Resources are generally "Nodes" found across the lands of Middle-earth, which provide crafting materials in Crafting Recipes.
Ore Deposits can only be harvested by characters with the Prospector profession. The character should have achieved proficiency for the previous tier of the ore, for example in order to harvest Barrow-iron Deposit (which is journeyman tier) the character should have obtained the title Apprentice Prospector. Prospectors are granted the ability to Track Mines, harvest the ore deposit using Crafting Tools, and process the ore into ingots at a Forge.
Ore deposit node
Normal yields 1 to 3 ore and a small chance of other crafting materials such as dye materials, Gems, rare components and mastery components.
These ore nodes also have a chance to spawn a Rich / Bountiful deposit which can yield 4 to 6 ore and have a higher chance to yield these crafting materials.
The following Professions can use the ingots for materials in their own crafting recipes:
In some locations around Middle-earth there's a different type of Ore node altogether. These nodes cannot normally be prospected as the others nor do they produce the same results when the opportunity presents itself.
Note: These quest nodes can be prospected by anyone who has the quest in their log. The quest-giver will typically provide you with a special pick that allows the character to prospect the ore they are looking for.
Ore deposit nodes spawn in fixed locations. These nodes once prospected will repopulate every so often by the landscape generator (making it random). If a player visits a location to find no ores in the general area, wait for a bit and they should start popping up.
In earlier areas, these nodes have a chance to spawn 2 types of ore deposit - (1): a metal used by professions such as Metalsmiths and Weaponsmiths and (2): a precious metal used by Jewellers.
In more recent areas of the game nodes can typically have both types of metal deposits.
Since metals are in higher demand than their counterparts, most players with these professions will only harvest what they need. This leaves Precious metals left in their nodes and lessens the consistency of more deposits spawning at their normal rate. This is frustrating for everyone, so we ask that when harvesting ores that all ore nodes be taken to help increase the spawn rate chance that more metal will pop up in the next round. If your character doesn't need the ore trade with someone who does, sell it at the auction house, or keep it in your shared storage for other characters. Either way this benefits all.