Nope , its easier in singleplayer than in multiplayer
You are just under geared and under feeded , because even with a full iron set and swamp food can tank a golem hit
Or maybe you over exploring having very low gear , this game punish you doing that because mobs dont normalize , and in multiplayer as morr players are in a zone more stats have the mobs there

So, Valhiem is the first survival game I've ever touched. I've gotten up to Swamps before solo . . and I could progress farther, I'm just lazy and every time I add more mods I tend to restart and I take things absurdly slow.

The only time I die are either due to be underprepared or unobservant and occasionally the stupid risks/antics anyone gets up to.

I've played most of my experience solo. Yes I use mods to ease back on some of the tedium and some aesthetic things. . .but I don't touch mobs (yet anyway. when I do it will probably be to add more).

Hard? Sure. Punishing? Yeah, if you've been stupid. I freely admit I die in stupid places for dumb reasons a LOT. But I would not call the game impossible for single player.

Even if you are bad, the only way a golem or deathsquito will kill you in "one go" is if you are in that zone well before you should be so your armor and food are inappropriate.

If you are at the appropriate game stage for those mobs (or a couple levels in armor and food before that zone) and dying a lot, take a step back and learn how to use a shield.

Originally posted by Cobretti:

Even if you are bad, the only way a golem or deathsquito will kill you in "one go" is if you are in that zone well before you should be so your armor and food are inappropriate.

If you are at the appropriate game stage for those mobs (or a couple levels in armor and food before that zone) and dying a lot, take a step back and learn how to use a shield.

To you and everybody else defending the game's difficulty:

"Tell that ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ to the map generator, not the players."

I'm sick of trying to make my way to Bonemass having to dodge the Plains biomes, Having to navigate back and forth between 3 whole ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ continents just to carry a little bit of Bronze because I can't take it there through portals, Just so I can put a forge there. Getting stuck on a tiny little rock on a river between Black Forest and Plain, Fog every ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ where to hear a Goblin approach my longship and club it down in just a few hits, and me getting to the shore just waiting for 4 Goblins and 1 Deathskito to finish the job.

What everybody else said.

I've played solo the entire time.

Playing this game solo without reading any guides probably is difficult. There are a large number of stupid mistakes waiting for you out there with no one to help you out. So, if you are playing solo and find it too difficult to be enjoyable, I'll direct you over to YouTube, the wiki and the guide section here on Steam. Playing without spoilers is only fun until it stops being fun.

When you die, your stuff is still sitting there waiting for you to go back and claim it. It isn't lost, unless there has been some kind of bug. Naturally, going back to the place that killed you is extra dangerous without your equipment, but you're not going there to conquer the area, only to sneak in, grab and run. If you died right next to a spawner, then that will be difficult, otherwise, sneaking works most of the time.

Originally posted by Cobretti:

Even if you are bad, the only way a golem or deathsquito will kill you in "one go" is if you are in that zone well before you should be so your armor and food are inappropriate.

So you've never had a deathsquito do a flyby on your Karve or Longship on your way to other lands? Really? Quite the luck you have.

Sorry, I do not agree. In fact, I think solo playing should have options to be tougher/more difficult. Been hunting down mods to do that but most help out with building, though one was adding more monsters, have to check it out to see how tough they are.

Anyway....

Are you exploring biomes before you finish gearing up? It is meadows=>Black Forest=>Swamp=>Mountains=>Plains. If you skip over a biome the next level of mobs will hit you very hard but, say, if you have the wolf armor upgraded and (if needed) activate bonemass power, then when you go to plains the deathsquitos are not so bad, especially with the silver shield. But if you skip over or stumble across/yolo into a higher level biome, you will probably get killed. Also, some maps place high level biomes somewhat close to where you start, just have to avoid them early on.

You almost got me OP, then I realised that you must be trolling. good job.

I play strictly Vanilla, and solo as I have since the beginning. Far from impossible to play solo, it may be however impossible to bullheadedly face tank it all, in a mad rush to the end. This game draws a steep price on those who would attempt it. However, it is possible to play alone through preparation and timely measures to prepare the battlefield to your choosing. Picking where and when to fight, and when to leave, with your own pelt intact.
Knowing when you are outmatched and overwhelmed, is a crucial quality you will need to survive. Retreating with your life is a viable survival skill. But, it has no stat points. Good luck out there. Ask for advice? I have successfully acquired Iron, and begun stone-cutting without having ever engaged the Elder. I think I am doing fairly well solo, tyvm. I intend to capture an island containing a perfect mountain ring, and a trader inside it. All solo, all vanilla.

Only thing that gets "iffy" solo is the boss health pools, specifically Yagluth. It's great otherwise.

I do know that the health of mobs seems to increase proportionately to the amount of players on, and I suspect other stats may as well. I also think that playing solo has other disadvantages (for example, my buddy was able to kite a 2-star troll to allow me time to reach my corpse just last night, and then were were both able to switch off on aggro whenever the other was low on stamina).

The game is geared towards multi-player, but I don't think it's impossible. Just very hard.

You'll get the usual cast in here telling you, "herpa derpa, no, it's so easy, you're just too dumb, git gud, you're in the minority," but taking on the wilds of Valheim is always better with friends. Maybe you should check out the "Looking For Group" sub-forum here and get a band of Viking brothers to help you out. If nothing else, at least you can have fun and make friends.

Originally posted by Grimwar:

You almost got me OP, then I realised that you must be trolling. good job.

I think this solves it, haha

You need to take the biomes in the order they are supposed to be:
1. Meadows
2. Black Forest
3. Swamp
4. Mountains
5. Plains
6... Mistlands, whenever it lands.

Here's a few tips on how to survive in Valheim. This is good for solo or multi-player.
https://steamcommunity.com/app/892970/discussions/0/5144805327259514367/

The difficulty increases with the number of players.
The simple truth is that you do not understand the game.

And when you do, you will find out that it takes far too long to advance and feels tedious.
So I don't think this game is for you. I can tell that by your explanation for the game.
But you are free to prove me wrong.