Early ore bars help you craft stronger tools, armor and stations. Your world chooses one ore from each paired tier, so mine toward a real upgrade rather than trying to collect every variant.
PC / Global, current Desktop version
WHERE & HOW TO FARM
Where to farm
Underground and Cavern caves, where exposed ore veins can be reached.
Explore caves, mine exposed veins and smelt the haul at home. The world generates one of Copper or Tin, Iron or Lead, Silver or Tungsten, and Gold or Platinum. Ordinary mining is the direct way to collect your world’s ores. Crates and the Extractinator can provide alternatives, but their results vary. Choose a specific tool, armor piece or station as your goal, then gather enough ore to make it.
Vertical layer diagram places early and Hardmode ores in Underground/Cavern bands, Chlorophyte in Underground Jungle cavern, and Hellstone in Underworld. Not to scale; no fixed coordinates.
GET STARTED
How to farm
Before you go
A pickaxe capable of mining the ore you target.
Torches and a safe route back to base.
A Furnace for smelting ore into bars.
Inspect ore you have already found to identify the variants present in your world.
Descend through a natural cave, lighting junctions and checking side passages.
Mine accessible Copper or Tin and Iron or Lead veins.
Continue deeper for Silver or Tungsten and Gold or Platinum deposits.
Use a Spelunker Potion if available to help spot ore against surrounding stone.
Return when hazards or inventory space make continuing impractical.
Smelt the haul and craft the next useful pickaxe, armor piece or station.
Farming tips
Check the area around a vein before digging into a liquid pocket.
Reserve bars for tools and stations before spending the remainder on armor.
Repeat, collect and use
Repeat trips into unexplored caves as needed. Mined veins are finite; crates and the Extractinator are alternative, variable sources.
Common mistakes
Planning to mine both members of an ore pair; identify the variants your world generated.
Digging into a liquid-filled pocket without an exit; open a safe route and control the liquid first.
Spending every bar on armor; reserve enough for the tools or stations needed to progress.
When to stop or switch
Stop when you have the bars for your next intended upgrade. Explore deeper when your current pickaxe cannot mine the target.
