Acquiring certain crafting materials in NieR: Automata proves significantly more challenging than others. While not visually indicated, some resources, like the Pristine Screw, are exceptionally rare.
Although purchasable from Emil, his stock fluctuates, making direct acquisition from machines a potentially faster and cheaper alternative. Here are two farming strategies:
Goliath-Bipeds, the largest non-boss machines, drop screws, with Pristine Screws being the rarest variety. Higher-level Goliath-Bipeds yield a higher drop rate; early-game acquisition is practically impossible.
Several locations reliably spawn Goliath-Bipeds. The pit where Adam is first encountered is one such spot, also ideal for farming Machine Arms. However, the Goliath-Bipeds here are around level 30, resulting in a low Pristine Screw drop rate. The advantage is their constant respawn, ensuring consistent farming, albeit slow.
Alternatively, during the third playthrough, fast travel to the Forest Castle: Front access point. Two level 49 Goliath-Bipeds guard the entrance, offering a better drop rate. However, they don't respawn; you must fast travel to a distant location and return to repeat the process.
Both methods benefit from using a drop-rate boosting plug-in chip.
The optimal method depends on two key factors:
Farming Pristine Screws is inherently time-consuming. The Forest method, while offering a higher drop rate, involves frequent loading screens, minimizing actual gameplay. Choose this if load times are negligible. The pit method provides continuous gameplay, additional materials, and XP, making it preferable if you value consistent in-game activity.