How to Find and Use Iron Ore in Icarus

Iron is one of the most important resources in ICARUS. It turns early survival into real progression by opening the path to better tools, weapons, workbenches, and base upgrades. You will need a pickaxe, a cave, and enough patience to haul the ore home.

Where to Find Iron Ore

There is no instant method for gathering huge amounts of Iron Ore. The reliable approach is learning where ore appears. In Icarus, ore nodes spawn inside caves.

To find a cave, travel along large rocky walls and cliffsides. Look for a section of wall with a darker, slightly different texture than the surrounding rock. That patch marks a cave entrance. Break it open with a pickaxe, then head inside to search for ore nodes.

When you get close to an ore node, a small text box identifies it. Iron Ore has a brownish-grey color, which helps distinguish it from other minerals once you know what to look for.

Smelting Iron Ore Into Ingots

After mining Iron Ore, bring it back to your base and smelt it into Iron Ingots. Two pieces of Iron Ore create one Iron Ingot.

You need one of these furnaces to make ingots:

• Stone Furnace: Stick x4, Wood x12, Leather x12, and Stone x80
• Concrete Furnace: Rope x8, Epoxy x12, Iron Ingot x12, and Concrete Mix x20
• Electric Furnace: Glass x4, Steel Screw x8, Steel Ingot x30, Electronics x60, and Concrete Mix x80

Early on, the Stone Furnace is the practical option. Later, the Concrete Furnace and Electric Furnace help process larger amounts of metal faster.

Iron Ingot Crafting Recipes

Most iron-based recipes require an Anvil Bench. The Anvil Bench recipe unlocks near the start of the Tier 2 Tech Tree, so it is worth prioritizing if you want iron tools and equipment quickly.

The Anvil Bench can also repair tools made at an Anvil Bench. Like many buildables, it must be placed inside a shelter before it can be used.

• Anvil Bench: Iron Ingot x40, Stone x10, and Wood x20
• Iron Nails: Iron Ingot x1
• Iron Pickaxe: Iron Ingot x6, Leather x4, and Wood x5
• Iron Axe: Iron Ingot x6, Iron Nails x2, Wood x5, and Leather x4
• Iron Hammer: Iron Ingot x10, Wood x4, and Leather x4
• Iron Sledgehammer: Iron Ingot x15, Rope x8, and Wood x10
• Iron Knife: Iron Ingot x6, Iron Nail x2, Leather x4, and Wood x5
• Iron Sickle: Iron Ingot x10, Leather x4, and Wood x4
• Shovel: Iron Ingot x6 and Wood x4
• Crossbow: Iron Ingot x5, Iron Nail x4, Leather x4, and Wood x4
• Iron Throwing Knife: Iron Ingot x5, Iron Nail x4, Wood x4, and Leather x4
• Iron Spear: Iron Ingot x24, Wood x5, and Leather x6
• Iron Javelin: Iron Ingot x20, Leather x5, and Wood x5
• Iron Bolt: Iron Ingot x2 and Wood x1
• Taxidermy Knife: Iron Ingot x6, Iron Nail x2, Wood x2, and Leather x4
• Watering Can: Iron Ingot x5, Iron Nail x2, and Leather x4
• Wood Shield: Iron Ingot x3, Leather x5, Wood x15, and Fiber x20
• Biofuel Can: Iron Ingot x25, Wood x100, and Tree Sap x100
• Rifle Round: Iron Ingot x1 and Gunpowder x1
• Glass Jar: Iron Ingot x1 and Glass x1
• Glass Working Bench: Iron Ingot x24, Epoxy x6, Rope x6, Wood x10, and Copper Nails x40
• Kitchen Bench: Iron Ingot x8, Epoxy x20, Copper Nails x20, and Refined Wood x30
• Biofuel Composter: Iron Ingot x20, Copper Ingot x8, Concrete Mix x12, and Steel Screws x20
• Bio Fuel Drill: Iron Ingot x20 and Electronics x5
• Trophy Bench: Iron Ingot x2, Rope x12, Copper Nails x50, and Wood x60
• Basic Fishing Bench: Iron Ingot x5, Rope x10, Copper Nail x12, and Wood x25