Ores and crafting resources
Hardmode Ore Progression
Hardmode ore tiers provide the tools and crafting stations needed for continued progression. Generate and mine the tiers in…
View 1 map ↗WHERE & HOW TO FARM
Hardmode Ore Progression
Underground and Cavern areas after entering Hardmode and smashing altars.
SEE WHERE TO GO
1 mapMaps & farm layouts
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Before you go
- Defeat the Wall of Flesh and obtain its Pwnhammer.
- A pickaxe capable of mining the current target tier.
- A Furnace and access to the crafting stations needed for your upgrades.
Farming steps
- Defeat the Wall of Flesh and take the Pwnhammer to a Demon or Crimson Altar.
- Smash an altar, then identify the newly generated first-tier ore variant in your world.
- Explore Underground and Cavern caves and mine Cobalt or Palladium.
- Smelt the ore and craft the pickaxe upgrade needed to mine the next tier.
- Smash another altar to generate the next tier, then locate Mythril or Orichalcum.
- Gather and process that ore, crafting the required station or tool for the next upgrade.
- Smash another altar to generate the third tier; mine Adamantite or Titanium with the upgraded pickaxe and craft your target.
- Check which variant your world uses before planning a bar or equipment target.
- Mark explored cave branches so later mining trips can focus on areas you have not searched.
Repeat, collect and use
Mining continues in unexplored caves. Altar smashing is a limited progression action that generates tiers in sequence; crates may provide additional ore, with variable contents.
Common mistakes
- Assuming one altar smash generates all three tiers; smash additional altars between tiers.
- Trying to mine a tier with an inadequate pickaxe; craft the intervening upgrade first.
- Searching for both ores in a pair; follow the variant generated in your world.
When to stop or switch
Stop when you have the bars and crafting access for your next useful upgrade. Move on when more ore will not unlock a needed item.
Sources & fact checks
What you can get here
Open a guide to find other locations and see what the item is used for.