Play Valheim Ashlands on your server

The Ashlands came to Valheim in patch 0.218.15 on 14 May 2024, and every current copy of the game has it. Your server gets it the same way as any Valheim update: it downloads the newest build from Steam when it starts. What takes thought is your world, because a world you explored before the update does not get the new biome the way a fresh one does.

Make sure the server is on the current build

1. Open your server in the dashboard and click Restart.
2. Watch the Console. Our start-up checks the build you have against Steam's public build and prints one of two lines:
   • [PYW] Server is on the current build (...) - skipping the SteamCMD update pass. means you already have the newest Valheim.
   • [PYW] Running SteamCMD update (installed: ..., public: ...)... means it found a newer build and is downloading it before it starts.
3. Wait for DungeonDB Start. The server is ready for players after that line.

You don't need to switch anything on for this. If neither [PYW] build line appears, either Update on start is on in the Startup tab, which makes the server ask Steam for a new version every time it starts, or the server predates this check. Either way it updates from Steam when it starts. Players update their own game through Steam, and the joining steps are in How to make a Valheim dedicated server.

Your existing world and the Ashlands

Iron Gate's own advice before the update was that new content "will only be generated properly in previously unexplored areas". The Ashlands are in the south of the map, so there are two cases:

• You haven't explored the Ashlands area. Iron Gate says you should get the new content, but it always recommends a new world "for the best possible experience".
• You have explored a lot of that area. Iron Gate says the update will not generate properly there and recommends starting a new world.

The update also changed how terrain is generated around the Ashlands and on the outer rim of the world, and the land around the Ashlands was lowered and turned into ocean. Iron Gate warns that player buildings on terrain that gets altered will collapse. If your base is near the edge, move what matters first.

Take a backup in the Backups tab before the first start on the new build. How to create and restore backups has the steps.

Start a fresh world for the Ashlands

You can keep the old world and start another beside it.

1. Open the Startup tab and, in the World card, change World name to a new name. The server loads that world, or creates it if it doesn't exist.
2. Click Save changes and Restart.
3. Your old world stays in the server files, and you switch back by setting the old name again. How to manage and switch worlds on your Valheim server walks through that.

Characters are not tied to a world, so players can bring their existing characters. Iron Gate says as much: you can start a new world "with an older character".

Getting there

Both Iron Gate and the Valheim wiki agree on the basics:

• The Ashlands can only be reached by ship, and the waters around them are boiling. The wiki says only the Drakkar survives the voyage.
• Iron Gate recommends beating the Queen in the Mistlands first, because her drop is no longer a placeholder.
• Wooden pieces can catch fire in the Ashlands and the fire spreads.
• The Ashlands boss is Fader.

If you run mods

Iron Gate warned that mods take time to catch up after a game update, and a game update can break them. Our servers update Valheim on restart, so a mod that hooks the game may need a new release before it works again. In the Mods tab, use Check for updates, as in Update mods on your Valheim server. If BepInEx itself fails, Install BepInEx and mods on your Valheim server has the console lines to look for.