How to tame a wolf in Valheim

Wondering how to tame a wolf in Valheim? If you've ventured to the Mountain biome, it's likely that you've come across a wolf or two while exploring. And while they can be taken out fairly easily with arrows, if they manage to reach you, they can do a lot of damage very quickly. Luckily, you can turn that to your advantage by taming them—and you can do it earlier than you might think.

You need plenty of wolf hide to craft the associates Valheim armor to help you survive later biomes, but if you don't want to head to the mountains to farm it, you can tame a pair of wolves and breed them. Not only are they pretty cute—if you can learn to ignore their endless howling—but they make good protection for your base and structures. If you have enough of them, they can even take down an invading troll within a couple of seconds, thanks to their super-fast attack speed. 

With all that in mind, here's how to tame a wolf and craft the Valheim wolf cape.

How to tame a wolf in Valheim

The only things you'll need are plenty of wood, a Valheim workbench, some food to boost your health, around five or six pieces of raw meat, and a bit of patience. Oh, and access to the Mountain biome which should be fairly easy to locate on most maps.

First of all, you need a wolf. You can often see them patrolling from the edge of the biome. Chop down a tree or two to see if that brings any curious wolves your way—while still making sure you've got somewhere safe to run. Once you've found a candidate, build a pen using stakewall—the wall's durability ensures the wolf won't be able to break out when you initially trap it. Leave a gap so you (and the wolf) can enter and build a platform that looks down into the pen. You also want to make sure there's a lower platform that you can sprint jump onto from inside.

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Once you're prepared, it's time to use yourself as bait. You can either do this bit fully geared—with frost resistance potions or a wolf cape—or just ensure your health is over at least 50. Run towards the wolf to get its attention—you shouldn't have to worry about the freezing debuff if you're not there for more than a few seconds—then sprint back to your pen. Using Eikthyr's power helps here, but it's not required. Jump up onto the platform and quickly build the final bit of stakewall to trap the wolf inside. It's not going to be too happy at this point and will be attacking the walls trying to get out. Throw in three or four pieces of raw meat then retreat and the wolf should calm down.

You'll know the taming process has started because the wolf will have yellow hearts floating above it. As long as it has access to meat, it should take about a day and a half to tame. One point to note, though: If you leave the area, the taming process seems to pause so you should try to stay close by. You can check on it now and again and repair the stakewall as needed, but be aware that every time you approach, the wolf will become agitated and start attacking it again.

Once the wolf is tamed, you can interact with it to follow you or stay, though the latter command will let it wander in a certain radius of that spot. If you have two tamed wolves, you can breed them. Simply feed them both to give them the 'happy' status and let nature take its course.

How to craft the Valheim wolf cape and armor

If you want to spend more time in the Mountains without worrying about the freezing debuff and frost-resistance potions, a wolf cape is just what you're looking for. The wolf chest armour will do the same job, but it requires a bit more Valheim silver to craft. 

It's also worth remembering that you will get the freezing debuff, regardless of armor worn if you are wet, so it's better to wait for a sunny day before heading for the slopes.

Wolf fur cape: Resistance vs. frost

• Equipment: Workbench
• Silver x4: Smelted from silver ore found in the Mountains.
• Wolf pelt x6
• Wolf trophy x1

Wolf armor chest: Resistance vs. frost

• Equipment: Forge
• Silver x 20
• Wolf pelt x5
• Chain x1: Dropped by Wraiths found in the Swamps at night. Can also be found randomly in crypts.

Wolf armor legs

• Equipment: Forge
• Silver x 20
• Wolf pelt x5
• Wolf fang x4

Drake helmet

• Equipment: Forge
• Silver x 20
• Wolf pelt x2
• Drake trophy x2: Dropped by drakes in the Mountains biome.