Originally posted by HangarPilot:

My angst is that I feel like a great game shouldn't "need" cheats/mods/cheese.

True. A great game shouldn't need mods. I've played and enjoyed many games without feeling the need to mod. Those games tend to have a focused game loop.
Some games with a broader appeal, however, benefit from modding. Valheim has survival, building, farming, fighting, boss fighting, exploring, sailing, resource gathering and so on, it would be near impossible to please everyone with balances. It is more likely players will enjoy a few parts and be bored or frustrated with the rest.
If I were unable to mod Valheim, my playtime total would be 10 hours. I got to the point where not porting metals was tedious and wanted to quit and play anything else. Instead I modded and have hundreds of hours enjoying the game. Who lost in that situation? Nobody. The devs had another happy player and I had more fun with a good game.
Modding is not a sin. Go forth and make your game great and play like you want.