Valheim Rarity

Turn crafted equipment into long-term progression. Valheim Rarity adds a dedicated Rarity Forge where quality-1 tools, weapons, shields, and armor advance through six colored tiers. Every upgrade shows its exact stat changes and complete material cost before you commit.

Rarity is deliberate: ordinary crafting, loot, pickup, and vanilla workbench upgrades never grant it. An item becomes rare only when a player upgrades it at the Rarity Forge.

Unique features

• Six ordered tiers: Uncommon, Common, Rare, Epic, Legendary, and Mythic.
• Dedicated station: a separate placeable Rarity Forge with a custom model, icon, animated coal beds, flames, smoke, and interaction lighting. The vanilla Forge is unchanged.
• Accurate previews: see the colored item name, next-tier border, exact before/after stats, and owned/required resources.
• Recipe-based payment: each step costs three times the original quality-1 recipe by default, with global and per-tier configuration.
• Strict eligibility: only quality-1 equipment with an enabled, usable crafting recipe appears. Vanilla-upgraded and recipe-less items are hidden.
• Controlled elements: Legendary and Mythic weapons can gain Fire, Lightning, or Poison. Armor and shields gain the matching resistance. Tools never receive mod elemental effects.
• Modded equipment support: standard Valheim item and recipe registrations work without a vanilla-only allowlist.
• Two layouts: compact Selector view is the default; Traditional view supplies an alphabetized, vanilla-speed scrolling item list. Both fit stats and costs without detail scrolling.
• Server authority: every gameplay, rarity, station, UI, and resource setting synchronizes from the server and is admin controlled.

Default progression

Each operation advances one tier. The complete display name receives the prefix and color, such as Rare Flint Sword. Native quality stays unchanged. Durability percentage, variant, crafter, equipped state, and other custom metadata are preserved.

Damage scaling includes combat, chopping, and pickaxe damage. Attack speed, weight, tool tier, stamina cost, and eitr cost are unchanged. All multipliers, colors, elements, and cost scales are configurable.

Rarity Forge and costs

The station unlocks when a character first discovers an Iron ingot. It appears in the Hammer menu and requires a nearby workbench plus 10 Wood, 4 Stone, 4 Coal, and 6 Iron by default.

Its own framed window opens at the character crafting panel's position and size. Selector view uses previous/next buttons; Traditional view displays an alphabetized equipment list. Both use the same safe transaction and preview.

Every rarity step costs original crafting recipe x 3 by default. An item crafted from 10 Wood and 4 Iron therefore costs 30 Wood and 12 Iron per step. Fractional configured results round up. Alternative ingredients can be selected, and resource prefab identity prevents similarly named mod materials from being charged by mistake.

An item is available only when it is supported equipment, has native quality 1, has an enabled usable recipe, is not excluded, and its resources can be resolved. The whole payment is validated before anything is consumed.

Elemental behavior

Legendary and Mythic weapons can receive one configured element: Fire, Lightning, or Poison. Default elemental damage is 25% of the boosted combat damage. Armor and shields receive the matching resistance while equipped and preserve stronger existing resistance.

Tools are always excluded from the mod's elemental bonuses. Existing elemental stats supplied by Valheim or another mod remain intact.

Dependencies

Install these on every client and dedicated/listen server:

1. Valheim
2. BepInExPack Valheim 5.4.2350 or a compatible newer 5.4 release
3. Jotunn 2.30.1 or a compatible newer release
4. Valheim Rarity 4.4.0, with the same version everywhere

Epic Loot is not required. This release does not ship or use Epic Loot code or artwork.

Client and single-player installation

Mod manager

1. Create or select a Valheim profile in r2modman or Thunderstore Mod Manager.
2. Install Valheim Rarity. The manifest installs BepInExPack Valheim and Jotunn.
3. Start Valheim with Start modded.

Manual

1. Close Valheim and install BepInExPack Valheim in the game directory.
2. Install Jotunn in BepInEx/plugins.
3. Extract the manual Valheim Rarity archive into the game directory and merge BepInEx.
4. Confirm the DLL is at BepInEx/plugins/ValheimRarity/ValheimRarity.dll; remove old duplicate copies.
5. Launch once. The active config appears at BepInEx/config/laugh.valheim.rarity.cfg.

Dedicated server installation

Mod manager

1. Install Valheim Rarity in the server profile and deploy the complete profile to the server.
2. Install the same mod and dependency versions in every player's client profile.
3. Start the server once, stop it, and customize its generated config if desired.

Manual

1. Stop the server and install BepInExPack Valheim in its Valheim directory.
2. Put Jotunn in the server's BepInEx/plugins folder.
3. Extract the manual archive into the server directory and merge BepInEx.
4. Confirm BepInEx/plugins/ValheimRarity/ValheimRarity.dll exists and remove older copies.
5. Install matching versions on all clients, start the server, and check BepInEx/LogOutput.log for load errors.

A player hosting through the game client is a listen server. Install the client package normally; that host's synchronized config controls the session.

Configuration and administration

All settings are server authoritative. Server file edits reload live and synchronize to connected players. Local client values return after disconnecting.

Admins can also use the console:

rarity_config list
rarity_config Resources CraftingCostMultiplier 3
rarity_config Rarity_Rare DamageMultiplier 4
rarity_config reload

Read SERVER-CONFIGURATION.md for permissions, commands, and multiplayer checks. CONFIGURATION.md documents every option and modded-item override. The included Configuration/laugh.valheim.rarity.cfg.example is a reference and never overwrites the active config.

Compatibility, updates, and removal

Modded equipment works when it uses standard Valheim ItemData, ItemType, and enabled recipe registration. Extra-equipment/tool lists, exclusions, and prefab resource overrides cover nonstandard cases. Mods that replace stat getters, inventory drawing, item serialization, or recipe behavior may need a compatibility patch, and multiple stat mods can compound bonuses.

To update, stop the game/server, replace the DLL, and keep one copy. Keep all clients and the server on the same release. Existing v2-v4 station upgrades remain valid.

Placed Rarity Forges and upgraded-item metadata require the mod. Before removing it, dismantle stations and make a world/character backup. For support, provide the Valheim Rarity, Valheim, BepInEx, and Jotunn versions; the affected item prefab; relevant config; and BepInEx/LogOutput.log.

Credits and notice

Valheim Rarity is an unofficial community mod and is not affiliated with Iron Gate Studio or Coffee Stain Publishing. Valheim names, game assets, and trademarks belong to their respective owners. Modding Valheim is unsupported by its developers and is done at the user's own risk.

See THIRD-PARTY-ASSETS.md for the asset record and LICENSE-NOTICE.md for distribution terms.

Changes in 4.4.0

• Added upload-ready Thunderstore and manual release layouts, a package manifest, a 256x256 icon, installation instructions, dependency versions, and expanded public documentation.
• Replaced the previously referenced Epic Loot frame with original Valheim Rarity artwork. Epic Loot code and artwork are no longer included and Epic Loot remains unnecessary.
• Documented the complete progression, station, recipe-cost, elemental, compatibility, server-sync, update, and support behavior.
• Added distribution and asset notices for a reviewable public release.

Changes in 4.3.3

• Fixed blank stone areas on the lower forge, crucible and casting mold by remapping their UVs into a fully textured stone atlas region.
• Kept color and normal maps aligned without changing source geometry or texture assets.

Changes in 4.3.2

• Moved the lower forge flickering light into the native station in-use effects, so it lights while the station is being used.
• Preserved its position at the lower coal bed after relocating the inherited effects to the tabletop brazier.

Changes in 4.3.1

• Moved the lower forge smoke emitter above the stone housing's top opening instead of above the coal bed inside it.

Changes in 4.3.0

• Added Jotunn server-authoritative, admin-only synchronization for every configuration entry and matching-version enforcement on server and clients.
• Added main-thread host/server config-file watching and live reload; client local configurations remain backups.
• Added rarity_config commands for effective-value listing, authorized edits and host reload, with numeric/range/construction validation.
• Applied live construction resources, shelter/use distance, equipped effect refresh, durability clamping, hammer availability and station UI refresh.
• Preserved manually selected views unless DefaultView changes; added server setup and multiplayer verification documentation.
• Release build passed with zero warnings/errors and all 278 headless checks passed. Native dedicated-server/admin and multi-client synchronization testing remains.

Changes in 4.2.3

• Added looping smoke and a native flickering point light above the lower forge coal bed, alongside its existing flame animation.
• Lower ember effects remain active independently of station interaction and use vanilla placement-preview suppression.

Changes in 4.2.2

• Fixed hammer placement positioning: vanilla skips non-convex mesh colliders; preview-only boxes now provide the required ground contact points.
• Preserved exact built-station mesh collision and the existing station prefab identity.
• Rendered the hammer/station icon from the actual textured bench instead of retaining the vanilla forge icon.
• Added separate looping forge flame emitters to both coal ember surfaces; these do not add warmth, sound or fire requirements.
• Release build passed with zero warnings/errors and all 188 headless checks passed. Native placement, icon rendering and flame animation still require in-game verification.

Changes in 4.2.1

• Changed station construction from 6 Copper to 6 Iron ingots; other materials remain unchanged.
• Automatically migrate the exact previous default construction configuration to iron.

Changes in 4.2.0

• Replaced the rarity station's visible vanilla forge with the supplied textured upgrade station.
• Centered the placement pivot, grounded the feet, set the tabletop to one metre, and aligned the front with bench placement coordinates.
• Embedded all eleven mesh parts and PNG materials in the mod; collision follows the actual L-shaped geometry.
• Preserved the station prefab identity, native station components, existing UI/crafting windows, upgrade rules and settings.
• Verified the mesh data, all embedded assets and 175 existing/new headless policy checks. Native placement and rendering still require an in-game check.

Changes in 4.1.4

• Hide equipment without a usable enabled crafting recipe in both station views.
• Exclude native quality 2+ equipment and enforce both restrictions before consuming upgrade resources.
• Cost overrides no longer make recipe-less gear eligible; existing rarity bonuses are preserved.

Changes in 4.1.3

• Enabled automatic text fitting for Traditional view's stats and resource requirements; its details no longer scroll.
• Kept the equipment list scrollable at vanilla crafting sensitivity.

Changes in 4.1.2

• Matched Traditional view equipment and detail mouse-wheel sensitivity to the live vanilla crafting recipe list.
• Tracks vanilla sensitivity while the station is open, respecting game/UI mod adjustments.

Changes in 4.1.1

• Reduced default Selector stat/resource text from 18 to 14 and enabled automatic fitting for longer requirements lists.
• Kept the entire default comparison/resource area within the visible viewport instead of a scrolling content area.
• Preserved Traditional view's scrollable details and existing station behavior.

Changes in 4.1.0

• Matched the station's separate framed window to the character crafting panel's actual position and size by default.
• Added an in-window toggle between the existing default Selector view and a Traditional scrollable list with alphabetized equipment, icons, rarity names, quality and selection highlight.
• Preserved the selected equipment when switching views; both layouts share the same upgrade logic and safety checks.
• Added MatchCraftingPanel and DefaultView settings; custom centered width/height remain available when matching is disabled.
• Kept the player inventory accessible in the docked layout.
• Build passed with zero warnings/errors; all 135 headless checks passed. In-game docking and list usability testing remains.

Changes in 4.0.0

• Added an independent centered station window with its own background, backdrop, border and close button; native crafting panel visibility is restored on exit.
• Added permanent character Iron ingot discovery gate for station building and access.
• Added full-name colored rarity prefixes to standard equipment tooltip/hover/upgrade displays without modifying shared names or prefab IDs.
• Added independent per-rarity armor, damage, durability, block and resource scaling configuration, plus custom rarity names/colors.
• Added configurable station, window and elemental settings and a complete commented default configuration example.
• Expanded equipment-mod integration with extra equipment/tool lists, exclusions, base-resource overrides, prefab-aware resource matching and safe handling of ambiguous recipes.
• Preserved per-item metadata and composed standard stat results using Last-priority postfixes.
• Release build passed with zero warnings/errors; all 133 headless checks passed. Native UI/iron notification and specific mod combinations still require in-game testing.

Changes in 3.0.0

• Replaced per-tier coin costs with exactly 3x the item's enabled quality-1 crafting recipe resource quantities.
• Added required/owned resource counts, alternative ingredient selection and multi-stack payment validation.
• Blocked upgrades for missing recipes, invalid ingredients, empty costs and insufficient materials.
• Excluded the selected equipment from resource payment and applied payment as a single inventory transaction.
• Replaced the four-line frame with Epic Loot's original tintable rarity background sprite, embedded in the DLL with source attribution.
• Preserved rarity colors, station-only bonuses and elemental exclusion for all tools.
• Build passed with no warnings/errors; all 104 headless checks passed. In-game UI/game integration testing remains.

Changes in 2.0.0

• Added a buildable Rarity Forge using a separately registered clone of the forge.
• Added a dedicated crafting-panel upgrade flow with deterministic rarity progression, configurable coin costs and elemental choice.
• Added current-to-result stat values calculated from detached item previews.
• Added colored preview and persistent inventory-slot borders.
• Removed automatic rarity on crafting, pickup and loading; stat/effect bonuses require a station-upgrade marker.
• Removed added elemental effects from every tool rarity, including axes and pickaxes.
• Added migration to remove automatically rolled version 1 bonuses from equipment not upgraded at the station.
• Added Jotunn as a required dependency.
• Passed release compilation and 88 headless policy/stat checks. Native UI/game integration testing remains.