Mining Primer for Complete Beginners: Difference between revisions

This guide covers everything you need to do to set up an entry-level mining frigate and take it out to mine ore. There is much more to learn, but this is a start.

Mining in EVE is not complicated, and in [[high-sec|high security systems]] it is relatively safe. Some players mine while doing other things on their computers, though it is not clear that mining is ''that'' safe, even in 1.0 System Security. But more on that later.

If your long term goal is to efficiently mine ore for your own use and/or for profit, then you probably want to follow a career path that goes something like this:

# Acquire the skills you need to operate a [[Mining Barge]],

At that point, you will be able to mine the basic ores profitably with relative safety. Then it will be time to think about mining for ice, gas, and high value ores in more dangerous places, such as low security systems, null security systems, and [[wormholes]].

This guide assumes that you are starting at step 1. It will put you in a mining frigate fitted out for basic mining and show you the skills needed for refining the ore. It will also show you some of the paths you can follow as your mining skills develop.

The Venture is well suited for a beginning miner. Its abilities include a bonus to mining speed as well as an attribute that makes it harder for other players to attack you. On the other hand, it does not hold nearly as much ore as the larger [[Mining Barge#Mining Barge|Mining Barges]] do, and so you will find yourself making frequent trips back to a station to drop off your load.

Each mining ship needs skill training for its primary task, and also to improve its power grid and CPU abilities. In addition, a certain amount of defensive weaponry is needed to kill the NPC pirates ("rats") who guard the asteroid belts. Here are some necessary skills that you need to use a mining frigate.

'''Resource Processing''':

* {{sk|Drone Interfacing}} – drones do more damage

* {{sk|Light Drone Operation}} – damage bonus to light drones

'''Space Ship Command''':

* {{sk|Spaceship Command}} – quicker spaceship movement

'''Engineering''':

* {{sk|Capacitor Systems Operation}} – more ship capacitor

Now that you have a ship, you will need to equip it. Mining lasers are your first concern, of course, but you also need drones for defense, an afterburner, and other gear to improve your mining abilities. A "fit" is a set of lasers, drones and gear that fits your ship that is, a set that does not use more power or CPU than your ship can supply.

* Two of EP-S Gaussian Scoped Mining Laser - <small>mines an asteroid for ore</small>

* Salvager I - <small>salvages stuff from dead pirate ships</small>

* Medium Azeotropic Restrained Shield Extender - <small>increases shield strength</small>

* Mining Laser Upgrade I - <small>increases the mining laser's yield</small>

In addition you will need:

Exactly which drones you need depends on the type of rats in the region where you are mining. This will be covered in the "[[#Dangers|Dangers]]" section of this guide.

Here, for example are the fitting requirements for a particular mining laser. Each item that you want to fit will show this data in its Get Info window.

'''Important''': Some skills reduce the amount of powergrid and CPU needed for some of the equipment, and this lets you fit more powerful gear. (Look, for example, at {{sk|Power Grid Management}}, {{sk|CPU Management}} or {{sk|Mining Upgrades}}.) If you find that you cannot fit all suggested items into your ship, you may need to improve some of these skills before you can fly. (''While it's not something a skilled miner would do, you could also turn off some of your equipement. If you take the Afterburner offline, for example, you will gain cpu and power for use elsewhere ... but you will not have a burst of emergency speed anymore. Or you could turn the Salvager I off and just not salvage wrecks.'') Similarly, if you have CPU and powergrid to spare, you can look at better lasers that mine ore faster.

The process goes like this – each step will be covered in detail below:

# Fly to an Asteroid Belt

# Release your Drones (''safety first!'')

# Turn on the Tactical Display

# Select asteroids in the Overview and check them out in the Tactical Display

# Mine until your ship is full

# Collect your drones ... DO NOT FORGET ... they will not come automatically

Now you're all set up to locate asteroids, but first, a word about security.

=== Dangers ===

There are six ways to die in mining:

* Professional criminals

* Amateur criminals

* NPC pirates ("rats")

* Other NPC entities

==== War Targets and Criminals ====

War Targets ("WTs") are players who are at war with E-UNI and want to kill you. They will show up on your Overview Window in blinking red, but by that time they will probably be close enough to start shooting at you, so you want to see them sooner. The same goes for criminals, who will show up in blinking yellow, or sometimes just unblinking yellow (for amateurs, especially).

There are two ways to spot these dangers:

You are especially looking for "combat probes". Combat probes can locate your ship exactly, so if you see them, pull up stakes immediately and dock. Also, groups of light ships fitted out for combat--frigates and cruisers--may be a gang of people forming up to attack miners and haulers in the system. Or they may not; be vigilant and use your judgment.

==== NPC Pirates and Others ====

You could equip a turret or launcher to kill rats, but mining ships typically do not have launcher hardpoints, and you want to fill your turret slots with mining lasers. Thus, drones are the preferred defense. You might also consider using two mining drones and equipping one of your turrets with a gun, but mining drones, especially if you have low level skills, cannot mine enough ore to make up for the loss of a turret.

Other dangerous NPCs may appear while you are mining. Circadian Seekers, are one type; Sleeper Miners are another. While they appear in red on your overview, they are not aggressive. If you do not attack them, you should be safe.

[[File:QSG_gislers_asteroids.png|thumb|upright=1.4|<small>Gisleres – Click to Enlarge</small>|alt=gislers star system shown in get info]]

You will want to take your Venture to a Level 1.0 , 0.9 or 0.8 star system, preferably one that has a good number of asteroid belts (7 or more is nice). You can find these on the [[Star Map|Map]] by using the Get Info window.

Make sure your ship is fitted out, check that you have your drones, then undock, go to the system where you want to mine, and select any local asteroid belt in the Overview's mining Tab. Right-click and select "Warp to within 0 m".

When you get there:

# Release your drones - there might be rats about, and your drones might take care of them.

# Click on the upper left icon in the main ship power console.[[File:QSG_tactical_overlay.png|thumb|upright=0.8|<small>Click to Enlarge</small>|alt=tactical overlay button]]This will open your "Tactical Overlay". When this display is active, clicking on a target will cause a thin white line to connect your ship to the target. By clicking on each asteroid that you might want to mine, you can find the ones that lie together in a group. Go there.[[File:QSG_Tactical_Overlay_Asteroids.png|thumb|center|300px|Tactical Overlay Display|alt=tactical overlay showing asteroid targeted]]

# While your ship is flying there, lock each of the asteroids as a target. How many you can lock at once depends on your ship's capabilities, and your skills. You only ''need'' one at a time, but things go a little faster with two or three.[[File:QSG_overview_asteroids_2.png|center|400px|alt=target locking an asteroid]]

== Further Notes ==

Whether you sell the ores that you mine, or process them into minerals for sale and/or your own use, you will need to know about the various [[Reprocessing|categories of ores and what they contain]]. It shouldn't surprise you to learn that there are additional skills involved in ore processing.

Notice that unlike Veldspar and Scordite, most ores are not available in all systems.

|-  

|-  

|-  

|-  

|-  

|-  

|}

And so on. You need to find a 0.7 level system to mine Omber or Kernite, but they also give a higher percentage of more valuable minerals. Be aware, though, that criminals know this. You are much more likely to be attacked in a 0.7 Security system than in a 1.0 Security system.

=== Lost Drones ===

After a few sessions mining Veldspar in a high security system, you may feel like trying your hand at Jaspet.

! scope="col" width="290px" | WHERE

|-  

|}

Jaspet contains good quantities of rare minerals. However, it is only available in 0.4 Security or lower systems (low-security space) in Amarr and Gallente regions. Consequently, it attracts PVP Criminals. This is not to say that you shouldn't try to mine it. But you will need to maintain good situational awareness, and factor in the cost of time spend running and hiding in your calculations.

# the ore is either one large or about ten small asteroids,

# when the asteroids are depleted, you bring the ore back to the same agent.

If you plan to make a career out of mining, then you need to look into mining fleets. These may:

* Give the protection of mining in a group,

[[Mining#Cooperative mining|Mining fleets]] form for various purposes and different fleet leaders will organize differently and have different rules. If you are located at our headquarters or [[Communities]], you should be able to find nearby fleets led by E-Uni members, sometimes set up specifically to help new miners learn the ropes. The best way to find these is to ask in E-Uni chat, HSC chat, or on Discord. If a fleet is up and accepting members, they will help you find and join it.

=== Moving the Overview and Locked Target Windows ===

If you ask about it in chat, you will find that nearly every player has a different opinion about where the Overview Window and Locked Targets should be placed on their screen. Where you put them is up to you, but they are easy to move.

[[File:QSG_overview_station_3.png|center|300px|alt=locked target showing "move me" icon]]

If you plan to make mining a career, your first goal should be to improve your mining and processing skills, and to move up to Mining Barges and then Exhumers. You can also greatly increase your yield by joining a mining fleet.

* [[Reprocessing|Processing Ore]] – Includes details about advanced processing

* [[HSC|HiSec Campus]] – specifically set up for beginners, HSC offers free gear for and opportunities to learn the mining profession

* [[Mining Missions at HSC]]

* [[Averon Mining Campus]] – an advanced mining operation; read about them and apply when you feel ready

'''Asteroids, Gases and Ice'''

* [[Asteroids and ore]]

* [[Gas cloud harvesting]]

'''Ships, Fitting and Fleets'''

{{GettingStartedNav}}

[[Category:Getting Started]]

[[Category:Guides]]

[[Category:Mining]]