Throughout the Western Halls, and especially in the Lower Deeps, you’ll start to encounter certain types of ore that you can’t harvest.

You’ll need a Tier III pickaxe to harvest the ore, which you’ll find with the First Age Pickaxe.

In this survival guide, we’ll show you how to unlock and craft the First Age Pickaxe in Return to Moria.

How To Unlock the First Age Pickaxe in Return to Moria

Despite requiring some advanced resources, you can unlock the recipe for the First Age Pickaxe quite early in the game.

There are two methods to unlock it.

The first is to repair the Great Forge of Narvi.

It requires you to find replacement parts, then put them in place.

Upon completion, many recipes will drop including the First Age Pickaxe recipe.

The second method is how you might end up unlocking the First Age Pickaxe even earlier.

You can unlock it by picking up a black diamond for the first time.

Goblins and orcs have a chance of dropping black diamonds whenever they’re killed.

The chances increase when they’re laying siege to your base.

So, if you haven’t advanced far in the game but end up defending your base during a siege, there’s a chance you might end up with a black diamond.

Picking it up will unlock the pickaxe recipe.

How To Craft the First Age Pickaxe in Return to Moria

While you can unlock the First Age Pickaxe by repairing the Great Forge of Narvi, you only need a standard forge to make it.

Head to your forge and scroll down to the First Age Pickaxe recipe.

You’ll notice you need the following resources to craft it:

• 3 Steel Ingots
• 1 Black Diamond
• 4 Ubasam wood

You’ll also notice that you’ll need a gem cutter to make it.

The gem cutter upgrades the forge to enable it to craft high-tier weapons and tools.

To make the gem cutter, you’ll need the following resources:

• 10 Stone
• 10 Ubasasm wood
• 3 Steel Ingots

Both the pickaxe and gem cutter require Ubasam wood.

This is a rare resource and requires you to delve down into the Lower Deeps.

You’ll be able to get it in plenty of supply down there, but it’s a dangerous area, so come prepared.

Once you have enough wood, you can craft the First Age Pickaxe at your forge.

First Age Pickaxe Stats

The First Age Pickaxe is a Tier III pickaxe that delivers piercing damage.

While it’s not much of a weapon, it is effective at harvesting Tier III resources.

These resources include:

• Ihraz granite
• Silver Ore
• Precious Gems
• Resin

It can basically harvest any Tier III resource that’s mineable.

So, craft your First Age Pickaxe and head to the Lower Deeps to start collecting elite resources.