Valheim's Ashlands update is now available in the public test version of the game, and it's quite a change of pace. Designed to be the title's penultimate biome, the Ashlands is teeming with challenges in its molten wastes and deadly strongholds—hurdles perfect for this stage of player progression in Valheim.

Valheim's Ashlands biome has been teased for a while, but now its true nature has been unveiled. Accessible only to the sturdiest ships, the hellish Ashlands are an anathema to life. Cinder rains from above, lava rivers churn with deadly vigor, and wooden structures will be set alight. 14 new enemy creatures populate the Ashlands, including a new boss and miniboss, to further terrorize players. Luckily for those braving the area, the update includes over 30 new weapons, 3 new armor sets, and new bombs/ammunition.

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The Muspelheim-Inspired Ashlands Are Just What Valheim Needed

It's hard to miss the influence Norse mythology has on Valheim, from the roots of Yggdrasil that hang in the tenth realm's sky to the many trolls and dwarves the player encounters. However, it also plays with mythology in subtler ways, adding in elements of Scandinavian folklore (such as with the greydwarves) and putting its own spin on many ideas. The Ashlands are the perfect example of this—bringing the fantasy of Muspelheim, the Norse plane of fire, to the tenth realm in a way that doesn't simply copy the ideas found in Norse myth.

Muspelheim In Norse Myth

Muspelheim is scarcely found outside the Poetic Edda and Prose Edda, which are both later works. Both works suggest that the 'sons of Muspell' will be instrumental in the apocalypse of Ragnarok, and it is these 'sons of Muspell', perhaps fire giants, that can be found in older attestations in the same role. It's possible that this realm of fire—said to mix with the ice of Niflheim to create the giant Ymir, from whose corpse the world was made—morphed out of the idea of Surtr. In the Edda texts, Surtr and his flaming sword are said to play a similar role in ending the world to these 'sons of Muspell', so some have theorized that Surtr may be Muspell itself. Whatever the truth is, the wretched fires of Muspelheim that make and break the world certainly resemble those of Valheim's Ashlands.

Valheim Takes Muspelheim Inspiration In Some Interesting Directions

As with much of Valheim's Norse-mythological worldbuilding, the Ashlands is less a stronghold of Muspelheim in the tenth realm and more a subtle invocation of Norse cosmology. The world map demonstrates this idea; the Ashlands lie in the far south of the world, while in the far north is the unfinished Deep North biome. With the lush, green body of the world struck between these elemental opposites, there's likely a reference here to both Muspelheim and Niflheim. The fires of Muspelheim combined with the ice of Niflheim to create the body of Ymir that formed the world, and here that dichotomy is represented in this positioning of biomes.

Valheim's Ashlands have more mythology to explore yet, with Easter eggs in creatures, materials, and craftable items. In fact, prior to the Ashlands update, the area the biome now inhabits was populated only by Surtlings. These fiery imps derive their name from the aforementioned Surtr, the fire giant whose sword will engulf the world in flame.

The Fallen Valkyries Are A Standout Example Of Original Lore

On the subject of Valheim deriving lore from a Norse myth, as opposed to adapting it outright, the Ashlands' fallen valkyries are a particular highlight. At the beginning of the game, the player is carried to the tenth realm by a valkyrie—which the game interprets as great birds. This gives them a similar appearance to the ravens Hugin and Munin, who are also servants of Odin—creating a recurring motif. Naturally, the fallen valkyries have a fittingly inverted look—skeletal, vulture-like things that will strike fear into the hardest of hearts.