Up to 5 players counted · 10 per server · Valheim 1.0.17
Multiplayer scaling
Every creature looks at how many players stand within 100 m of it (counted up to 5). Each extra player gives it +30% effective health and +4% damage — at 5 players a creature takes 2.2× the hits and deals 1.16× the damage.
Bosses too. Players further than 100 m away don't count, so a group that splits up meets solo-strength creatures.
By players nearby
| Players within 100 m | Hits to kill a creature | Damage it deals |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | ×1 | ×1 |
| 2 | ×1.3 | ×1.04 |
| 3 | ×1.6 | ×1.08 |
| 4 | ×1.9 | ×1.12 |
| 5 or more | ×2.2 | ×1.16 |
Hits to kill counts total hits from the whole group; split between players, each one lands fewer.
With each Combat setting
Hits a creature takes compared with solo on Normal — player scaling × the Combat modifier (1 ÷ your damage rate).
| Players | Very Easy | Easy | Normal | Hard | Very Hard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ×0.8 | ×0.91 | ×1 | ×1.18 | ×1.43 |
| 2 | ×1.04 | ×1.18 | ×1.3 | ×1.53 | ×1.86 |
| 3 | ×1.28 | ×1.45 | ×1.6 | ×1.88 | ×2.29 |
| 4 | ×1.52 | ×1.73 | ×1.9 | ×2.24 | ×2.71 |
| 5 | ×1.76 | ×2 | ×2.2 | ×2.59 | ×3.14 |
Servers
A server takes 10 players; the next one gets "server is full". With crossplay on, the server shows a six-digit join code that anyone can type into Join.
Setting one up — launch arguments, ports, admins and backups: dedicated server.
Questions
›Does Valheim get harder with more players?
Yes. Each creature counts the players within 100 m of it (up to 5). With 3 players it takes damage as if it had 60% more health and hits 8% harder; with 5 or more it is 120% and 16%.
›Do bosses scale with players?
Yes, the same way as every other creature: by the players within 100 m of the boss, up to 5.
›How many players can join a Valheim server?
10. The server turns the next player away as full once 10 are connected (ZNet.RPC_PeerInfo).
›What is the 6-digit join code?
A server started with crossplay (the -crossplay argument or the Crossplay box in the menu) gets a join code; the game treats any six-digit number typed in Join as a code (ZPlayFabMatchmaking.IsJoinCode) and finds the server by it.
›Can you turn multiplayer scaling off?
Only with a cheat: the console command players (“[nr] - force diffuculty scale ( 0 = reset)”) sets the count by hand, after devcommands.
›Can I make the game easier or harder for my group?
Yes, with the world modifiers: the Combat setting multiplies damage both ways on top of the player scaling. 6 presets and 5 sliders are listed on the world modifiers page.
Formula
n = players within 100 m (XZ) of the creature, 1 to 5
damage players take from it × (1 + (n − 1) × 0.04)
damage it takes ÷ (1 + (n − 1) × 0.3) — the same as that much more health
Game.GetPlayerDifficulty, Game.GetDifficultyDamageScalePlayer / GetDifficultyDamageScaleEnemy, Character.Damage — values from the Game component, Valheim 1.0.17