Ore Mining & Rupee Farming Guide — Tears of the Kingdom

Ore deposits are one of the most reliable rupee sources in Tears of the Kingdom. Breaking ore nodes drops gemstones sold to merchants for hundreds of rupees each. This guide covers the best mining locations, optimal tools, and sell priorities.

Ore Types and Sell Values

| Ore | Sell Price | Rarity | |-----|-----------|--------| | Flint | 2 Rupees | Very Common | | Amber | 10 Rupees | Common | | Opal | 60 Rupees | Common | | Topaz | 180 Rupees | Uncommon | | Ruby | 210 Rupees | Uncommon | | Sapphire | 260 Rupees | Rare | | Diamond | 500 Rupees | Very Rare | | Star Fragment | 200 Rupees | Very Rare | | Luminite | 70 Rupees | Depths-exclusive | | Zonaite | 20 Rupees | Depths-exclusive |

Priority selling order: Diamond > Sapphire > Ruby > Topaz > Opal. Keep Flint and Amber for upgrade materials (some Great Fairy upgrades require Amber).

Best Mining Tools

Hammer Weapons (Most Efficient)

Any club, hammer, or bludgeon destroys ore nodes in 1–2 hits. Fusing a Talus Heart to a two-handed weapon creates the ultimate mining tool — the Talus Heart adds significant impact damage that shatters ore in a single swing while dealing high bonus damage to Stone Talus weak points simultaneously.

Best mining weapon build:

• Stone Hammer or Miner's Club (base weapon)
• Fuse with: Rock Roast × 3 (adds weight and impact) or Talus Heart

Bomb Arrows (For Cluster Mining)

In ore-dense areas (Eldin mines, Akkala mines), firing a single Bomb Arrow at a wall cluster breaks 3–4 ore nodes simultaneously. Less efficient per arrow but faster throughput in tight corridors with multiple adjacent nodes.

Yunobo Sage Ability (Best for Surface Mining)

Yunobo's roll attack (activated with Y while Yunobo is summoned) shatters ore nodes and regular rocks in a cone. This is the single fastest ore clearing method — one Yunobo roll through a rock cluster breaks everything in his path. Use Yunobo for surface clearing; switch to hammer weapons underground where Yunobo's roll range is limited.

Best Mining Locations

1. Eldin Canyon — Death Mountain Mines (Best Overall)

Death Mountain's interior and surrounding canyon contains the highest ore density in the surface layer. The southern approach road from Goron City to the Death Mountain summit passes dozens of ore nodes in clusters.

Route:

1. Fast travel to Goron City Shrine
2. Head northeast up Death Mountain
3. Swing through the Darunia Lake area (eastern Death Mountain flank) — clusters of 8–12 ore nodes
4. Continue to the summit ruins — additional sparse but high-tier nodes
5. Return via Goron City and warp back

Expected yield per run: 15–25 Opals, 8–12 Topaz/Ruby, 2–4 Sapphires, 0–1 Diamond

2. Akkala Ancient Tech Lab Surroundings

The rocky terrain east of the lab toward the Akkala Sea contains ore-embedded cliff faces with:

• High Sapphire density (1 per 8–10 nodes on average)
• Several guaranteed Diamond spawns on the island formations east of the Akkala Citadel

Combine with: The Akkala Citadel ruins sweep (enemies + ore) for maximum per-trip efficiency.

3. Lanayru Mountain (East Hyrule)

The rocky ridges of Mount Lanayru contain cold-region ore including a disproportionate number of Sapphires. Requires cold resistance gear.

Best ore zone: The Naydra's Spring approach on Mount Lanayru — the entire approach path is lined with ore nodes from the base to the peak shrine.

4. Depths Mining — Highest Diamond Rate

The Depths have a dramatically elevated Diamond drop rate from ore nodes — approximately 1 Diamond per 20 nodes (vs. 1 per 50 on the surface). The trade-off is Gloom damage and darkness navigation.

Best Depths mining areas:

• Lanayru Depths (below Mount Lanayru) — high-tier ore density with accessible Lightroot network
• Eldin Depths (below Death Mountain) — fire-adjacent area with rich ore clusters and Luminite nodes
• Akkala Depths (below Akkala region) — most remote but highest Sapphire/Diamond ratio

Depths mining setup:

• Equip Gloom-resistance food (cooked with Sundelion)
• Carry 20+ Brightbloom Seeds for lighting
• Fuse a Giant Brightbloom Seed to your shield — it illuminates a wide radius around you while active

Blood Moon Respawn for Ore

Ore nodes respawn on Blood Moon (every 2.5 hours real-time, or approximately every 7 in-game days). To maximize farming:

1. Clear a known ore route completely
2. Advance time at a campfire or inn until the next Blood Moon
3. Re-clear the same route

With a consistent Blood Moon cycle, the Death Mountain route can be repeated twice per real-time hour for approximately 600–1,200 Rupees per hour from ore alone.

Rupee Optimization — What to Keep vs. Sell

Always Sell

• Flint (no significant recipe use)
• Excess Opal (keep 20 for upgrade materials, sell remainder)
• Excess Topaz, Ruby, Sapphire (keep 5 each for upgrades — Topaz is used in Rubber Armor tier 4, Ruby in Snowquill tier 4)
• Any duplicate ore beyond your upgrade reserve

Always Keep

• Diamond × 5–10 minimum reserve — used in multiple tier 4 Great Fairy upgrades
• Amber — required for several early-to-mid tier upgrades (Rubber Armor, Ancient Hero's Aspect)
• Star Fragments × 3–5 — rare tier 4 upgrade material; worth holding even if short on Rupees

When to Sell Diamonds

Sell Diamonds only when:

1. You have 10+ in reserve (past your upgrade needs)
2. You need 500+ Rupees urgently for a house upgrade or armor purchase
3. You have access to unlimited Diamond respawn via the Depths farming route

Combining Ore Mining with Other Farms

Best combination routes:

| Route | Ore | Bonus Farm | |-------|-----|-----------| | Death Mountain | Opal, Topaz, Ruby | Goron City side quests, Yunobo upgrades | | Mount Lanayru | Sapphire, Diamond | Naydra Dragon parts, Lanayru Shrine chain | | Akkala Region | Sapphire, Diamond | Enemy camp rupee drops (with Mystic Set) | | Depths (Lanayru) | Diamond, Luminite | Poe farming, Lightroot activation |

Selling Tips

• Sell to Beedle (traveling merchant near stables) for standard ore prices
• General stores in towns (Hateno, Kakariko) also accept ore at standard rates
• The Gerudo Town bazaar has a gem-specific buyer (Isha) who pays full price without any discount
• Never sell to Kilton (monster shop) — he only accepts monster drops, not ore

The fastest single rupee injection in the game: sell a stack of 10 Diamonds to any merchant for 5,000 Rupees — enough to buy Link's house, all Bolson upgrades, and a full set of armor from Hateno simultaneously.