Orichalcum Ore is the stuff Orcs build their reputation on. Two chunks at a smelter make one 
Orichalcum Ingot, the key metal for Orcish Armor and weapons, so you will want the Orcish Smithing perk to make anything with it. It is worth 20 gold a chunk and is noticeably rarer than iron, with 93 veins in the whole game.
How to get it
Unsurprisingly, the best mines belong to the Orc strongholds. Bilegulch Mine has 9 veins plus 6 loose chunks, and Mor Khazgur Mine and the mine at Dushnikh Yal have 7 veins each, with another 6 loose pieces lying around in Dushnikh Mine. Getting on good terms with the local chief makes those visits a lot less stabby. Outside the strongholds you find veins near the Forgotten Vale (8), near Giant’s Grove (4), at Highpoint Tower (3) and a couple deep in Chillwind Depths.
A few loose chunks lie around Largashbur and in the Animonculory at Alftand. Falmer of various kinds also carry it now and then, which makes sense since they spend their lives underground. There are no regular merchant listings for it in the game data, so a pickaxe is your best friend here.
Smelting and tanning
- 2 Orichalcum Ore → 1 Orichalcum Ingot at the smelter
Used to craft
Orichalcum Ore appears in 1 recipe in the game files.
Weapons and other items
- smelter: Orichalcum Ingot (2)
The number in brackets is how many Orichalcum Ore each recipe needs. Bold labels are the Smithing perk the recipe requires.
Good to know
- Orc stronghold mines are the densest source, so it pays to become Blood-Kin with the Orcs.
Data from the Skyrim game files (Skyrim.esm and the official add-ons): value, weight, ore veins, recipes and merchant lists. ID 0005ACDD is the item’s form ID for the console.
