Where to find iron ore and iron ore veins in New World

After learning the basics of combat and exploration in New World, the game throws you into a dynamic and rich world where one of the foundational facets is crafting. Go to any settlement and you’ll see players surrounding the crafting stalls in the town center, turning resources into goods or other materials.

One of the most important resources for making weapons, armor, and other vital goods is iron. Iron is smelted from iron ores, which can be found by harvesting iron ore veins with a pickaxe. The main quest line you follow from the beginning of the tutorial should equip you with a pickaxe, but they’re also relatively quick and low-cost to craft.

But the biggest task won’t be making pickaxes, it’ll be finding iron ore in the first place.

Where can I find iron ore veins in New World?

You’ll find iron ore veins in the Highlands sections of the map. When you open your map, there will be a legend under the Resource Locations section, so you’ll be able to see if you’re in a Highlands section or near one. Highlands sections will appear light brown on the world map. Look for Highlands sections close to impassable areas since those will be near mountains and typically have multiple iron ore veins. In general, iron ore will be found in higher spots and near rocky hills and caves.

While traversing through Highlands areas, keep your eyes open for large blackened rocks, ones that are much darker than the typical stones and boulders you pass by. Walk up to an iron ore vein with a pickaxe equipped and hold E until the progress circle completes.

What do I do with iron ore?

Take the iron ore back to any settlement and bring it to the smelter to smelt it into iron bars. Iron bars can be used at various different crafting stations for weapons, armor, and other goods. Increase your smelting level and you’ll be able to smelt other metals as well and craft more iron at a lower cost.

Don’t worry about getting geared up through crafting right away, though. Your closed beta progress won’t carry over to the game’s full release. But learning the basics now will let you get off to a running start when New World fully releases next month.