Subnautica Silver Ore Guide – Key Harvesting Information

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Arthur Monteclar

Arthur is a writer for Ready Game Survive and is a huge fan of survival titles like Don't Starve and Subnautica. Arthur has been in the writing business for years now, he is also a software programmer, so he understands the craft and effort invested in the gaming medium, and He is also fond of manga and anime.

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Silver has had a lot of uses throughout history and a reputation for luxury and wealth due to its usage in jewelry and currency. However, it is more than just a shiny and sparkling white metal. It is also used primarily in electronics due to how fast it can transfer heat and electricity. It is still valuable because of its rarity, and in the world of Subnautica, the same principle holds true.

To survive in the watery world of Planet 4546B, you need to build yourself a lot of tools and vehicles, and precious metals like copper and silver are beneficial in that department. On the surface, silver ore can be a negligible resource to collect, but as your technology progresses, you will soon find out that it is vital mainly due to one item that relies on it.

Thankfully, the planet is full of resources like it. You can find silver ore on the ocean’s surface, but it can be scarce to find. Are you in need of large amounts of silver ores to make something? Are you having problems finding them in the vast area? Or perhaps you have silver ore lying around in your locker, and you do not know what to do with it? Well, keep on reading our Subnautica Silver Ore Guide to discover its usage and locations.

Bottom Line Up Front

Silver ore is a raw material you can harvest in Subnautica. There is a 37.5% chance that you can get it from breaking a Sandstone Outcrop and a 10% chance from harvesting barnacles found on the back of Reefback Leviathans.

If you have a Prawn Suit equipped with a Drill Arm, you can break large silver deposits. Below is a list of items that you can make using the silver ore.

• Using a Fabricator
  • Wiring Kit: Silver ore (x2)
  • High Capacity O2 Tank: Standard O2 Tank, glass (x2), titanium (x4), silver ore
  • Ion Battery: Ion cube, Gold, silver ore
• Using a Fabricator (Subnautica: Below Zero only)
  • Parallel Processing Unit: Gold, silver ore, table coral sample
• Using a Habitat Builder
  • Medical Kit Fabricator: Computer chip, fibre mesh, silver ore, Titanium
• Using the Scanner Room
  • Scanner Room Speed Upgrade: Silver ore (x2), Gold

What Is a Silver Ore in Subnautica?

“Ag. Conductive element and microbicide.” – In-game description

The silver ore in Subnautica is a raw material you can use to make items, particularly electronic parts. You can get this white metal through various methods. Many people consider this material a rare metal due to the slim chances of getting it. You can put it inside your inventory or in storage containers such as lockers.

Without the silver ore, it can be challenging to progress in the game, as you use it to make wiring kits, an essential ingredient in many electronics. You can also use it to make: the High Capacity O2 Tank, which lengthens your oxygen level while underwater; Ion Batteries, which can power up tools longer than a standard one; and Medical Kit Fabricators, which produce healing items known as First Aid Kits.

You can harvest the silver ore by breaking a Sandstone Outcrop, although it is not fully guaranteed since breaking it can result in other metals. By breaking the outcrop, the chances of its resulting metal would be:

• 5% chance for Lead
• 35% chance for Gold
• 5% chance for silver ore

You can also get this raw material by harvesting barnacles found on the back of Reefback Leviathans, though the stakes are much slimmer compared to breaking a Sandstone Outcrop. Most of the time, you will probably not get what you are looking for. Here, the possibility for:

• Silver ore is 10%
• Copper ore is 90%

Alternatively, there is a sure-fire way to gather silver ores, though you probably cannot use this method during the early stages of the game. You can find large resource deposits of silver ore in various biomes, and you can break them using the Drill Arm on a Prawn Suit. When broken, the deposit can give you 9 to 18 silver ores.

What Does Silver Ore Look like in Subnautica?

In-Game Model

Silver ores look like grey rocks with a shiny white layer peeking out in some areas. If you are having problems spotting which among the resources is a silver ore, look out for the shiny white colour among the grey rocks. When thrown into the ocean, it will sink to the bottom like most items.

Its older model from the early stages of the game’s development looks completely different. It is triangular in shape and utterly light grey without much detail in its texture. This appearance is probably due to development issues or lacking textures due to early development.

Item Appearance

When you pick up the silver ore, it will look like a bright, shining, white rock in your inventory. If you can, picture out a piece of tin foil crumpled up and compressed to resemble a stone, and that is what the silver ore looks like.

Large Silver Ore Deposit Appearance

The large silver ore deposits look like the silver ore’s in-game model, only much more significant. It is a vast, grey, upright rock commonly found on the ground with a shiny white glow beneath its grey body. The deposit shows cracks on its surface, and breaking it will crack it even more.

How to Find a Silver Ore in Subnautica

To find silver ore in Subnautica, look for Sandstone Outcrops, barnacles on Reefback Leviathans, or large silver deposits. Breaking or harvesting them will yield you a silver ore. Below, I will explore each method in detail so that your search for this illustrious metal hopefully becomes easier. Of course, you need to travel across and into the water, so be sure to have a mode of faster transportation like a Sea Moth.

First Method: Breaking Sandstone Outcrops

“These common, porous outcrops seem to form around small amounts of precious metals, or otherwise these metals are part of a sedimentary buildup over time.” – Data Bank Entry of Sandstone Outcrop.

Sandstone Outcrops are mineral deposits that look like round and smooth brown rocks. Its top surface’s colour is lighter than its main body, and traces of yellow Gold can be seen on its sides. You can often see them sticking out from the surface walls of natural terrain like cliffs and mountains or on the ground within caves and among the ocean flora.

When you find one, you can instantly break it with just a press of a button. It does not require tools to break it. Below is the probability of its yield when harvested.

• Lead: 37.5%
• Gold: 35%
• Silver ore: 37.5%

Sandstone Outcrop locations

Below is a list of biomes that you can find the Sandstone Outcrop in.

Second Method: Harvesting Barnacles from Reefback Leviathans

“Unlike most barnacles, these do not grow in clusters but in single instances found uniquely on reefback shells. As the leviathans age, they collect scars from overconfident predators, which fill with dirt and metal deposits, around which these barnacles form.” – Data Bank Entry of Sandstone Outcrop

Barnacles are mineral deposits that look like large, black stove pots. It has a massive opening on top, and inside is a bright blue substance that glows in the dark. Like the Sandstone Outcrop, you do not need a tool to harvest it.

“This vast lifeform is in excess of 30m long and has been designated, leviathan class. Fortunately, it feeds exclusively on plankton-like lifeforms in the water.” – Data Bank Entry of Reefback Leviathans.

Reefback Leviathans, on the other hand, are hard to miss due to their gigantic size. They are the second-largest passive life form and the third-largest creature overall, tying with the Sea Dragon Leviathan. They have a thick, dark blue carapace and the underside glows due to their bioluminescent properties. The barnacles grow on the carapace, so be sure to go there. Don’t worry; they are harmless.

Barnacles on Reefback Leviathans locations

Below is a list of biomes where you can find groups of Reefback Leviathans.

Third Method: Drilling Large Silver Ore Deposits

Large silver ore deposits look like giant, grey rocks with a white, shiny, metallic texture beneath the grey appearance. Unlike the other methods, it will always yield silver ore in various amounts between 9 to 18. However, you would need a Prawn Suit equipped with a Drill Arm to break it.

Large silver ore deposit locations

Below is a list of biomes where you can find large silver ore deposits.

How to Build a Prawn Suit

“The Pressure Re-Active Waterproof Nano Suit is a range of mechs designed to protect the pilot from extreme environments. The Mk. III is the latest iteration, and has so far only been rolled out by Alterra for their own high-value, phasegate-related operations.” – Data Bank Entry of Prawn Suit

If you do not have a Prawn Suit yet, you need to collect its blueprint fragments so that you can build one using the Mobile Vehicle Bay. You also need to collect the required materials to create one. If you just started playing the game, this method can be pretty hard. So, I advise new players to not go with this method as it can be too much. Yet, for those who feel like they are ready, below are the requirements.

• Using the Mobile Vehicle Bay
  • Plasteel ingot (x2)
  • Aerogel (x2)
  • Enameled glass
  • Diamond (x2)
  • Lead (x2)

If you are starting from scratch, below are all the raw materials that you need to collect so that you can craft the items above. Note that the raw materials are in bold and with quantities for clarity’s sake.

• For two plasteel ingots
  • For two titanium ingots
    • Titanium (x20)
  • Lithium (x4)
• For two aerogels
  • Gel sack (x2)
  • Ruby (x2)
• For enamelled glass
  • Stalker teeth (x1)
  • For glass
    • Quartz (x2)
  • Diamond (x2)
  • Lead (x2)

Where to Find Prawn Suit Fragments

You can only make a Prawn Suit using the Mobile Vehicle Bay when you have entirely collected the required number of fragments and blueprints. There are two main fragments that you can scan for, and each requires a certain number of fragments. You do not need to collect these two as you can build a Prawn Suit with whichever fragment you have completed first. They are listed below.

• the Prawn Suit Claw Arm (you need to scan 20 fragments); or
• Prawn Suit Fragment (you need to scan four fragments)

For the fragments of the Prawn Suit Claw Arm, you can find them in these locations:

For the fragments of the Prawn Suit Fragment, you can find them in these locations:

How to Make a Prawn Suit Drill Arm

Even if you have the Prawn Suit constructed, you can only break the large silver ore deposits when you have the Prawn Suit Drill Arm equipped on it. You can make it using the Vehicle Upgrade Console, which you can build in a Moonpool using a Habitat Builder. To make the drill arm, you need to collect its fragments and its ingredients.

Below are the locations of its fragments. Note that you only need to collect two fragments so that you can build one.

When you have collected enough fragments, you can now build the Prawn Suit Drill Arm. Below are the materials required to make one.

• Using the Vehicle Upgrade Console
  • Titanium (x5)
  • Lithium
  • Diamond

How to Find a Silver Ore in Subnautica: Below Zero

In Subnautica: Below Zero, collecting silver ores differ in terms of location and methods. They are still vital for electronic manufacturing, so harvesting this raw material is still essential. In this sequel, there are four methods to collect it.

First Method: Breaking Argentite Outcrops

“A mineral deposit that often contains silver and titanium.” – Data Bank Entry of Sandstone Outcrop

Instead of Sandstone Outcrops, you can break Argentite Outcrops to gather silver ore. They look like chocolate brown rocks with rough edges. It shares the same in-game model of Shale Outcrops from the first game.

There is a chance that breaking an Argentite Outcrop will yield Titanium instead of silver ore. Like the other outcrops, you do not need tools to break them. Below are its yield chances.

• Titanium: 40%
• Silver ore: 60%

Argentite Outcrop locations

Below is a list of biomes that you can find the Argentite Outcrop in.

Second Method: Looting from Ore Veins

“Resources behind [a] loose rock.” – Data Bank Entry for Ore Veins

Subnautica: Below Zero introduces ore veins from which you can gather resources. They are natural structures found in several biomes, and one of the resources that you can collect from them are silver ores. They look like a cluster of rocks or crystals and can be easily identified.

Ore vein locations

Below is a list of biomes that you can find the ore veins in.

Third Method: Receiving an Offering from Sea Monkeys

“A medium-sized and intelligent herbivore which shows great interest in other lifeforms and their possessions. More research is needed to understand this lifeform and its behaviour.” – Data Bank Entry for Sea Monkey

Sea Monkeys are intelligent and mischievous creatures found in the environment of Subnautica: Below Zero. Its body is primarily purple, but its underside is white. They only have two arms with two fingers on each, and on each finger, there are round, yellow suction cups. They have yellow eyes with horizontal pupils, similar to how goat eyes look. A large, blue horn-like body part rests on its forehead.

They are completely harmless, although they tend to steal the tools you are currently holding. However, after you retrieve Al-An, the architect in Sanctuary Zero, they will no longer steal from you. Instead, they will offer you gifts, and one of those gifts can be silver ores.

To receive a silver ore from Sea Monkeys, you need to pin a blueprint that needs a silver ore. To pin a blueprint, open up your survival PDA, go to the Blueprints tab, and click on the pin on a particular item. When you pin a blueprint, Sea Monkeys can give you materials related to that pinned item. Below are the things that you can pin so that they have a chance of giving you silver ore.

• Wiring Kit
• High Capacity O2 Tank
• Ion Battery
• Parallel Processing Unit
• Scanner Room Speed Upgrade

Sea Monkeys location

Fourth Method: Drilling Large Silver Ore Deposits

Like in the first game, large silver ore deposits still exist, and they look the same as before. They still yield 9 to 18 silver ores when drilled and require a Prawn Suit with a Drill Arm.

Large Silver Ore deposit locations

Below is a list of biomes where you can find large silver ore deposits in Below Zero.

How to Build a Prawn Suit

Below are the materials needed to construct the Prawn Suit in Below Zero.

• Using the Mobile Vehicle Bay
  • Computer chip (x1)
  • Plasteel ingot (x1)
  • Power cell (x1)
  • Enameled glass (x1)

Below are all the raw materials that you need to collect so that you can craft the items above. Once again, the raw materials are in bold and with quantities for clarity’s sake.

• For one computer chip
  • Table coral sample (x2)
  • Gold (x1)
  • For one copper wire
    • Copper ore (x2)
  • For one plasteel ingot
    • For one titanium ingot
      • Titanium (x10)
    • Lithium (x2)
  • For one power cell
    • For two batteries
      • Ribbon plant (x4)
      • Copper ore (x2)
    • For one silicone rubber
      • Creepvine Seed Cluster (x1)
    • For enamelled glass
      • Lead (x1)
      • Diamond (x1)
    • For glass
      • Quartz (x2)

Where to Find Prawn Suit Fragments

In Below Zero, you only need to scan four Prawn Suit fragments, and there are five available in the game. You can find them in these locations:

How to Make a Prawn Suit Drill Arm

Like in the previous entry, you only need to collect two fragments so that you can build a Pawn Suit Drill Arm. Below are the locations of these fragments.

This time, you are not limited to a Vehicle Upgrade Console to make a Prawn Suit Drill Arm. Instead, you can also do it with a Fabricator. Below are the materials required to make one.

• Using the Fabricator or Vehicle Upgrade Console
  • Titanium (x5)
  • Lithium
  • Diamond

How to Use Silver Ore in Subnautica

Silver ores are primarily used to craft electronic items, and although the things that you can make with them seem small, they are essential materials to do other more significant projects. Below is a list of items that require silver ore.

Using the Wiring Kit

One of the best uses for the silver ore is making the wiring kit, which can make other sophisticated items. Below is a list of things you can make with the wiring kit in the first game.

• Using a Fabricator
  • Rebreather: Wiring Kit (x1), Fiber Mesh (x1)
  • Compass: Wiring Kit (x1), Copper Wire (x1)
  • Advanced Wiring Kit: Wiring Kit (x1), Gold (x2), Computer Chip (x1)
  • Habitat Builder: Wiring Kit (x1), Computer Chip (x1), Battery (x1)
  • Propulsion Cannon: Wiring Kit (x1), Battery (x1), Titanium (x1)
  • Creature Decoy (x3): Wiring Kit (x1), Titanium (x3)
• Using the Habitat Builder
  • Bioreactor: Wiring Kit (x1), Titanium (x3), Lubricant (x1)
  • Battery Charger: Wiring Kit (x1), Copper Wire (x1), Titanium (x1)
• Using the Modification Station
  • Swim Charge Fins: Wiring Kit (x1), Fins (x1), Polyaniline (x1)
• Using the Vehicle Upgrade Console
  • Prawn Suit Thermal Reactor: Wiring Kit (x1), Kyanite (x2), Polyaniline (x2)
  • Seamoth Perimeter Defense System: Wiring Kit (x1), Polyaniline (x1)

In Subnautica: Below Zero, you can still craft the wiring kit, and it can still help you in many ways.

Below is a list of items in the sequel that use the wiring kit.

• Using a Fabricator
  • Ion Power Cell: Wiring Kit (x1), Ion Battery (x2), Silicone Rubber (x1)
  • Rebreather: Wiring Kit (x1), Fiber Mesh (x1)
  • Compass: Wiring Kit (x1), Copper Wire (x1)
  • Advanced Wiring Kit: Wiring Kit (x1), Gold (x2), Computer Chip (x1)
  • Habitat Builder: Wiring Kit (x1), Computer Chip (x1), Battery (x1)
  • Propulsion Cannon: Wiring Kit (x1), Battery (x1), Titanium (x1)
  • Spy Pengling: Wiring Kit (x1), Titanium (x2), Silicone Rubber (x1), Battery (x1)
  • Snowfox Jump Module: Wiring Kit (x1), Titanium (x2)
  • Snowfox Ice Worm Attack Reduction Module: Wiring Kit (x1), Titanium (x2)
  • Prawn Suit Thermal Reactor: Wiring Kit (x1), Kyanite (x2), Polyaniline (x2)
  • Seatruck Afterburner Upgrade: Wiring Kit (x1), Power Cell (x1), Lithium (x2), Crystalline Sulfur (x2)
• Using the Habitat Builder
  • Snowfox Hoverpad: Wiring Kit (x1), Titanium (x2)
  • Bioreactor: Wiring Kit (x1), Titanium (x3), Lubricant (x1)
  • Battery Charger: Wiring Kit (x1), Copper Wire (x1), Titanium (x1)
• Using the Modification Station
  • Swim Charge Fins: Wiring Kit (x1), Fins (x1), Polyaniline (x1)
• Using the Mobile Vehicle Bay
  • Seatruck Aquarium Module: Wiring Kit (x2), Plasteel Ingot (x1), Enameled Glass (x2)
  • Seatruck Storage Module: Wiring Kit (x1), Plasteel Ingot (x1), Lead (x3)

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion for Silver Ore in Subnautica

Silver ores are precious raw materials you can get in Subnautica and its sequel. They are beneficial in your journey mainly due to one item: the wiring kit. You need two silver ores when making the wiring kit, and it can be used to make many more valuable tools. For example, the Habitat Builder, a vital tool to create your sea base, requires a wiring kit.

In total, you can build six items in the first game using the wiring kit and the Fabricator, two using the Habitat Builder, one using the Modification Station, and two using the Vehicle Upgrade Console. In the second game, you can build 11 items using the wiring kit and the Fabricator, three using the Habitat Builder, one using the Modification Station, and two using the Mobile Vehicle Bay.

It is a vital material that you can barely miss upon progressing in the game. Not encountering a silver ore during your entire gameplay would be incredibly hard, but it is understandable that many people do not know where to find them. They are rare metals, and looking for them can be tedious. Thankfully, Below Zero is more forgiving in giving you a higher chance of getting silver ores.