What is the Metal Pickaxe, and what’s it used for?
Chances are, you won’t spend a lot of time mining in Green Hell. But if you do and want a sturdier tool to dig out ore, the Metal Pickaxe is always an option. Formed from a Metal Blade precariously tied to a stick, this tool is a miner’s best friend.
This guide will walk you through how to craft a Metal Pickaxe and offer some tips on how it can best be used.
How to craft a Metal Pickaxe in Green Hell
Before crafting any metal tool, the player will need a functioning Mud Forge, some melted iron, and some empty molds. This particular recipe will require you to cast a Metal Blade.
Once you’ve forged the metal portion of the tool, you can assemble it by combining the following materials:
- 1 Stick
- 1 Rope
- 1 Metal Blade Cast
Sticks can be found on the ground throughout the jungle, produced by cutting down trees or harvested from Long Sticks or Logs. Rope can be collected by gathering Liana vines off of large trees. Metal Blade Casts can only be created by Forging metal blade molds.
Once you’ve collected the proper materials, craft the Metal Pickaxe by:
- Opening the radial menu (by holding the
Ckey) - Select crafting from the options
- Drag the stick, rope, and metal blade cast to the crafting rock from the backpack or environment
- Press the craft button above the crafting rock
Note: The crafting menu can also be opened from the inventory sidebar or by holding the alt-select button (default RMB) over one of the ingredients and pressing craft.
How to equip the Metal Pickaxe
The Metal Pickaxe can be found in the tools tab of the inventory and occupies one of the four standard tool slots (numbered 1-4). It can be equipped at any time by pressing the number key that corresponds with the slot this tool is occupying.
Tips and tricks for using the Metal Pickaxe
The Metal Pickaxe is best used for mining iron ore found in the walls of caves. This iron can then be smelted at a mud forge for use in casting new metal tools.
This weapon is a natural progression from the Stone Pickaxe, offering higher damage and significantly increased durability. Regardless, players likely aren’t going to be doing enough mining for this upgrade to be worth precious iron.
It can be used to chop down trees and split wood and is actually somewhat useful for these tasks, making it an effective multi-purpose implement. It isn’t a good substitute for a proper axe, however.
The Metal Pickaxe is a somewhat effective choice for combat. While any other metal tool easily outperforms it, it does deal more damage than several non-metal tools, such as the Bone Axe and Weak Spear.
This pickaxe can be used as a throwing weapon but can be difficult to aim due to its weirdly small hitbox.
We recommend waiting to craft metal tools until your skill is above 30. While metal tools naturally degrade much slower than other items, crafting a low-durability metal tool still feels like a waste of precious iron.
Final thoughts on the Metal Pickaxe
While it probably isn’t the most useful tool of all time, it may be worth it for players mining tons of iron to upgrade to a metal tool. Creepy Jar wanted players to have the option, at least. Plus, the limited number of tools players can carry means that having a more powerful tool of any kind is usually beneficial.
Looking for some more pointers to help you survive Green Hell? Check out our 10 Tips for Getting Started or our walkthrough on How to Survive Your First Day.
