Valheim – What Exactly Is a “Dolmen?”

The lingo of magical items, unsettling objects, or foreboding areas in Valheim is pretty straightforward when it comes to having your “average gamer Joe/Jane” understand the game’s Viking-esque jargon. However, one word that has been lately popping up regarding Valheim is the unusual term “dolmen.” Those who’ve come across Troll Caves or Burial Chambers will have seen these curious stone structures that form the menacing entrance to these lairs.  

According to the World History Encyclopedia, a dolmen is defined as 

a megalithic structure typically formed from a large horizontal stone slab resting on two or more upright slabs.[…]The word dolmen, which derives from Breton t(d)aol meaning table and men or min meaning stone, appears in the scientific debate around the end of the 1700s CE.[…] It was thought they were works built by giants or, indeed, deeds of the devil.”

Valheim dolmens serve as more than just entryways for the dens of the undead. These mysterious stone slab formations can be found scattered across the various biomes of the Meadows, Plains, and even the Black Forest. Although they don’t serve any particular purpose to the player, dolmens make up for some intriguing randomly-generated environmental decor, adding polish to the fantasy theme‘s mythical atmosphere. 

Probably the most common context you’ll see the word “dolmen” appear in Valheim is in the recent patch notes for 0.148.6 and 0.150.3. 

• Dolmen location fixes (Stop top stone from falling for no reason) (0.148.6)
• Dolmen location stone size fix (0.150.3.)

The developers recently addressed these stone megaliths because a certain number of players had been building their homes on top of dolmens and other monoliths. Unfortunately for a select few, the in-game system didn’t take too kindly to the structures built atop its randomly spawned rock formations, breaking apart and collapsing the structural integrity of possibly many hours of creative construction.

The issue should be fixed now following the latest patches. Still, it would probably be sensible to have your shabby log cabins and imposing Viking longhouses built on a more stable and sturdy foundation other than atop randomly spawn objects — aka solid ground. Valheim is still in Early Access, meaning you will never know when a future update might alter the proportions or other characteristics of the stone megaliths and monoliths on which you chose to construct your home. Whatever the case, you hopefully now understand what a “dolmen” is in Valheim.