Magic and Staves

8:16 Magic in Valheim is cast from staves and paid for with Eitr, a third resource shown as a purple bar beside health and stamina. It arrived with the Mistlands Update of Dec 6, 2022, whose patch notes introduced Eitr foods, magic staves and two new skills, Elemental Magic and Blood Magic (DSOGaming). A staff is swung like any weapon, but each cast drains Eitr, which then refills on its own. Four staves came with the Mistlands, four with the Ashlands Update of May 2024 and the last four with the Valheim 1.0 Release of Sep 9, 2026, alongside the Caller armor set. All are made at the Galdr Table. For what to make first, see Mage Build Guide.

Quick facts

Eitr

6:20 Eitr exists only while the character has eaten an Eitr food; with none in the three food slots there is no bar at all (Food and Cooking). The first sources were raw Magecaps and the Mistlands dishes Yggdrasil Porridge, Magically Stuffed Shroom and Seeker Aspic; the Ashlands and the Deep North added stronger meals, up to 105 Eitr for Meatballs and Poteitr. The Minor Eitr Mead refills the bar on demand and the Lingering Eitr Mead speeds its recovery (Mead and Potions).

8:03 The bar starts refilling one second after the last cast, at 2 to 4 points a second, fastest when nearly empty (Valheim Wiki: Eitr). Rested doubles that rate and Resting quadruples it, while Wet, Cold and Freezing cut it to 85, 75 and 40 per cent (Rested, Comfort and Sleeping, Weather, Cold and Wet). The Queen's Power, from the trophy of The Queen, adds another 100 per cent, the one part of her power that survived the Call to Arms Update's rewrite of the Forsaken Powers.

Sap, Refined Eitr and the Galdr Table

1:32 Magic crafting starts with Sap. The Sap Extractor (10 Yggdrasil Wood, 5 Black Metal and a Dvergr Extractor looted from Dvergr component crates) is built on one of the glowing ancient roots of the Mistlands and draws one Sap a minute, holding up to ten (Valheim Wiki: Sap extractor).

3:50 The Eitr Refinery (20 Black Marble, 5 Black Metal, 10 Yggdrasil Wood, 5 Black Core, 3 Sap) burns Sap as fuel and grinds Soft Tissue, mined from the skulls of the giant remains or looted from the Dvergr: 20 Soft Tissue and 19 Sap become 20 Refined Eitr over 800 seconds. The machine, and any Refined Eitr left on the floor, throws off sparks that deal lightning and poison damage (Valheim Wiki: Eitr refinery).

5:29 Refined Eitr builds the Galdr Table (10 Black Metal, 20 Yggdrasil Wood, 5 Black Core, 5 Refined Eitr), which makes every staff and mage robe as well as the Feather Cape and the Sealbreaker. Four extensions raise its level (Crafting Stations and Upgrades). The newest, the Standing Loom, needs Nornathread, which drops only from the Hexen of the Gates of Mörkhalla and also goes into every Deep North staff and Caller piece (Deep North Creatures).

Elemental and Blood Magic

0:22 The two schools are separate Skills, and each staff's description names its school. Elemental staves spend only Eitr and attack directly. Blood Magic staves shield allies or summon help and also take a fixed percentage of the caster's current health, so they can never kill the caster (Valheim Wiki: Blood magic). Leveling a school raises damage, shield or summon strength and cuts casting costs by about a third at level 100: the Staff of Embers falls from 35 to 24 Eitr a cast.

Mistlands staves

8:54 The four Mistlands staves need a level-1 Galdr Table. The Staff of Embers lobs an arcing fireball that sets targets alight; the Staff of Frost sprays ice shards that slow what they hit. The Staff of Protection wraps the caster and nearby allies, tamed animals included, in a bubble that absorbs damage and guarantees a parry while it holds. The Dead Raiser raises a Skelett with a sword or bow to fight for the caster, one more per quality level (Valheim Wiki: Dead Raiser).

Ashlands staves and gems

9:59 The Ashlands Update of May 14, 2024 made magic a full play style with four staves at a level-2 Galdr Table. The Staff of Fracturing fires twelve small exploding fire projectiles. The Staff of the Wild shoots a seed that raises up to ten thorny Roots, which attack nearby enemies for about 24 seconds and can pin them in place. The Dundr is a short-range shotgun of twelve lightning bolts with a 1.9-second reload. The Trollstav, a Blood Magic staff, conjures a burning troll with 2,000 health that attacks anything near it, the caster included, and cannot be used in dungeons (Valheim Wiki: Trollstav).

9:21 Three of the four need a gem from the chests of the Charred Fortresses, the basis of the update's gem crafting: Jade for the Staff of the Wild and Bloodstone for the Dundr and Trollstav. At the Black Forge, Jade, Bloodstone and Iolite also turn Flametal weapons into Primal, Bleeding and Storm variants (Wikipedia; Valheim Wiki: Bloodstone; Weapons and Shields).

Deep North staves

11:31 Version 1.0 added Echo Spike, Spirit Caller, Northern Vengeance and Lightning Strike (Iron Gate). Like every Deep North weapon they are cast rather than forged: a Mould, found mostly in the Winding Tunnels, is combined with its materials at a level-3 Galdr Table into a Cast, which the Frost Foundry hardens with Liquid Frost into the finished staff.

11:50 The June 2026 preview build showed all four at work. Lightning Strike calls a bolt down from the sky; Echo Spike fires a frost projectile that rebounds between targets; Spirit Caller summons a ghostly moose, wolf, bear or boar, up to three at once when fully upgraded; and Northern Vengeance covers the caster and nearby allies with a bubble that, unlike the Staff of Protection's, deals damage back to the attacker instead of absorbing it.

6:31 Recipes from Physgun; schools, costs and figures from the Valheim Wiki pages for each staff. SnazzyGames notes that the Galdr Table takes these staves only to quality 3 and that they cannot hold Frostfire or Thunderblood essences. Past that, each can go to the Forge of Potential with a Bloodgold Battle Idol (Battle and Protection Idols).

The four play differently from the older staves (Valheim Wiki: Echo Spike). Echo Spike's projectile does no damage on the way out and passes through creatures; it turns back when it hits terrain or a structure, or after four seconds, and only on the return hits each creature once, with a 60 fire + 60 frost burst where it bounced that can also hurt the caster and a further 60 + 60 around each creature it strikes. Catching the returning spike gives back 10 Eitr, and its damage does not grow with skill or quality, only its cost falls, by up to a third at skill 100. Lightning Strike's bolt also staggers hard (300) (Valheim Wiki). Spirit Caller picks a creature at random each cast and allows as many of each kind as the staff's quality, so four at quality 1 and sixteen at quality 4; a cast fails if the chosen kind is already full, and the spirits, stronger than their wild models (a bear has 1,500 health), vanish more than 150 meters from the caster (Valheim Wiki). Northern Vengeance puts a sphere on the caster and every ally within 5 meters for 60 seconds per quality level; each time a protected unit is hit it fires a frost projectile back at the attacker (75 frost at quality 1, 99 at quality 4), but it absorbs nothing (Valheim Wiki). All four slow the wielder by 5%.

Mage armor and trinkets

7:25 Each magic tier has a light set, made at the Galdr Table, whose pieces raise Eitr regeneration rather than armor (Armor and Capes).

13:34 The Caller set is the only mage armor that must be cast, from Moulds dropped by Hexen. The Robes and Trousers each take 6 Bloodgold, 6 Moose Hide and 5 Nornathread, the Headdress 2 Moose Sinew, a Moose Trophy and 3 Nornathread; each piece gives 22 armor at quality 1. Patch 1.0.21 of Oct 28, 2026 removed the Moose Trophies from the cost of upgrading the Headdress, though crafting it still takes one (Iron Gate, Patch 1.0.21). The Cape of the Caller (6 Seal Pelt, 5 Bloodgold, 2 Nornathread, 15 Refined Eitr) adds 20 per cent more Eitr regeneration, cuts dodge stamina by 10 per cent and resists frost (BisectHosting).

2:34 Since the Call to Arms Update, most casts also build Adrenaline, the meter that fires a trinket (Combat). Casters have three: the Pulsating Earrings (+25% Eitr regeneration), the Jörmundling (100 Eitr and +20 to both magic skills) and 1.0's Witch Crown, which gives 50 Eitr and 50 stamina and faster regeneration of all three bars for 30 seconds.

Which staff to use

4:53 No measured ranking of the twelve staves has been published, so what follows is opinion, credited. Sebatron would skip the Staff of Fracturing, whose damage and area he finds too small, and make the Staff of the Wild for its rooting vines. The whole case, with foods and armor, is on Mage Build Guide.

History

Magic arrived with its skills, stations and first staves in patch 0.212.7; Hildir's Request (0.217.14, August 2023) added the Unfading Candles and the Ashlands (0.218.15) its staves, set and gems. Deep North Update (1.0 Patch Notes) completed it and raised the durability of Mistlands and Ashlands gear (Iron Gate).

Frequently asked questions

How do you get Eitr in Valheim? By eating an Eitr food. With none in the three food slots there is no Eitr bar at all. The first sources are raw Magecaps and the Mistlands dishes Yggdrasil Porridge, Magically Stuffed Shroom and Seeker Aspic; Minor Eitr Mead refills the bar on demand and Lingering Eitr Mead speeds its recovery.

Where do you craft staves in Valheim? At the Galdr Table, which costs 10 Black Metal, 20 Yggdrasil Wood, 5 Black Core and 5 Refined Eitr. Refined Eitr comes from the Eitr Refinery, which burns Sap drawn by a Sap Extractor and grinds Soft Tissue; four extensions raise the table's level for the later staves.

What is the difference between Elemental and Blood Magic? They are separate Skills. Elemental staves spend only Eitr and attack directly. Blood Magic staves shield allies or summon help and also take a fixed percentage of the caster's current health, so they can never kill the caster.

What is the best mage armor in Valheim? The Caller set of the Deep North, which gives 22 armor a piece and +160% eitr regeneration as a full set. It is the only mage armor that must be cast, from moulds dropped by the Hexen, and its Cape of the Caller adds another 20%.

How much Eitr do the Deep North staves cost? Echo Spike costs 25 Eitr a cast and Lightning Strike 40; the two Blood Magic staves, Spirit Caller and Northern Vengeance, each cost 100 Eitr and 40% of the caster's current health, per the Valheim Wiki.

How many spirits can the Spirit Caller summon? As many of each kind (boar, wolf, bear, moose) as the staff's quality: four in all at quality 1, sixteen at quality 4. Each cast picks a kind at random and fails if that kind is already at its limit.

What is the best staff in Valheim? No measured ranking exists. Lucky Ghost calls the Staff of Protection essential, Sebatron's favorite is the Dundr, and SnazzyGames's favorite of the 1.0 staves is Lightning Strike; see Mage Build Guide.

Can you upgrade staves past their normal maximum? Yes, at the Forge of Potential with a Battle Idol: Flametal for the Staff of the Wild, Bloodgold for the Deep North staves. A failed attempt destroys the staff.

How much does a spell cost? It depends on the staff and the skill. The Staff of Embers costs 35 Eitr a cast at first and 24 at skill 100, since leveling a school cuts casting costs by about a third; Blood Magic staves also take health, 40% for the Staff of Protection and the Dead Raiser and 60% for the Trollstav.

Sources

• Eitr, Elemental magic, Blood magic, Galdr table, Eitr refinery, Sap extractor, Valheim Wiki (weirdgloop)
• Staff of Embers, Staff of Frost, Staff of Protection, Dead Raiser, Staff of Fracturing, Staff of the Wild, Dundr, Trollstav, Valheim Wiki (weirdgloop)
• Bloodstone, Jade, Iolite, Jörmundling, Pulsating Earrings, Valheim Wiki (weirdgloop)
• Echo Spike, Lightning Strike, Spirit Caller, Northern Vengeance, Valheim Wiki (weirdgloop), read Oct 21, 2026
• Cast: Echo Spike, Cast: Lightning Strike, Cast: Spirit Caller, Cast: Northern Vengeance, Nornathread, Physgun
• Valheim 1.0 Has Arrived!, Iron Gate Studio (Steam), Sep 9, 2026
• Word from the Devs: Picking Up the Thread and Development Blog: Well Equipped, Iron Gate Studio
• Mistlands patch 0.212.7 notes, DSOGaming
• Mistlands update is live, Massively Overpowered
• Call to Arms patch notes, Game Rant
• Valheim 1.0 armour sets, BisectHosting
• Patch 1.0.21, Iron Gate Studio, Oct 28, 2026
• Best Valheim Magic Food Combos & Staff Builds Explained, Sebatron (YouTube)
• Everything You Need to Know Before Starting Valheim 1.0, Lucky Ghost (YouTube)
• Valheim, Wikipedia
• Mistlands magic guide and Ashlands guide, Kysen (YouTube)
• Ashlands magic guide, Jade PG (YouTube)
• 1.0 overview, Deep North preview and 1.0 gear guide, SnazzyGames (YouTube)