Mining Guide Updates Blog

Black Sunder

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I'm sure everyone saw this:
View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tyd3O7DEPOs


I came to the conclusion within about 5 seconds that it alone will require an entirely new Guide to explain it all. On the upside it may be that Mining itself has more or less been settled on how everything works. Who knows though right? I'm also going to have to include in the new Guide a good overview of cargo hauling which I had intended to make a guide for back in 3.9 but never got around to.
 
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Black Sunder

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Finally sat down and went over the refinery deck video to take notes:


Check to see if Ore can be 'stored' from a no refine output job(if possible) into a larger ship before using that larger ship to base a refine from.

Make list of Station Refinery Profiencies or Link to a place

Make note that jobs run even if the player is offline or a crash happens.

Steps

1st Screen:
1. Check Station Capacity - May want to go somewhere else or wait.
2. Select Ship from left side
3. Check Vehicle Manifest
4. Set Up Work Order

2nd Screen - Work Orders
5. Select minerals/ores to refine
6. Select refinement method - Check to see if different methods are better for different stuff
7. Confirm Job
8. Set up next job?

Screen for seeing current player jobs?
Jobs that finish while the player is out will get a notification that the job is finished.

The Job
9. Stop & Collect - Will stop the job and throw out any unrefind materials but keep the refined stuff.
10. If job is finished: Hit Collect & Confirm Delivery to the selected ship.
 
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Cugino83

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I wonder if there will be the ability to sell the un-refined material to the station: what if a player doesn't have a suitable cargo ship in his invetory oreven at that location?
Also to check out will be the efficiency oof the different refining metod, not only for the time/cost efficiency but olso on the quantity: if I refine, let's say, 10 SCU of un-refined Titanium, how many SCU of refined Titanium I'm going to have at the end?

Does the gems gehtered by ROC and FPS mining need/can be refine too?
 
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Black Sunder

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I wonder if there will be the ability to sell the un-refined material to the station: what if a player doesn't have a suitable cargo ship in his invetory oreven at that location?
Also to check out will be the efficiency oof the different refining metod, not only for the time/cost efficiency but olso on the quantity: if I refine, let's say, 10 SCU of un-refined Titanium, how many SCU of refined Titanium I'm going to have at the end?

Does the gems gehtered by ROC and FPS mining need/can be refine too?
I've added these to my notes.
 
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Black Sunder

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From Evo patch notes:
  • Rebalance pass on mineables, mining lasers, and mining consumables
  • Balance changes to aspects of mining that increase the potential for finding valuable materials as well as make mining more profitable at lower ends while providing more high end multiplayer opportunities.
This means an entire major section(1/3 of the Guide) must now be rewritten + more to account for other changes as they present themselves. This also means that all of the Supplement 'probably' needs to be rewritten. And that doesn't even touch the need for a Refinery Guide.

I'm gonna be busy. But nothing for it but to do it to it and charge forward once Wave 1 hits.

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pis3veqKl8k
 

Black Sunder

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Updated Component stat pictures are being made.

I'm deleted the prices off the upgrade listings. Erkul gives the price and location of them when you select it as you change stuff out.

The plan is to get the Supplement out by early next week + the Guide before starting on Refineries. I already have a good idea how I want to approach that.
 
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S7ewie

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Hey, I’m new to test but been a SC backer since shortly after Kickstarter. Thought I might stick my head in here to say I love the guide! Best guide I’ve seen on the net. You’ve clearly put a lot of effort into it. I’m a prospector owner and been playing around with the new build so I’m keen to see what your thoughts are.

I had a play with the Lancet yesterday, rocks are definitely a lot easier to mine but they take longer and they start to struggle once they get over 5000 in mass. The impact looks like it might be worth a try, alongside maybe some Brandt consumables to help control the instability? I’m finding the Helix pretty hard to control now, Brandt help with that too. I never use to bother with consumables before but I think they’re going to be key now if mining solo.

Yesterday I wanted to compare refining methods so i made this and came up with a few conclusions, not sure if it’s of any use to you?

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/12e1u5xBAtJPtHOWuHJA1Qgl4IfdiS-tNjWENE-AGAPQ/edit
  • The output of each method seems to be a flat percentage of the input based on the method used.
  • Station bonuses or penalties affect the output percentage.
  • The fee seems to be a flat percentage of value after refining.
  • The time cost ultimately relates to the profit.
  • Dinyx - Best profit / longest wait
  • Pyrometric - good profit / moderate wait
  • Electrostaralysis - Profit almost as good as Pyrometric / half the wait
  • Gaskin - Okay profit / short wait
  • Cormack - Worst profit / shortest wait (note im experiencing a bug where the time doesn’t show).
So if you want the most profit, go with the longest time regardless of fee cost. The limiting factor here might be how many work orders you can set up at once, I’m sure theres a limit but I don’t know what it is? And if you plan to mine continuously then you might have to settle with a faster method.
 
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Zman

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Finally sat down and went over the refinery deck video to take notes:


Check to see if Ore can be 'stored' from a no refine output job(if possible) into a larger ship before using that larger ship to base a refine from.

Make list of Station Refinery Profiencies or Link to a place

Make note that jobs run even if the player is offline or a crash happens.

Steps

1st Screen:
1. Check Station Capacity - May want to go somewhere else or wait.
2. Select Ship from left side
3. Check Vehicle Manifest
4. Set Up Work Order

2nd Screen - Work Orders
5. Select minerals/ores to refine
6. Select refinement method - Check to see if different methods are better for different stuff
7. Confirm Job
8. Set up next job?

Screen for seeing current player jobs?
Jobs that finish while the player is out will get a notification that the job is finished.

The Job
9. Stop & Collect - Will stop the job and throw out any unrefind materials but keep the refined stuff.
10. If job is finished: Hit Collect & Confirm Delivery to the selected ship.
Quick question. I have been unable to find anyone in game who can tell me where I can sell the refined material. My MSR is filling up. Can you tell me who buys the refined material please?
Thank You.
 

S7ewie

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Quick question. I have been unable to find anyone in game who can tell me where I can sell the refined material. My MSR is filling up. Can you tell me who buys the refined material please?
Thank You.
I must admit, I haven't actually sold any of mine yet either, just letting it pile up. But I presumed the usual places you'd sell when trading? Check this out:
https://sc-trade.tools/best-buyer

EDIT:
Seems like it’s a bug.
https://robertsspaceindustries.com/community/issue-council/star-citizen-alpha-3/STARC-137284-When_trying_to_sell_mined_then_refined_materials_you_are_presented_a_SCU_value_of_TF20_and_unable_to_proceed_with_the_sale/contribute
 
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Black Sunder

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I must admit, I haven't actually sold any of mine yet either, just letting it pile up. But I presumed the usual places you'd sell when trading? Check this out:
https://sc-trade.tools/best-buyer

EDIT:
Seems like it’s a bug.
https://robertsspaceindustries.com/community/issue-council/star-citizen-alpha-3/STARC-137284-When_trying_to_sell_mined_then_refined_materials_you_are_presented_a_SCU_value_of_TF20_and_unable_to_proceed_with_the_sale/contribute
Only the 3 major Trade Development Districts(TDDs) on Microtech, Huston, ArcCorp purchase refined stuff now.
 

Zman

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I must admit, I haven't actually sold any of mine yet either, just letting it pile up. But I presumed the usual places you'd sell when trading? Check this out:
https://sc-trade.tools/best-buyer

EDIT:
Seems like it’s a bug.
https://robertsspaceindustries.com/community/issue-council/star-citizen-alpha-3/STARC-137284-When_trying_to_sell_mined_then_refined_materials_you_are_presented_a_SCU_value_of_TF20_and_unable_to_proceed_with_the_sale/contribute
Yea that is what I was afraid of no wonder I could not get an answer in game because no one has been able to sell any refined materials yet. Thanks for the link. o7
 

Alia_and_Gotin

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Yea that is what I was afraid of no wonder I could not get an answer in game because no one has been able to sell any refined materials yet. Thanks for the link. o7
I sold all my refined materials in Area 18 TDD yesterday, a mix of taranite, bexalite, diamond, corundum and aluminum. I did have to switch terminals a couple of times as once I sold one type of resource, the terminal seemed to think I was done and log me out, then when I went back in it gave me that error, but I just moved down the line to the next terminal, rinse, repeat, until I got it all sold.
 
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Black Sunder

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Final section research gathered somewhat for the Supplement. I'll start on that tomorrow.

I have almost everything I need for the Refinery Guide. Just missing a screenshot I think thats only in the new patch coming that warns you if you don't select all the minerals to refine. and waiting on some excellent time/cost multiplier stats on different refinery methods by @Red_Boomstick.

Whats after the Refinery Guide? Don't know tbh. Probably get started on safe hauling practices.
 

Black Sunder

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Mining in Peace

An often overlooked peripheral part of Mining is ensuring the safe exploration of minerals/ore and the delivery thereof. This section will attempt to go through some ways this can be accomplished both passively and actively by the player or groups of players.

Player Avoidance

Avoiding other players is the number one priority when it comes to mining and delivering goods safely. Most players are not looking to disrupt the activities of others but there are those who actively seek out and destroy miners. Unfortunately, unless these enemies are already red on radar, there is no way to tell the difference. The first step in player avoidance is picking a good location.
  1. Misdirecting the jump - If a known enemy is at a station, do not go directly to the desired location. Instead pick a different destination and initiate the jump. After a short while, stop the quantum drive by turning it off or cutting power to engines. From here proceed to the actual target destination. This will put the miner a sufficient distance off from the direct start location to end location quantum dropout point. From here it’s just a matter of heading to the surface or into the belt/field.
  2. Randomized Location - A miner should pick a remote location to mine. Starting work around a Mining Outpost or Rest Stop is fine for beginners but they are also easy places to be caught out, even if the player is 100km from the structure. At a moon, go directly from orbit, or a pole, down to a random spot on the moon. Pick a place that looks interesting. This takes time as the player has to manually burn to the surface but is ultimately safer. A moon comprises millions of square kilometers afterall. For asteroid belts and fields, try to work in the most dense part of the field where the rocks are most numerous and vision into the area is obscured.
The next step is to be aware of a ship’s EM/IR emissions and how they can show up on different types of scanners/radars. This is most important when mining near a place that can see player traffic. A ship’s detection range is influenced by component selection, pilot actions/behavior, and ship activity. Putting aside the obvious size difference for a moment, a Prospector can take a full suite of Stealth Class components while a Mole can not and is thus easier to hide. This is not to say that only Stealth components should be used, because they shouldn’t. The best component for the job that fits the player’s preferences should always be used. At this time Size 0, 1 and 2 scanners/radars work to detect ships via a simple formula:
  • S0: Detection Range = Max ( IR , EM ) x 0.4 - General found on snub ships & vehicles
  • S1: Detection Range = Max ( IR , EM ) x 0.5 - Generally found on light fighters, medium fighters, and starter ships
  • S2: Detection Range = Max ( IR , EM ) x 0.75 - Generally found on heavy fighters and up
  • There do not seem to be any S3 scanners/radars at this time.
The formula takes the largest number, EM or IR and multiplies it by a modifier. For example, a Prospector may have an EM of 8415 and IR of 7968. If a ship with a S1 scanner is passively looking for the Prospector then the detection range will be MAX(7968,8415) x 0.5 = 4.207km. The MAX only uses the largest number whether it is the EM or IR. Making a ship less detectable requires both signatures to be lowered as much as possible.

Aside from component selection another way to further reduce EM/IR emissions the player has the option to turn off various components such as weapons, secondary shields, etc until only the bare minimum is still active. Finally, any ship has the ability to suppress its IR signature in the Heat MFD:



Pilot actions can raise or lower a ship’s EM/IR value as well. Sending a Ping out will significantly increase the ship’s signature for a short time. Using the afterburner or space brake will also increase the IR of a ship. Spooling the quantum drive will have an impact. Ship activity such as using the mining laser(s) will also have an effect. What it comes down to is every choice will impact the ship’s detection range.

The Visual Impact of a Ping

When a Prospector or Mole uses the scanner to ping for mineable rocks it creates an effect. This effect can be seen by not only the pilot but any player within a large range as long as they are not in 3rd person view. Thus far the ping has been tested to be seen at least as far out as 135 km. This is a massive distance and can most likely be seen from even further away. It is easiest to see a 1x ping which is the full sphere with subsequently sharper angles being harder and harder to see from far away. Pinging on the dark side of moons and planets should be avoided if possible as it will be easy to see from orbit. The same is true for the dark areas of gas clouds. Mine on the day side or the lighter areas of gas clouds to disguise the effect. This is why picking out of the way locations or moving deep into an asteroid field is important.
==========================================================================================

WIP for the final Supplement section atm. Hoping to have the Supplement out this weekend.
 
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