You’re standing there with a Stone Pick, staring at a dull gray rock, wondering why you’re only getting two pieces of metal after swinging for five minutes. It’s frustrating. Honestly, the jump from the "Stone Age" to the "Industrial Age" in ARK: Survival Evolved (and Ascended) is the single biggest wall players hit. You need that first batch of metal ingots to make a Smithy. Then you need them for Flak armor. Then for Longneck Rifles. Before you know it, your entire existence revolves around how to get metal ingot ARK style without getting eaten by a Rex in the process.
Metal isn't just a resource; it's the currency of power. If you don't have a steady supply of ingots, you're basically just a snack for the local wildlife.
The Search for the "Golden" Rocks
Stop hitting regular round boulders. Just stop. While ordinary rocks yield a tiny bit of metal, you're wasting your durability and your time. You need to look for specific nodes. In the ARK world, these come in two main flavors. First, there are the rich metal nodes. These look like boulders streaked with thick, glittering gold veins. They are the holy grail. One swing with a decent pickaxe on these will give you more metal than ten regular rocks combined.
Then you have the standard metal nodes. These are smooth, somewhat shiny, and have a distinct silvery or bronze-ish tint compared to the matte gray of normal stone.
Location, Location, Location
Where you find these depends entirely on your map, but the logic remains the same across The Island, Ragnarok, or Fjordur. High ground is your friend.
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- Mountain Peaks: Places like Frozen Tooth or Far's Peak are absolutely loaded.
- Caves: Most caves have metal, though they come with the added "bonus" of giant spiders and snakes.
- The Herbivore Island: If you're on The Island map, the small island in the southeast corner is a haven. It has zero predators and a decent amount of metal on the hills. It's the "easy mode" for early-game farming.
Turning Ore into Shiny Ingots
You can't just build a wall out of raw metal ore. You have to smelt it. This is where the Refining Forge comes in. You'll need 125 Stone, 5 Flint, 65 Hide, 20 Wood, and 40 Fiber to craft one.
The math is simple but slow: 2 Metal Ore = 1 Metal Ingot.
Basically, you throw the ore into the forge, add some fuel (Wood, Thatch, or Sparkpowder), and wait. It takes about 20 seconds to produce one ingot in a standard Refining Forge. If you’re playing on a server with standard rates, this feels like an eternity. Pro tip: Build four or five forges. Don't just sit there waiting for one to finish. Spread the ore across multiple forges to cut your wait time down significantly.
Later on, you'll unlock the Industrial Forge. It’s massive, it’s loud, and it’s expensive. But it’s a game-changer. It consumes gasoline and produces 20 ingots at a time, every few seconds. Once you have one of these, you'll never look back at your tiny stone forges again.
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The Creatures That Do the Heavy Lifting
If you're still using a metal pickaxe to farm, you're doing it wrong. Well, not "wrong," but you're being inefficient. ARK is a game about taming, and there are two specific creatures that make getting metal ingots a breeze.
The Ankylosaurus (Anky)
This is the gold standard. The Anky has a massive spiked tail that shatters metal nodes like they’re made of glass. More importantly, it has a weight reduction for metal ore. It can carry way more than you can. If you put an Anky on "Aggressive" or use a whistle command while standing near a node, it’ll swing. Better yet, ride it.
The Argentavis (Argy)
The Anky is slow. Painfully slow. That's where the Argentavis comes in. This giant bird can pick up an Anky with its talons. This is the "meta" for metal farming. One player flies the Argy, the other sits on the Anky. You fly from node to node, the Anky swings its tail, and you fill up your inventory in minutes. If you're playing solo, you can still do this by dropping the Anky next to a node, hopping off the bird, clearing the node, and hopping back on.
Why Most People Fail at Metal Farming
The biggest mistake is the "Weight" stat. New players try to carry the metal themselves. Metal is heavy. Like, really heavy. 100 raw ore weighs 100 units. That'll encumber most early-game players instantly.
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Another mistake? Not bringing protection. The best metal is usually in the most dangerous places. If you head up a mountain without a guard dino, a Sabertooth or a Raptor is going to ruin your day. Always bring something that can fight while your "worker" dino is busy hitting rocks.
Also, keep an eye on the "respawn" mechanics. If you build structures too close to metal nodes, they won't grow back. I've seen entire tribes ruin their local economy by building a massive stone base right on top of a rich metal spawn. Keep your forges a respectful distance away from the actual rocks.
Advanced Strategies for the 2026 Meta
With the updates in ARK: Ascended, the pathing and resource nodes have been tweaked slightly. If you’re playing on newer maps or modded servers, look for Dunkleosteus for underwater metal farming. Most people forget the ocean has resources too. The Dunkleosteus can crunch through metal-bearing rocks on the ocean floor, and since it’s in the water, you don't have to worry about weight as much in the same way you do on land.
For those on the Genesis maps, mining drills are an option. They’re expensive to run but incredibly fast. However, for 90% of players, the Anky/Argy combo remains the undisputed king of the mountain.
Actionable Next Steps
- Craft a Spyglass: Use it to scout mountains from a distance to find the golden-veined rocks without aggroing every predator in a five-mile radius.
- Tame a low-level Anky: Don't worry about stats yet. Just get the utility. Use Mejoberries or Crops; even a level 20 Anky is better than the best Metal Pick.
- Establish a Mountain Outpost: Instead of carrying heavy ore back to your beach base, build a small 2x2 stone hut on the mountain with 4 Refining Forges inside. Smelt the ore into ingots on-site. Ingots weigh half as much as raw ore (0.5 vs 1.0 per unit), making the trip home 50% easier.
- Prioritize the Smithy: Your first 5 ingots should always go toward a Smithy. Your next 35 should go toward a Metal Pick and Metal Hatchet. This investment pays for itself within ten minutes of use.
Getting a massive stockpile of metal isn't about working harder; it's about the tools and the tames you use. Once you stop swinging that stone pick and start using the local wildlife, you'll have more ingots than you know what to do with. Just remember to keep the forges burning.