In TBC, the mining skill you need sets which ore nodes you can gather: Fel Iron at 300, Adamantite at 325, Rich Adamantite at 350 and Khorium at 375. Before Outland, Copper needs 1, Tin 65, Silver 75, Iron 125, Gold 155, Mithril 175, Truesilver 230, Small Thorium 245 and Rich Thorium 275. Smelting the bars also gives skill-ups, so you can close the gaps between ore tiers.
Ore by Mining Skill
| Ore / node | Skill to mine | Smelt (yellow / green / grey) |
| Copper Vein | 1 | Smelt Copper 25 / 47 / 70 |
| Tin Vein | 65 | Smelt Tin 65 / 70 / 75; Bronze 65 / 90 / 115 |
| Silver Vein | 75 | Smelt Silver 115 / 122 / 130 |
| Iron Deposit | 125 | Smelt Iron 130 / 145 / 160; Steel 165 |
| Gold Vein | 155 | Smelt Gold 170 / 177 / 185 |
| Mithril Deposit | 175 | Smelt Mithril 175 / 202 / 230 |
| Truesilver Deposit | 230 | Smelt Truesilver 235 / 242 / 250 |
| Small / Rich Thorium | 245 / 275 | Smelt Thorium 250 / 270 / 290 |
| Fel Iron Deposit | 300 | Smelt Fel Iron 300 / 307 / 315 (2 ore) |
| Adamantite / Rich Adamantite | 325 / 350 | Smelt Adamantite 325 / 332 / 340 (2 ore) |
| Khorium Vein | 375 | Smelt Khorium 375 (2 ore) |
Below its yellow number, a recipe is orange and always gives a skill point. At the grey number it stops giving points.
TBC Leveling 1 → 70Any character leveled to the TBC cap of 70.from 25 EURGet it doneA Quick Route Through Outland
- 300–325: Mine Fel Iron in Hellfire Peninsula and Zangarmarsh. Smelt Fel Iron is orange until 300 and stops giving points at 315.
- 325–350: Move to Adamantite in Nagrand, Terokkar Forest, Blade's Edge Mountains and Netherstorm. Smelt Adamantite up to 340.
- 350–375: Keep mining Adamantite and Rich Adamantite. Use any Eternium Ore you get: Smelt Eternium (350 / 357 / 365) and Smelt Felsteel (355 / 367 / 380), which takes 3 Fel Iron Bars and 2 Eternium Bars, both give points here.
- 375: You can now mine Khorium Veins.
What skill do you need for Fel Iron Ore?
You need 300 mining for a Fel Iron Deposit, and Smelt Fel Iron is yellow at 300 too. If you come to Outland with 300 skill from the old world, you can mine every Fel Iron node in Hellfire Peninsula right away.
What skill do you need for Adamantite Ore?
Plain Adamantite Deposits need 325 and Rich Adamantite Deposits need 350. Smelt Adamantite takes 2 ore per bar and stops giving skill at 340. That's why Felsteel and Eternium bars are useful for the last stretch to 375.
Where is Khorium Ore and what skill does it need?
Khorium Veins need the full 375 and are rare spawns in the higher Outland zones, such as Nagrand, Blade's Edge Mountains, Netherstorm and Shadowmoon Valley. Smelt Khorium takes 2 ore per bar. Hardened Khorium needs 3 Khorium Bars plus 1 Hardened Adamantite Bar (made from 10 Adamantite Bars), and you learn it from the Study of Advanced Smelting recipe at 375.
Does smelting give mining skill in TBC?
Yes. Each smelt that's orange, yellow or green can raise your mining skill, just like gathering a node. If you have a stack of Thorium Ore, you can smelt it up to 290. It helps when you're a few points short of the next ore.
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