Game settings
How do I set world modifiers and difficulty on my Valheim server?
On this page
Valheim’s world modifiers are launch options. -preset sets the overall difficulty, -modifier changes one setting and -setkey turns on one of the tick-box options. Set them in your server’s settings in the Game Panel, then restart the server. They apply to the world your server runs, and players see them in the server list before they join.
Presets
-preset <name> sets every modifier in one go. The presets are normal, casual, easy, hard, hardcore, immersive and hammer. The Valheim page shows what each one sets.
A preset overwrites any modifiers set before it. Put the preset first and your single modifiers after it.
Single modifiers
-modifier <key> <value> changes one setting. These are the keys and values in Iron Gate’s server guide:
| Key | Values |
|---|---|
combat |
veryeasy, easy, hard, veryhard |
deathpenalty |
casual, veryeasy, easy, hard, hardcore |
resources |
muchless, less, more, muchmore, most |
raids |
none, muchless, less, more, muchmore |
portals |
casual, hard, veryhard |
There’s no normal value in the list. A modifier you don’t set stays at Valheim’s normal setting, or at whatever your preset chose.
Tick-box options
-setkey <key> turns on one option. Use one -setkey for each.
nobuildcost: building costs no materials.passivemobs: enemies are passive.playerevents: raids follow each player’s own progress.nomap: there’s no map.
Since the Ashlands update, the immersive preset also lets fire spread outside the Ashlands. Iron Gate’s guide doesn’t list a separate key for that, so use the preset if you want it.
An example
-preset hard -modifier deathpenalty casual -setkey nomap
That’s the Hard preset with a gentler death penalty and no map.
Changing them in game
Admins can change modifiers from the F5 console while the server runs. If you’re not an admin yet, see make yourself admin.
setworldpreset hardswitches the world to a preset.setworldmodifier raids nonechanges one modifier.resetworldkeysputs every modifier back to its default.
Warning
A preset in the launch options is applied every time the server starts. Change modifiers in the console, or upload a world you set up differently, and the next restart puts the launch preset back. Keep the launch options and the world in step.
Good to know
- If you bring your own world and it was set up on Casual, set
-preset casualtoo. hammercounts as a temporary cheat, so Iron Gate’s 1.0 FAQ says it blocks some achievements while it’s on.- Patch 0.217.22 added a
-resetmodifierslaunch option for clearing a world’s modifiers.