At Gamescom 2025, Iron Gate Studios unveiled the highly anticipated Call to Arms update for Valheim, now available on the game's Public Test Branch. This significant patch introduces groundbreaking mechanics that promise to transform combat dynamics while maintaining the game's signature survival experience. Since its initial release in February 2021, Valheim has maintained an exceptionally successful early access period that now appears to be approaching its culmination. The development team has confirmed that Valheim's full 1.0 release will coincide with The Deep North expansion, currently scheduled for Spring 2026.

The previous major expansion, Ashlands, significantly expanded Valheim's world by introducing an entirely new biome, enhancing the game's environmental diversity. Since that release, the development focus has shifted toward completing The Deep North, the final biome that will complete Valheim's world and prepare it for official launch. Recent developer communications have teased exciting features for this frosty realm, including narrative conclusions, combat system revisions, additional non-player characters, and official mod support for PC players. Meanwhile, interim updates like Call to Arms ensure the gameplay remains fresh and engaging for the dedicated community.

Revealed during Gamescom 2025's opening day, Patch 0.221.3—dubbed "Call to Arms"—brings substantial new content, gameplay refinements, and technical improvements. Currently, this update is exclusively accessible through Valheim's Public Test Branch on Steam and PC Game Pass platforms. Steam users can access the test version by right-clicking Valheim in their library, selecting Properties, navigating to the Betas tab, and entering "yesimadebackups" in the access code field. Game Pass subscribers can find the test version through the Previews section in the Xbox Insider Hub application. While no specific release date has been announced for the main version, historical data suggests test periods typically last between 10-20 days before public deployment.

The most revolutionary addition in this update is the Trinkets system, a completely new equipment category that could fundamentally alter combat strategies and character development approaches. These special items utilize Adrenaline, a new resource accumulated through successful enemy strikes, activation of Forsaken Powers, specific magical abilities, and perfectly executed defensive maneuvers including blocks and dodges. When the Adrenaline meter reaches capacity, players experience an Adrenaline Surge that grants temporary benefits corresponding to their equipped Trinket, creating dynamic combat situations that reward skillful play.

Beyond the Trinkets system, Call to Arms introduces two new enemy types, eight crafting formulas, seven armor pieces, eighteen weapons, and numerous quality-of-life improvements. Notably, the update adds wooden training weapons that deal no damage, allowing players to practice combat techniques with allies without the risk of accidental friendly fire. The update also addresses usability concerns by reducing movement penalties associated with Battleaxes, Sledgehammers, and Tower Shields. Several Forsaken Powers have undergone rebalancing to ensure fairer gameplay experiences across different playstyles and strategies.

New Features:

Innovative Mechanics:

• Trinkets: Special equippable items that generate adrenaline during combat, unlocking temporary combat advantages
• Adrenaline System: Accumulated through successful attacks, Forsaken Power activation, specific magical abilities, and perfect defensive maneuvers. At maximum capacity, triggers Adrenaline Surge for temporary benefits tied to equipped Trinket. Adrenaline diminishes during non-combat situations and only accumulates while Trinkets are equipped
• Training Weapons: Wooden practice weapons enable safe combat practice with allies
• New Ability: Perfect Dodge Roll (Successfully avoiding damaging attacks restores percentage of stamina)

New Adversaries:

• Enemy: Bear
• Enemy: Vile

Crafting Materials:

• Material: Blob Vial (available for purchase)
• Material: Ectoplasm
• Material: Ghost trophy
• Material: Bear Hide
• Material: Bear Trophy
• Material: Bear Paw
• Material: Vile Trophy
• Material: Vile Ribcage

Sustenance:

• Bear Meat

Armor Sets:

• Chest Armor: Patterns of the Bear
• Leg Armor: Loincloth of the Bear
• Helmet: Headdress of the Bear
• Chest Armor: Vilebone Cage
• Leg Armor: Vilebone Drapes
• Helmet: Vilebone Visage
• Headgear: Sweat Band (available for purchase)

Armaments:

• Bottled Blob: Poison variant
• Bottled Blob: Oozer variant
• Bottled Blob: Tar variant
• Bottled Blob: Lava variant
• Bottled Blob: Frost variant
• Wooden Sword
• Wooden Greatsword
• Wooden Axe
• Wooden Two-handed Axe
• Wooden Mace
• Wooden Sledge
• Wooden Spear
• Wooden Atgeir
• Wooden Knife
• Fist Weapon: Paws of the Bear
• Fist Weapon: Vilebone Maulclaws
• Battleaxe: Black Metal variant
• Battleaxe: Skull Splittur variant

Trinket Collection:

• Heart of the Forest
• Bronze Pendant
• Iron Brooch
• Nimble Anklet
• Crystal Heart
• Wolf Sight
• Fins of Destiny
• Evasion Mantle
• Bracelets of the Brave
• Pulsating Earrings
• Resounding Shackle
• Jörmundling
• Brimstone

Construction Elements & Furnishings:

• Combat Training: Archery Target
• Combat Training: Battle Brother dummy
• Furniture: Bearskin Rug

Additional Content:

• New location: CombatRuin01
• Three new hairstyles (Mullet, Castellan & Vinland Shave)
• Five new beard styles (Mustache, Handlebar, Trimmed, Waxed, Crumb Catcher)

Enhancements & Technical Improvements

Combat Adjustments:

• Perfect Blocks no longer consume stamina
• Reduced movement speed penalties for Battleaxes, Sledgehammers, and Tower Shields
• Improved vertical combat mechanics for better enemy engagement on sloped terrain

Forsaken Powers Rebalancing:

• Eikthyr: 60% reduction in stamina consumption for running, jumping, and swimming
• The Elder: 60% increase to Chopping and Mining damage, 30% health regeneration boost
• Bonemass: 25% resistance to piercing, slashing, and blunt damage, complete elimination of block stamina cost, 5 stamina restoration per successful block
• Moder: Permanent tailwind effect, 300 additional carry capacity, 10% movement speed increase, 50% frost resistance
• Yagluth: 50% Lightning resistance, +25 Farming skill, 10% damage increase
• The Queen: 100% improved Eitr regeneration, complete elimination of sneak cost, 50% poison resistance
• Fader: 100% Adrenaline generation increase, 50% reduced stagger susceptibility, 50% fire resistance

Display Stand Compatibility:

These items can now be placed on display stands:

• Barley Flour
• Tankard
• Ancient Seed
• Dragon Tear
• Vulture Egg
• Cores
• Padded Helmet
• Carapace Helmet
• Fresh Seaweed
• Fragrant Bundle
• Thistle
• Celestial Feather

New positioning and orientation options for these items on display stands:

• Atgeirs
• Axes
• Bombs
• Bows
• Crossbows
• Knives
• Maces
• Pickaxes
• Shields
• Sledges
• Spears
• Staffs
• Swords
• Tower Shields
• All Fish varieties
• All Helmet types
• Cooked Lox meat
• Rotten Meat
• Blueberries
• Carrot
• Cooked Bonemaw Meat
• Cooked Serpent Meat
• Cooked Neck Tail
• Cooked Boar Meat
• Raspberry
• All Mead types
• Cultivator
• Feaster
• Fishing Rod
• Hammer
• Hoe
• Scythe
• Asksvin Saddle
• Lox Saddle
• All Trophy items
• Goblin Totem
• Scythe handle

Miscellaneous Improvements:

• Updated nomenclature for existing hairstyles
• Localization improvements across all supported languages
• Complete visual overhaul for Ghost entities
• Unity engine upgrade to version 6000.0.46f

Technical Issue Resolutions:

• Resolved community server visibility issues on non-Steam platforms
• Fixed UGC text filtering problems for Mac App Store users not logged into Game Center during content creation
• Eliminated log spam when interacting with signs, tamed creatures, and unnamed portals
• Addressed display issues for content from muted players, now showing appropriate messaging
• Corrected shield generator damage recognition when network ownership conflicts occurred
• Fixed join code visibility issues when disabling HUD elements
• Restored join code clipboard functionality
• Improved block list synchronization between local and cloud storage
• Resolved input recognition problems at low frame rates
• Fixed selection button functionality for Xbox One controllers on Mac systems
• Prevented tab navigation conflicts when various pop-up menus were active
• Added developer console enable option in settings menu (console command argument overrides setting)
• Fixed integer value reset bug during world save loading
• Resolved gamepad join code copying functionality when no code existed
• Relocated modded text elements in start menu

Server List Optimization:

• Complete server list rewrite for improved performance, scalability, and reliability
• Enhanced community server retrieval speed through PlayFab backend
• Introduced refreshing animation replacing previous placeholder icon
• Modified community server list retrieval to activate only when accessing relevant tabs, reducing network strain for Steam users
• Resolved PlayFab matchmaking data rate limit issues
• Fixed server list refresh trigger when typing in filter field
• Removed hardcoded player limit display for modding compatibility

Steam-Specific Improvements:

• Enhanced Steam profile picture rendering quality with reduced washed-out appearance
• Added mipmap generation for improved image quality at lower resolutions
• Restored proper matchmaking data retrieval through Steam backend for favorite and recent server lists

Xbox-Exclusive Enhancements:

• Added suspension mode reconnection notifications
• Developer console disabled by default with new gameplay setting enable option
• Significantly improved friends server list retrieval performance