Valheim DatabaseValheim 1.0.16 · read from the game files · unofficial

16 idols · 21 kinds of chest · Valheim 1.0.16

Where to find idols

Idols only come from chests. For each idol: the chest that gives it most often and how many of those chests you open per idol on average, read from the chest's loot table. Each attempt at the Forge of Potential uses one.

Best chest for each idol

  1. Wooden Protection IdolChest · Wood farm, Wood house · best place: Wood village1 in 21chests
  2. Wooden Battle IdolChest · Ship setting · best place: Wood village1 in 19chests
  3. Bronze Protection IdolChest · Troll cave · best place: Troll cave1 in 12chests
  4. Bronze Battle IdolChest · Troll cave · best place: Troll cave1 in 24chests
  5. Iron Protection IdolChest · Sunken crypt · best place: Sunken crypt1 in 19chests
  6. Iron Battle IdolChest · Sunken crypt · best place: Sunken crypt1 in 38chests
  7. Silver Protection IdolChest · Hildir cave, Mountain cave · best place: Abandoned log cabin1 in 7chests
  8. Silver Battle IdolChest · Hildir cave, Mountain cave · best place: Abandoned log cabin1 in 13chests
  9. Black Metal Protection IdolChest · Sealed Tower · best place: Sealed Tower1 in 1.3chests
  10. Black Metal Battle IdolChest · Sealed Tower · best place: Sealed Tower1 in 1.9chests
  11. Black Marble Protection IdolDvergr Treasure Chest · Guard tower ruined new, Rock spire · best place: Charred Fortress1 in 4chests
  12. Black Marble Battle IdolDvergr Treasure Chest · Guard tower ruined new, Rock spire · best place: Sealed Tower1 in 7chests
  13. Flametal Protection IdolChest · North village, Ship setting · best place: Mork borg1 in 11chests
  14. Flametal Battle IdolChest · Hut, Lumber camp · best place: Mork borg1 in 5chests
  15. Bloodgold Protection IdolAncient Chest · Mork borg · best place: Mork borg1 in 24chests
  16. Bloodgold Battle IdolAncient Chest · Mork borg · best place: Mork borg1 in 47chests

Idols per chest

Average idols per chest opened (the chance of at least one is nearly the same: a chest holds each idol at most once).

ChestShip setting · 2–3 picks

ChestWood farm, Wood house, Wood village · 2–3 picks

ChestCrypt, Hildir crypt · 2–4 picks

ChestRuin, Stone house, Stone tower ruins, Troll cave · 2–3 picks

ChestTroll cave · 3–5 picks

ChestGrave, Swamp ruin · 3–5 picks

ChestSunken crypt · 4–5 picks

ChestAbandoned log cabin, Mountain well, Stone tower ruins · 3–5 picks

ChestHildir cave, Mountain cave · 3–5 picks

ChestGoblin camp, Ruin, Sealed Tower, Stone house heath · 3–4 picks

ChestSealed Tower · 5–6 picks

Dvergr Treasure ChestDvergr town entrance · 4–5 picks

Dvergr Treasure ChestGuard tower ruined new, Rock spire · 2–3 picks

Charred ChestCharred Fortress, Fortress ruins · 5–6 picks

ChestMorgen hole · 2–4 picks

ChestHut, Lumber camp · 3–4 picks

Jotun's ChestMork borg · 2–4 picks

Ancient ChestMork borg · 5–7 picks

ChestNorth village, Ship setting · 3–4 picks

BarrelNorth village, The hole · 2–3 picks

ChestShip wreck dN · 2–4 picks

Best places, per idol tier

Per visit where the place is fixed or a camp (its room count is known); per room for dungeons, whose size depends on how their rooms fit together.

Wooden Protection IdolWooden Battle Idol

Bronze Protection IdolBronze Battle Idol

  • Troll caveBlack Forest0.31 per visit · 0.16 of the other
  • CryptBlack Forest0.26 per 10 rooms · 0.13 of the other
  • Stone tower ruinsBlack Forest0.14 per visit · 0.07 of the other
  • RuinBlack Forest0.07 per visit · 0.04 of the other

Iron Protection IdolIron Battle Idol

  • Sunken cryptSwamp0.37 per 10 rooms · 0.19 of the other
  • GraveSwamp0.05 per visit · 0.03 of the other
  • Swamp ruinSwamp0.05 per visit · 0.03 of the other
  • Troll caveBlack Forest0.03 per visit · 0.03 of the other

Silver Protection IdolSilver Battle Idol

Black Metal Protection IdolBlack Metal Battle Idol

Black Marble Protection IdolBlack Marble Battle Idol

Flametal Protection IdolFlametal Battle Idol

  • Mork borgDeep North4.88 per 10 rooms + 0.62 · 2.47 of the other
  • North villageDeep North4.41 per visit · 2.23 of the other
  • Ship settingDeep North0.28 per visit · 0.14 of the other
  • The holeDeep North0 per 10 rooms + 0.13 · 0 of the other

Bloodgold Protection IdolBloodgold Battle Idol

  • Mork borgDeep North2.3 per 10 rooms + 0.26 · 1.26 of the other
  • North villageDeep North0.15 per visit · 0.15 of the other
  • Ship settingDeep North0.03 per visit · 0.03 of the other
  • Ship wreck dNDeep North0.01 per visit · 0.01 of the other

Formula

A chest rolls its drop chance, then Random.Range(min, max + 1) picks; each pick takes an entry with probability weight ÷ (sum of the weights still in the table), and a table marked one-of-each removes what it took.

P(an entry is among the first k picks) = ∫₀¹ P(fewer than k other entries come first) dx — the exact value for picks without replacement (each entry's turn is an exponential clock with its weight as rate), solved numerically and checked against full enumeration.

Idols per chest = drop chance × Σₖ P(k picks) × P(idol in the first k) × average stack. Chests per idol = 1 ÷ idols per chest.

Camps: rooms = Random.Range(min, max), each picked by weight. Dungeons: per room = Σ (room weight ÷ total, or 1 ÷ count if picked uniformly) × idols in that room.

DropTable.GetDropListItems, Container.AddDefaultItems and DungeonGenerator in the code of Valheim 1.0.16; loot tables from each chest prefab.

Assumptions

  • Each chest is opened once (its loot is rolled when the chest first appears).
  • Dungeon rooms are picked among every room of the theme; the game only offers rooms whose doorway fits the open connection, which this site can't see in the files.
  • End caps (dead-end rooms) and how many rooms a dungeon ends up with depend on its 3D layout and are not counted.
  • Camps place fewer rooms than rolled when the ground doesn't fit.