An android's life is a tough one in Nier: Automata: Their human masters may or may not exist anymore, they're mostly just crash-test dummies during the game's timeline, and there's nothing left on Earth but the melancholic ruins of humanity's past grandeur. Somehow, 2B and friends still have to fulfill their jobs amidst all that hopelessness but at least they can ease their existence with robot currency. It's merely called "G" in the game.
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Now, where do 2B and 9S get their much-needed Gs for upgrades and a transient sense of reward? Well, one of the best sources of Gs is selling Machine Cores. These machine innards have no other inherent purpose other than being expensive scrap. You'll want to hold on to them until Route C (third playthrough) before selling them all for maximum profit. But first, you'll have to hoard them, and below are places and missions that are reliable sources of Machine Cores.
Just About Any Machine
The thing about Machine Cores is that they actually drop from any machine enemy. You can simply walk up to machine packs, kill them, and hope for some Machine Core drops. This method of farming them can be rather tedious, however. The drop chance is random and the actual percentage numbers are a bit murky.
Still, you can resort to this method of farming Machine Cores once you've exhausted all the available options. Some missions that reward them can only be done once while other areas with increased drop rates have enemy respawn timers. In any case, this is the most available method/location.
The City Ruins
The City Ruins is one of the first areas you'll get to visit in Nier: Automata and you'll be pleased to know that it's also a viable location to farm some machine cores. Not just any machine will do if you want some sure rates that won't make you pull your hair out. If you want to save time, simply look for the Gold Tanks. These enemies seem to drop them the most.
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Kill Enemies Near Emil's House
Alternatively, while in the City Ruins, you can look near Emil's House. There's a cave area near there that's filled with enemies, including Gold Tanks. These apparently drop Machine Cores at a more optimistic rate compared to other locations.
The Flooded City
Another area where you can look for Gold Tanks is the Flooded City. Most of the enemies there consist of those poor little robots anyway. The Flooded City is accessible through the Resistance Camp via a sewer to the North.
Note that the area becomes available only once some portions of the City Ruins terrain have changed.
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In any case, Gold Tanks in the Flooded City ought to be your primary target with other machines as secondary piñatas for you to crack. It's also worth noting that you'll be accessing the Flooded City a lot in the subsequent playthroughs, meaning you might want to reserve your Machine Core farming for such moments.
The Desert Zone
The Desert Zone is also another area that houses tons of Gold Tanks that you can slay for some Machine Cores. You'll eventually be introduced to this area regardless of your exploration paths. Just pick your enemies wisely if you're looking for Machine Cores in order to minimize time and effort wastage.
It's also an area where you'll likely keep coming back to after several playthroughs. You can rest easy that there's a somewhat infinite supply of Machine Cores here.
Housing Complex Area
While still trudging through the desert area, you can opt to focus on the Housing Complex area of the Desert Zone. This location holds one of the densest concentrations of Gold Tanks. Of course, other enemies are also present and they can contribute to your level of success in finding the Machine Cores.
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Additionally, you can change your gaze towards the large robots roaming around in the Housing Complex area. They drop Machine Cores at an increased rate as well. It's also easier to spot them once they've respawned so you can save time with checking.
The Amusement Park
The Amusement Park isn't just home to some thrilling rides and thematic fun but also a healthy supply of machine cores. They contain many enemies, some of which look similar to Gold Tanks and can thus drop some Machine Cores.
Running into this twisted version of Disneyland is also mandatory. As for other enemies that drop Machine Cores at an increased rate, here they are:
Amusement Park Rabbit
If you're after a guaranteed drop chance for a Machine Core, then look for the Amusement Park Rabbit. It's the weird-looking Gold Tank with a more bronze coat of paint and is adorned with a trumpet and a court jester outfit. You can kill them for a Machine Core along with several other rare parts and items.
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Goliath Tanks
Again in the Amusement Park, look for the Goliath Tanks. These are the troublesome tank-like machines that roam around the park like a buzzkill security unit. They're also adorned with many court jester hats for some reason.
A sound tactic for effectively killing these tanks is by taking care of the mounted shooters at the side before finishing it with a killing blow to the back or top.
Threat Disposal Quest
Another guaranteed drop chance for Machine Cores is by finishing the Main Story quest called Threat Disposal. Because at the start of that mission, you get to fight a multi-legged goliath machine. The machine is a bit tricky to fight but nothing you can't handle with the usual tactics that 2B and 9S employ. That is to slash enemies until they're scraps.
After killing the machine, you're ensured a Machine Core. This also occurs pretty early in the storyline so you might want to save that Machine Core reward for later unless you need the Gs right away.
Idiot Savant Quest
Idiot Savant, meanwhile, is a Side Quest that's obtainable through Pascal's village. That location is also unlocked pretty early in the game so be on the lookout for this one. You can trigger it by speaking and interacting with the machine children.
You'll have to hack one of them afterward and then speak with them. Once the quest is done, you can expect a Machine Core along with many other machine parts, some Gs, and several chips for your android character's operating system.