You've finally built a decent engine. Maybe you've even started decorating the upper decks of your floating fortress. But then you see it: the requirement for Titanium Ore. It's the ultimate gatekeeper in Raft. Honestly, it's frustrating. You can’t just stumble upon it while gathering scrap or sand. It requires a level of intentionality that the early game doesn't prepare you for.
Most players make the mistake of looking in the wrong places. They dive deep into the reefs of random tropical islands, hoping to find a shiny node next to the copper. Stop doing that. You're wasting your oxygen and your time. Titanium isn't a "natural" resource in the traditional sense of the game's world; it’s a reward for exploration and persistence.
Getting your hands on those silver-blue rocks is basically the transition from being a survivor to being a maritime engineer. It’s what separates the wooden planks from the high-tech machinery. If you want a Recycler, a Large Storage chest, or that sweet Electric Grill, you need to master the art of the find.
The Metal Detector is Your New Best Friend
If you don't have a Metal Detector yet, stop reading this and go craft one. Seriously. You get the blueprint from Tangaroa, and it is the single most important tool for titanium hunting. Without it, you are essentially blind.
The Metal Detector works through a series of lights. When you're on a large island—and it must be a large island—you walk around with this gadget out. One light means you're cold. Three red lights mean you're getting warmer. When those lights turn green and start blinking rapidly, you're standing right on top of a buried treasure.
Then you dig.
You’ll need a shovel. Each "treasure" spot has a chance to drop a briefcase or a crate. Inside those? That's where the titanium lives. It’s not a 100% guarantee, which is the annoying part. Sometimes you just get a bunch of scrap and a stray bolt. But more often than not, especially on the later story islands, those crates are your primary source of ore.
Why Small Islands are a Waste of Time
Don't bother using the Metal Detector on the tiny, one-tree sandbars. They don't have the buried loot pools required to spawn titanium. You need the "Large Islands" that show up on your Receiver. These are the ones with the Screechers flying overhead and the Warthogs trying to gore you. It’s dangerous, but that’s the trade-off.
The logic here is simple: bigger landmass, more dig spots. On a single large island, you can usually find between two and four dig spots. If luck is on your side, you might walk away with 5-8 Titanium Ore from a single stop. If luck hates you, you’ll get a lot of hinges. That's just Raft.
Tangaroa: The Titanium Goldmine
If you are following the story, Tangaroa is the turning point. This massive, domed city is littered with loot. It’s not just in the buried treasures, either.
When you’re exploring the apartment buildings and the secret basement areas, keep your eyes peeled for briefcases. These are static spawns. Unlike the buried treasure, which is RNG-dependent, the loot in Tangaroa is much more consistent. You can find Titanium Ore tucked away in corners, under desks, or inside the briefcases scattered throughout the residential floors.
A lot of people miss the hidden rooms. There are elevators in Tangaroa that lead to floors you wouldn't normally visit unless you're a completionist. Check every room. Every single one. By the time you finish the Tangaroa arc, you should have enough titanium to at least craft your first few advanced machines.
The Secret of the Briefcases
Briefcases are the "hidden" chests of Raft. They look like ordinary world clutter, but they are interactable. On Tangaroa, they are everywhere. On the higher floors of the skyscrapers, specifically, the devs hid a surprising amount of high-tier loot. It’s easy to get distracted by the robots trying to tase you, but stay focused on the furniture.
Trading Posts and the "Easy" Way Out
Let’s talk about the Trading Post. This was a game-changer when it was added. If you’re sick of digging holes and fighting Screechers, you can literally just buy Titanium Ore.
But there's a catch. (There's always a catch).
You need two things: Trade Coins and Trash Cubes.
- Trash Cubes: These are made in the Recycler. You feed the machine all your junk—palm fronds, plastic, stones—and it spits out a cube.
- Trade Coins: You get these by selling rare fish to the Trading Post.
To get titanium, you need to reach Tier 3 of the Trading Post's reputation. This means you have to sell a lot of fish and buy a lot of stuff to "level up" your standing with the local merchants. It takes time. It feels like a grind. But once you hit Tier 3, you can buy Titanium Ore directly.
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This is the most reliable method for end-game players. If you have a massive raft, you likely have an excess of plastic and wool. Turn that into cubes, go fishing for some Glow Shrimps or Pufferfish, and trade them in. It's a clean loop. No shovels required.
Late-Game Islands: Utopia and Beyond
Once you hit the final chapters of the game, specifically islands like Temperance and Utopia, titanium becomes slightly more common in the loot tables.
On Temperance, the snowy landscape makes it a bit easier to spot the dig locations with your Metal Detector (the green lights really pop against the white snow). Plus, the containers found in the laboratories and the infirmary areas often contain ore. The game assumes that by the time you're freezing your toes off in the arctic, you need a steady supply of high-end materials to keep your raft functional.
The Myth of the Rare Drop
I've heard some players claim they found titanium while mining under normal islands. That’s a myth. Or rather, it’s a misunderstanding. You cannot find Titanium Ore nodes sticking out of the walls underwater like you can with Iron or Copper. If you found it "underwater," it was likely in a crate at the bottom of a specific story-related structure (like the ones around Varuna Point).
Varuna Point is actually fantastic for this. Because you're exploring submerged buildings, there are crates tucked into hallways and behind debris. These crates have a high probability of containing titanium. Just watch out for the jellyfish. And the sharks. And the lack of air.
What Should You Craft First?
So you’ve got your first 10 pieces of ore. Don't spend them on something stupid. Titanium is rare enough that you need a priority list.
The Water Purifier (Electric) should be your top priority. Honestly, stopping the constant cycle of filling cups and moving them to the grill is the greatest quality-of-life upgrade in the game. It saves you so much time.
After that, go for Large Storage. Your raft is probably a mess of small chests by now. One Large Storage chest holds 40 slots of items. It’s a total game-changer for organization.
The Electric Grill and Electric Smelter are next. These require titanium to build and sustain, but they remove the need for wood or planks as fuel. Once your raft is fully electric, the game changes from a survival struggle into a luxury cruise.
The "Don't" List
- Don't craft Titanium Tools immediately. Yes, they last longer, but the cost-to-benefit ratio is bad until you have a massive surplus of ore.
- Don't waste it on decorative items early on.
- Don't forget to keep a few ingots in reserve for repairs or quest-specific items.
Strategy Summary for Efficiency
If you want to maximize your titanium gain per hour, follow this loop:
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First, set up three or four Recyclers. Keep them fed with the endless supply of plastic and fronds your collection nets catch. While those are churning out cubes, head to a Large Island. Use your Metal Detector to find all the dig spots. While you're there, kill the Screecher—it’s annoying, but it gives you Bird Meat and lets you dig in peace.
Second, take any "special" bait you have and fish at the island's pier. Catch the Tier 3 fish (the ones that require the better bait).
Third, hit the Trading Post on that same island. Sell your fish to get coins, use your cubes, and buy every piece of Titanium Ore they have in stock. Then, sail away until the island despawns and a new one appears. Rinse and repeat.
This hybrid method—digging while trading—is the fastest way to stack ore. You aren't just relying on the luck of the shovel; you're using your raft's "waste" to fund your upgrades.
Practical Next Steps
Now that you know the mechanics, here is how you actually execute:
- Check your Receiver: Look for the large green dots. If you don't see any, you might need to sail in a different direction to refresh the world spawns.
- Craft 2 Shovels: They break faster than you think, and there's nothing worse than finding a treasure spot and having no way to get it.
- Build a Recycler: If you haven't started making Trash Cubes, you are already behind.
- Visit the Trading Post: Even if you aren't Tier 3 yet, start selling fish now to build that reputation. It’s a long-term investment that pays off when you suddenly need 20 ingots for a new engine setup.
Titanium is a grind, but it's a fair one. It forces you to engage with all the systems Raft has to offer, from the quiet patience of fishing to the frantic exploration of abandoned cities. Good luck, and watch out for Bruce.