Valyn Axe Clues

The Curious and Mysterious axe heads can be easy to miss while exploring. This mod turns the search into a trail of clues you discover in the world. Read Meadows runestones or open Meadows chests to find scratches pointing toward abandoned timber houses that might hold a head.

What it does

• Gives brief directions in approximate paces, such as "500 paces SW — low timbers".
• Adds across the water when the seed's terrain suggests a crossing on the route.
• Shows a fleeting trail of ground arrows after a clue, without pinning the destination on the map.
• Keeps discoveries in one Scratched notes compendium entry in discovery order, with the day, time, and source.
• Keeps each runestone's first successful scratch fixed, even as other sites are searched.
• Moves on from visited ruins or a house where no chest is found.

The mod reads planned WoodHouse2 and WoodHouse6 locations. A clue points to a possible chest, not guaranteed axe-head loot. It does not change chest contents, world generation, or map exploration. Distance and water checks are approximate; terrain edits and unusual coasts can affect the suggested route.

Using the clues

Read a Meadows runestone or close a Meadows chest after opening it. Look for Scratched notes in the known texts compendium. Select that entry to review all discoveries, or use its Clear scratched notes button to erase the list. The clear button does not reset searched sites or reread chest lids.

The mod runs in solo play or for the host of a world. It does not distribute clues to remote clients. If you already carry one head, newly generated clues focus on the other; a head stored elsewhere is not counted as carried.

Settings and saved progress

After first launch, edit BepInEx/config/valyn.mods.axeclues.cfg to set maximum clue distance (1,800 by default) or change water-avoidance behavior. World progress is stored separately in BepInEx/config/ValynAxeCluesWorlds/. Version 0.4.1 moves older world progress out of the main config when it first loads. Deleting a world from Valheim's world list removes its mod progress file once the deletion succeeds.

Requirements

• Valheim
• BepInExPack_Valheim

Other Valyn mods are optional.

Comments, suggestions and bug reports

Browse my Nexus Mods profile to find my mods. Leave comments in Posts on the relevant page, or report bugs through Bugs where available. Include the mod version, world seed, clue source and destination if known, and BepInEx/LogOutput.log for route problems.

Manual installation and updating

1. Close Valheim and install BepInExPack_Valheim.
2. Extract this package. Copy plugins/ValynAxeClues.dll into BepInEx/plugins/ValynAxeClues/ and start Valheim.
3. When updating, replace the old DLL and keep only one copy installed. The first launch of 0.4.1 migrates existing progress automatically.

Removal

1. Close Valheim and remove ValynAxeClues.dll from its plugin folder, or uninstall it through your mod manager.
2. Optionally delete the mod's settings and world progress folder if you want to discard its saved progress. Existing compendium notes belong to the character save.

Credits

Valyn_Mods / Valyn81 — mod concept and maintenance. Promotional artwork is an illustration, not an in-game screenshot. No Valheim or BepInEx DLLs are bundled.

Changelog

0.4.3 — 2026-11-05

• Added support for the selected Valheim language, with 35 bundled language tables for custom clue wording and English fallback.
• Reused native game translations for matching labels and new journal dates; no extra translation mod is required.
• Changed runestone clues to separate matte stone-gray scratch text without rune glow or text animation; chest hints use a pale wood color.
• Stopped player-built vanilla and modded containers from giving clues. Chest clues now require a world-generated Meadows timber ruin.
• Excluded player containers from the empty-ruin chest check.
• Fixed internal translation keys appearing at the end of quoted house descriptions and water hints.
• Preserved existing saved clue distances, bearings and destinations when updating or switching languages. No new world or progress reset is required.

0.4.1

• Store each world's searched sites, chest notes, and fixed runestone scratches in a separate mod data file.
• Move progress from older main-config sections automatically on first launch.
• Remove the matching progress file when a world is deleted through Valheim's world list.

0.4.0

• Combine discovered clues into one chronological Scratched notes compendium entry.
• Keep runestone scratches fixed after their first successful clue and offer one clear-all action.
• Improve the water hint with direct-bearing terrain sampling and richer diagnostic logging.
• Display runestone scratches with smaller, plainer text where the game's font asset supports it.

Earlier test builds

• Added approximate paces and directions to possible axe-head house variants, fleeting ground arrows, and visited-site tracking.