Bismuth or tin bronze

[wildforester]

I’m reaching that point in the game where I’ll be getting into the Bronze Age, I’ve always gone with tin bronze in the past, but this time I’ve found good readings for bismuth bronze (my cassiterite readings were only decent). What are ppl’s preferences? Always go for one bronze type over the other or pick whichever has been found? Also, what sort of readings do ppl consider worth mining for?

[Rainbow Fresh]

I'd say take what you get; Bismuth has more durability (so I learned) so it's not a bad pick. My personal experience has just been much more tin than bismuth so I have piles of tin bronze before I went into the Iron Age.

[Tam Hawkins]

Get the bismuth in any case even if you find tin later.

You can use bismuth to make plates and use these to make lanterns and you can never have enough lanterns.

[Vratislav]

Differences are not big. If you have it next to your hands, make bismuth bronze first. In mid- to late game, having diversity of bronze helps with trading, as traders frequently require tool made from bronze variant you actually do not have 

[LadyWYT]

1 hour ago, wildforester said:

Always go for one bronze type over the other or pick whichever has been found?

I use whatever is most convenient. Some games that is tin bronze, some games that is bismuth bronze. Black bronze I never use, outside of the rare tool/weapon if I happen to have a few gold and silver nuggets lying around. 

The only real difference is that while bismuth bronze might be more durable with less attack power, it does require more material to make(and thus uses more storage space) and cannot be used for the treasure hunter quest.

1 hour ago, wildforester said:

Also, what sort of readings do ppl consider worth mining for?

Bismuth, zinc, and tin are all common enough that it's fairly easy to find High or better readings, but I'll take what I can get. They're also common enough that digging at worse readings isn't a big deal and yields something useful more often than not.

[Maelstrom]

21 hours ago, wildforester said:

Also, what sort of readings do ppl consider worth mining for?

For anything other than iron and higher tier metals, I'll go for whatever is the highest reading that is within a reasonable distance (whatever reasonable is to you).  Usually I can find Very High or Ultra High within a half day's run from home. 

[SnapJelly]

If I have tin nearby I prefer tin bronze, it takes less digging and is the faster tool. The slight increase in durability that bismuth has is negligible to me.

but if not I just take what I can get.

On 7/21/2026 at 2:11 PM, wildforester said:

what sort of readings do ppl consider worth mining for?

the highest I can get paired with how desperate I am to find said specific ore, in practice though I rarely bother for less than ultra high. With a bit of traveling and some charred bread stored I can usually find what I'm looking for in plentiful amounts

[wildforester]

 

4 hours ago, SnapJelly said:

he highest I can get paired with how desperate I am to find said specific ore, in practice though I rarely bother for less than ultra high. With a bit of traveling and some charred bread stored I can usually find what I'm looking for in plentiful amounts

You must play the slow game if you’ve got charred bread on you by the time you search for bronze

[Zaph42nd]

On 7/21/2026 at 12:11 PM, wildforester said:

I’m reaching that point in the game where I’ll be getting into the Bronze Age, I’ve always gone with tin bronze in the past, but this time I’ve found good readings for bismuth bronze (my cassiterite readings were only decent). What are ppl’s preferences? Always go for one bronze type over the other or pick whichever has been found? Also, what sort of readings do ppl consider worth mining for?

Usually just get whatever works for bronze first, my late bronze-age goal is always black-bronze, bismuth and tin bronze are still good, but mainly for me at least useful for mass-lantern making or trading. Deposits wise, plentiful or very high will get you set for a decent while, trace/poor deposits aren't super useful but worth noting still since if time (and hunger) permit on return trips, it's never not a bad idea to get additional resources if they are decently close to the surface

[SnapJelly]

30 minutes ago, wildforester said:

You must play the slow game if you’ve got charred bread on you by the time you search for bronze

wym? as soon as you have copper you can make everything you need for charred bread, you only need a quern and a bucket

[Maelstrom]

1 hour ago, SnapJelly said:

wym? as soon as you have copper you can make everything you need for charred bread, you only need a quern and a bucket

If @wildforester is like me, the third item I make in copper is a pro-pick and I start searching for tin preferably, but if'n I find decent readings for bismuth and zinc I'll go for that as well.  I usually find tin before I find both bismuth and zinc.