Are you searching for the location of silver in Subnautica? If you already know that silver is a valuable resource in the game, then you’re in the right place. Silver is essential for crafting various items like wiring kits, high-capacity oxygen tanks, medical kit fabricators, ion batteries, and more. Unfortunately, silver ores are rare and hard to find, particularly in the early stages of the game. This can be frustrating as you may spend hours wandering aimlessly without being able to create or upgrade the electronic components you need. But don’t worry! In this article, we’ll guide you on how to farm silver in Subnautica and progress smoothly. Many of the strategies we’ll share can also be used for sourcing other materials. Let’s dive right in!
Finding Silver in Subnautica: The Basics
As you might already know, you can obtain silver ore by breaking sandstone chunks within the game. This is the simplest and most common method available to you at the beginning. Here’s what a sandstone chunk looks like in the Grassy Plateaus:
In the Safe Shallows (your Lifepod’s location and starting point), you’ll find only a few sandstone chunks. You might discover some hidden in the safe shallow caves. If you’re lucky, you could find silver ores which can be used to create a wiring kit or a high-capacity oxygen tank. These are extremely useful early in the game. To find more sandstone chunks in Subnautica, you’ll need to explore other biomes like the Grassy Plateaus, Kelp Forest, Dunes, and Mushroom Forest. We recommend starting your search at the Grassy Plateaus since there are many sandstone chunks located just a few hundred meters West of your Lifepod.
Here’s what the Grassy Plateaus look like:
In Subnautica, there’s no map to help you track different biomes. To identify your current location, press “F1” on your keyboard. This opens a console on the right-hand side of your screen that shows your current biome, among other things. You’ll find sandstone chunks hidden in the red grass (blood grass) or around the large stone pillars at the center of the biome. Just be cautious of Sandsharks that can be found in the area.
Another good source of silver ore during the early game is the Reefback Leviathan that roams the Grassy Plateaus. The Reefback is a massive, slow-moving creature that glides near the surface of the water. It’s the first leviathan creature you encounter and may initially scare you due to its gigantic size. However, the Reefback is harmless, although it carries Tiger Plants on its back that can harm you if you get too close. The blue-green barnacles on the Reefback’s back can be broken for a chance to find silver ores.
Step up Your Game with a Scanner Room
Breaking sandstone chunks and barnacles might not yield enough silver ore efficiently. There’s only about a 50% chance of finding silver ores when breaking sandstone chunks, as they can also contain gold or lead. Reefback barnacles, on the other hand, have a 10% chance of yielding silver ores. This means you could spend hours searching for these resources without guaranteeing you’ll get the amount of silver ores you need. So what can you do?
To find more silver ores in Subnautica, you need to make your search for sandstone chunks easier. You can achieve this by building a Scanner Room, which can locate sandstone chunks and display their locations on your screen. To implement this strategy, you must scan for fragments to obtain the blueprint for a scanner room (3 fragments). Fortunately, these fragments are relatively easy to find in the Grassy Plateaus. Look for wreckage on the seafloor, and you should find enough fragments to obtain the blueprint.
Once you have the blueprint, use your Habitat Builder to build the Scanner Room. Here are the materials you’ll need:
– 5x Titanium Ores
– 2x Copper Ores
– 1x Gold
– 1x Table Coral Sample
Now that you have a scanner room, you’ll also need a Scanner Room HUD chip. Equip it from your inventory to receive location information from the scanner room on your HUD. To fabricate the Scanner Room HUD chip, you’ll need the following materials:
– 1x Magnetite
– 1x Computer Chip
Magnetite can be found in the Jellyshroom Cave, which is around 500 meters West of your Lifepod. It’s a dangerous area with Crabsnakes, so proceed with caution. Explore the cave, collect some magnetite, and return to fabricate the Scanner Room HUD chip. Note that you’ll need to enter the scanner room to fabricate additional upgrades like Camera Drones and Scanner Room Range upgrades.
With the Scanner Room HUD chip equipped, you can now start scanning for sandstone chunks. Access the console inside the Scanner Room, select sandstone chunks as your target resource, and wait a few minutes. You’ll start receiving location information of sandstone chunks in the area. The scanner room has a range of 300 meters, which can be extended up to 500 meters by installing four Scanner Room Range upgrade modules. Each module requires 1x Copper and 1x Magnetite.
The best thing about the “Scanner Room” strategy is that it’s not limited to sandstone chunks. You can use the room to locate any resource within range, such as magnetite, diamonds, wreckage sites, or even Reaper Leviathans. The camera drones can be used to scout areas and identify potential threats before exploring. This is especially helpful when checking unexplored biomes and wanting to know what to expect. Just be aware that you can only control the camera drones from inside the scanner room.
Conclusion
By following the strategies mentioned above, you should have an easier time finding silver in Subnautica. Remember that these strategies can be applied to other materials as well. As you progress further in the game, you’ll discover large silver deposits that you can mine directly. However, implementing the Scanner Room strategy will significantly improve your efficiency in searching for silver ores or any other desired resource. Happy exploring!
