What to know
- Wolfram is the most common early ore, found in surface veins, loose rocks, and meteors around the Orbital Lander, north, and northeast.
- Mine it manually with your Harvester or automate using Ore Excavators on flat vein sections for infinite yield.
- Smelt into bars for crafting; key for Basic Building Materials, ammo, and corporation progression.
- Focus here first to unlock automation and expand your base network efficiently.
You'll spot Wolfram ore almost immediately after leaving the Orbital Lander on Arcadia-7, marking it as your go-to resource for kickstarting industrial ops in StarRupture. If you're scrambling for materials to build your first Smelter or ship contracts, head straight to these veins—you can automate them quickly and forget hand-mining forever.
Spotting Wolfram veins and loose ore
Veins show as large brown-orange metallic ridges or arches on flat ground, easiest to place Excavators on the solid plates. Loose round orange rocks litter paths and mud, while meteors glow copper-orange—zap these for quick stacks during exploration. Unlock map overlays later to highlight them as clusters, but early on, stick to the starter area where they're densest.
How to set up your first Wolfram mine
Start small near the tutorial vein to learn the ropes, then scale north for bigger yields. You'll need a Meteorite Heart for extra Base Cores if expanding.
Step 1: Scout and prepare
Head to a vein near the Orbital Lander—grab food, water, and Basic Building Materials. Clear threats like Vermin with your pistol.
Step 2: Place Base Core
Use a Meteorite Heart (from destroyed meteors) to drop a Base Core covering the vein's flat section.
Step 3: Power it up
Build solar panels or a generator inside the base radius, connecting everything with platforms.
Step 4: Deploy Ore Excavator
Snap the Excavator onto the vein's ground plate—it only fits flat spots, not arches. Link to power.
Step 5: Add rails and processing
Run rails from the Excavator to a Smelter (1:1 ore-to-bars). Add storage or link to Orbital Cargo Launcher for exports.
Step 6: Automate fully
Unlock rails/multi-rails for passive flow. Export bars to level Moon Energy or Selenian corps for more tech.
| Processing Chain | Input | Output | Structure Needed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ore to Bars | Wolfram Ore | Wolfram Bars (1:1) | Smelter (early Selenian or Griffith) |
| Bars to Powder | Wolfram Bars | Wolfram Powder | Selenian Level 4 Furnace |
| Early Exports | Wolfram Bars or Ore | Data Points | Orbital Cargo Launcher |
Veins never deplete, so one good setup yields thousands passively—perfect for Wolfram Plates (Moon Energy Lv2, Recipe Station) or ammo.
Expanding to prime Wolfram spots
The starter vein teaches you, but north/northeast holds clusters for multi-Excavator farms. Far north suits secondary bases with Titanium/Calcium nearby. Watch for radiation west or Vermin east; pack defenses. Link farms via long rails to central storage for mega-exports.
No direct rewards table exists since Wolfram fuels open crafting/exports, but early commissions demand 50-200 Bars for Data Points and unlocks like Recipe Station.
Chain your Wolfram line to Titanium next—northeast bases cover both for seamless progression. Passive powder production via Lv4 Furnace exports fund Selenian Lv6 for Helium-3, turning ore hunts into empire-building.
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