Every Cape in Valheim: Armour 1, and the Durability Does the Talking
Valheim's capes look like an armour ladder and are not one. Every cape from the Troll Hide to the Linen sits at armour 1 — a single point, unchanged across the entire progression. What actually climbs is durability, from 400 to 1,500, and what actually matters is the effect attached: frost resistance, fall protection, or a running speed bonus.
On sourcing. Iron Gate do not publish system documentation. The figures below come from the community wikis and can change with any patch.
Durability Is the Ladder
| Cape | Armour | Durability |
|---|---|---|
| Linen Cape | 1 | 1,500 |
| Cape of Odin | 1 | 1,500 |
| Lox Cape | 1 | 1,200 |
| Wolf Fur Cape | 1 | 1,000 |
| Troll Hide Cape | 1 | 500 |
| Deer Hide Cape | 2 | 400 |
The Deer Hide Cape is the only cape above armour 1, at 2 — and it is also the least durable at 400. The first cape you make has the highest armour value in the category, which is not how any other equipment line in the game works.
Durability is the real progression: 400 → 500 → 1,000 → 1,200 → 1,500. That is nearly a fourfold climb across the game, and it is what a cape upgrade actually buys you — fewer trips to a workbench, not more protection.
Which means comparing capes on armour is pointless. As our armour set guide covers, the chest, legs and helmet carry your defensive numbers. The cape slot is a utility slot wearing an armour label.
The Lox Cape's durability improves with quality, running 1,200 → 1,250 → 1,300 → 1,350 across its four upgrade levels while armour stays flat — the same pattern in miniature.
The Effects Are the Point
| Cape | Effect |
|---|---|
| Lox Cape | Resistance (0.5×) to Frost |
| Feather Cape | Fall speed capped at 5 m/s, fall damage −100%, jump stamina −20% |
| Asksvin Cloak | −15% dodge stamina plus the Wind run effect |
| Linen Cape | Colour choice — red, blue, green or yellow |
The Lox Cape's frost resistance is a survival tool, not a stat bonus. As our status effects guide sets out, Freezing is −100% health regeneration and 1 damage per second — and halving incoming Frost damage is what makes the Mountain and Deep North workable.
The Feather Cape removes fall damage entirely. "−100% fall damage" is not a reduction, it is an elimination — which turns every cliff in the game into a shortcut and makes it arguably the most play-changing cape in the list.
The Asksvin Cloak is the Ashlands answer, and it is two effects in one: −15% dodge stamina and Wind run, which "increases running speed up to +25%" while reducing running stamina. In a biome where you are constantly repositioning, that is a mobility package rather than a defensive one.
And the Linen Cape's four colours are the only cosmetic choice in the category — worth knowing if you are building a themed set.
One You Cannot Get
The Cape of Odin is not obtainable. It is "a DLC armor piece… only available for the early supporters of Valheim via a Steam code sent out in an email from Iron Gate Studios to those who signed up for the Valheim Beta."
There is no in-game route to it, no crafting recipe and no drop. At 1,500 durability and armour 1 it is mechanically identical to the Linen Cape anyway — it is a cosmetic marker of when you bought the game, not a piece of gear you are missing out on.
Worth stating plainly because it appears in item lists alongside craftable capes, and it is exactly the sort of thing players spend an evening hunting a recipe for. There is no recipe.
The cape that actually deserves the hunt is the Feather Cape, and it is worth reordering your plans around. Fall damage −100% removes an entire category of death, makes vertical exploration free, and pairs with the Hoe's raised-terrain building in ways that change how you approach a base site.
Pick your cape by biome, not by tier. Mountain and Deep North want the Lox Cape for frost. Mistlands and vertical terrain want the Feather Cape. The Ashlands wants the Asksvin Cloak. There is no single best cape, because they are not competing on the same axis.
Practical tips
- Every cape is armour 1 except the Deer Hide Cape at 2.
- Durability is the real ladder: 400 → 500 → 1,000 → 1,200 → 1,500.
- The Deer Hide Cape has the highest armour and the lowest durability.
- Lox Cape: 0.5× Frost damage — the Mountain and Deep North pick.
- Feather Cape: fall damage −100% and fall speed capped at 5 m/s.
- Asksvin Cloak: −15% dodge stamina plus Wind run at up to +25% running speed.
- The Cape of Odin is a Beta-signup DLC item with no in-game route.
- Choose by biome, not by tier — they do not compete on the same axis.
Running your own Valheim server
Capes are biome-specific, which means a group carries several and swaps them per expedition — and that only works when the chest holding them is still there. A gamever Valheim server keeps your world persistent for up to 10 players, with one-click backups.
Conclusion
Valheim's capes are not an armour ladder: every one sits at armour 1 except the Deer Hide Cape at 2, which is also the least durable at 400. What climbs is durability — 400, 500, 1,000, 1,200 and 1,500 — so a cape upgrade buys fewer repairs rather than more protection. The real differences are the effects: the Lox Cape halves Frost damage, the Feather Cape removes fall damage entirely and caps fall speed at 5 m/s, and the Asksvin Cloak gives −15% dodge stamina plus Wind run for up to +25% running speed. The Linen Cape is the cosmetic option with four colours, and the Cape of Odin is a Valheim Beta signup DLC piece with no in-game route at all — mechanically identical to the Linen Cape, so nothing is being missed. Choose by biome rather than by tier.
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