Iron is an essential component while building in Starfield. Players will use this material often when creating an Outpost or modifying a ship at the Technician. Luckily, Iron is also a common resource found almost everywhere in the galaxy.
There are many methods to collect and farm Iron in Starfield and all of them can be done pretty early on in the game. Some methods will help players in the long run, so it’s better to start with them instead of depending on the short-term ones.
How To Farm Iron In Starfield
There are four known methods to farm Iron in Starfield; destroying Asteroids, visiting Iron-rich Planets, building an Extractor, and purchasing Iron from merchants.
Destroying Asteroids
The most famous method to farm Iron is by visiting random Planets in the Systems to destroy the Asteroids surrounding the Planet. Most of these galactic rocks drop Iron alongside other materials in Starfield and obviously the bigger the rock, the more Iron it drops. One of these spots is Hardpoint, the Moon of Navaha inside the Cheyenne System.
As mentioned before, not all galactic rocks will drop Iron as some Mineral Deposits reward Water and Carboxylic Acids. Players might even encounter these rocks close to an Iron-Rich Planet. For example, the Moon of Danra, Podius, inside the Narion System is a Planet that provides Iron, but the surrounding Asteroids are full of Water.
Visiting Iron-Rich Planets
By using the trusty Cutter and great navigation skills, Protagonists can collect a decent amount of Iron from farming Iron-rich Planets. To know if the Planet contains the desired resource in Starfield, Scan it and the available materials will appear according to their Chemical symbol. The Chemical symbol for Iron is Fe, so any Planet that contains this symbol will have Iron.
Keep in mind that some Planets possess Iron more than others and players can see how much each one contains Fe thanks to the color-coded resource Scan. Here’s a list of some Planets that contain Iron:
|
System |
Planet |
|---|---|
|
Sol |
|
|
Narion |
|
|
Cheyenne |
|
Luna and Callisto are excellent choices since Iron can be found literally everywhere while exploring these Moons.
Building An Extractor
Before building an Extractor in Starfield, it’s important to choose a Planet that’s rich in Iron. So, travel to one of the Planets mentioned before and open the scanner while exploring. Once players approach an area that’s filled with Iron, it will appear in a different color on the scanner.
On this Iron-rich area, build an Outpost then place an Extractor. Because it’s impossible to extract Iron without power, make sure to also place one of the available Power Sources such as a Solar Array, Wind Turbine, or Fueled Generator.
Purchasing Iron From Merchants
There are several merchants scattered around the Systems that sell Iron, and the first few are encountered within New Atlantis in Starfield. Other Iron vendors can also be found in Neon, Akila City, and Cydonia. Additionally, there are some trading ships found randomly in certain Systems that sell numerous types of materials including Iron.
A great method to farm Iron with minimal effort is by finding a merchant and purchasing all the Iron, then keep visiting the shop periodically to buy again. This way, players can have an endless amount of any resource.
Starfield is available now on Xbox Series X/S and PC.