Valheim Tier List
This Valheim weapons tier list places 169 weapons for September 2026, from S-tier down to F-tier. Placement combines win rate, pick rate and how much match data sits behind each result, so it is not a straight win-rate sort — an entry with a high win rate over few games ranks below a steadier one. The S-tier — the 17 strongest weapons right now — features Lightning Strike, Frostfire Sledge, Thunderblood Sledge, Frostfire Crossbow, and Thunderblood Crossbow. Rankings update daily from real ranked matches, so every placement reflects current performance rather than a one-off result. Use the tiers below to pick the best weapons for your games.
S Tier - Meta Defining
(17)S-tier is led by Lightning Strike. They are followed by Frostfire Sledge, Thunderblood Sledge, Frostfire Crossbow, Thunderblood Crossbow, Frostfire Greatsword, Thunderblood Greatsword, and Frostfire Mace. The remaining 9 weapons round out this tier. These weapons define the current meta and are the safest, highest-impact picks.
A Tier - Strong Picks
(25)A-tier is led by Frostfire Spear. They are followed by Nord Sledge, Thunderblood Atgeir, Nord Crossbow, Frostfire Dagger, Thunderblood Spear, Thunderblood Dagger, and Nord Greatsword. The remaining 17 weapons round out this tier. These are strong, reliable weapons that perform well in almost every game.
B Tier - Viable
(34)B-tier is led by Slayer. They are followed by Nord Spear, Storm Star, Demolisher, Dyrnwyn, Nord Dagger, Klossen, and Krom. The remaining 26 weapons round out this tier. These weapons are balanced and fully viable with solid execution.
C Tier - Situational
(34)C-tier is led by Black Metal Axe. They are followed by Black Metal Sword, Black Metal Atgeir, Porcupine, Storm Fang, Frostner, Root Fang, and Ash Fang. The remaining 26 weapons round out this tier. These weapons are situational and need favourable matchups or team comps to shine.
D Tier - Below Average
(34)D-tier is led by Bronze Mace. They are followed by Needle Arrow, Black Metal Bolt, Poison Arrow, Bronze Axe, Bronze Sword, Bronze Spear, and Obsidian Arrow. The remaining 26 weapons round out this tier. These weapons underperform against the current meta and take extra effort to win with.
F Tier - Weak
(25)F-tier is led by Antler Pickaxe. They are followed by Flint Knife, Snowball, Stone Pickaxe, Abyssal Harpoon, Grappling Hook, Wooden Knife, and Ooze Bomb. The remaining 17 weapons round out this tier. These weapons are the weakest options this patch and are best avoided in ranked.
How this list is ranked
Valheim keeps no match statistics, so nothing here is a win rate: 169 entries are ranked by average effective damage against the whole bestiary at max quality, through the same calculation the matchup tool uses — so a weapon that erases one faction and does nothing to another lands where the average puts it, not where its best matchup does, computed from the game files for September 2026. Lightning Strike leads at 363.
Tiers are percentile bands on that ranking — the top tenth is S, then A, B, C and D, with the bottom sixth in F. Bands on rank rather than fixed cutoffs, because armour runs from 1 to 50 and weapon damage from 20 to 300, and one set of thresholds could not serve both.
Best gear by biome
The same numbers, cut by where you are in the game — each list holds everything available by that biome, not only what the biome itself unlocks.
This Valheim weapons tier list places 169 weapons for September 2026, from S-tier down to F-tier. Placement combines win rate, pick rate and how much match data sits behind each result, so it is not a straight win-rate sort — an entry with a high win rate over few games ranks below a steadier one. The S-tier — the 17 strongest weapons right now — features Lightning Strike, Frostfire Sledge, Thunderblood Sledge, Frostfire Crossbow, and Thunderblood Crossbow. Rankings update daily from real ranked matches, so every placement reflects current performance rather than a one-off result. Use the tiers below to pick the best weapons for your games.
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Valheim Tier List FAQ
Who are the best weapons in Valheim?
The best Valheim weapons by win rate are Lightning Strike, Frostfire Sledge, Thunderblood Sledge, Frostfire Crossbow, Thunderblood Crossbow. These S-tier picks have the strongest statistical performance in the current meta.
How is the Valheim tier list calculated?
Each tier combines win rate and pick rate from real ranked matches across all ranks, so raw win rate alone does not decide placement. weapons with fewer than 500 recorded matches are held back from the tiers entirely rather than ranked on a small sample.
How often is the Valheim tier list updated?
The Valheim tier list is updated daily with the latest match data, so the weapons rankings always reflect the live meta.
Should I only play S-tier weapons?
S-tier weapons have the highest win rates, but skill and team composition matter more. You can climb with lower-tier weapons you know well — use the tiers as a guide, not a hard rule.
How is this Valheim tier list ranked?
On the game’s own numbers, not on win rates. Valheim is single-player and co-op with no match telemetry, so there is nothing to measure players against — these 169 entries are ordered by the stat the category is actually judged on, read from the installed build. That makes the ranking reproducible and it also makes its limits clear: it can tell you what hits hardest, not what suits your playstyle.