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22 Iron Caverns is the shared name for the cave-system POIs in the Foothills biome that contain concentrated Iron Ore deposits. These caves are the first reliable source of iron-tier metallurgy in a standard progression and are the biome's primary draw for players pushing from copper-tier gear toward iron and steel.
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44 Summary
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66 PropertyValueTypeCave / mining dungeonBiomeFoothillsPrimary resourceIron OreRequired toolCopper Pickaxe or betterDanger levelMedium; encounter density depends on specific caveRecommended gear tier2 to 4
77 What to Expect Inside
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99 Large Iron Ore veins clustered along the cave walls. The veins are big enough that a single visit with a Copper Pickaxe returns a significant stack.Ambient hostile spawns. Most caves host pirate camps or wildlife that has moved in, rather than undead or plague enemies.Occasional chest loot. Caves can include small hand-placed chests tucked into alcoves; the rolls are modest but can include Piastre and low-tier gear plans.Secondary resources. Copper Ore and occasionally Tin Ore spawn in the same caves, so a single mining run returns more than iron in most cases.
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1111 Tool Requirement
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1313 Iron Ore requires a Copper Pickaxe or higher to break. A starter Stone Pickaxe will ignore the Iron veins and only pull the lower-tier ores. Craft at least one Copper Pickaxe at the Smithing Workshop before committing a trip to the Iron Caverns; the tool durability is wide enough to cover a full cave clear in one run.
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1515 Why it Matters
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1717 Iron Ore feeds into the iron and steel chain, which in turn supports:
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1919 Steel Nails required by every ship restoration and combat-repair recipe.Iron-tier weapons and armor pieces, the mid-tier step before rare-tier gear.Combat Repair Kit ingredient pipeline via Steel Nails.Higher-tier pickaxes, required for the next resource tier above iron.
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2121 Navigation Tips
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2323 Map a single round-trip route between the cave entrance and the nearest base fast-travel point. Iron Ore is heavy, and carrying a full stack across rough Foothills terrain is slow.Bring Healing Herb or a stack of Healing Potion before committing to interior cave fights. The close-quarters encounters favor melee enemies that can build pressure quickly.The Iron Caverns' ambient audio and lighting patterns are distinctive, but several caves in the Foothills share the same interior tileset. Use the mini-map node icons to confirm you are in an iron-rich cave rather than a coal or stone cave.
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2525 What You Mine
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2727 A single sweep usually returns more than iron. The table below lists the ores that share the cave tileset and the minimum pickaxe each one needs.
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2929 ResourceTool NeededRoleIron OreCopper Pickaxe or betterPrimary draw; smelts into iron and feeds Steel NailsCopper OreStone Pickaxe or betterSpawns alongside iron; carries over from copper-tier craftingTin OreStone Pickaxe or betterOccasional secondary node; bronze-tier alloying
3030 Enemies and Hazards
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3232 Iron Caverns are not undead or plague dungeons. The hostiles that move into them are Foothills pirate camps and displaced wildlife, so expect melee-leaning fights in tight corridors rather than ranged or caster pressure. Wildlife that roams the surrounding slopes, such as Wolf packs and Goat herds, can wander near cave mouths and follow you inside. Specific spawn rosters vary cave to cave, so scout the entrance before committing.
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3434 Tight sightlines favor a melee build or a fast weapon. Long-reload firearms are awkward in the close interior.Encumbrance is the real hazard. A full load of ore slows you across rough terrain, so clear the fights before you fill the last inventory slots.Bring Healing Potion for the corridor pulls; melee enemies build pressure quickly when you cannot back away.
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3636 See Also
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3838 Iron Ore the primary resourceFoothills the parent biomeCopper Pickaxe the minimum tool requirementSmithing Workshop where Iron Ore becomes Iron IngotsSteel Nails the downstream output