Conan Exiles Obsidian 2026: Volcano Location, Volcanic Forge and Composite Obsidian

Conan Exiles obsidian nodes sit in one place only: the crater of the volcano in the Exiled Lands. You mine them with a pickaxe, then combine 10 of them with a Steel Bar at the Volcanic Forge in the Well of Skelos to get Composite Obsidian. If you'd rather skip the crater, a sorcery transmutation turns Ironstone into the same material at your base.

This black volcanic glass sits at the very end of the material chain, and it's also one of the most dangerous resources to get. This guide covers the location, the forge, the sorcery shortcut and the mistakes that end a volcano trip early.

⚒️ What is obsidian in Conan Exiles?

According to the community wiki, it's an endgame crafting material that can't be used in its raw form. Only when it's combined with Steel Bars at the Volcanic Forge does it become the composite bar that serves as the base for some of the strongest weapons and tools in the game. If you've worked your way along the chain from iron through steel and Hardened Steel to Star Metal, this is the last step.

Where it sits in the material hierarchy: iron and steel are the foundation, Hardened Steel (Steel Bar plus Black Ice) is the next tier, then comes Star Metal from the meteors in the snow biome, and at the top sits the volcanic glass. If you've already worked through our Star Metal guide and the steel guide, you're well prepared for the next step.

🌋 Location: only in the volcano's crater

Unlike most resources, this one is tied to a single place: the caldera, meaning the crater, of the volcano in the Exiled Lands. There you'll find dark, bluish shimmering nodes that you mine with a pickaxe. The higher the tier of your pickaxe, the more efficient it gets.

According to the database conanexiles.gaming.tools, the volcanic glass also drops from the Obsidian Rocknose, and the Grey Ones carry it as loot.

The volcano is one of the most hostile areas on the map. The crater has a heatstroke climate that deals constant damage over time unless you're protected well enough against heat. Before you farm here, invest in heat resistance.

🔥 Making Composite Obsidian at the Volcanic Forge

The raw material can't be used directly. The only way to process it is the Volcanic Forge, a special forge that, according to the community wiki, only exists in the Well of Skelos, a dungeon deep inside the volcano.

• The Volcanic Forge doesn't craft automatically like other furnaces. You first need a matching knowledge. Per the database, several unlock the recipe, the simplest being "Obsidian Tools" (Survival, 1 knowledge point, requires "Star Metal Tools"). "Grey One Armor" or weapon knowledge such as "Axe of the Grey Ones" works too.
• The forge is publicly accessible, even for other clans. If you leave materials in it and come back later, they may be looted.
• At 10 seconds per unit, 100 bars take just under 17 minutes.

For a useful number of bars, bring not only the raw glass but also enough Steel Bars, or craft them beforehand. How that works is explained in our steel guide. Since the forge is public, don't leave the crafting unattended. Stay nearby until every bar is done.

🧪 Alternative: transmutation with sorcery

If you don't want to walk into the crater every time, there's a second option: the sorcery knowledge "Transmutation: Metal". It costs 3 knowledge points in the Sorcery category and requires "Pure Transmutation". More on the basics is in our sorcery guide. With this knowledge, you unlock several transmutation recipes at the Firebowl Cauldron, including one that turns Ironstone straight into volcanic glass:

The upside: you don't have to go into the volcano. If you already have Ironstone in stock and the right sorcery knowledge, you produce it right at your own base. The volcano still matters, though, because the Volcanic Forge is the only place to make the composite bars. The transmutation only replaces the mining, not the processing.

💎 Crafting the Obsidian Gem

Besides the composite bars, the raw material can also become a gem, again at the Firebowl Cauldron:

So a stockpile pays off not just for weapons and tools but also for recipes that need corruption materials. If you don't know your corruption sources yet, our sorcery guide has the background.

💡 Tips for the volcano expedition

If you want to farm Conan Exiles obsidian, bring this gear:

• Heat-resistant armor, which noticeably reduces heatstroke damage in the crater.
• Plenty of food and water. The constant heat damage eats stamina and health, and without supplies you're done fast.
• The highest-tier pickaxe you have. Hardened Steel picks mine the nodes much faster than basic stone picks.
• Enough Steel Bars in your pack. Without them, the Volcanic Forge is useless, since every composite bar needs both ingredients.

Plan the route as a loop: to the nodes at the crater rim, on to the Volcanic Forge in the Well of Skelos to process, and only at the end of the trip back to base. That saves you double trips through one of the deadliest biomes on the map and makes the run a lot safer than wandering through the crater without a plan.

🩸 Common mistakes on a volcano run

• Going without the recipe knowledge: without "Obsidian Tools" or one of the other matching knowledges, the Volcanic Forge is useless. Learn it at your base before the trip.
• Not enough Steel Bars: every 10 pieces of raw glass also need 1 Steel Bar. Without a stockpile, you just pile up raw material.
• Leaving valuable materials in the public forge: since the Volcanic Forge is open to every player, unattended stacks are a risk on PvP servers and on some PvE servers.
• Underestimating heat protection: without preparing for heatstroke, a trip into the crater often ends after a few meters.

❓ FAQ: Conan Exiles obsidian

Where do you find obsidian in Conan Exiles?
The mineable nodes are only in the crater (the caldera) of the volcano in the Exiled Lands. You mine the dark, bluish shimmering nodes with the highest-tier pickaxe you have. Smaller amounts also drop from Obsidian Rocknoses and Grey Ones, per the database.

How do you make Composite Obsidian?
At the Volcanic Forge in the Well of Skelos, from 10 pieces of the raw material and 1 Steel Bar. You need a matching knowledge first, such as "Obsidian Tools" (Survival, 1 point) or "Axe of the Grey Ones".

Can you get it without going to the volcano?
Yes. With the sorcery knowledge "Transmutation: Metal", you turn 100 Ironstone and 1 Pure Sorcerous Lifeblood into the raw material at the Firebowl Cauldron, right at your base. Processing still needs the Volcanic Forge.

What should you bring on the expedition?
Heat-resistant armor, plenty of food and water, a high-tier pickaxe and enough Steel Bars for processing.

🔗 Further reading

• Star Metal guide: the step before this one in the material chain.
• Steel and Hardened Steel guide: Steel Bars are a must for the composite bars.
• Sorcery guide: the basis for the transmutation shortcut.
• Attributes guide: perks and builds for your character.
• All Conan Exiles guides in one place.

Checked against the Enhanced database conanexiles.gaming.tools (game version 3.0.0) as of October 2026, Conan Exiles Enhanced with Hotfix 3.0.1. The database confirms the Volcanic Forge recipe (10 pieces plus a Steel Bar, 10 seconds), the transmutation from 100 Ironstone and 1 Pure Sorcerous Lifeblood with "Transmutation: Metal" (3 points, requires Pure Transmutation), the yield of 50 per transmutation, the gem recipe and the knowledges that unlock the composite bars (checked October 15, 2026).

The database doesn't list the forge's location. That detail comes from the Conan Exiles wiki on Fandom, which calls itself the "Official Conan Exiles Wiki" but is written by players.