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How to make the best Valheim Armor Rag Armor Set (Tier 1) Leather Armor Set (Tier 2) Troll Armor Set (Tier 3) Bronze Armor Set (Tier 4) Iron Armor Set (Tier 5) Wolf Armor Set (Tier 6) Padded Armor Set (Tier 7) How is Armor damage reduction calculated?
How to make the best Valheim Armor
The best Valheim armor is the Padded Armor set. The Padded Helmet, Cuirass and Greaves offer the highest protection against damage in the game. The best cape to use along with the Padded Armor set is the Wolf Fur Cape, which also grants protection from frost and allows you to pass through Mountain biomes without drinking Frost Resistance Mead. Together this set provides a whopping 100 Armor at max quality (79 at starting quality), which is enough to protect you from almost any enemy in the game, including the various Valheim bosses. Now let’s learn how to make each of the different Armor sets in Valheim, including the aforementioned best Armor in the game.
Rag Armor Set
Rag Armor is the lowest tier of Valheim armor. A new character will begin with nothing but a torch and a Rag Tunic. You’ll want to upgrade beyond Rag Armor as soon as possible by hunting or taming Boar for Leather Scraps.
Rag Tunic: 5x Leather Scraps Rag Pants: 5x Leather Scraps
Total weight: 4 Total Armor: 2 (4 at max quality)
Leather Armor Set
Leather Armor is a more respectable set than Rag Armor. Hunt Deer for their hide, and tackle a Meadows dungeon to find some Bone Fragments, and you’ll be set with some fantastic Armor for taking on Eikthyr, the first boss.
Leather Helmet: 6x Deer Hide Leather Tunic: 6x Deer Hide Leather Pants: 6x Deer Hide Deer Hide Cape: 4x Deer Hide, 5x Bone Fragments
Total weight: 15 Total Armor: 7 (28 at max quality)
Troll Armor Set
Trolls may seem very intimidating at first, but with some patience and a lot of arrows they can become very useful for upgrading to the third Valheim armor set, Troll Leather Armor. The Troll Armor set is unique in that it offers a set bonus if you wear all four pieces together: you’ll get a +25% modifier to your Sneak skill.
Troll Leather Helmet: 5x Troll Hide, 3x Bone Fragments Troll Leather Tunic: 5x Troll Hide Troll Leather Pants: 5x Troll Hide Troll Hide Cape: 10x Troll Hide, 10x Bone Fragments
Total weight: 15 Total Armor: 19 (40 at max quality) Set bonus: +25% Sneak
Bronze Armor Set
Bronze Armor takes a while to obtain, but the first metal Armor set in the game is well worth the effort. Keep your Cape but discard your Leathers for Bronze Armor, and the higher protection will more than make up for the lower movement speed. Check out our guide on how to make Bronze if you’re struggling to reach this point!
Bronze Helmet: 5x Bronze, 2x Deer Hide Bronze Plate Cuirass: 5x Bronze, 2x Deer Hide Bronze Plate Leggings: 5x Bronze, 2x Deer Hide
Total weight: 23 Total Armor: 24 (42 at max quality) Move speed reduction: 10%
Iron Armor Set
Iron Armor is a direct upgrade from Bronze Armor, so there’s no reason not to upgrade as soon as you have access to Iron. If you’re having trouble finding Iron, be sure to check out our Valheim Iron guide. Soon you’ll be rolling in Iron for making the fifth-tier Armor set.
Iron Helmet: 20x Iron, 2x Deer Hide Iron Scale Mail: 20x Iron, 2x Deer Hide Iron Greaves: 20x Iron, 2x Deer Hide
Total weight: 33 Total Armor: 42 (60 at max quality) Move speed reduction: 10%
Wolf Armor Set
Wolf Armor is one of the strongest Armor sets available in Valheim. You’ll need to master the denizens of the Mountain biomes dotted about the Valheim map - Wolves, obviously, but also Drakes. The Wolf Armor Chest and the Wolf Fur Cape both give you resistance to Frost, which not only lowers damage received from Frost attacks (useful for fighting the fourth boss, Moder), but also allows you to move through Mountain biomes without the use of Frost Resistance Mead.
Drake Helmet: 20x Silver, 2x Wolf Pelt, 2x Drake Trophy Wolf Armor Chest: 20x Silver, 5x Wolf Pelt, 1x Chain Wolf Armor Legs: 20x Silver, 5x Wolf Pelt, 4x Wolf Fang Wolf Fur Cape: 4x Silver, 6x Wolf Pelt, 1x Wolf Trophy
Total weight: 37 Total Armor: 61 (82 at max quality) Move speed reduction: 10% Notes: Cape and Chest provide Frost immunity
Padded Armor Set
Padded Armor is the ultimate end-game armor in Valheim. This powerful gear offers you the highest possible protection from damage, offering significantly more armor than the Wolf set. Although the Padded Armor set does have a cape (which you can choose the colour for, I might add), the Linen Cape lacks the Frost immunity provided by the Wolf Fur Cape, so you’ll want to keep the Wolf Fur Cape equipped for the best possible Armor in Valheim.
Padded Helmet: 10x Iron, 15x Linen Thread Padded Cuirass: 10x Iron, 20x Linen Thread Padded Greaves: 10x Iron, 20x Linen Thread Linen Cape: 1x Silver, 20x Linen Thread
Total weight: 27 Total Armor: 79 (100 at max quality) Move speed reduction: 10%
How is Armor damage reduction calculated?
For those wondering how Armor actually works when absorbing damage from enemy attacks, here’s how it works:
Calculation 1
If your Armor Class is less than half of the incoming attack damage, then each point of Armor reduces damage taken by 1. For example: if you have 8 Armor and you’re hit by a 60 damage attack, you’ll take 52 damage (60 - 8 = 52).
Calculation 2
If your Armor Class is more than half of the incoming attack damage, then the damage taken is D² / (4 * A), where D is the total damage and A is your Armor Class. For example: if you have 40 Armor and you’re hit by a 60 damage attack, you’ll take 22.5 damage (60² / (4 * 40) = 3600 / 160 = 22.5). And according to both calculation methods, with exactly half the Armor Class of the incoming attack damage, you’ll reduce the damage taken by half. Alright, that’s every piece of Armor in Valheim covered. Now why not take a look at our list of the best Valheim weapons to help round out your knowledge of the ultimate gear in this excellent survival game? If you’re just getting started in Valheim, explore the other facets of the game with out general tips and tricks guide.
