How to Get Money (Ore Nuggets) Fast in Gothic 1 Remake

TL;DR

Ore Nuggets are the only currency in the Colony — every skill, item, and upgrade costs them.
Learn hunting skills from Drax early — without them, kills give you nothing sellable.
Loot everything: herbs, mushrooms, food, tools, and spare weapons all sell for Ore.
Complete early quests at the New Camp and Swamp Camp for fast 600–1,000 Ore rewards.
Pickpocket and burglarize at night — wait for NPCs to leave or sleep before entering huts.
Spread your sales across multiple merchants — each vendor has limited Ore to trade.
Enemies and items do not respawn, so get hunting skills as soon as possible.

How to get money (Ore Nuggets) fast in Gothic 1 Remake is one of the first things every new player needs to figure out. The economy in the Colony is brutal. Skills cost Ore. Better weapons cost Ore. Armor, maps, training — everything has a price. And unlike most RPGs, the game will not hand you much of it. This guide covers every reliable method to build your ore supply quickly, starting from your first hours in the Valley of the Mines.

If you are just getting started, it also helps to read our guide on the best way to get started in Gothic 1 Remake before diving into money-making.

Table of Contents

What Are Ore Nuggets in Gothic 1 Remake

Ore Nuggets are the main currency inside the Colony. You use them to pay skill trainers, buy gear from merchants, and trade for supplies. There is no gold, no coin — only Ore. The game makes this intentional. The Valley of the Mines runs on ore extraction, and that is reflected in how the economy works.

A few important rules to understand before you start farming:

Items do not respawn. Most lootable items in the world are one-time finds. Once you take them, they are gone for good.
Enemies do not respawn. Every creature you kill is a permanent loss from the world. This makes hunting skills time-sensitive.
Merchants have limited Ore. Each vendor only has a set amount of Ore available to trade. When it runs out, you cannot sell more to that trader until they restock over several in-game days.

Knowing these three things changes how you approach every money-making method in the game.

Get Hunting Skills from Drax as Early as Possible

This is the single most important tip for making money in Gothic 1 Remake. Without hunting skills, killing animals gives you almost nothing sellable. With them, every creature becomes a source of income.

Find Drax on the road leading toward the Old Camp. Before he will train you, give him a Beer. You can find one in an unlocked chest along the road from the Exchange. Once you have done that, he will offer the following skills:

Remove Teeth — 1 LP and 175 Ore. Lets you extract teeth from kills.
Remove Fur — 1 LP and 250 Ore. Lets you extract fur.
Remove Claws — 1 LP and 150 Ore. Lets you extract claws.
Skin Reptiles — 1 LP and 250 Ore. Lets you extract reptile skin.

The priority order here matters. Remove Claws is the cheapest and also unlocks a wolf’s claw, which you need for the Price of Magic quest in Gothic 1 Remake. Remove Teeth comes next. Together, these two skills cost 325 Ore and 2 LP and immediately start paying off with every wolf and lurker you kill.

Rush all four skills before too much time passes. Because enemies do not respawn, every animal you killed before learning these skills is lost income that you cannot recover.

Loot Absolutely Everything You Find

The first habit to build in Gothic 1 Remake is picking up anything that is not nailed down. This includes:

Herbs and mushrooms scattered across roads and open areas
Raw food — meat, bread, apples
Spare tools and random valuables
Weapons picked up from downed enemies

Herbs and mushrooms in particular are easy to miss but can be surprisingly valuable when sold. Raw meat from Scavengers and Molerats is worth cooking at a campfire first — cooked meat sells for slightly more and has better value as a consumable.

Do not worry about keeping everything. The goal is to grab it all, then decide what to sell later. Your inventory can hold a lot, and most of these items weigh little enough that you will rarely feel the pressure.

Be careful around items that belong to NPCs. Stealing from containers or owned items carries real risk. If someone sees you, they will react, and guards will impose penalties that can cost you Ore. Save stealing for when no one is watching.

Complete Early Quests for Fast Ore Rewards

Two specific quests stand out in the early game for delivering a large amount of Ore quickly.

The Swampweed Harvest Quest (600 Ore)

Head to the Swamp Camp and find Ghorim near where the workers gather. Accept his replacement quest, deal with Harlok near the large tree, and return to Ghorim to complete it. This triggers a conversation with Baal Orun, who gives you the Swampweed Harvest Mission.

You need to collect 100 bundles of Swampweed. Speak with Balor in the Jungle to receive 50 bundles, and pay him 50 Ore to learn that the harvest should be sold to Cipher in the New Camp. Then find Viran near the wooden tower at the back of the Jungle. Clear the Bugs surrounding him, and he will hand over the remaining 50 bundles. Return to Cipher at the Bar in the New Camp and trade the full 100 bundles for 600 Ore Nuggets instantly.

A Piece of the Pie Quest (New Camp)

Go to the Old Mine and pick up a list for Diego. Then travel to the New Camp and speak with Lares, the camp’s leader. He will give you a follow-up mission called A Piece of the Pie. Head to the Bar by the lake and find Baal Isidro. Offer him a Beer and exhaust his dialogue. He will agree to split his stash of Swampweed rolls with you, giving you 42 rolls. Sell these to different Bandits and Mercenaries across the Colony for 10 to 13 Ore each.

If you plan to join the New Camp, Lares may take a cut of your profits. Sell to merchants outside the New Camp to keep more of what you earn.

Combining these two quests can get you over 1,000 Ore Nuggets before finishing Chapter 1.

Burglarize NPC Huts at the Right Time

Breaking into huts and houses is one of the most effective ways to find raw Ore and valuable items. The key is timing. Every NPC in Gothic 1 Remake follows a daily schedule. Some are active during the day, others at night. Waiting for them to leave their homes, or for night to fall when most residents are asleep, gives you a clean window to enter and open chests without being seen.

Watch the patrol patterns of nearby guards. Enter the dwelling when no one is in view. Open chests quickly and take anything useful. Ore, materials, and weapons can all be found inside. Then leave before anyone returns.

Before you start, invest in lockpicking. Find Fingers in the Old Camp, near the Arena. He will teach you the Lockpicking skill for 50 Ore and 1 Skill Point. Learning it makes the lock mini-game more forgiving and helps you avoid snapping picks unnecessarily. Carry at least 10 to 15 lockpicks at a time. Read our full guide on lockpicking in Gothic 1 Remake for a breakdown of the slider mechanic.

If guards catch you inside, they will attack — and they can also take Ore from you as a penalty. Never attempt this with other NPCs nearby.

Pickpocket NPCs for Extra Ore

pickpocketing the gala invitation in 007 first light

Fingers also teaches Pickpocket for 50 Ore and 1 Skill Point. This opens up a steady stream of small income from regular NPCs walking around the camps. Many characters carry a few Ore Nuggets or small items on them at all times.

The key is Dexterity. A higher Dexterity score increases your chance of pickpocketing successfully without being caught. If an NPC spots you in the act, they will attack. So keep your Dexterity as high as you reasonably can before relying on this method heavily.

Do not ignore this skill. Even small amounts of Ore from regular pickpockets add up over time, especially early in the game when every Nugget matters.

Hunt Animals and Sell Trophies

Once you have the hunting skills from Drax, the wilderness becomes a reliable income source. Wolves drop fur and teeth. Lurkers drop skin and claws. These trophies sell well to merchants, especially specialized traders who deal in raw materials and hunting goods.

Prioritize Teeth and Fur first when choosing what to keep from kills. These become more profitable as the game goes on and merchants stock more Ore to trade.

Spread your sales across multiple vendors. One merchant will quickly run out of Ore if you dump everything on them. Rotate between the Old Camp, New Camp, and Swamp Camp traders to maximize what you can convert. Give merchants several in-game days to restock before returning to them.

Need help getting your first weapon before you start hunting? Check our guide on how to get your first weapon in Gothic 1 Remake, and for upgrade options, see our list of best early weapons in Gothic 1 Remake.

Mine Ore in the Old Mine

You can also mine Ore directly in the Old Mine. This is the slowest method, but it works in the very early game before you have the skills or resources to pursue better options. Look for loose Ore Nuggets around other miners or from the large Ore piles in the lower areas of the mine.

Think of mining as a seed investment. The small amount of Ore you pick up this way can go straight toward buying your first hunting skill, which then multiplies your income from every kill going forward.

Do not rely on mining as your main income source for long. It does not scale and becomes a poor use of time once other methods are available.

Spend Ore Wisely to Keep Growing

Making money fast is only half the equation. The other half is not wasting it. Every Ore you spend on the wrong thing delays your ability to earn more.

The best early purchases are:

Hunting skills — these pay for themselves within a few hunts
Lockpicking — opens chests and makes burglary viable
A map — essential for navigation. See our guide on how to get a map in Gothic 1 Remake
Combat training — needed to survive long enough to earn anything

Avoid spending on decorative items, food you will not eat, or skills that do not help you survive or earn Ore faster. The game is harsh with new players. Every Ore Nugget should do work.

For tips on managing the early game more broadly, including how to rest and recover, see our guides on how to sleep and pass time in Gothic 1 Remake and how to get rid of Mud in Gothic 1 Remake.

Where to Buy Gothic 1 Remake

Gothic 1 Remake is available now on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S. You can find it through the following official stores:

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the fastest way to get Ore Nuggets in Gothic 1 Remake?

The fastest early method is completing the Swampweed Harvest quest for 600 Ore, combined with the A Piece of the Pie quest at the New Camp. Together, these can give you over 1,000 Ore Nuggets before Chapter 1 ends.

Do enemies respawn in Gothic 1 Remake?

No. Enemies do not respawn. This is why learning hunting skills from Drax as early as possible is so important. Every kill you make without those skills is wasted income.

Can you mine Ore Nuggets directly in Gothic 1 Remake?

Yes. You can pick up loose Ore Nuggets in the Old Mine. It is slow and limited, but it works in the very early game as a way to scrape together enough Ore to invest in better money-making skills.

How do you sell items to merchants in Gothic 1 Remake?

Open the barter menu with a merchant and select items to trade. Remember that merchants have limited Ore. If one vendor runs dry, rotate to another camp’s trader and give the first one a few in-game days to restock.

Is pickpocketing worth it in Gothic 1 Remake?

Yes, especially early on. Learn it from Fingers in the Old Camp for 50 Ore and 1 Skill Point. Raise your Dexterity to improve success rates. Even small amounts from regular NPCs add up quickly when Ore is scarce.

For more guides on surviving and thriving in the Colony, visit our full Gothic 1 Remake beginner guide and check out our best PC settings for Gothic 1 Remake if you are playing on computer.