The Mining Guide(what we know so far)
(This Guide is simply a collection of knowledge and developer quotes and is a work in progress. As new information becomes available this post will also be updated. It is important to note the date the developer quotes. They can stretch back as far as 2013 and may or may not still reflect current ideas. I will try to not include outdated or conflicting information in light of more recent information.)
Other interesting Guides:The Exploration Guide The Salvage Guide
Dev Quote Search Engine: Dev Tracker Search
Mining in many games is a chore to be done or a grind to take up your time in order to achieve some goal which is usually the acquisition of wealth. Mining in the past has also been a dull solo activity that leaves you wanting to do other things in the meantime which leads to ‘afk mining’. Eve Online probably has the most in depth Mining mechanics at this time but at its core it is still point, click, and receive ore. I personally played that game for 3 years and in that time learned many things so the lens I view mining through for Star Citizen comes from those experiences in Eve. Mining will is a real profession in Star Citizen and by all indications will be a very fun and challenging one.
Star Citizen Careers: Mining
The majority of good information we have concerning Mining comes from a Design post about Mining that accompanied the RSI Orion Concept Sale in February 2015. Fast forward to April 2016 and the sale of the Prospector which is designed specifically for a single person mining operation and planetside mining. I will go over the Design article first and it can be found here. It provides several things that had not been mentioned before such as the Trade and Development Division, Freelance vs Agent mining, finding fields, Mining Roles, and finally selling the valuable cargo you have mined. It is a very good read for both new and old aspiring miners. I'll summarize the key points below:
For those just starting out a trip to the Trade and Development Division may be in order. It functions as the market and job center that you can readily see what is in demand the most. From here a Miner can go freelance or serve as an Agent. The difference here is that a freelancer can mine what they want but bear the brunt of all costs involved in the hope to find a good sell price. What was in high demand one day may be uncommonly common the next. The Agent on the other hand sacrifices choice in return for a fixed sale price. Further, if a contract can not be fulfilled the player risks a hit to their reputation which may result in fewer offers in the future.
Once a path is chosen the next step is to go to a field and start mining. But how do you find fields? There are several ways. The first is that each solar system keeps a variety of public information that is accessible by anyone. This would also include asteroid fields. These fields though have long since been mined of their most valuable resources but are a good place to start. The next way is to employ an information broker that can sell you the location of an unknown but smaller field. The best ones will not lie to you but some will which introduces a bit of risk to this. Finally the 3rd way is to find the fields yourself by being a Pioneer and exploring the galaxy. Orgs will be able to instantly share discoveries like this and keep them from the public if they choose to do so.
The Orion is above all the best Mining Ship and only one introduced so far. There will be many roles players can perform aboard these ships to ensure smooth operation. Roles such as: Pilot, Scan Operator, Beam Operator, Exothermic Reaction Detector, Laser Seismometer, Analytical Materials Processor, Cargo operator, and Refinery operator. All of which are detailed in the article.
So you have some ore in your ship and you need to squeeze some money out of it. If you are under a contract as an Agent this is easy because your contract guarantees a certain price. If you're freelance then it is a bit harder. Different Trade Development Divisions offer different prices which requires some moving around to get the best price. Finally you can sit on your find and wait for a price to come along you feel good selling at. This is the most risky idea though because it may never come.
“Ultimately, that’s what Star Citizen is all about – every player making their own unique decisions as to how they want to proceed at every step of the way.”
General Information(note the dates)
Multi Role Mining
Ships, Drones And Related Information
The Orion
Currently the best Mining ship at our disposal, it was unveiled in February 2015 as a Concept Sale.
The Prospector
Currently the only ship capable of planetside mining, it was put up as a Concept Sale in April 2016.
Prospector Q&A Part 1
Prospector Q&A Part 2
2014-12-11
Aegis Terrapin: A literal tough nut to crack, the Terrapin is the most heavily armored of the base-priced spacecraft on the market. Originally designed for long-range survey missions in dangerous star systems, the Terrapin’s design philosophy involves wrapping the ship in additional layers of armor and reserving a significant amount of engine power to host the largest shield generator in its class. Terrapins are popular among private miners, with an equipment mount and a small storage hold that can be converted for valuable minerals.
2014-19-02
Mining Drone Harvester
Other
Mining Rocks November 2945 - A continuation of the piece above
(This Guide is simply a collection of knowledge and developer quotes and is a work in progress. As new information becomes available this post will also be updated. It is important to note the date the developer quotes. They can stretch back as far as 2013 and may or may not still reflect current ideas. I will try to not include outdated or conflicting information in light of more recent information.)
Other interesting Guides:The Exploration Guide The Salvage Guide
Dev Quote Search Engine: Dev Tracker Search
Mining in many games is a chore to be done or a grind to take up your time in order to achieve some goal which is usually the acquisition of wealth. Mining in the past has also been a dull solo activity that leaves you wanting to do other things in the meantime which leads to ‘afk mining’. Eve Online probably has the most in depth Mining mechanics at this time but at its core it is still point, click, and receive ore. I personally played that game for 3 years and in that time learned many things so the lens I view mining through for Star Citizen comes from those experiences in Eve. Mining will is a real profession in Star Citizen and by all indications will be a very fun and challenging one.
Star Citizen Careers: Mining
The majority of good information we have concerning Mining comes from a Design post about Mining that accompanied the RSI Orion Concept Sale in February 2015. Fast forward to April 2016 and the sale of the Prospector which is designed specifically for a single person mining operation and planetside mining. I will go over the Design article first and it can be found here. It provides several things that had not been mentioned before such as the Trade and Development Division, Freelance vs Agent mining, finding fields, Mining Roles, and finally selling the valuable cargo you have mined. It is a very good read for both new and old aspiring miners. I'll summarize the key points below:
For those just starting out a trip to the Trade and Development Division may be in order. It functions as the market and job center that you can readily see what is in demand the most. From here a Miner can go freelance or serve as an Agent. The difference here is that a freelancer can mine what they want but bear the brunt of all costs involved in the hope to find a good sell price. What was in high demand one day may be uncommonly common the next. The Agent on the other hand sacrifices choice in return for a fixed sale price. Further, if a contract can not be fulfilled the player risks a hit to their reputation which may result in fewer offers in the future.
Once a path is chosen the next step is to go to a field and start mining. But how do you find fields? There are several ways. The first is that each solar system keeps a variety of public information that is accessible by anyone. This would also include asteroid fields. These fields though have long since been mined of their most valuable resources but are a good place to start. The next way is to employ an information broker that can sell you the location of an unknown but smaller field. The best ones will not lie to you but some will which introduces a bit of risk to this. Finally the 3rd way is to find the fields yourself by being a Pioneer and exploring the galaxy. Orgs will be able to instantly share discoveries like this and keep them from the public if they choose to do so.
The Orion is above all the best Mining Ship and only one introduced so far. There will be many roles players can perform aboard these ships to ensure smooth operation. Roles such as: Pilot, Scan Operator, Beam Operator, Exothermic Reaction Detector, Laser Seismometer, Analytical Materials Processor, Cargo operator, and Refinery operator. All of which are detailed in the article.
So you have some ore in your ship and you need to squeeze some money out of it. If you are under a contract as an Agent this is easy because your contract guarantees a certain price. If you're freelance then it is a bit harder. Different Trade Development Divisions offer different prices which requires some moving around to get the best price. Finally you can sit on your find and wait for a price to come along you feel good selling at. This is the most risky idea though because it may never come.
“Ultimately, that’s what Star Citizen is all about – every player making their own unique decisions as to how they want to proceed at every step of the way.”
General Information(note the dates)
Multi Role Mining
Location Information
Ships, Drones And Related Information
The Orion
Currently the best Mining ship at our disposal, it was unveiled in February 2015 as a Concept Sale.
The Prospector
Currently the only ship capable of planetside mining, it was put up as a Concept Sale in April 2016.
Prospector Q&A Part 1
Prospector Q&A Part 2
2014-12-11
Aegis Terrapin: A literal tough nut to crack, the Terrapin is the most heavily armored of the base-priced spacecraft on the market. Originally designed for long-range survey missions in dangerous star systems, the Terrapin’s design philosophy involves wrapping the ship in additional layers of armor and reserving a significant amount of engine power to host the largest shield generator in its class. Terrapins are popular among private miners, with an equipment mount and a small storage hold that can be converted for valuable minerals.
2014-19-02
Mining Drone Harvester
Other
Mining Rocks: August 2945 - A lore piece set on a Shubin Mining Station
Mining Rocks November 2945 - A continuation of the piece above
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