Ore and crafting materials
Copper and Iron Ore
Copper and iron provide early bars for basic equipment, crafting stations, and ship progression.
WHERE & HOW TO FARM
Copper and Iron Ore
Underground deposits on planets you can safely explore; iron ore occurs on Low- and Moderate-threat planets. Copper is found on planets, but not on barren worlds or moons.
Before you go
- A Matter Manipulator or pickaxe able to mine deposits.
- Access to a planet suited to your current gear.
- A Furnace and fuel if you plan to turn ore into bars.
Farming steps
- Use the ship navigation console to select a planet within your current threat tolerance; choose Low or Moderate for iron prospecting.
- Beam down and identify a natural cave entrance, or dig a controlled descent with a safe way back.
- Mine exposed copper veins as you encounter them, following the ore through nearby stone rather than excavating whole chambers.
- For iron, search Low- or Moderate-threat planets and mine visible veins along cave branches and deeper layers.
- Collect useful fuel and materials on the route while leaving enough inventory space for ore.
- Return to the ship when your inventory fills or the route becomes unsafe; use the teleporter instead of retracing a hazardous shaft.
- Smelt the quantities needed for your next recipes at a Furnace, then store remaining ore for later crafting or Pixel conversion.
- Ore is distributed through planetary layers; smaller planets have less ground between the surface and deeper deposits.
- A cave route exposes ore while reducing the amount of blind digging.
Repeat, collect and use
Repeat on other suitable planets when you need more ore. Each explored deposit is finite; switch worlds when the caves you have searched stop yielding useful veins.
Common mistakes
- Looking for iron on an unverified threat level; target Low or Moderate worlds for iron.
- Assuming copper shares iron’s threat restriction; search accessible non-barren planets and moons for copper.
- Smelting every find immediately; keep ore until you know the recipes and station upgrades you need.
When to stop or switch
Stop when your planned recipes have enough bars, or switch to higher-tier progression once copper and iron no longer meet your crafting needs.
Sources & fact checks
What you can get here
Open a guide to find other locations and see what the item is used for.