Where to find iron in Hytale and how to mine it

Stone weapons and primitive tools in Hytale quickly prove inadequate when facing bears and other dangerous predators. Iron becomes the first serious upgrade that allows survival in more hostile locations and more efficient resource gathering. The ore spawns fairly commonly in caves, but mining and processing it requires preparation.

Iron deposit locations

Iron ore generates in underground caves across any biome in Emerald Grove. Deposits appear along tunnel walls, with the first veins discoverable near the entrances to deep caves. Grassy meadows rank among the most convenient biomes for starting mining operations thanks to cave systems spawning close to the initial spawn point.

The deeper you venture underground, the more iron appears along the way. However, deeper levels house more dangerous monsters, and pitch darkness makes navigation challenging. Getting lost in branching tunnels happens easily, especially in the early stages when gear remains weak. Spiders lurking in darkness prove no less deadly than bears on the surface.

Preparing for mining

Mining iron ore works even with a primitive pickaxe, but spending a few copper ingots to craft a copper pickaxe speeds up the process significantly. Lighting becomes critical in caves, so crafting several dozen torches before descending is essential. Torches placed along the path not only mark the way back but also make fights with hostile mobs less dangerous through improved visibility.

Smelting ore into ingots

After returning with the haul, a tier-one furnace becomes necessary, crafted at the workbench. The furnace runs on fuel – roughly four sticks burn through processing one chunk of ore. The process is straightforward: load raw ore into the input slot, select the "Turn On" option, and wait for smelting to complete.

When holding a stack of 99 ore chunks, exploring other caves or clearing nearby monsters makes sense – smelting takes considerable time.

The first iron ingots should go toward crafting an iron pickaxe. The temptation to immediately create weapons and armor runs strong, but an improved mining tool pays off faster by accelerating resource gathering and unlocking access to rarer materials in deeper cave layers.