Taming Lox in Valheim is on paper the same as taming any other animal. However, the size and power of these creatures means you’ll need to take some extra steps to secure them.
Lox produce Lox Meat for some powerful recipes as well as Lox Pelts for capes and decorations. Lox can also be ridden once tamed with the Lox Saddle.
Building a Lox trap
Don’t bother with trying to build a fence or enclosure.
Lox will smash through any amount of wood or stone, so we advise using the hoe to raise the ground to form a kind of colosseum. While this does cost stone, it costs far less than building stone walls. It is also much faster than digging a sufficient pit with the pickaxe. A combination of digging with the pickaxe (to obtain the stone), and then building around with the hoe will mean you’ll be able to build a huge pit in a relatively short amount of time. Build a divider wall down the middle of the pit too, as this will make it easier to trap two Lox individually, and ensure that the first Lox doesn’t escape when trying to trap the second one.
Build this in an area of the Black Forest next to the Plains. This will make working on the farm a lot simpler than if you build it directly in the Plains, a significantly more dangerous area. However, this will mean that the Lox will be hostile to the enemies in the Black Forest, so you will need to take later steps to avoid that problem.
You will need to build the walls as high as you can. Lox have the tendency to climb on top of each other, sometimes even triple stacking.
Luring & Trapping a Lox
Build some stone or wooden stairs down into the pit, preferably three blocks wide. The idea is that you will run down into the pit, the Lox will follow you down, and then you run past the Lox and destroy the stairs. This will take a bit of skill, as Lox move very quickly, and their slam attack can catch you out.
Lox are found in the Plains and are very easy to spot. They are normally in groups of two or three, which is ideal if you’re looking to breed them. Lure them by firing an arrow at one from a distance, preferably from the Black Forest.
Walking up to them is not advised, as you risk luring Fulings and Deathsquitos into the mix, which can throw you into a tricky situation. Remember that Lox are deceptively fast, and will catch up to you at full sprint in the Plains.
How to tame Lox
Taming Lox follows the same procedure as taming any other animal in Valheim. Drop food on the floor, hide from it, and wait until it begins to feed. You will see yellow hearts above it when the taming process is happening.
Lox eat:
- Cloudberries
- Flax
- Barley
Cloudberries are the easiest food source to obtain for the Lox, as they are scattered all over the Plains, but if you already have a Flax or Barley farm set up, then this might be an easier option.
It’s important to keep the area active. Leaving the area before the Lox has tamed can cause it to despawn. To be on the safe side, stay within sight of the Lox, and bring a supply of food so you can stay replenished while on Lox watch.
Equipping armour with improved sneak can be ideal here, as you will able to move near without startling the Lox. Once your Lox is tamed, you will see pink/purple hearts above it. You will be able to pet the Lox, and also rename it.
How to breed Lox
The main challenge breeding Lox requires is giving them enough space. Hens and Wolves require a relatively small space to breed, but Lox require a vast area.
Lox can breed provided two Lox are:
- Tame
- Well-fed
- Within 8 metres of each other
- Not under a roof
If these conditions are met, you will see a Lox Calf running around before long. Lox will be unable to produce more Lox Calves if there are more than four Lox in a 20-metre space, which is why if you’re looking to breed as many as possible, you will need to create a huge area – more like a nature reserve than a farm.
How to make a Lox Saddle
Once you have tamed a Lox, it can be ridden with the Lox Saddle.
A Lox Saddle requires:
- 10 Leather Scraps
- 20 Linen Thread
- 15 Black Metal
To put the saddle on the Lox, equip the saddle in your taskbar, note the number it’s under, and then when your cursor is on the Lox, press the number. Your saddle should attach to the Lox. Pressing LCtrl and E on the Lox Saddle will remove it.
Riding a Lox is great fun, but useful too. It can be a great way to collect vast amounts of wood, as you can use the Lox to smash through trees and break up the wood. Any enemies will also be trampled by the Lox and suffer heavy damage. Even though the Lox are tame, they will be no less hostile to enemies, and once you stop riding the Lox, it will attack them.
It’s also good for transport, as you will be able to ride while over-encumbered. Be careful of the Lox’s damage though, as it will easily knock down base walls and destroy chests.
There is a Riding skill, which will increase the speed of the Lox as well as reduce the amount of stamina drained. Make sure you keep the Lox fed to replenish stamina drain.
Keeping & Breeding Lox
Lox can be tough to contain, as they are enormous compared to other tamed animals. If even a deer walks past, the Lox will become hostile and desperately try and kill it. If you have multiple Lox in a fragile area, the presence of a lone greyling can destroy the entire base.
This is why using raised ground as walls is effective, as the ground cannot be destroyed as easily and the Lox are more distanced from the enemies. After this, it’s advised to build a wooden fence around the area to keep enemies away.
You should also build a gate system into your Lox farm, to ensure that you can bring out the Lox when you need them. Build the gates far from each other, as a few Lox attacks will destroy a gate.
A Lox will just about fit through two Wood Gates when walking directly at them, so they are ideal for containing other Lox when the gates are open, as they won’t be able to slip past.
