He's easy once you know his three attacks. Only 11.6% of Valheim players on Steam have unlocked the "Eikthyr" achievement. Achievements were only added in 1.0, so that counts kills since launch, not every Viking who beat him in Early Access.
This guide covers where his altar is, how to summon him, every attack with its cooldown, the best gear you can make before the fight, and what he drops.
Quick answer: Eikthyr is summoned by placing 2 Deer Trophies on his Mystical altar in the Meadows. Deer drop a trophy 50% of the time. He has 500 HP, no resistances and is immune to stagger, so any weapon works. All three of his attacks can be blocked with a Wood Shield. Eat Cooked Deer Meat, Cooked Boar Meat and Honey, get the Rested buff, and hit him between attacks. He always drops his trophy and 3 Hard Antlers. One antler makes the Antler Pickaxe, which lets you mine copper and tin.
Where is Eikthyr in Valheim?
Eikthyr's summoning place is a Mystical altar in the Meadows. The wiki's Forsaken Altars table lists 3 Eikthyr altars per world, all within 1,000 m of the world center. You spawn at the center, so his altar is never far away.
How do you find Eikthyr's altar? The game shows you. A small glowing runestone at the Sacrificial Stones, where you start, is a Vegvisir. Read it and it marks the nearest Eikthyr altar on your map. The altar is a ring of large mossy rocks with a flat offering stone in the middle. The runestone next to it reads "HUNT HIS KIN", which is your hint for the summon.
Another Meadows runestone warns you about him in advance: "Fear the Horned One and the creatures he will send against you." Those creatures are his raid, covered below.
How do you summon Eikthyr?
Place 2 Deer Trophies on the offering stone at his altar. That's the whole summon. You can repeat it as many times as you like, as long as you bring 2 more trophies.
| Step | What you need | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Deer Trophies | 2 | Deer in the Meadows, 50% drop chance |
| 2. Altar | 1 Mystical altar | Meadows, 3 per world, within 1,000 m of the center |
| 3. Summon | Offer both trophies | The flat stone in the middle of the ring |
Deer are skittish and run as soon as they see or hear you. Three tips make hunting them faster:
- Crouch. Sneaking makes you harder to notice, so you can get much closer before they bolt.
- Use a bow. A Crude Bow costs 10 Wood and 8 Leather Scraps at the Workbench and deals 22 Pierce. A normal deer has only 10 HP, so one or two arrows kill it.
- Expect about 4 deer. At 50% per kill, two trophies take four deer on average. Patch 1.0.20 says "Trophy drop chance is now increased by star level of monsters", so a starred deer is more likely to drop one.
Keep the extra trophies. The Stagbreaker, a strong early sledgehammer, needs 5 Deer Trophies to craft. One also goes into the Mead Horn of Odin, a DLC horn for drinking mead.
What are Eikthyr's stats and weaknesses?
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Health | 500 |
| Weak | None |
| Resistant | None |
| Immune | Stagger |
| Summon | 2 Deer Trophies |
| Drops | Eikthyr Trophy, 3 Hard Antlers |
Does Eikthyr have a weakness? No. The wiki's boss strategies page says he "has no resistances to any damage type, so the player can use their preferred weapon." Spirit damage is listed as neutral too. Pick whatever weapon you've leveled.
He can't be staggered, though. Blocking and parrying protect you, but you won't get the big stunned window that most enemies give you after a parry.
What are all of Eikthyr's attacks?
Eikthyr has three attacks. He also brings a dark aura with him that blots out the sun and stops rain. The cooldowns below come from the wiki.
| Attack | Damage | Cooldown | When he uses it | Can you block it? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Antler | 20 Pierce (plus 1,000 Chop and Pickaxe) | 5 s | You're within 4 m | Yes |
| Charge | 15 Lightning, 20 m beam, 45° fan | 25 s | You're within 15 m | Yes |
| Stomp | 15 Lightning, 10 m radius | 40 s | You're within 6 m | Yes |
Antler is a quick swipe with a 4.5 m reach that hits a narrow 25° arc in front of him. It's his most common attack because it has the shortest cooldown. The 1,000 Chop and Pickaxe damage only matter to trees, rocks and your buildings, so don't summon him next to your base.
Charge is a lightning beam that fans out in front of him for 20 m and applies the Lightning status. It's the attack that catches archers, because he uses it from 15 m away. The big rocks around the altar block it if you put one between you and him.
Stomp is a lightning ring around him with a 10 m radius. He only uses it when you're within 6 m. It has the longest cooldown, so once you see it you've got a long gap before the next one.
All three can be blocked. The wiki says plainly: "All of Eikthyr's attacks can be blocked with a Wood Shield."
What is the best gear for Eikthyr?
You fight Eikthyr with whatever the Meadows give you. That's the point of the fight. Here's what's worth making first:
| Slot | Best option before Eikthyr | Cost (Workbench level 1) |
|---|---|---|
| Shield | Wood Shield (6 block armor) | 10 Wood, 4 Resin, 4 Leather Scraps |
| Ranged | Crude Bow (22 Pierce) | 10 Wood, 8 Leather Scraps |
| Melee | Flint Spear (20 Pierce) or Flint Axe | 5 Wood, 10 Flint, 2 Leather Scraps (spear) |
| Armour | Leather set | Needs Workbench level 2 |
| Arrows | Wood Arrows (22 Pierce), or Flinthead Arrows (27 Pierce, Workbench level 2) if you have feathers | 8 Wood per craft (Wood Arrows) |
Which weapon is best for Eikthyr? He has no resistances, so the best weapon is the one with your highest skill. Melee with a shield is the most reliable for new players. A bow is the safest if you can aim.
What food should you eat for Eikthyr?
Eat the three best Meadows foods you can find. Food is your health and stamina pool in Valheim, so this matters more than your weapon.
| Food | Health | Stamina | Duration |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cooked Deer Meat | 35 | 12 | 20 min |
| Cooked Boar Meat | 30 | 10 | 20 min |
| Grilled Neck Tail | 25 | 8 | 20 min |
| Honey | 8 | 35 | 15 min |
| Mushroom | 15 | 15 | 15 min |
| Raspberries | 7 | 20 | 10 min |
A good mix is Cooked Deer Meat + Cooked Boar Meat + Honey. That gives you two health foods and one big stamina food, which you'll want for blocking and dodging. Our Valheim food tier list lists the best combos for every later biome.
Get Rested. Sitting by a campfire under a roof gives you the Rested buff, which makes your stamina refill faster. The wiki puts the base duration at 7 minutes plus 1 minute per comfort level. Sleep or sit in your base, then walk to the altar.
How do you beat Eikthyr?
Eikthyr is a test of the basics. The wiki says you can bring him down "in under three minutes" by hitting him between attacks. Here are two ways to do it.
Melee with a shield
- Equip a shield and a one-handed weapon. A Flint Axe, Flint Spear or Club all work.
- Block his Antler swipe, then land one or two hits before he swings again. His swipe has a 5-second cooldown, which gives you a steady rhythm.
- Back off or block when he stomps. You'll see the windup. Blocking keeps you safe, but it costs stamina.
- Watch your stamina bar. Running out of stamina while blocking leaves you open. Step back, let it refill, then go in again.
Timing a block right as an attack lands is a parry. The Call to Arms update (0.221.4) says "Perfect Block no longer cost stamina", which makes good timing worth practising here. Eikthyr can't be staggered, though, so you don't get a free hit window after it.
Ranged with a bow
- Bring a full stack of 100 arrows. You'll miss some while moving. Wood Arrows are fine. Flinthead Arrows hit harder (27 Pierce) and need feathers. Each Wood Arrow craft makes 20.
- Use the altar's rocks as cover. The wiki recommends running around the big rocks while shooting him. They block his forward Charge.
- Don't stand too close to a rock he's next to. The Stomp still reaches 10 m around him, rocks or not.
- Keep moving between shots. He's fast, and his swipe hurts at your level.
Is Eikthyr harder in multiplayer? A little. The wiki's multiplayer page lists +30% effective health and +4% damage per extra player within 100 m, capped at 5 players. You still kill him faster with more people swinging. On Steam, 10.0% of players have the "Stronger Together" achievement for killing a boss with a friend, and 5.6% have "Lone Wolf" for killing one alone.
What does Eikthyr drop?
Eikthyr always drops:
- Eikthyr Trophy. Hang it at the Sacrificial Stones to unlock his Forsaken Power.
- 3 Hard Antlers. You need one to make your first pickaxe. Hard Antlers have no other crafting recipe, so the other two are spares in case you lose your pickaxe.
The Antler Pickaxe
The Antler Pickaxe is why you fight Eikthyr. It costs 10 Wood and 1 Hard Antler at a level 1 Workbench and has 100 durability. It mines Stone, Copper, Tin, Muddy Scrap Piles and Abyssal Barnacles. Copper and tin make Bronze, which unlocks the next tier of gear.
The wiki notes that the Antler Pickaxe is the weakest pickaxe in the game, but "it is sufficient for mining iron." It's also repairable at a Workbench, so you can fix it anywhere you've built one. Our Valheim ores guide covers where to find copper and tin in the Black Forest.
How do you use the Eikthyr Trophy?
Take the trophy back to the Sacrificial Stones, the ring of standing stones where you spawned. Eikthyr's stone is the smallest of the seven, with a drawing of a deer on it. Interact with it to hang the trophy, then interact again to set his power as active.
Press F (the default key on PC) to use the power. Iron Gate's Call to Arms patch notes (0.221.4) list it as: "Eikthyr: 60% reduced stamina usage for running, jumping, and swimming." Like every Forsaken Power, it lasts 5 minutes and has a 20-minute cooldown. Only one power can be set at a time. See our Forsaken Power tier list for how it compares to the other six.
Why is my Eikthyr trophy not working? Most of the time you're at the wrong stone. Trophies go on the Sacrificial Stones at the world spawn, not on the altar where you summoned him. Each boss has its own stone, and Eikthyr's is the smallest.
What changes in your world after you kill Eikthyr?
Killing Eikthyr changes the raids and spawns in that world:
- "Eikthyr rallies the creatures of the forest." is disabled. This early raid sends Boars and Necks at your base and can happen from the start of a world.
- "The forest is moving..." is enabled until you beat The Elder. It's a Greydwarf raid.
- Greydwarfs can now spawn in the Meadows at night, always at 0 stars.
So build a simple wall or ditch around your base before you go deep into the Black Forest. Our Valheim raids guide lists every raid by boss and how to stop each one.
Next is The Elder in the Black Forest. Our Elder boss guide covers the Ancient Seeds you need and his fire weakness. For where every boss sits in the run, see our Valheim boss order guide.
FAQ
Where is Eikthyr in Valheim? At a Mystical altar in the Meadows. Each world has 3, all within 1,000 m of the world center. Read the Vegvisir runestone at the Sacrificial Stones, where you spawn, and it marks the nearest one on your map.
How do you summon Eikthyr? Place 2 Deer Trophies on the flat stone at his altar. Deer drop a trophy 50% of the time, so expect to hunt about 4. Since patch 1.0.20, starred deer are more likely to drop one.
What is Eikthyr weak to? Nothing. He has no weaknesses and no resistances, so every damage type does normal damage. He is immune to stagger, so parries won't stun him.
How much health does Eikthyr have? 500 HP in a solo fight, with 30% more effective health for each extra player nearby, up to 5 players.
Can Eikthyr destroy your base? Yes. His Antler attack deals 1,000 Chop and Pickaxe damage, enough to break trees, rocks and build pieces. Fight him at his altar, not at home.
What do the Hard Antlers do? One makes the Antler Pickaxe (10 Wood + 1 Hard Antler at a Workbench). Hard Antlers have no other recipe. He drops 3, so keep the other two as spares.
Can you fight Eikthyr again? Yes. Like every boss, you can summon him as many times as you want with 2 more Deer Trophies. Each kill drops another trophy and 3 more Hard Antlers.
More Valheim guides
Just starting out? These guides cover the next steps after Eikthyr.
