Valheim Save File Observation Worksheet
A save problem is hard to describe because the visible evidence and the story about it arrive together. You see a file, you see a symptom, and you already have a theory about which caused which. This worksheet is a documentation method, not a fix. No game build was installed or tested for this article, and the source-check date is 2026-09-28. The installed build is a field you supply, never a number invented here.
Nothing below asks you to copy, modify, or delete a save, change server settings, or install software. You record what your own system shows you, mark unavailable fields UNKNOWN, and keep inference in its own column. The goal is a short record that a second person can read without guessing which parts are observation and which are theory. If you want the wider context first, the source index and the guide library show how this worksheet sits beside the rest of the field manual.
Why a read-only worksheet beats a description
A description of a save problem usually mixes three different things: what you saw on screen, what you saw in your file manager, and what you concluded. Support staff have to untangle those before they can act on any of it. A worksheet keeps them apart by construction, because each field asks for one kind of statement only.
Iron Gate's support page routes bug reports and feedback to dedicated forms and maintains a list of currently known issues, and it also hosts help articles on topics such as developer mode and dedicated servers. That means the reporting channel already exists. What is usually missing is a comparable record. A short, structured observation is easier to line up against a known issue than a paragraph of frustration, and it is easier for a second observer to confirm or contradict.
Keep the record small. A worksheet with twenty fields will not be filled in consistently; one with five or six will. The point is not to capture everything that happened. The point is to capture the same thing twice, in the same shape, so the two records can be compared.
One habit matters more than the field names: write the record while the session is still open, and mark uncertain fields UNKNOWN rather than filling them from memory later. A remembered file size is worse than an honest blank, because it looks like evidence.
The observation matrix and what each field asks
The table inserted after this section is a synthetic example of the worksheet shape, not a record of a real session. It shows six rows and three cases, which is simply the number of times you repeat the observation. Nothing in it is a product specification or a field test result.
The first field is the save kind: world or character. Record which one you are describing, because the two are different artifacts and a report that does not say which one it concerns is ambiguous from the first line.
The second field is the visible file location as shown by your system. Copy the path your file manager or operating system displays, or write UNKNOWN and say where you looked. Do not construct a path from memory or from a guide, because a path you inferred is not a path you observed.
The third field is the visible size and last-modified time. These are the two numbers most often quoted from memory and most often wrong. Read them from your system's own display and copy them exactly, including the units and the time zone if your system shows one.
The fourth field is the in-game symptom observed. Describe what you saw in the game, in plain language, without naming a cause. "The world list shows the entry but loading does not complete" is an observation. "The save is corrupted" is a conclusion, and it belongs in the next field.
The fifth field is inference kept separate. This is where your theory goes, clearly labelled as a theory. Keeping it in its own field is the whole point of the worksheet: it lets a reader take your observation seriously without having to accept your explanation.
The sixth row is the evidence boundary. It is a reminder that this publication did not test the game in-game for this article, and that your record is the only copy of your session that anyone outside your group can see. Iron Gate's official FAQ states that Iron Gate does not provide official servers and has no access to your saved worlds or characters, which is a useful boundary to keep in mind when deciding what to write down.
Filling the build and environment fields honestly
The installed build is a field the reader supplies. There is no default value, and this article does not assert one. If you can read the build string from your client, copy it exactly. If you cannot, write UNKNOWN and say where you looked.
Do the same for the server. A dedicated server and a peer-hosted session are different environments, and the build string may be visible in different places. The support page hosts a dedicated-server guide, which is a useful reminder that the server side is its own environment with its own version. If the group runs a rented host, ask the operator for the exact build rather than inferring it from the client.
When client and server builds match, say so explicitly. When they do not, record both and note the date you observed the mismatch. A dated observation is more useful than a remembered one, because Iron Gate's own support page shows that help articles and FAQs are added and revised over time.
Mod state belongs in the same block. Iron Gate's official FAQ states plainly that there is no official support for mods, so a modded session is a different reporting context from an unmodded one. List known client and server mods separately, and remember that unknown is not the same as none. If you cannot confirm whether a mod was loaded on the server, write UNKNOWN rather than leaving the field blank.
Separating what you saw from what you concluded
The most common failure in a save report is a conclusion presented as an observation. "The save is broken" sounds like a fact but is a judgement. The worksheet forces the split by giving each kind of statement its own field.
A practical test: could a second person with the same access have written this sentence without agreeing with your theory? If yes, it is an observation. "The file's last-modified time is earlier than the session I remember playing" passes that test. "The file was not written because the game crashed before saving" does not, because it names a cause.
Apply the same test to the symptom field. Describe the smallest sequence that still shows the problem. If the issue appears after a long session, try to find the earliest moment where it still appears. A record that says "after a long session, X happens" is hard to compare; a record that says "after the third world load in one sitting, X happens" gives a reader a testable trigger.
Keep the inference field genuinely useful by writing it as a hypothesis rather than a verdict. "Possible cause: the file was not written before the process ended" is a hypothesis. "The file was not written" is a claim you may not be able to support. The difference matters when someone else tries to reproduce your observation.
Comparing cases without changing anything
The matrix is built for repetition. Label your entries A, B, and C, and treat each one as a separate observation rather than a step in a procedure. Case A is the initial observation. Case B is a second observation under the same documented conditions, if one is safely available. Case C is another participant's account of the same event, or is marked unavailable.
Compare the completed entries field by field. If the visible file sizes differ between cases, record the difference without claiming it caused the symptom. If conditions changed, name every known change and avoid attributing the outcome to one of them. A difference you cannot explain is still a useful observation, as long as it is labelled as unexplained.
Do not disable mods, edit saves, or change server settings just to fill the worksheet. The worksheet is read-only by design, and a record produced by changing the environment is a record of a different environment. If no comparable observation is available, one honest case is sufficient. Leave the other slots empty rather than inventing a result.
When you are ready to report, attach the completed matrix to the official form rather than pasting it into a chat. The support page is the channel Iron Gate provides for bug reports and feedback, and a structured record fits that channel better than a narrative does.
Limits of this method and when to stop
This worksheet is a documentation method. It is not an in-game verified fix, and it does not diagnose anything. No game build was installed or tested for this article, and the source-check date is 2026-09-28. Every field is something you fill in from your own session, not something this page can supply.
The method has a real limit: it can only describe what is visible to you. If the relevant evidence lives somewhere your system does not show, the worksheet will record UNKNOWN for that field, and that is the correct outcome. Do not fill the gap with a guess, and do not go looking for files the game does not present to you.
Stop and report when the record is complete enough to be read by someone else. A short record with two honest UNKNOWN fields is more useful than a long one with invented details. If a second observation would require changing the environment, skip it and say so in the evidence-boundary row.
Finally, keep the record dated. Iron Gate's support page shows that help articles and FAQs are added and revised over time, so a record without a date is hard to place against anything. Write the date you observed, not the date you wrote it up, and keep the two separate if they differ.
Sources and method
- Iron Gate: Valheim FAQ — retrieved 2026-09-28
- Iron Gate: Valheim support — retrieved 2026-09-28
AI-assisted writing with automated source, calculation and editorial checks. No hands-on testing or professional certification is claimed. Check the stated assumptions before applying this guide.