So you want to tame a boar in Valheim? Good call. It's one of the first big upgrades for any Meadows base.
The best way is simple: trap one in a safe pen, drop carrots, stay close, and wait for the taming bar to fill. Once you've got two tamed boars, breed them for a steady supply of leather scraps and boar meat. This guide walks you through the whole thing, from harpoon kiting to building a carrot pen.
New Player Warnings
- Don't leave gaps in the pen. Boars can squeeze through small openings and escape, and catching them again is a pain.
- Don't wander off while taming. If you get too far away, the taming timer pauses.
- Don't hit the boar, even to "test" it. Damage or fear can reset your taming progress.
Why Tame Boars in Valheim?
Boars aren't just cute little pigs running around the Meadows. They're a renewable resource.
Tamed boars can breed, which means you can produce your own boar meat and leather scraps without running around hunting wild boars all day.
Leather scraps are used in many early and mid-game recipes. Boar meat is solid early food, especially when cooked. If you build a good boar farm, you never have to worry about running out of either one.
Taming also gets you a boar trophy sometimes when you harvest extra boars. That's a nice bonus for decoration. But the real value is the steady supply of materials.
What You Need Before You Start
Tools and Materials
You don't need a lot to start taming boars, but a few things make it much easier:
- Wood for a pen, ideally stakewalls or wood fences
- A gate for the pen
- Carrots or other boar food
- A weapon for killing extra boars later
- An Abyssal harpoon if you want the fastest dragging method
- A cultivator if you plan to farm carrots
The Abyssal harpoon is optional. It's made from chitin you get from Leviathans.
If you don't have one yet, you can still tame boars. It just takes more patience.
Best Food for Boars
Carrots are the best food for taming and breeding boars. They're easy to farm, they stack well, and boars eat them without any problem. Turnips, onions, raspberries, blueberries, and red mushrooms also work.
Boars don't eat meat. Don't waste cooked meat or raw meat on them. It will just sit on the ground.
For breeding, carrots are the go-to food. Plant a small carrot farm near your pen so you always have a stack ready.
Best Way to Tame Boar in Valheim: Step-by-Step
Step 1: Build a Safe Carrot Pen
Find a flat spot in the Meadows, preferably near your base. Build a pen using stakewalls or wood fences. A 4x4 pen is fine for two boars.
If you want to breed a lot of them, make it bigger, like 6x6 or 8x8. Add a gate so you can get in and out.
Make sure there are no gaps. Boars can push through small openings and escape. Once they're out, they can be a pain to catch again.
You can add a roof if you want, but it isn't required. The main goal is to keep the boar inside and keep enemies outside.
Step 2: Get the Boar Into the Pen With Harpoon Kiting
The fastest way to move a boar is with the Abyssal harpoon. Equip it and use the secondary attack to throw the harpoon at the boar. Once it latches on, walk backward.
The boar will be dragged toward you. Lead it through the gate, then close the gate quickly. That's harpoon kiting in a nutshell.
It works on wild boars and is much faster than trying to push them. If you don't have a harpoon, you can drop carrots on the ground to lure a boar.
Boars will walk toward food. You can also build a pen around a boar while it's standing still. It's slower, but it works.
Just be careful not to kill the boar with the harpoon. It does a little damage, so don't spam attacks.
Step 3: Feed and Wait
Drop a stack of carrots inside the pen. The boar will eat when it gets hungry. Taming progress only goes up when the boar is fed and you're nearby.
Stay within about 20 meters of the boar. If you wander too far away, taming pauses. You can do nearby chores while you wait.
Chop wood, repair walls, farm carrots, or just sort your inventory. Taming a boar takes about 30 minutes of real time if you stay close and keep it fed.
You can check the progress by looking at the boar. You'll see a taming bar.
Don't attack the boar. Don't let enemies attack it. If the boar takes damage or gets scared, taming progress can reset.
Keep greydwarfs, skeletons, and raids away from your pen. I like to build my carrot pen right next to my base, so I can farm and repair walls while the taming bar fills.
Step 4: Confirm Taming and Start Breeding
When the taming bar fills, the boar becomes tamed. It will stop running away from you and will stay in the pen. Now you need a second tamed boar if you want to breed.
Tame another boar the same way. Put both tamed boars in the same pen. Drop carrots for them.
If they're close to each other and have enough space, they'll breed and produce a piglet. Piglets grow into adult boars over time. Once they're adults, they can breed too.
Keep feeding them carrots to keep the cycle going.
How to Breed Boars for Leather Scraps and Meat
Breeding Basics
Breeding is easy once you have two tamed boars. They need food, space, and each other. Drop a few carrots in the pen.
The boars will eat, and then they'll mate. You don't need a male and female. Any two tamed boars can breed in Valheim.
A small piglet will appear after a while. There's a limit to how many animals can breed in one area. If your pen gets too crowded, the boars will stop making babies.
When that happens, kill some adult boars to make room. Keep at least two adults for breeding.
Harvesting Extra Boars
When your pen is full, it's time to harvest. Kill extra boars with a weapon. You'll get boar meat and leather scraps.
Sometimes you get a boar trophy too. Leather scraps go into crafting. Boar meat goes into your stomach.
Keep the best adults for breeding and cull the rest. This gives you a steady loop of materials without ever leaving your base.
Common Mistakes When Taming Boars
- Leaving gaps in the pen. Boars can squeeze through small openings. Use stakewalls and a gate, and check for holes.
- Standing too far away. Taming pauses if you leave the area. Stay within about 20 meters.
- Feeding the wrong food. Boars don't eat meat. Use carrots, turnips, onions, berries, or red mushrooms.
- Attacking the boar. Hitting it resets taming progress. Keep your weapon away until it's tamed.
- Ignoring enemies. Greydwarfs, skeletons, and raids can kill or scare your boar. Build walls and clear the area.
- Taming only one boar. One boar can't breed. You need at least two tamed boars.
- Overcrowding the pen. Too many boars in one spot stops breeding. Kill extras to keep the herd growing.
- Taming in a dangerous biome. Meadows is the best place. Boars spawn there, and it's safer than the Black Forest or Swamp.
FAQ
How long does it take to tame a boar in Valheim?
About 30 minutes of real time if you stay nearby and keep it fed. If you leave the area, the timer pauses. If you attack it, progress can reset.
What's the best food to tame and breed boars?
Carrots are the best. They're easy to farm, stack well, and boars eat them.
Turnips, onions, raspberries, blueberries, and red mushrooms also work. Meat doesn't.
What's the best way to tame boar without a harpoon?
You can lure a boar with carrots or build a pen around one. It's slower than harpoon kiting, but it still works. Just keep the boar fed and stay close until the taming bar fills.
Can you tame a boar without a pen?
You can tame one in the open if you keep it fed and stay close, but it may wander off or get killed. A simple fenced pen is the best way to tame boar safely and start breeding.