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Disambig Metal is referred to as "Iron" in the Primitive Plus DLC

Disambig This article is about Metal, not to be confused with Metal Ingot Metal Ingot or Scrap Metal Scrap Metal

Metal
Metal
A lump of unrefined metal ore, mined from rocks usually found high on mountains, or in caves. Can be refined in a Forge.
Type
Rarity
Common
Renewable
Yes
Refineable
Yes
Combustible
No
Weight
1.0
Stack size
300 / 5000
Found in Supply Crate
Green
Spawn Command
cheat giveitemnum 9 1 0 0
or
cheat gfi Metal 1 0 0
or
cheat giveitem "Blueprint'/Game/PrimalEarth/CoreBlueprints/Resources/PrimalItemResource_Metal.PrimalItemResource_Metal'" 1 0 0
Used to craft
Exchange yields
10 pieces
Hexagons
Hexagon Icon 150
Purchase yields
100 pieces
Purchased in
Cost
120 × Molds (Mobile) Molds (ARK: Survival Evolved Mobile)

Metal is an important resource in ARK: Survival Evolved. It is used to craft many different tools and structures, but must be refined into ingots for most of these.

Obtaining[]

Metal is mined from many types of rocks. It is possible to obtain it from normal rocks, but these rocks have a very low yield of metal. Certain rocks hold substantially larger amounts of metal. These metal rocks usually look smoother and more golden than usual rocks. Generally, metal rock density is higher in areas that are dangerous or hard to reach, such as mountain tops, caves, rivers, coves and deep water sources.

In Aberration the golden colored metal rocks can be found, but blue veined black rocks (found in the Luminous Region) also yield large amounts of metal.

The rocks are mined with either a Stone Pick pickaxe, preferably a Metal Pick Metal Pick as it yields a lot more metal per rock, a mining drill, or the most efficient way, with an Ankylosaurus Ankylosaurus with its Melee Damage boosted, which also makes carrying the mined ore easier. The general mechanics for resource harvesting are presented in Renewable resources. Standard metal rocks take ~1 hour to respawn after being mined.

Crafting[]

Metal is smelted using a Refining Forge Refining Forge, Magmasaur, Phoenix, or Industrial Forge Industrial Forge into Metal Ingot Metal Ingot, which are an essential crafting ingredient. Two pieces of Metal Ore are needed to make one Metal Ingot, taking 20 seconds in the Refining Forge Refining Forge and 1 second in the Industrial Forge Industrial Forge.

Metal is also needed to craft the following items:

Locations[]

This Section is Currently Incomplete

Below are all of the metal locations for The Island. For a larger map including the other resources, see the Strategic Resource Map.

Metal
Metal Rich
River Rock (With a small amount of Metal)
The Island Topographic Map
The Island Topographic Map
The Island Topographic Map

Below are all of the metal locations for The Center. For a larger map including the other resources, see the Strategic Resource Map.

Metal
Metal Rich
River Rock (With a small amount of Metal)
The Center Topographic Map
The Center Topographic Map
The Center Topographic Map

Below are all of the metal locations for Scorched Earth. For a larger map including the other resources, see the Strategic Resource Map.

Metal
Metal Rich
Scorched Earth Topographic Map
Scorched Earth Topographic Map

Below are all of the metal locations for Ragnarok. For a larger map including the other resources, see the Strategic Resource Map.

Metal
Metal Rich
Underwater Metal
Ragnarok Topographic Map
Ragnarok Topographic Map
Ragnarok Topographic Map

Below are all of the metal locations for Aberration. For a larger map including the other resources, see the Strategic Resource Map.

Metal
Metal Rich
Aberration Map
Aberration Map

Below are all of the metal locations for Extinction. For a larger map including the other resources, see the Strategic Resource Map.

Metal
Metal Rich
River Rock (With a small amount of Metal)
Extinction Topographic Map
Extinction Topographic Map
Extinction Topographic Map

Below are all of the metal locations for Valguero. For a larger map including the other resources, see the Strategic Resource Map.

Metal
Metal Rich
River Rock (With a small amount of Metal)
Valguero Topographic Map
Valguero Topographic Map
Valguero Topographic Map

Gathering[]

Metal can be gathered most efficiently using an Ankylosaurus, which also offers a 85% weight reduction of metal when in its inventory, or by using a metal pick. When at mastercraft or ascendant tier, the metal pick is reported to gather just as much metal per metal spawn as the Ankylosaurus.

Below is a list of creatures and tools that can be used to gather metal.

Metal Metal
Creature / ToolGain per action
Ankylosaurus Ankylosaurus★★★★★
Excavation Rig (Genesis Part 2) Excavation Rig (Genesis: Part 2)★★★★★
Gacha Gacha★★★★★
Magmasaur Magmasaur★★★★★
Dunkleosteus Dunkleosteus★★★★☆
Phoenix Phoenix★★★★☆
Mantis Mantis★★★☆☆
Metal Pick Metal Pick★★★☆☆
Stone Pick Stone Pick★☆☆☆☆

Strategy[]

  • If you have another player with you, they can pick you and your Ankylosaurus up using a Quetzal or Argentavis. They simply then fly you next to metal rocks on a mountain, and you can harvest them without even touching the ground. This strategy allows for higher mobility and higher carry weight since a Quetzal can carry much more than an Ankylosaurus.
  • Carrying the opposite gender Ankylosaurus provides a mate boost to the one you're gathering metal with, providing a 33% bonus in damage, and thus increasing the yield of metal. This other Ankylosaurus can be a low level so if it somehow clips and falls, you will not have to worry about losing it.

Weight Reduction[]

The following creatures reduce the weight of Metal by the listed amount while it is in their inventory:

CreatureReduction
Ankylosaurus Ankylosaurus85%
Magmasaur Magmasaur75%
Mining Drill (Genesis Part 1) Mining Drill (Genesis: Part 1)75%
Argentavis Argentavis50%
Dunkleosteus Dunkleosteus50%
Gacha Gacha50%
Ravager Ravager50%

Video[]

Notes/Trivia[]

  • The Frozen Tooth at 35 latitude and 55 longitude has extremely high quantities of metal rocks at and around the summit. However caution is advised while attempting to descend the mountain, as it is extremely steep and quite easy to fall.
  • Low level characters can go to a small mountain in the Southern Islets at around 76 latitude and 44 longitude which has a decent number of metal bearing rocks (100+ units with a metal pick) at its summit, along with a small supply of crystal. The eastern side of the mountain is easy to climb and scattered with more metal bearing rocks, and the area itself is fairly benign, hosting mostly low level herbivores with the occasional Raptor or Carno.
  • Small mineable piles of stone and the small round boulders around rivers and beach shores tend to yield more metal than regular stone nodes. This is much more so if using a metal pickaxe, and can be a great source of metal in a pinch for low-level survivors.

Changelog[]

Patch Changes
312.65 Raw Metal stack size has been increased to 300.

Gallery[]

External links[]

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