Copper is one of the many important crafting resources in Valheim. You’ll need to mine it to make some of the game’s better weapons and armor. It’s also used for two important mid-game tools. However, just like iron and tin, the ore is only found in a particular world biome.
This Valheim guide will tell you how to find deposits in your world seed and what crafting items the material is used for.
How to Find Copper
These resource nodes can be found in the Black Forest biome. You unlock this after fighting Eikthyr, the game’s first boss, in the Meadows biome.
Unlike tin, which is also found in the Black Forest, copper deposits are large and often found inland. They easily blend into the scenery and look like massive stone outcroppings; you may find two or three clumped together into a behemoth deposit or one larger formation on its own.
There are two ways to distinguish ore deposits from regular ol’ rock:
- Look down as you explore
- White help text will appear when you’ve found what you’re looking for.
- Look for “bronze” streaks (mineral veins) or lumps (mineral nodules) on the rock; see the picture below for reference.
Once you discover a mining area, be sure to mark it on the map so that you don’t lose its location.
How to Mine and Gather It
To mine this precious metal, you’ll need the antler pickaxe. It’s the first pickaxe in Valheim and can be crafted after beating Eikthyr. Here’s the recipe:
- 10x wood
- 1x hard antler
Once you’re ready to gather materials, equip the pickaxe, go to a node, and press the left mouse button. It takes about 6-8 hits to gather 4 pieces of copper ore from a section.
It’s also important to know that as you quarry, you’ll also gather relatively large amounts of stone. You can discard or destroy it — or if you need stone as well, split it up to keep from getting overencumbered.
Don’t worry if you somehow lose the hard antlers or the antler pickaxe. You can fight Eikthyr over and over to farm the resource and rebuild the tool if you need to. Eventually, you’ll get the bronze pickaxe, which is stronger and upgradeable.
A Note on Deep Mining
Many of the nodes you come across are much larger and deeper than they appear on the surface. Hit the ground with your pickaxe to dig down. As you terraform and remove the land, you’ll quickly uncover the rest of the copper deposit hidden underground.
What Can I Forge With It?
The ore can only be used with the forge, and it must be made into ingots with the smelter before it can be used. It can be used to make a knife, but it’s primarily used with tin to make bronze ingots for armor, weapons, and building components. Here’s a list of what can be crafted with it:
- Copper knife
- Bronze plate leggings
- Bronze plate cuirass
- Bronze arrows (20x)
- Bronze nails (20x)
- Bronze atgeir
- Bronze helmet
- Bronze mace
- Bronze buckler
- Bronze spear
- Bronze spear
- Bronze ingot
That’s that on finding and mining copper in Valheim, a crafting material you need to progress past the Elder boss. You may find it in close proximity to tin (they populate together in my world seed), making it easier to gather both resources. If you found this guide helpful, consider checking out our other tips articles on constructing your first boat, how to fix your weapons, tools, and buildings, and how to build and use the fermenter.
