A Guide to Moder – Valheim

Valheim is the absolute talk of the town at the moment. The game has had an extremely positive reception after releasing into early access on Steam. With over 1 million units sold it’s not surprise that Valheim has broken into the top 5 played games on the Steam Charts. At the time of writing the game is currently on the 3rd spot.

In Valheim your goal is simple. You are put onto this world to defeat the forsaken enemies of Odin. There are currently 5 forsaken that will have to be tracked down, summoned and defeated and the fourth of these bosses is names Moder. The following guide will feature spoiler material for Valheim. If you haven’t reached this part of the game yet and want most of the game, objects and mechanics to remain a surprise then please save this guide for another time.

Moder is the fourth boss which you will come face to face with after defeating Bonemass, the swamp boss. This guide will focus on Moder, where you can find the boss, what their attacks are and how you can beat Moder.


Contents

You can click any of the headings below to skip straight to a relevant part of the page.

What is Moder?

Finding Moder

Summoning Moder in Valheim
Sacrifice Her Spawn
Getting Dragon Eggs
Using The Sacrificial Altar

Fighting Moder
Moder’s Attack Set
Fighting Tactics

Loot
Moder Trophy
Dragon Tears


What is Moder?

Moder, as aforementioned is the fourth forsaken boss in Valheim. As seen at the sacrificial stones, Moder is a large dragon creature. Moder is a large dragon that can fly and will use frost attacks to damage the player. Moder has a similar look to the other dragon enemy in the game called a Drake.


How to Find Moder

Let me begin by saying this will be your toughest search yet. Finding the location of Moder will be very tricky as it relies on a completely random location. Unlike Bonemass who’s vegvisir can be found by searching sunken crypts, finding the runestone to mark Moder’s location will be a bit trickier. Just like the other forsaken, you will need to find the runestone which marks the location of Moder on your map. You will need to head into the mountain biome for this one. Before you head to the mountains it is recommended you craft yourself up some armor that has frost protection and brew some frost protection potions.

How to find moder in valheim. find a runestone to register the location of the fourth boss
Exploring crypts in the swamp is your first step to finding Bonemass

Once you’re in the snow you will have to look out for broken down structures to find the location marker. There are some old run down wooden cabins in the snow that you may come across. The vegvisir will not spawn in one of these. What we are looking for is a stone tower, or small stone ruins. Typically you will see skeletons or Draugr spawn there. Once you spot one check inside to see if there is the runestone for Moder. If not, unfortunately you will just have to keep searching in the mountains biome until you find one.

As every map is procedurally generated I can’t advise you any specific location for them. In my experience, the further I climbed up, the more structures I found. But that may have just been dumb luck.

Once you’ve found this runestone, interact with it and the location for Moder will appear on your map! Now it is just a matter of getting over to that location.


How to Summon Moder

Once you’ve made your way over to the area marked on your map you will see the summoning alter for Moder. You will see three plates where items can be places and a sacrificial altar which you will need to interact with once you have all the required items in the correct places.

Sacrifice her spawn is the cryptic clue for summoning moder in valheim


Sacrifice Her Spawn

If you interact with the runestone that you are standing on here you will be shown the message ‘Sacrifice Her Spawn’. This may not be obvious at first but in your travels in the mountains you may have already come across the object you need. Her spawn refers to dragon eggs which can be found randomly in nests in the mountain biomes.

You will need a total of 3 eggs to summon Moder, one for each offering plate.

sacrificing 3 dragon eggs to spawn moder in valhiem

How to Get Dragon Eggs

the in-game desciption for dragon eggs in valheim

The in-game description for the Dragon Egg reads ‘Far heavier than it looks, with a faint humming sound from within.’

Finding a Dragon Egg will require some patience and luck in Valheim. You can find Dragon Eggs by searching the mountain biome looking for nests. Although these nests can spawn randomly, try to look for flatter areas in the mountains as they tend to not spawn on cliffs. If you see 2 or more Drakes flying around in one area, chances are there is a dragon egg around them somewhere! Head over and have a look.

Dragon nests are fairly easy to spot even at a distance. They will have blue glowing crystals around the nest which glow pretty brightly in the snow. Check out the image below to get an idea of what a Drake nest looks like.

Be aware that as the in-game description says, Dragon Eggs are heavy! A single Dragon Egg weighs 200 units of weight in Valheim. Even if you have the Megingjord belt you will be able to carry a maximum or 2 at a time and not too much else. Chances are you will be making three separate trips up to Moder’s altar. Dragon Eggs cannot be teleported either so you will actually have to carry them up there.

A dragon egg inside a drake nest in Valheim

Using The Sacrificial Alter

Once you have an egg up at the alter, simply interact with one of the sacrificial bowls behind the alter. your character will automatically place and Dragon Eggs they have inside their inventory on the bowl. Gather three of these Dragon Eggs and put each one into a bowl. Make sure you are prepared for the fight ahead because once you have three eggs to offer and interact with the altar at the front you will spawn your toughest fight yet, Moder the ice dragon.


How to Fight Moder

Moder is a large Ice Dragon that uses not powerful ranged elemental attacks, but also has some devastating melee attacks when you get up close. Moder is the first boss that will not just fight with you on the ground but can also fly up into the air making melee combat completely useless.

Moder is very difficult and is probably going to take you the longest to beat out of any of the bosses. A tough enemy, mixed with the harsh conditions of the Mountains and random enemies makes this one a real pain.

Moder’s Attack Set

Moder has a 4 different attacks that can be used to damage the player. Each attack is extremely devastating and can defeat the player in just one or two hits without the proper protection. Out of the 4 attacks in Moder’s arsenal 2 of them can be used while Moder is in the air and 3 of them can be used while Moder is down on the ground.

Once Moder is off the ground the only way the player can damage it is by utilizing ranged combat.

Attack 1 – Melee Swipe Attack

Once Moder comes down to land it become vulnerable to melee attacks from the player. Don’t let it’s range fool you though, Moder is just as deadly up close. The first attack we will talk about is a bite attack. If the player is standing directly in front of Moder, it may attempt to use its jaws to attack the player. This does high piercing damage to the player.

This attack can be blocked using a strong shield, or negated with a well-timed dodge roll. The player will have a few seconds after Moder uses the bite attack to retaliate before Moder will strike again.

Moder the fourth boss flying in valheim

Attack 2 – Melee Claw Attack

This attack is very similar to the first attack from Moder. The beast will swing with it’s right wing and attempt to claw the player. It has a larger hit radius than the bit attack but does slightly lower damage. You will see Moder getting ready to use this as it shifts its weight to its back legs.

It will take it a second to charge up to use this attack so watch Moder’s movements in order to learn when it will unleash this swipe.

Another one that is easily beaten with a good old fashioned dodge-roll.

Attack 3 – Ranged Ice Crystal Spawner

The next attack we will discuss is an attack where Moder shoots multiple crystals out of it’s mouth. Moder will quickly throw back its head and prepare this barrage of ice crystals. These will target an area around the player and multiple ice rocks will grow around the player. This is Moder’s most difficult attack as not only will the initial impact of the shot do deal major damage to the player, but the crystals lefts behind will make the area around them extremely cold, stunting stamina regeneration.

This attack is so strong that it will even destroy rocks which it hits. You can destroy the ice rocks by smashing them with a pickaxe or a blunt weapon like the mace. They will generally be destroyed in one of two hits.

Moders ice crystal attack

Attack 4 – Ranged Ice Breath Attack

What would a dragon enemy in a video game be without a good old fire-breathing attack? In Valheim they’ve flipped the switch and rather than fire, Moder will breathe extremely cold air at the player making them suffer damage from the initial impact, and inflict cold. If the player has the ‘Freezing’ effect they will not be able to move faster than a walk and stamina will regenerate extremely slow.

Moder can breath ice at the player

Moder can use this Ice Breath attack both while flying in the air and while it is on the ground. You can stay prepared by watching the movement of Moder’s head.

It is fairly easy to dodge if you know it is coming. It has a fairly small spread and breathes in a straight line to where the player was standing when the attack started.

Tactics/Methods of Fighting Moder | How to Beat Moder

Moder is going to be a very difficult boss to beat. Due to the fact it has the largest move set so far and can move in both the air and on land you will have a difficult time beating Moder. There are a few things that you can do to tip the fight in your favor however.

Moder is not particularly weak against any type of damage. Slashing, piercing and blunt will all do just regular damage with no strengths or weaknesses. This is probably a good thing, seeing as when Moder lands you can make use of some decent melee weapons, and when she takes to the skies you can continue to use your bow.

Speaking of bows, I personally recommend you craft yourself a Draugr Fang bow. It will be the strongest in the game for you at the moment damage-wise. Trust me, you will need all the help you can get. Not only does this bow do great damage, but it also does extra poison damage on hit.

Crafting a Draugr fang in Valheim

Another thing you are going to want to think about is the location of the fight. one of the hardest parts about the Moder fight is that you will be in the mountains, one of the harshest regions of the game. With Wolves, Drakes and golems ready to jump in and help Moder attack you at any point, fighting on Moder’s turf is not recommended.

Luckily you can do something about that. If you run into a different direction Moder will follow you. I highly recommend having Moder chase you into a better biome for a fight such as the meadows. The meadows is the best as only Greylings should spawn here. Other fauna and enemies will not attack Moder so there is not point trying to go to somewhere like the plains to enlist help. Lox and other enemies cannot damage Moder and won’t take any damage from Moder.

Moder breathing ice spikes at the player in valheim

Moder isn’t particularly strong or weak to anything. Any type of arrow will be pretty decent as long as you just keep shooting. I personally defeated Moder by using Fire Arrows. The burn over time damage really adds up, especially if Moder flies out of range, it’s good to have the damage still going through. Fire damage is not super effective to this Articuno but isn’t really too bad either. Couple that with the Poison damage that gets applies on hit with the Draugr Fang and you’ve got yourself a nice little bleed. It took me somewhere between 110 and 120 arrows to finally defeat Moder.

You can also create a nice mead base for frost resistance at the cauldron. This will be good for negating some of the damage you’ll receive from Moder’s ranged attacks. Couple this with the frost resistance stats of the Wolf Armor and you can build yourself a nice little tank.

Structures will be pretty much useless here as Moder’s ranged Icicle attack will smash through just about anything in one hit. Try to get a few friends together and just lead Moder out of the mountains and wail on her with fire arrows.


Loot Dropped By Moder

Congratulations. If you’re this far in the guide you either have all the information you need to beat Moder, or you already have! Once you defeat Moder she will drop Dragon tears and as usual a trophy signifying her defeat.

Moder Trophy

The Trophy of Moder on the sacrificial stones hook

You will get the Moder Trophy upon defeating Moder. The trophy can either be attached to the hook on the sacrificial stones or but up as a decoration in a player’s house. If you choose to hang the trophy up as a sacrifice to the gods, you will be able to learn the forsaken power of Moder.

Moder’s forsaken power gives the player the ability to control the wind. Activating this ability grants the player to always have the wind blowing in the direction of the way that they are sailing. This is an incredibly valuable skill for anyone wanting to do a lot of exploring of Valheim.

Moders forsaken power in valheim allows the player to always have tailwind when sailing

Dragon Tears

Along with the Trophy, the player will also receive an amount of Dragon Tears. This Dragon Tears can be used to craft the artisan table, the next step in your advancement in Valheim. This will unlock a large array of different processing items and Craftable items for things found in the next biome, the plains.

Without going too much into it, the artisan table will allow you to craft a windmill, and a better furnace to smelt newer and stronger metals.


And we’ve come to the end of another boss guide for Valheim. I hope this guide has helped you slay the great beast in the mountains. How did you and your friends defeat this forsaken boss? Let me know if you have any great method or information that we need to know about Moder!

Related: How to Get Copper in Valheim | How to Get Fine Wood in Valheim