Difference between revisions of "Mining"

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[[Image:Miningexample.jpg|thumb|500px|right|It ain't no trick to get rich quick<br />If you dig with a shovel or a pick<br />In a mine, where a million diamonds shine.]]
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{{Update|Major rewrite needed due to December 2021, Version 19.11 major changes to mining mechanics.<br>Need ore info about the border/A0 ores [[#Cosmic Anomalies]].}}
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{{Template:Industry_Links}}
 
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'''Mining''' is the profession of extracting ore from asteroids, ice from ice fields and gas from gas clouds. These materials can then be [[Refining|refined]] into minerals, ice products and boosters. These refined substances are used in the production and maintenance of all player-created items and structures in EVE, such as ships and modules. It is one of the few professions immediately available to beginning players and most EVE industrialists started their careers by mining. Mining is perhaps the second most economically safe profession in EVE, save [[Planetary Interaction|planetary interaction]], in [[High Security|high-sec]] systems. Losing mining ships and/or being podded is uncommon and minerals are always in demand. Mining is accomplished by finding an asteroid belt, ice belt or gas cloud, and mining its asteroids/ice asteroids/gas clouds with special ship modules (mining lasers, ice harvesters, and gas cloud harvesters, respectively).  
 
  
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EVE University has a [[campus]] dedicated to mining, the [[Amarr Mining Campus]] (AMC), where newer players are taught the basics of solo and fleet mining.  
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{{Industry Links}}
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{{hatnote|This page details the mechanics of mining ore. For a step-by-step beginner guide, see [[Mining Primer for Complete Beginners]]. For details about harvesting ice or gas, see [[Ice harvesting]] or [[Gas cloud harvesting]], respectively.}}
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'''Mining''' is the activity of extracting ore from [[asteroids]], though it is also used to describe [[ice harvesting]] and more rarely, [[gas cloud harvesting]]. Once extracted, ore can then be [[Refining|refined]] into minerals. These refined substances are used in the production and maintenance of all player-created items and structures in EVE, such as ships and modules. It is one of the few professions immediately available to beginning players and many industrialists started their careers by mining. Mining is considered a very economically safe profession, as minerals are always in demand. Mining requires specialized modules or drones, and [[ORE Basic Ship and Skill Overview|specialized mining ships]] also exist.
  
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===Advantages of mining over other professions===
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== As a profession ==
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[[Image:Miningexample.jpg|thumb|500px|It ain't no trick to get rich quick<br>
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If you dig with a shovel or a pick<br>
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In a mine, where a million diamonds shine.]]
  
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* '''Low entry cost''': The dedicated mining frigate [[Venture]] is provided free as a mission reward from [[Career_Agents#Industry_Agent|Career Agent - Industry mission 2]]. The dedicated skill ({{sk|Mining Frigate}}) for commanding the Venture requires only 15 minutes of training time.
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'''Advantages'''
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* '''Relatively low risk''': It is usually very safe to mine '''in high-sec''' (the principal dangers being suicide gankers or war targets).
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* '''Low entry cost''': The {{sh|Venture}} mining frigate is provided for free as a mission reward from the [[career agent]] missions [[Industrialist (Entrepreneur)#Balancing the Books (2 of 10)|Balancing the Books (2 of 10)]] and [[Industrialist (Producer)#Making Mountains of Molehills (2 of 10)|Making Mountains of Molehills (2 of 10)]].
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* '''Low level of involvement needed''': In most scenarios, miners only need to be active 5 seconds for every 3 minutes (to target new asteroids) and an extra 1 minute for every 30 minutes (to unload the full cargo of mined ore in station).  
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* '''Relatively low risk''': It is usually very safe to mine in high-sec (the principal dangers being suicide gankers or war targets).
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* '''Guaranteed income''': Mining products are always in high demand because ships and structures which were blown up have to be replaced, and replacing ships and structures need materials. If you mine in fleets with boosts then you can earn 15 or 20 million ISK an hour (or more for ice, gas, or mining in lower-security systems).
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* '''Low level of involvement needed''': In most scenarios, miners only need to be active 5 seconds for every 3 minutes (to target new asteroids) and an extra 1 minute for every 30 minutes (to unload the full cargo of mined ore in station).
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* '''Fun factor''': Mining in fleets is often a very social activity.  
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* '''Guaranteed income''': Mining products are always in high demand because ships and structures are constantly being destroyed and replaced, and replacing ships and structures requires materials. Mining in fleets with boosts can earn 15-20 million ISK per hour or more, depending on the resources being harvested.
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* '''Fun factor''': Mining in fleets is often a very social activity.
  
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===Disadvantages of mining over other professions===
 
  
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* '''Skill intensive''': Despite the low entry cost, it takes a lot of training time to become an efficient miner.  
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'''Disadvantages'''
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* '''Nontransferable skills''': Mining skills are useful only for mining.  
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* '''Skill intensive''': Despite the low entry cost, it takes a lot of training time to become an efficient miner.
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* '''Fun factor''': Solo mining, in particular, can be less than exciting. Many people would rather be blowing up other ships (or being blown up), but, to each their own.
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* '''Non-transferable skills''': Mining skills are useful only for mining.
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* '''Income ceiling''': It is highly improbable to earn much more than 10 million ISK per hour as a high sec miner. While it's possible to earn more money mining in lower-security systems (at higher risk), other professions in EVE can be much more lucrative.
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* '''Fun factor''': Solo mining, in particular, can be less than exciting. Mining fleets can provide conversation with other players in comms, but there usually isn't much going on otherwise.
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* '''Income ceiling''': It is difficult to earn much more than 10 million ISK per hour mining solo in highsec. While it's possible to earn more money mining in lower-security systems (at higher risk), other professions can be much more lucrative.
  
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== Prospecting  ==
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== Ore locations ==
  
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=== Asteroids ===
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=== Asteroids and belts ===
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{{main|Asteroids and Ore}}
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{{main|Asteroids and ore}}
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The easiest way to find asteroids is to fly to an asteroid belt; nearly every system in Eve has at least one. Asteroid belts show up on the [[overview]], or right-click in space and look through the "Asteroid belt" section. Each asteroid belt is composed of a variety of asteroids, each containing a particular kind of ore. The kinds and quantities of ore are determined by the [[Security Rating|security rating]] of the system and what faction controls it (rarer and more valuable ores are found only in lower-security systems, and the ore deposits tend to be larger there as well). Keep in mind that asteroids only spawn after downtime, so there will be belts that are devoid of a certain asteroid (or any asteroids in some cases) because other miners have already mined it out.
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As their name suggests, asteroids are primarily found in asteroid belts, and most systems in [[New Eden]] have at least one. Asteroid belts can be viewed in the [[overview]] when enabled, and can also be viewed via the contextual menu by right-clicking in space. Each asteroid belt is composed of a variety of asteroids, each containing a particular type of ore noted in asteroid's name. The types and quantities of ore are determined by the [[system security]] rating of the system and which [[Topology|quadrant]] it is located in. Rarer and more valuable ores are found in lower-security systems, and ore deposits tend to be larger there as well. Once depleted, asteroid belts do not respawn until [[server downtime]], so belts may sometimes be found empty, or lacking a certain type of ore.
  
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Asteroids can also be found in the [[Mission Mining|deadspace pockets created for certain missions]], and in [[Cosmic Anomaly|cosmic anomalies]]. While these sites are a bit more difficult to find, they also tend to have much less competition and have richer pickings. Hint: Set your [[overview]] to "default mining" (click the triangle next to overview -&gt; load -&gt; mining) to see asteroids other than Veldspar. (Note that not all ores and other harvestable items will not be shown by using the default mining set.)
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* High-sec belts contain ''simple ores'' (Veldspar, Scordite, Pyroxeres and Plagioclase).
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* Low-sec belts contain ''coherent ores'' (Omber, Kernite, Jaspet, Hemorphite and Hedbergite) and additionaly Pyroxeres.
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* Null-sec belts contain ''complex ores'' (Bistot, Arkonor and Spodumain), special ore [[Mining#Mercoxit_mining|Mercoxit]] and additionally Kernite, Pyroxeres and Veldspar.
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* Triglavian space belts contain ''abyssal ores'' (Bezdnacine, Rakovene and Talassonite).
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* Wormhole belts contain Arkonor, Bistot, Gneiss, Kernite, Omber, and Pyroxeres.
  
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=== Mechanics ===
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=== Mission pockets ===
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Asteroids can also be found in the deadspace pockets created for [[Mission mining|certain missions]]. While these sites are a bit more difficult to find, they also tend to have no competition giving richer pickings and provide relative safety.
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=== Cosmic Anomalies ===
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Asteroids can also be found in certain [[Cosmic Anomaly|cosmic anomalies]]. Generally the type of ore matches the regular ore from the asteroid belts in this area of [[New Eden]] but there is an important exception referred to by players as border/A0 ores. These ores provide a high amount of a singular resource.
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Border/A0 ores are {{Co|wheat|Ducinium}}(Megacyte), {{Co|wheat|Eifyrium}}(Zydrine), {{Co|wheat|Mordunium}}(Pyerite) and {{Co|wheat|Ytirium}}(Isogen). They are found in special cosmic anomalies that infrequently spawn.
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==== Rare asteroid sites ====
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[[File:Opportunities - Empire Border Rare Asteroids.png|thumb|Opportunities tile]]
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All sites spawn a beacon upon the first ship initiating warp to it which anyone can warp to.
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* [[Empire Border Rare Asteroids]] Spawns in high-sec {{ColorSecurityRating|0.5}} <ref>Patch notes: [https://www.eveonline.com/news/view/patch-notes-version-20-11 Version 20-11] release 2022-12-13.1 > Features & Changes > Science & Industry.</ref> systems bordering a low-sec system. Contains asteroids with {{Co|wheat|Ducinium}}, {{Co|wheat|Eifyrium}}, Jet Ochre, Pellucid Crokite and {{Co|wheat|Ytirium}}.
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* [[Nullsec Border Rare Asteroids]] Spawns in null-sec systems bordering a low-sec system. Contains asteroids with {{Co|wheat|Imperial Ducinium}}, {{Co|wheat|Augmented Eifyrium}}, {{Co|wheat|Mordunium}}, Pellucid Crokite and {{Co|wheat|Moonshine Ytirium}}.
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* [[Nullsec Blue A0 Rare Asteroids]] Spawns in Blue A0 star systems in null-sec space {{Verify}}. Contains asteroids with {{Co|wheat|Imperial Ducinium}}, {{Co|wheat|Augmented Eifyrium}}, Jet Ochre, {{Co|wheat|Plunder Mordunium}} and {{Co|wheat|Moonshine Ytirium}}.
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* [[W-Space Blue A0 Rare Asteroids|Wormhole Rare Asteroids]] Spawns in (Blue A0 star systems) in wormhole space.
  
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The basic mechanics of mining are very simple: Fit your ship with a [[ORE_Basic_Ship_and_Skill_Guide#Fitting_strategies_and_mining_modules|mining module]], approach and [[targeting|target]] an asteroid, and activate your mining module. At the ''end'' of each cycle (usually between 1 and 3 minutes, depending on the module used), the ore mined is automatically deposited in your ship's cargo or ore bay. The mining module will then automatically continue mining until either your cargo/ore bay is full, or the asteroid has been "mined out" (all the available ore in that asteroid has been mined and it disappears). Make sure that you keep the asteroid within range of your mining module (usually by stopping your ship, or orbiting the asteroid) - if you are too far away, the mining module will finish its current cycle regardless, but you will receive no ore.  
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=== Moon mining ===
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{{Main|Moon mining}}
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Moon mining can take place only at [[Upwell structures#Refineries|refineries]] anchored within 250 km of a mining beacon in 0.5 space or below and fitted with a Standup Moon Drill I service module, which appears on the outside of the structure as a giant laser turret aimed at the moon.
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The Moon Drill is then used to extract a chunk of the moon for mining.
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The extraction process is beyond the scope of this article, but once the chunk has been extracted, it exists as an asteroid field that contains moon-specific ores which can be mined for moon materials.
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After extraction, the mining is performed using the same mining equipment and processes described in this article, with the exception of Tier 2 strip miners and modulated mining lasers requiring moon ore-specific crystals for good efficiency.
  
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If you're using [[Drones#Mining Drones|mining drones]], launch your drones once you are near the asteroid, and give them the command to "mine repeatedly". They will then fly to the asteroid you have targeted, mine for one cycle (60 seconds), fly back to your ship, deposit the ore they have mined in your cargo or ore bay, then automatically fly back to the asteroid and continue mining it (until, as above, either your cargo/ore bay is full, or the asteroid has disappeared because it no longer contains any ore). Since the drones have to fly back and forth repeatedly between your ship and the asteroid, it's worth flying as close as possible to the asteroid to keep their travel time down to a minimum.  
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=== Mining missions ===
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{{Main|Mining missions}}
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Mining missions are given by Mining agents and require you to mine an asteroid or set of asteroids in a mission pocket — usually until the asteroids are depleted — and bring the ore back to the agent. They use unique mission ores which are separate versions of normal ores.
  
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Once your cargo or ore bay is full, bring the ore you have mined to a station (either fly there yourself, or transfer the ore to another player's ship to fly back (see [[Mining#Solo mining|solo mining]] and [[Mining#Cooperative mining|cooperative mining]] for more details)), then return to the asteroids and continue mining!
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== Mining mechanics ==
  
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==== Mercoxit mining ====
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=== Mechanics ===
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The basic mechanics of mining are very simple: Fit your ship with a [[ORE Basic Ship and Skill Overview#Fitting strategies and mining modules|mining module]], approach and [[targeting|target]] an asteroid, and activate your mining module. At the ''end'' of each cycle (usually between 1 and 3 minutes, depending on the module used), the ore mined is automatically deposited in your ship's cargo or mining hold. The mining module will then automatically continue mining until either your cargo/mining hold is full, or the asteroid has been "mined out" (all the available ore in that asteroid has been mined and it disappears). Make sure that you keep the asteroid within range of your mining module (usually by stopping your ship, or orbiting the asteroid) - if you are too far away, the mining module will finish its current cycle regardless, but you will receive no ore.
  
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Any ore mining module can mine any type of ore, with one exception: Mercoxit, the [[Asteroids_and_Ore#Ore_variants|rarest ore type]] (and only source of Morphite minerals), which is found only in [[nullsec]] systems and can only be mined with Deep Core mining modules (any module with "deep core" in its name). In order to use these modules you need to train {{sk|Deep Core Mining|icon=yes}}, and whilst they can be used to mine other types of ore, they are less efficient at it than "normal" mining modules.  
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If you're using [[Drones#Mining Drones|mining drones]], launch your drones once you are near the asteroid, and give them the command to "mine repeatedly". They will then fly to the asteroid you have targeted, mine for one cycle (60 seconds), fly back to your ship, deposit the ore they have mined in your cargo or mining hold, then automatically fly back to the asteroid and continue mining it (until, as above, either your cargo/mining hold is full, or the asteroid has depleted because it no longer contains any ore). Since the drones have to fly back and forth repeatedly between your ship and the asteroid, it's worth flying as close as possible to the asteroid to keep their travel time down to a minimum.
  
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Mercoxit mining has one other notable feature: when you mine a Mercoxit asteroid, it will randomly release a cloud of toxic gas which will damage your ship if you're caught in it. Fortunately, the cloud only forms within 5&nbsp;km of the asteroid, so keep your ship further away to escape any damage (note that this precludes you from using the basic Deep Core Miner I module, as it has a maximum range of only 5&nbsp;km). Alternatively, you can train {{sk|Deep Core Mining|icon=yes}}, which reduces the chance of a cloud forming by 20% per skill level - in other words, at {{sk|Deep Core Mining|V}}, no clouds will form when you mine Mercoxit.
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Once your cargo or mining hold is full, bring the ore you have mined to a station (either fly there yourself or transfer the ore to another player's ship to fly back (see [[Mining#Solo mining|solo mining]] and [[Mining#Cooperative mining|cooperative mining]] for more details)), then return to the asteroids and continue mining!
  
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=== Efficiency ===
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=== Efficiency computations ===
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{{main|Mining Yield}}
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{{main|Mining yield}}
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All computations with income from mining are typically done in (ISK per m<sup>3</sup>). The reason for this is that all mining modules mine a certain volume of ore/ice/gas in a given time. For example, a beginner miner in a Venture with, say, 200m<sup>3</sup>/min yield would mine 2000 units of Veldspar per minute, as volume of 1 unit is 0.1m<sup>3</sup>, or, for example, 100 units of Jaspet per minute, as volume of 1 unit is 2m<sup>3</sup>. Therefore it makes sense to compare not prices per unit, but prices per m<sup>3</sup>.
  
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If you would like to dive more deeply into mining, it's worth determining the most profitable way to mine. This involves deciding:
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Since the market is player-driven, ore and mineral prices are ever-changing, hence miners should always check the market for the most efficient ore/mineral to mine for. Websites like [https://ore.cerlestes.de/index.html Cerlestes ore table] can look up the current market prices for ores and minerals, and give you a recommendation on which ores are the most profitable. Remember to double-check the prices that any automated tools give you - they will often use regional averages to determine mineral prices; if you plan to sell your goods at a specific station or hub then your priorities might come out differently. Lastly, most expensive types of ore are typically assotiated with most dangerous [[Asteroids and ore#Asteroid distribution|parts of New Eden]] so you might want to limit yourself to safer areas.
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* What asteroids to mine, and where to find these asteroids
 
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* Which ships (and skills) are best suited
 
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* How best to haul the ore to a [[Refining|refining]] station and then to the market
 
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All miners should attempt to maximize their efficiency (and therefore their profitability), which is typically measured by the amount of ISK earned per hour.  
 
  
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When deciding what ore to mine, the driving factor is income per volume of ore (ISK per m<sup>3</sup>). For example, Veldspar is the [[Asteroids and Ore#Asteroid distribution|most common and cheapest ore]] in EVE and has a volume of 0.1&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> per unit; Scordite is the next most common ore but has a volume of 0.15&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> per unit. Therefore (ignoring [[ORE_Basic_Ship_and_Skill_Guide#Mining_crystals|mining crystals]]), you will always mine 50% more Veldspar than Scordite in a given period of time (since mining lasers mine a fixed ''volume'' of ore per minute). Therefore, in order for Scordite mining to be more profitable than Veldspar mining, Scordite's market price must in turn be 50% greater than Veldspar's. Since the market is player-driven, ore and mineral prices are ever-changing, hence miners should always check the market for the most efficient ore/mineral to mine for.  
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Once you have chosen a type of ore, you will want to maximize the mining yield over time. This involves choosing what [[Mining Ships|ship]] to mine in, what [[ORE Basic Ship and Skill Overview#Fitting strategies and mining modules|modules]] to fit to it, and what [[Mining#Skills|skills]] to train; see those links for more details.  
  
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Websites like [http://eve.grismar.net/ore/ Grismar's Ore Chart] or [http://gunfleet.org/igb/mining.php .GUN.] can look up the current market prices for ores and minerals, and give you a recommendation which ores are the most profitable. Remember to double-check the prices that any automated tools give you - they will often use regional averages to determine mineral prices; if you plan to sell your goods at a specific station or hub then your priorities might come out differently. Lastly, don't forget that most ore types are only found in a [[Asteroids and Ore#Asteroid distribution|certain part of New Eden]], and most miners prefer to operate only in certain parts of space.
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Do not forget to include [[Hauling]] time into your profitability computations. There may be different strategies involving [[Compression]] or lack of such, [[Refining]] ore or selling it in raw form, selling locally or in [[Jita]], hauling yourself or paying someone to do it.
  
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Once you have chosen what kind of ore you would like to mine, you will want to maximise the quantity you mine over time. This involves choosing what [[Mining Ships|ship]] to mine in, what [[ORE_Basic_Ship_and_Skill_Guide#Fitting_strategies_and_mining_modules|modules]] to fit to it, and what [[Mining#Skills|skills]] to train; see those links for more details.
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=== Compression ===
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[[File:Rorqual.jpg|thumb|The Rorqual, backbone of null-sec mining operation, released with a signature ability known as the ore compression, which is now available to Orca and Porpoise too.]]
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{{main|Compression}}
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Raw ores are very large items and they take a lot of cargo space to haul. The compression offers to convert raw ore into compressed ore which allows to save valuable cargo-space, extended operation time for mining fleets, and more hauling capabilities for haulers. There are two ways of compression: visiting an Upwell Structure with Reprocessing Service online which is available to you, or using a nearby Industry Command Ship with a compressor activated.
  
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=== Ice, Gas, and Moon mining ===
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=== Mercoxit mining ===
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So far this article has only talked about mining asteroids containing ore, but there are in fact two more things in Eve that can be mined: ice and gas. While they share some similarities with asteroid mining, their mechanics are in many ways quite different, and are therefore covered in separate articles: [[Ice Mining]] and [[Gas Cloud Mining]].
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Any ore mining module can mine any type of ore, with one exception: Mercoxit, the [[Asteroids and ore#Ore variants|rarest ore type]] (and only source of Morphite minerals), which is found only in [[System security#Null security|nullsec]] systems and can only be mined with Deep Core mining modules (any module with "deep core" in its name). In order to use these modules you need to train {{sk|Deep Core Mining|icon=yes}}, and whilst they can be used to mine other types of ore, they are less efficient at it than "normal" mining modules.
  
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Mining moons requires a POS (player-owned starbase) and is [[POS and YOU#Moon_Mining|completely different topic]].
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Mercoxit mining has one other notable feature: when you mine a Mercoxit asteroid, it will randomly release a cloud of toxic gas which will damage your ship if you're caught in it. Fortunately, the cloud only forms within 5&nbsp;km of the asteroid, so keep your ship further away to escape any damage (note that this precludes you from using the basic Deep Core Mining Laser I module, as it has a maximum range of only 5&nbsp;km). Additionally, you can train {{sk|Deep Core Mining|icon=yes}}, which reduces the chance of a cloud forming by 10% per skill level - in other words, at {{sk|Deep Core Mining|V}}, only half the amount of clouds will spawn when you mine Mercoxit.
  
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== Ships ==
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=== Ice and gas harvesting ===
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{{main|Mining Ships}}
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In addition to ore, ice and gas can also be harvested. While the actual harvesting mechanics are fairly similar, the ships, equipment, and locations differ significantly from mining ore. ''(Further details can be found in [[ice harvesting]] and [[gas cloud harvesting]].)''
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There are three types of ships used in mining: a mining ship, a hauler and a mining support ship.  
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== Ships ==
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{{main|ORE Basic Ship and Skill Overview}}
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There are three types of ships used in mining: a mining ship, a hauler and a mining support ship.
  
 
=== Mining ships ===
 
=== Mining ships ===
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[[Image:Venture.jpg|thumb|The [[Venture]], an entry-level dedicated mining frigate.]]
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[[File:Venture.jpg|thumb|The [[Venture]], an entry-level dedicated mining frigate.]]
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The best option for a new miner is to train into the [[Venture]], a dedicated [[ORE]] mining frigate (before the [[Eve_Online_Expansions#Retribution|Retribution expansion]], each race had its own mining frigate, but this is no longer the case). The Venture and the necessary skillbook ({{sk|Mining Frigate}}) are given out for free by the Industrial Career agents, and training the necessary skills takes only a few minutes. The Venture is a mini mining barge with a substantial ore hold (which minimises travel to stations to unload ore), very good [[Mining Yield|mining yield]] and built-in warp core stabilisation (which makes it easier to escape from hostile ships).
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The best option for a new miner is to train into the [[Venture]], a dedicated [[Outer Ring Excavations|ORE]] mining frigate (before the [[Expansions#Retribution|Retribution expansion]], each race had its own mining frigate, but this is no longer the case). The Venture is given out for free by the industrialist career agents. The Venture is a mini mining barge with a substantial mining hold (which minimizes travel to stations to unload ore), very good [[mining yield]] and built-in warp core stabilization (which makes it easier to escape from hostile ships).
  
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After a week's training, a budding miner should have the necessary skills to fly a mining barge, which have more than double the mining yield of a Venture, as well as even larger ore holds and/or a stronger tank. These ships are also more expensive (15-40M ISK, plus modules), but given that a Venture can mine about 500-700k ISK worth of ore per full cargohold, this money is soon earned. There are three different mining barges, each with a different focus (see table below).  
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After a week's training, a budding miner should have the necessary skills to fly a mining barge, which have more than double the mining yield of a Venture, as well as even larger mining holds and/or a stronger tank. These ships are also more expensive (15-40M ISK, plus modules), but given that a Venture can mine about 500-700k ISK worth of ore per full mining hold, this money is soon earned. There are three different mining barges, each with a different focus (see table below).
  
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The last word in mining ships are the exhumers (Tech II variants of the mining barges). These ships require many more skills to fly, and are even more expensive, but have even greater mining yield, cargohold space and/or [[tank]] than the mining barges. Additionally, miners can train into the [[Prospect]] and the [[Endurance]], improved and  variants of the Venture which are designed for covert mining in dangerous areas of space and ice mining, respectively.  
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The last word in mining ships are the [[exhumer]]s (Tech II variants of the mining barges). These ships require many more skills to fly, and are even more expensive, but have even greater mining yield, mining hold space and/or [[tank]] than the mining barges. Additionally, miners can train into the [[Prospect]] and the [[Endurance]], improved variants of the Venture which are designed for covert mining in dangerous areas of space and ice mining, respectively.
  
 
Before the Retribution expansions, players often used cruisers or battleships as mining ships, but these ships are no longer competitive with mining barges and exhumers.
 
Before the Retribution expansions, players often used cruisers or battleships as mining ships, but these ships are no longer competitive with mining barges and exhumers.
  
 
=== Haulers and support ships ===
 
=== Haulers and support ships ===
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A hauler's purpose is to take the ore that has been mined from a mining ship and transport it back to a refining station or to the market. [[Hauling]] is normally done in an industrial or a freighter.  
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A hauler's purpose is to take the ore that has been mined from a mining ship and transport it back to a refining station or to the market. [[Hauling]] is normally done in an [[hauler]] or a [[freighter]].
  
 
Finally, a mining support ship can either come in the form of a security detail against rats and players looking to steal ore, or as a ship designed to provide mining efficiency bonuses. The ultimate mining support ships are the [[Orca]] and [[Rorqual]], of which only the [[Orca]] can enter high-security space and fit through normal stargates.
 
Finally, a mining support ship can either come in the form of a security detail against rats and players looking to steal ore, or as a ship designed to provide mining efficiency bonuses. The ultimate mining support ships are the [[Orca]] and [[Rorqual]], of which only the [[Orca]] can enter high-security space and fit through normal stargates.
  
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{| class=wikitable style="width:80%"
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{| class=wikitable style="width:85%"
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|-
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|- style="background:#222222"
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! style="background:#222222" | Ship Type  
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! Ship Type  
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! style="background:#222222" | Ship  
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! Ship  
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! style="background:#222222" | Use
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! Use
 
|-
 
|-
 
| '''Frigate'''
 
| '''Frigate'''
 
| [[Venture]]
 
| [[Venture]]
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| Low yield, tank and ore hold compared to specialized ship. Greater agility and speed. Is cheap and takes minimal training.
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| Low yield, tank and mining hold compared to specialized ships. Greater agility and speed. Is cheap and takes minimal training.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| rowspan=2 | '''Expedition Frigate'''
 
| rowspan=2 | '''Expedition Frigate'''
 
| [[Prospect]]
 
| [[Prospect]]
−
| Improved (but much more expensive) variant of the Venture. Can fit a Covert Ops cloaking device.  
+
| Improved (but much more expensive) variant of the Venture. Can fit a Covert Ops cloaking device and Ice Miners.  
 
|-
 
|-
 
| [[Endurance]]
 
| [[Endurance]]
−
| Specialized version of the Venture, designed for mining ice.   
+
| Specialized version of the Venture, bonuses towards ice mining.   
 
|-
 
|-
 
| rowspan="3" | '''Mining Barge'''  
 
| rowspan="3" | '''Mining Barge'''  
 
| [[Procurer]]  
 
| [[Procurer]]  
−
| Specializes in defense ([[shield tanking|shield tank]]).
+
| Specializes in defense ([[shield tanking|shield tank]] and drone damage).
 
|-
 
|-
 
| [[Retriever]]  
 
| [[Retriever]]  
−
| Specializes in ore hold capacity.
+
| Specializes in mining hold capacity.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| [[Covetor]]  
 
| [[Covetor]]  
Line 110: Line 147:
 
| rowspan="3" | '''Exhumer'''  
 
| rowspan="3" | '''Exhumer'''  
 
| [[Skiff]]  
 
| [[Skiff]]  
−
| Specializes in defence (shield tank).
+
| Specializes in defense (shield tank and drone damage).
 
|-
 
|-
 
| [[Mackinaw]]  
 
| [[Mackinaw]]  
−
| Specializes in ore hold capacity.
+
| Specializes in mining hold capacity.
 
|-
 
|-
 
| [[Hulk]]  
 
| [[Hulk]]  
Line 120: Line 157:
 
| '''Support'''  
 
| '''Support'''  
 
| [[Command Ships]]  
 
| [[Command Ships]]  
−
| Can fit gang assist modules and provide security.
+
| Can fit [[Command Bursts]] modules and provide security.
 +
|-
 +
| rowspan=2 | '''Industrial Command Ship'''
 +
| [[Porpoise]]
 +
| Cruiser sized ship, bonuses towards [[Command Bursts]], has considerable cargo room, can compress asteroid ore and gas for self and fleet member.
 
|-
 
|-
−
| '''Industrial Command'''
 
 
| [[Orca]]  
 
| [[Orca]]  
−
| Bonuses towards [[warfare links|gang link modules]], has considerable cargo room, can fly in high-sec.
+
| Battleship sized ship, bonuses towards [[Command Bursts]], has considerable cargo room, can compress all types of ore for self and fleet member.
 
|-
 
|-
−
| '''Capital Industrial'''  
+
| '''Capital Industrial Ship'''  
 
| [[Rorqual]]
 
| [[Rorqual]]
−
| Capital ship, bonuses towards gang link modules, can compress ore in cargohold (vastly increasing capacity).
+
| Capital ship, cannot enter in high-sec, bonuses towards [[Command Bursts]], can compress all types of ore for self and fleet member.
 
|}
 
|}
  
−
== Skills ==
+
== Skills ==
 +
 
 +
'''Basic skills '''
 +
* {{sk|Mining|mult=yes}}: +5% ore mining yield per level.
 +
* {{sk|Astrogeology|mult=yes}}: +5% ore mining yield per level; requires {{sk|Mining|IV}}.
 +
 
 +
These skills are the bread and butter of any miner and should be trained up to level IV reasonably quickly (primarily for the increased mining yield, but {{sk|Mining|IV}} in particular is a prerequisite to many other mining-related skills). However, note that these skills only increase the yield for ore mining!
  
−
=== Basic skills ===
 
  
−
*{{sk|Mining|mult=yes}}: +5% ore mining yield per level.  
+
'''Specialty mining skills '''
−
*{{sk|Astrogeology|mult=yes}}: +5% ore mining yield per level; requires {{sk|Mining|IV}}.  
+
* {{sk|Ice Harvesting|mult=yes}}: Required for [[Ice Mining]]. 5% reduction in cycle time per level.
 +
* {{sk|Gas Cloud Harvesting|mult=yes}}: Required for [[Gas cloud harvesting]]. Allows use of one gas cloud harvester per level. Note that the skillbook is very expensive (about 30M ISK)!
 +
* {{sk|Deep Core Mining|mult=yes}}: Required for mining Mercoxit (a rare type of ore, only found in [[nullsec]] or [[wormhole]]s).
  
−
These skills are the bread and butter of any miner and should be trained up to level IV reasonably quickly (primarily for the increased mining yield, but {{sk|Mining|IV}} in particular is a prerequisite to many other mining-related skills). However, note that these skills only increase the yield for ore mining!
+
These skills are only relevant if you want to expand from basic ore mining to Mercoxit, ice, or gas cloud harvesting.
  
−
=== Specialty mining skills ===
+
'''Asteroid Ore reprocessing skills'''
 +
* {{sk|Simple Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to veldspar, scordite, pyroxeres, plagioclase and mordunium reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Coherent Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to omber, kernite, jaspet, hemorphite, hedbergite and ytirium reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Variegated Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to gneiss, dark ochre and crokite reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Complex Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to bistot, arkonor, spodumain, eifyrium and ducinium reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Mercoxit Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to mercoxit reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Abyssal Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to bezdnacine, rakovene and talassonite reprocessing yield.
  
−
*{{sk|Ice Harvesting|mult=yes}}: Required for [[Ice Mining]]. 5% reduction in cycle time per level.
+
'''Moon ore reprocessing skills'''
−
*{{sk|Gas Cloud Harvesting|mult=yes}}: Required for [[Gas Cloud Mining]].  Allows use of one gas cloud harvester per level. Note that the skillbook is very expensive (about 20-30M ISK)!
 
−
*{{sk|Deep Core Mining|mult=yes}}: Required for mining Mercoxit (a very rare type of ore, only found in [[nullsec]]).
 
  
−
These skills are only relevant if you want to expand from basic ore mining to Mercoxit, ice, or gas cloud mining.
+
* {{sk|Ubiquitous Moon Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to all ubiquitous moon ore reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Common Moon Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to all common moon ore reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Uncommon Moon Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to all uncommon moon ore reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Rare Moon Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to all rare moon ore reprocessing yield.
 +
* {{sk|Exceptional Moon Ore Processing|mult=yes}}: +2% per skill level to all exceptional moon ore reprocessing yield.
  
−
=== Spaceship command skills ===
+
These skills are important if you wish to reprocess your own ores, and they unlock access to [[mining crystals]] which massively boost mining yield when fitted to appropriate mining harvester modules.
  
−
*{{sk|Mining Frigate|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Venture]]
+
'''Spaceship command skills '''
−
*{{sk|Expedition Frigates|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Prospect]] and the [[Endurance]]
+
* {{sk|Mining Frigate|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Venture]].
−
*{{sk|Mining Barge|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Procurer]], [[Retriever]], and [[Covetor]]  
+
** {{sk|Expedition Frigates|mult=yes}}: Needed for the T2 hulls [[Prospect]] and [[Endurance]].
−
*{{sk|Exhumers|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Skiff]], [[Mackinaw]], and [[Hulk]]  
+
* {{sk|Mining Barge|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Procurer]], [[Retriever]], and [[Covetor]].
−
*{{sk|Industrial Command Ships|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Orca]]  
+
** {{sk|Exhumers|mult=yes}}: Needed for the T2 hulls [[Skiff]], [[Mackinaw]], and [[Hulk]].
−
*{{sk|Capital Industrial Ships|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Rorqual]]
+
* {{sk|Industrial Command Ships|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Porpoise]] and [[Orca]].
 +
* {{sk|Capital Industrial Ships|mult=yes}}: Needed for the [[Rorqual]].
  
−
In addition to letting you fly the abovementioned ships (which only needs level I), training higher ranks of these skills greatly enhances their respective ships. For instance, the Venture gains +5% mining yield per level of the Mining Frigate skill - which is on top of the bonuses provided by {{sk|Mining}} and {{sk|Astrogeology}}! So if you've found a ship you like, train the corresponding spaceship command skill to make it even better.
+
In addition to letting you fly the mentioned ships (which only needs level I), training higher ranks of these skills greatly enhance their respective ships. For instance, the Venture gains +5% mining yield per level of the Mining Frigate skill - which is on top of the bonuses provided by {{sk|Mining}} and {{sk|Astrogeology}}! So if you've found a ship you like, train the corresponding spaceship command skill to make it even better.
  
−
=== Fitting skills ===
 
  
−
*{{sk|CPU Management|mult=yes}}: +5% CPU output per level.
+
'''Upgrade module skills'''
−
*{{sk|Electronics Upgrades|mult=yes}}: Required for fitting and using co-processors. Requires CPU Management II.
+
* {{sk|Mining Upgrades|mult=yes}}: Required for fitting and using Mining Upgrades. Requires Mining III.
−
*{{sk|Mining Upgrades|mult=yes}}: Required for fitting and using Mining Upgrades. Requires Mining III.
 
−
*{{sk|Jury Rigging|mult=yes}}: Required for fitting rigs.
 
−
*{{sk|Drones Rigging|mult=yes}}: Required for fitting mining drone augmentor rigs (requires Jury Rigging III).  
 
  
−
As mining lasers and mining upgrades are CPU-hungry, training CPU Management will make it easier to fit your ship. If you are still short on CPU, Electronics Upgrades allow you to fit co-processor modules (which increase your ship's CPU further). Mining upgrade modules increase your mining yield, while drone augmentor rigs increase the yield of mining drones.  
+
As mining lasers and mining upgrades are CPU-hungry, training {{Sk|CPU Management}} will make it easier to fit your ship.
  
−
=== Tanking skills ===
 
  
−
*{{sk|Power Grid Management|mult=yes}}: +5% powergrid output per level.
+
'''Drone skills '''
−
*{{sk|Shield Operation|mult=yes}}: 5% reduction in shield recharge time. Requires Power Grid Management I.
+
* {{sk|Drones|mult=yes}}: Increases number of drones in space by 1 per level, for a maximum of five drones in space at level V.
−
*{{sk|Shield Upgrades|mult=yes}}: Required to fit shield upgrade modules (shield extenders and resistance amplifiers). Requires Power Grid Management II
+
* {{sk|Drone Interfacing|mult=yes}}: Increases drone damage and mining drone yield by 10% per level. Requires Drones V.
−
*{{sk|Tactical Shield Manipulation}}: Required to fit shield hardeners. Requires Power Grid Management III.
+
* {{sk|Mining Drone Operation|mult=yes}}: Increases mining drone yield by 5% per level. Requires Drones I.
−
*{{sk|Shield Management|mult=yes}}: +5% shield capacity per level. Requires Power Grid Management III.  
+
* {{sk|Mining Drone Specialization|mult=yes}}: Further increases mining drone yield by 2% per skill level and unlocks T2 mining drones.
−
*{{sk|Shield Rigging|mult=yes}}: Required for fitting shield rigs. Requires Jury Rigging III.
 
−
*{{sk|Hull Upgrades|mult=yes}}: Required for fitting damage controls.
 
  
−
All the mining ships are [[shield tanking|shield tanked]], so shield tanking skills are useful to make them less vulnerable to [[gank|ganking]]. Power Grid Management is the foundation skill, and should be trained to at least level III to make fitting easier. Then, Shield Upgrades and Shield Management should be trained, to not only increase your ship's shield strength, but also to allow you to fit shield upgrade modules. Hull Upgrades is needed for the always-useful damage control module. The other skills on this list have a lower priority, but come in handy as the higher-tier mining ships greatly benefit from a strong tank.  
+
Mining ships use drones both for defense and increased mining yield. The Drones skill is the foundation skill and should be eventually trained up to V (once you start flying Exhumers it's highly recommended, and valuable even before). To use drones defensively, train up {{Sk|Light Drone Operation}}, whilst mining drones need Mining Drone Operation. Drone Interfacing is somewhat of a long train, but even getting it to level IV makes a big difference in how effective your drones are. Advanced Drone Avionics is only needed if you plan to use ECM drones, and the drone specialization skills are needed when you start using Tech II drones. For more details on how drones work, see [[drones]].
  
−
=== Drone skills ===
 
  
−
*{{sk|Drones|mult=yes}}: Increases number of drones in space by 1 per level, for a maximum of five drones in space at level V.
+
'''Fleet Support skills '''
−
*{{sk|Drone Interfacing|mult=yes}}: Increases drone damage and mining drone yield by 10% per level. Requires Drones V.
+
* {{sk|Leadership|mult=yes}}, {{sk|Wing Command|mult=yes}}, and {{sk|Fleet Command|mult=yes}}: Increases Command Burst area of effect.
−
*{{sk|Mining Drone Operation|mult=yes}}: Increases mining drone yield by 5% per level. Requires Drones I.
+
* {{sk|Mining Foreman|mult=yes}}: Increases duration of Mining Foreman Command Bursts. Requires {{sk|Leadership|I}}.
−
*{{sk|Advanced Drone Avionics|mult=yes}}: Allows use of electronic warfare drones. Requires Drones V.
+
* {{sk|Mining Director|mult=yes}}: Increases the strength of Mining Foreman Command Bursts. Requires {{sk|Mining Foreman|V}}.
−
*{{sk|Light Drone Operation|mult=yes}} and {{sk|Medium Drone Operation|mult=yes}}. Allows for the operation of light and medium drones. Requires Drones I.
+
* {{sk|Command Burst Specialist|mult=yes}}: Reduces reload time for Command Burst modules. Requires {{sk|Leadership|V}}.
−
*{{sk|Amarr Drone Specialization|mult=yes}}, {{sk|Caldari Drone Specialization|mult=yes}}, {{sk|Gallente Drone Specialization|mult=yes}}, or {{sk|Minmatar Drone Specialization|mult=yes}}: Allows the use of Tech II drones. Requires Drones V.  
 
  
−
Mining ships use drones both for defence and increased mining yield. The Drones skill is the foundation skill, and should be eventually trained up to V (once you start flying Exhumers it's highly recommended, and valuable even before). To use drones defensively, train up Light Drone Operation, whilst mining drones need Mining Drone Operation. Drone Interfacing is somewhat of a long train, but even getting it to level IV makes a big difference in how effective your drones are. Advanced Drone Avionics is only needed if you plan to use ECM drones, and the drone specialisation skills are needed when you start using Tech II drones. For more details on how drones work, see [[drones]].
+
These skills become highly desirable once pilots start flying Orcas or Rorquals, and want to run mining fleets (and provide mining boosts to your fleet members). For more details on how fleets and Command Bursts work, see [[Command Bursts]].
  
−
=== Leadership skills ===
 
  
−
*{{sk|Leadership|mult=yes}}, {{sk|Wing Command|mult=yes}}, and {{sk|Fleet Command|mult=yes}}: Increases the number of people you can give mining bonuses to.  
+
'''Other skills'''
−
*{{sk|Mining Foreman|mult=yes}}: Increases the mining yield of your boosted fleet members by 2% per level. Requires Leadership I.
+
* Almost all the mining ships are shield tanked, so [[Tanking#Shield skills|shield tanking skills]] are useful to make them less vulnerable to [[gank]]ing.
−
*{{sk|Mining Director}}: Increases the effectiveness of Mining Foreman link modules (ie, Orca boosts) by 20% per level. Requires Mining Foreman V.
+
* General [[Fitting ships|fitting skills]] will improve the PG and CPU output of your ship allowing better fits.
−
*{{sk|Warfare Link Specialist|mult=yes}}: Increases the effectiveness of Mining Foreman link modules by 10% per level. Level V grants the use of Command Processors, which allow more ships to fit more than one Warfare Link. Requires Leadership V.
 
  
−
These skills become necessary once you start flying Orcas or Rorquals, and want to run mining fleets (and provide mining boosts to your fleet members). For more details on how fleets and warfare links work, see [[Fleet Leadership|fleet leadership]] and [[warfare links]].
+
If you are still short on CPU, {{sk|Electronics Upgrades}} allow you to fit co-processor modules (which increase your ship's CPU further). Mining upgrade modules increase your mining yield, while drone augmentor rigs increase the yield of mining drones.
  
 
== Implants ==
 
== Implants ==
−
 
+
A number of implants can improve a miner's performance, such as increasing mining yield, increasing laser range, or decreasing the CPU penalty for mining upgrade modules. For details on these implants, see [[implants]] and [[Skill Hardwiring|skill hardwiring implants]] ("Industry" implants).
−
A number of implants can improve a miner's performance, such as increasing mining yield, increasing laser range, or decreasing the CPU penalty for mining upgrade modules. For details on these implants, see [[implants]] and [[List of Skill Hardwiring Implants|skill hardwiring implants]] ("Industry" implants).  
 
  
 
== Mining strategies ==
 
== Mining strategies ==
  
 
=== Bookmarks ===
 
=== Bookmarks ===
−
[[File:Asteroid-belt-bookmarks.png|thumb|right|250px|An example of mining bookmarks in an asteroid belt]]
+
[[File:Asteroid-belt-bookmarks.png|thumb|250px|An example of mining bookmarks in an asteroid belt]]
−
When you warp to an asteroid belt, you will land in the middle of a [[Asteroids and Ore#Asteroid belts|semicircle of asteroids about 50&nbsp;km in diameter]]. Since the (unboosted) range of mining lasers is only 10&nbsp;km (15&nbsp;km for strip miners), you will then need to fly closer to your target asteroid in order to mine it - and mining ships are not particularly known for their speed. You can cut down on this travel time by using [[bookmarks]], which allow you to warp directly next to an asteroid, and start mining immediately. If you're using [[Drones#Mining_Drones|mining drones]], it's particularly important to be close to your target asteroid, as the drones have to otherwise spend a lot of time travelling back and forth between your ship and the asteroid.
+
When you warp to an asteroid belt, you will land in the middle of a [[Asteroids and ore#Asteroid belts|semicircle of asteroids about 50&nbsp;km in diameter]]. Since the (unboosted) range of mining lasers is only 10&nbsp;km (15&nbsp;km for strip miners), you will then need to fly closer to your target asteroid in order to mine it - and mining ships are not particularly known for their speed. You can cut down on this travel time by using [[bookmarks]], which allow you to warp directly next to an asteroid, and start mining immediately. If you're using [[Drones#Mining Drones|mining drones]], it's particularly important to be close to your target asteroid, as the drones have to otherwise spend a lot of time traveling back and forth between your ship and the asteroid.
 +
 
 +
It can be helpful to create bookmarks in the asteroid belts you mine in frequently. While there are many different approaches to creating these bookmarks, the picture on the right shows a simple example: warp to an asteroid belt in a fast ship (e.g. a [[shuttle]] or a [[frigate]]), and create three bookmarks along the perimeter of the belt. Position them in such a way that most of the belt is within 15&nbsp;km (the range of a strip miner) of any of the three bookmarks. Then, switch to your mining ship, and warp directly to one of the three bookmarks. You will then have a large selection of asteroids within range of your lasers, and be able to efficiently use mining drones on the closest ones. If a part of the belt is depleted, warp to a nearby celestial (e.g. a planet) and then warp back to one of the other bookmarks in the belt.
  
−
It can be helpful to create bookmarks in the asteroid belts you mine in frequently. While there are many different approaches to creating these bookmarks, the picture on the right shows a simple example: warp to an asteroid belt in a fast ship (e.g. a [[Frigate|shuttle or a frigate]]), and create three bookmarks along the perimeter of the belt. Position them in such a way that most of the belt is within 15&nbsp;km (the range of a strip miner) of any of the three bookmarks. Then, switch to your mining ship, and warp directly to one of the three bookmarks. You will then have a large selection of asteroids within range of your lasers, and be able to efficiently use mining drones on the closest ones. If a part of the belt is depleted, warp to a nearby celestial (e.g. a planet) and then warp back to one of the other bookmarks in the belt.  
+
When mining in NULL sec space it is extremely important to create a couple of tactical bookmarks around the asteroid/ice belt that you should warp to first. When you are in a large mining ship the align and warp speed can mean that hostile pilots can appear in local and beat you to the belt before you get there. By warping to the tactical bookmark first you are giving yourself a chance to warp away to a safe spot or station before the hostile pilot can get a lock on you.
  
 
=== Survey scanner ===
 
=== Survey scanner ===
−
[[File:Survey_scanner.jpg|thumb|right|250px|The results of a survey scan. Note the different kinds of asteroid which make up this asteroid belt, and the different amounts of ore in each.]]
+
[[File:Survey_scanner.jpg|thumb|250px|The results of a survey scan. Note the different kinds of asteroid which make up this asteroid belt, and the different amounts of ore in each.]]
−
The survey scanner (a mid-slot module) is a very useful tool for any asteroid miner, as it shows how much ore each asteroid in the vicinity contains. This is important, as asteroid mining modules (mining lasers and strip miners) will always complete an entire cycle (60s for mining lasers, 180s for strip miners), irrespective of how much ore is actually left in the asteroid.  
+
The survey scanner (a mid-slot module) is a very useful tool for any asteroid miner, as it shows how much ore each asteroid in the vicinity contains. This is important, as asteroid mining modules (mining lasers and strip miners) will always complete an entire cycle (60s for mining lasers, 180s for strip miners), irrespective of how much ore is actually left in the asteroid.
  
−
For instance, say you are mining an asteroid which contains 200 units of Veldspar (Veldspar has a volume of 0.1&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> per unit, so this asteroid contains 20&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of Veldspar). Your Mining Laser I has a yield of (say) 100&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>/min, and a cycle time of 60 seconds. Even though there are only 20&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of Veldspar left in the asteroid, the module will complete its entire 60 second cycle before shutting off (with a message saying "the asteroid is depleted") - but those 60 seconds of mining only yielded 20&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of ore (instead 100&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>)! The problem becomes even worse when using strip miners, as they have a much higher yield and a cycle time three times as long - which can result in a lot of wasted time if you're mining asteroids that don't contain much ore.  
+
For instance, say you are mining an asteroid that contains 200 units of Veldspar (Veldspar has a volume of 0.1&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> per unit, so this asteroid contains 20&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of Veldspar). Your Mining Laser I has a yield of (say) 100&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>/min, and a cycle time of 60 seconds. Even though there are only 20&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of Veldspar left in the asteroid, the module will complete its entire 60 second cycle before shutting off (with a message saying "the asteroid is depleted") - but those 60 seconds of mining only yielded 20&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of ore (instead 100&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>)! The problem becomes even worse when using strip miners, as they have a much higher yield and a cycle time three times as long - which can result in a lot of wasted time if you're mining asteroids that don't contain much ore.
  
−
Therefore, when mining, refresh the survey scanner window from time to time (it does not refresh automatically, you need to reactivate the survey scanner module) to check whether the asteroid(s) you are mining are close to depletion. If an asteroid is almost empty, you can "[[Mining_Yield#Short-cycling|short-cycle]]" your mining laser (i.e. turn it off manually before it completes its full cycle, by clicking on it) to mine out the last dregs of ore before moving on to another asteroid. Note that each time you activate your mining laser it takes energy from your ship's [[capacitor]]; activate it too often and you might empty your capacitor and have to wait a moment for it to recharge.
+
Therefore, when mining, refresh the survey scanner window from time to time (it does not refresh automatically, you need to reactivate the survey scanner module) to check whether the asteroid(s) you are mining are close to depletion. If an asteroid is almost empty, you can "[[Mining Yield#Short cycling|short cycle]]" your mining laser (i.e. turn it off manually before it completes its full cycle, by clicking on it) to mine out the last dregs of ore before moving on to another asteroid. Note that each time you activate your mining laser it takes energy from your ship's [[capacitor]]; activate it too often and you might empty your capacitor and have to wait a moment for it to recharge.
  
 
You can [[Targeting|target]] asteroids directly from the survey scanner window (much like the asteroids in the overview); this can be a useful shortcut to help you mine the particular asteroid you're interested in. A little marker shows you which asteroids you are targeting (note that, just like the rest of the information, this is only refreshed when you refresh the survey scanner window).
 
You can [[Targeting|target]] asteroids directly from the survey scanner window (much like the asteroids in the overview); this can be a useful shortcut to help you mine the particular asteroid you're interested in. A little marker shows you which asteroids you are targeting (note that, just like the rest of the information, this is only refreshed when you refresh the survey scanner window).
  
 
==== Appraising an Asteroid Belt ====
 
==== Appraising an Asteroid Belt ====
−
Survey scanners can be used to provide the approximate valuation of an asteroid belt with the help of 3rd party appraisal tools. This activity is relatively easy when in a fleet that provides range bonuses to Survey Scanner. Without range boosts an estimate can be done by scanning one area of the belt at a time and removing duplicate asteroid entries before submitting.
+
Survey scanners can be used to provide the approximate value of an asteroid belt with the help of 3rd party appraisal tools. This activity is relatively easy when in a fleet that provides range bonuses to Survey Scanner. Without range boosts an estimate can be done by scanning one area of the belt at a time and removing duplicate asteroid entries before submitting.
  
 
'''Steps to get an estimate'''
 
'''Steps to get an estimate'''
Line 232: Line 278:
 
# Copy the results from the Survey Scanner Results window:
 
# Copy the results from the Survey Scanner Results window:
 
## Click on any item in the window to select it
 
## Click on any item in the window to select it
−
## Press CTRL + A to select all items
+
## Press {{Button|CTRL}}+{{Button|A}} to select all items
−
## Press CTRL + C to copy
+
## Press {{Button|CTRL}}+{{Button|C}} to copy
−
# Submit the values into a 3rd party appraisal tool like [http://evepraisal.com/ Evepraisal]
+
# Submit the values into a 3rd party appraisal tool like [https://janice.e-351.com/ Janice]
 +
Buy values in Jita or one of the other [[trade hubs]] would be the closest estimate to actual returns from an immediate sale of the ore.
  
−
== Solo mining  ==
+
====Avoiding threats====
−
[[File:Hulk.jpg|thumb|The Hulk: sucking asteroid belts dry since 2003]]
+
Nowhere in EVE is safe as soon as you undock your ship. You consent to PvP no matter where you go as soon as you undock.
−
There are several methods commonly used in mining, the most basic only requires one account and can be run by very low skilled players, while the most advanced will require multiple players all performing separate tasks in order to be effective.  
+
 
 +
=====Highsec=====
 +
In highsec, the main threat will be suicide gankers. Suicide gankers typically act in groups, trying to find vulnerable and/or valuable mining ships and attempting to destroy them before Concord shows up. Then a neutral pilot will come in and scoop the remains of your wreck. You're less likely to have your pod destroyed, as doing so hits the offending pilot with a large security standing penalty, but it can still happen, so warping out immediately is recommended.
 +
 
 +
Popular ganking ships include:
 +
* Catalyst: Most popular suicide ganking ship. Relatively inexpensive and good DPS.
 +
* Coercer: Often used to take down ships with sturdy shields due to decent amount of EM damage which shields are usually weaker to.
 +
* Talos: Usually used against big and/or tanky targets due to its high DPS against larger ships. Relatively expensive compared to other options.
 +
 
 +
To avoid suicide ganking:
 +
* Equip your mining ships with defensive modules. The more EHP your ship has, the more ships it takes for a group of suicide gankers to take down your ship. It also makes it less financially motivational for them to attack you.
 +
* Don't equip expensive faction or officer modules on your ship. This makes you a juicy target by increasing the financial incentive to suicide gank your ship. T2 modules are more than appropriate for most needs.
 +
* Mine further away from trade hubs, as this makes it less likely for a suicide ganker or a scout to spot your ship in the first place.
 +
* Don't mine while away from the keyboard. Dock if you must leave the keyboard unattended.
 +
* Set negative standings for known suicide ganker pilots/corporations/alliances. If you see someone or a group appear in local with negative standings, dock up as soon as possible.
 +
 
 +
Other threats:
 +
* If you're enrolled in faction warfare, then the opposing faction can freely attack you with no consequences, even in highsec as long as you are enrolled.
 +
* If your corporation is at war with another corporation, the hostile corporation can freely attack you with no consequences for the duration of the war. This is more rare nowadays since corporations need a structure to be war eligible and the practice of holding corporations for structures pretty much voids this risk.
 +
* ♢ pirates can appear in asteroid belts if there is a pirate stronghold present in the system. These rats can call other ♢ combat rats as reinforcements that can disrupt/scram your warp drive. You can check the presence of a pirate stronghold using your directional scanner.
 +
* ♢ NPC miners can appear in asteroid belts. If you have low enough standings to the NPC corporation, they'll be hostile to you and call combat ♢ NPCs as reinforcements that can disrupt/scram your warp drive. You can warp out safely as soon as you spot them, but delaying will likely result in you losing your ship.
 +
* Normal NPC pirates aren't much of a threat, but with enough time they can potentially destroy your ship (depending on fittings) and assist pilots in destroying your ship. Drones can take care of them easily.
 +
* Triglavians can be a problem if you have no/low standings with them. EDENCOM similarly can be an issue if your standings are low enough.
 +
 
 +
=====Lowsec=====
 +
In lowsec, pretty much anyone can attack you for a relatively small standing penalty (Concord won't intervene). Gate and station guns will shoot at pilots that attack you unprovoked, but they can be tanked and thus not be a good deterrent. Gate camps are fairly common. Smartbombers can be an issue if you use smaller ships. You'll often see people deploy covert cynos to drop a group of enemy pilots on you.
 +
 
 +
Avoiding ganks:
 +
* Definitely use the directional scanner to gather intel on locals and spot threats.
 +
* Learn the locals. Find out who attacks other people unprovoked and ships they typically use. Find out who snitches your position too if it happens.
 +
* Equip a cloaking device and try to mine on the opposite side of the asteroids, with enough distance so you can immediately cloak in case someone appears in the system.
 +
* Stay away from systems near highsec, as these have a lot of traffic and you can easily be scouted.
 +
* Avoid popular paths through lowsec, for the same reasons as above. Best to pick dead-end systems off the main travelled paths.
 +
* Mine while nobody is present in the system, or only if you're sure the locals are of no threat to you. If someone shows up, cloak or dock.
 +
* Don't leave wrecks hanging around as their presence can betray your purpose in the system. If people see wrecks in an asteroid belt or ore anomaly, they can think you're there mining and persist in trying to find you. Either salvage or destroy them.
 +
* Try to be wary of where people are and were in the system. People can log out in a belt and login later to catch you unaware.
 +
 
 +
Avoiding gate camps:
 +
* Use third-party utilities to find gate camps. Note that these third party tools won't have knowledge of gate camps if you're the first person to encounter one.
 +
* Alternatively you can check ship/pod kill statistics for systems in your route.
 +
* If you have an alt, you can make them jump ahead of you to spot gate camps.
 +
 
 +
Other threats:
 +
* Normal NPC pirates start fielding destroyers up the battleships the lower the security of the system descends.
 +
* Mordu Commanders can rarely spawn in the asteroid belts and can warp disrupt.
 +
* Clone Soldiers can rarely spawn in the asteroid belts.
 +
* Triglavians can be a problem if you have no/low standings with them. EDENCOM similarly can be an issue if your standings are low enough.
 +
 
 +
=====Sovnull=====
 +
Mining in sovnull is usually done if you've the backing of the sovereignty holder or its allies. Hostiles will usually be neutral pilots or enemies of your sovereignty holder. Warp disrupting bubbles can be deployed.
 +
 
 +
Sovnull systems are lawless, so there is no consequence for attacking another pilot.
  
−
=== Cargohold mining  ===
+
=====NPC null=====
 +
Warp disrupting bubbles can be deployed.
  
−
The most basic way to mine is to fill the ore hold of a ship full of ore and then return to a station to drop it off. Its advantages are that it requires only one character, can be done at very low skill levels and is completely theft-proof. Its disadvantage is that the time you spend travelling to and from a station is wasted (i.e. not spent mining) - however, most mining ships (with the notable exception of the [[Covetor]] and the [[Hulk]]) have large enough ore holds that they do not need to return frequently to a station to unload.  
+
NPC null systems are lawless, so there is no consequence for attacking another pilot.
  
−
As an example: An average-skilled miner flying a [[Venture]] can mine about 250&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>/min of ore, which is enough to fill the Venture's ore hold (5000&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>) in about 20 minutes. Given that the Venture aligns and warps like a frigate, round trips to a station will take only a minute or two, so very little time is lost. A highly-skilled miner flying a [[Hulk]], on the other hand, can mine about 1600&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>/min of ore, which will fill the Hulk's ore bay (8500&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>) in about 5 minutes, requiring frequent return trips to a station (made longer by the slow align time and warp speed of the Hulk).
+
Other threats:
 +
* Normal NPC pirates can show up in battleships or more lethal ships.
  
−
(Note: Prior to the [[Eve_Online_Expansions#Retribution|Retribution expansion]], cargohold mining was very unprofitable, as the cargoholds of non-industrial ships were so small that they filled up too rapidly. However, with the introduction of dedicated ore holds on all mining ships, this is no longer the case.)
+
=====Wormholes=====
 +
In wormholes, other pilots aren't shown in local unless they have recently sent a message. The only way to spot other players is to use the directional scanner, or if they appear in your grid. Warp disrupting bubbles can be deployed.
  
−
=== Jetcan and GSC mining  ===
+
Wormholes are lawless, so there is no consequence for attacking another pilot.
  
−
Players can jettison items from their cargohold into space, which results in a cargo container (more commonly called a "[[jetcan]]" or just a "can") forming within 2,500m of the ship. This jettisoned container has a volume capacity of 27,500&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>. Miners can take advantage of this capacity by transferring the ore in their cargohold into the jetcan. Typically a player will fill a jetcan with ore, and then (once the jetcan is full) swap to a ship with a larger cargohold (most often an [[Industrial#T1_Industrials|industrial ship]]) and haul the ore to a nearby station.  
+
Other threats:
 +
* Sleepers typically spawn once per day in each ore anomaly after 20 minutes or so of the first pilot entering the site for that day. In higher classes of wormholes, sleepers can warp disrupt/scram. Once the sleepers have been destroyed, they do not respawn until the next day (after the maintenance).
  
−
If you're flying a mining ship with an ore hold that's considerably smaller than a jetcan (such as a [[Venture]] (5000&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> ore hold) or a [[Covetor]] (8000&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> ore hold)), this method can increase your efficiency, as you can spend more time mining and less time hauling.  
+
=====Pochven=====
 +
In the Pochven regions, other pilots aren't shown in local unless they have recently sent a message. The only way to spot other players is to use the directional scanner, or if they appear in your grid.
  
−
However, jetcans only have a lifespan of 2 hours and they are not secure, meaning [[Can_Flipping|anyone can open and remove items from a jetcan]]. This is a common form of theft and griefing in the game, where a player will "flip" a jetcan either to steal the ore or to induce a fight [[CONCORD_Details|without CONCORD intervention]]. While it's possible way to combat this by using secure containers (which can be programmed with a password), the largest these (the giant secure container, often called a GSC) can only hold 3,900&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of ore, which is less than the ore hold on even the smallest mining ship.  
+
Other threats:
 +
* Triglavians can be a problem if you have no/low standings with them. EDENCOM similarly can be an issue if your standings are low enough.
  
−
As nearly all mining ships have ore holds which are as large or larger than a jetcan (in addition to the time lost in changing ships and the risk of getting your ore stolen), using jetcans is probably not worth your time. They do, however, come in very handy if you're [[Mining#Dual account mining|mining with two accounts]] (see below). Given their small size, using GSCs for mining is not worth it (although it was a commonly-used practice in the past, when mining ships had much smaller cargo holds).
+
== Solo mining ==
 +
[[File:Hulk.jpg|thumb|The Hulk: sucking asteroid belts dry since 2003]]
  
−
=== Dual account mining ===
+
=== Mining hold mining ===
 +
The most basic way to mine is to fill the mining hold of a ship full of ore and then return to a station to drop it off. Its advantages are that it requires only one character, can be done at very low skill levels and is completely theft-proof. Its disadvantage is that the time you spend traveling to and from a station is wasted (i.e. not spent mining) - however, most mining ships (with the notable exception of the [[Covetor]] and the [[Hulk]]) have large enough mining holds that they do not need to return frequently to a station to unload.
  
−
If you have two Eve accounts, you can [[multiboxing|multibox]] them (i.e. play them on one computer simultaneously). One of these can mine while the other ones flies a [[Industrial#T1_Industrials|hauler]] to drop the mined ore at a nearby station. The miner transfers the mined ore into a jetcan or a GSC (see above) which is then picked up by the hauler. This way, the miner can mine non-stop, obtaining more ore. Eventually, the hauler character could train towards an [[Orca]] (to provide mining boosts to the miner, further increasing yield), while the miner character is free to train and fly ships like the [[Hulk]], which have very high mining yield but small ore holds.
+
As an example: An average-skilled miner flying a [[Venture]] can mine about 250&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>/min of ore, which is enough to fill the Venture's mining hold (5000&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>) in about 20 minutes. Given that the Venture aligns and warps like a frigate, round trips to a station will take only a minute or two, so very little time is lost. A highly-skilled miner flying a [[Hulk]], on the other hand, can mine about 1600&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>/min of ore, which will fill the Hulk's mining hold (11,500&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup>) in about 7 minutes, requiring frequent return trips to a station (made longer by the slow align time and warp speed of the Hulk).
  
−
See [[Creating an Alt Hauler]] and [[Creating an Alt Miner]] for tips on creating these [[alt|alt characters]].
+
(Note: Prior to the [[Expansions#Retribution|Retribution expansion]], cargohold mining was very unprofitable, as the cargo holds of non-industrial ships were so small that they filled up too rapidly. However, with the introduction of dedicated mining holds on all mining ships, this is no longer the case.)
  
−
== Cooperative mining ==
+
=== Jetcan and GSC mining ===
−
[[File:Orca.jpg|thumb|The Orca: the easiest way to make yourself loved by miners.]]
+
Players can jettison items from their holds into space, which results in a cargo container (more commonly called a "[[jetcan]]" or just a "can") forming within 2,500 m of the ship. This jettisoned container has a volume capacity of 55,000&nbsp;{{m3}}. Miners can take advantage of this capacity by transferring the ore in their mining hold into the jetcan. Typically a player will fill a jetcan with ore, and then (once the jetcan is full) swap to a ship with a larger mining/cargo hold (most often an [[hauler]]) and haul the ore to a nearby station.
−
Of the professions in Eve, mining and production are most impacted by the player’s efficiency. For miners, it’s all about mining. Time spent hauling, killing rats, moving cans or dealing with ore thieves, can flippers and other flavors of griefers is time not spent making little rocks out of big ‘roids. Anything that can be done to eliminate or minimize the impact of all of those other factors means more little rocks in the hold, which means a fatter wallet.  
 
  
−
A properly designed and staffed co-operative [[Mining Fleets]] allows miners to spend their time doing what they do best: mining. It also allows the miners to benefit from mining yield bonuses available only to members of a group. These bonuses can add an additional 10% or more to a miner’s yield. If the miners are mining, then someone has to haul the little rocks to the station. If the op is in [[Lowsec|lower sec regions]], something other than drones may be needed to protect the miners from rats, not to mention thieves and assorted other scoundrels. Those protection activities will result in a second “mining” operation as the wrecks are looted and salvaged for the benefit of the op participants.  
+
If you're flying a mining ship with a mining hold that's considerably smaller than a jetcan (such as a [[Venture]] (5,000&nbsp;{{m3}} mining hold) or a [[Covetor]] (9,000&nbsp;{{m3}} mining hold)), this method can increase your efficiency, as you can spend more time mining and less time hauling. As all other mining ships have mining holds which are as large or larger than a jetcan (in addition to the time lost in changing ships and the risk of getting your ore stolen), using jetcans is probably not worth your time. They do, however, come in very handy if you're [[#Dual account mining|mining with two accounts]] or in a [[#Mining fleets|fleet]] (see below).
  
−
Our theoretical op has miners, haulers, damage dealers and salvagers; a fairly broad slice of the possible professions in Eve! Mining ops are generally more relaxed than combat fleet ops, co-operative mission running or complex clearing. Chat and/or Mumble deal with a wider variety of topics and separating the required tasks to specialists provides everyone time to participate in the conversations. Not only does this atmosphere provide a social element of connection with the other members, it lets the "teaching" move beyond mining to cover a myriad of subjects.  
+
Note that jetcans only have a lifespan of 2 hours and they are not secure, meaning [[Can flipping|anyone can open and remove items from a jetcan]]. This is a common form of theft and griefing in the game, where a player will "flip" a jetcan either to steal the ore or to induce a fight without [[CONCORD]] intervention. While it's possible to combat this by using secure containers (which can be programmed with a password), the largest of these (the giant secure container, often called a GSC) can only hold 3,900&nbsp;m<sup>3</sup> of ore, which is less than the mining hold on even the smallest mining ship (although using them was a commonly-used practice in the past when mining ships had much smaller cargo holds).  
  
−
=== Mining booster fleets (BYOC)  ===
+
A better alternative to GSCs are [[Mobile structures#Mobile Tractor Unit|mobile tractor units]]. They have nearly as much capacity as a jetcan, are unable to be accessed by random people, and have a decay of 2 days. They also suck in and store any ore a miner might jetcan into a safer place. A mining barge can store 3 MTUs and deploy them for a temporary total of 81,000m<sup>3</sup> of extra space. This allows for a large amount of time to be saved from station mining, as a miner instead of having to dock up can just jetcan the ore to be stored for later.
  
−
The simplest mining fleet would be the equivalent of a [[Mission Fleet (Spider)|spider mission fleet]], in that each miner does his/her own thing while being supplied with a [[Fleet Leadership#Booster Skills|fleet booster]] which will improve everyone's yield, miner range, miner cycle time, and/or miner capacitor use (note that boosters only work within the same system). These fleets are generally a "join and leave as you want" situation, with no extra services (eg hauling, protection from rats etc) provided. "BYOC" stands for "bring your own can", meaning it's your responsibility to bring the ore you mine to a station.  
+
=== Dual account mining ===
 +
If you have two EVE accounts, you can [[multiboxing|multibox]] them (i.e. play them on one computer simultaneously). One of these can mine while the other one flies a [[hauler]] to drop the mined ore at a nearby station. The miner transfers the mined ore into a jetcan or a GSC (see above) which is then picked up by the hauler. This way, the miner can mine non-stop, obtaining more ore. Eventually, the hauler character could train towards an [[Orca]] (to provide mining boosts to the miner, further increasing yield), while the miner character is free to train and fly ships like the [[Hulk]], which have very high mining yield but small mining holds.
  
−
It's generally suggested that you avoid mining the same asteroid as another fleet member (as there is a risk that one of you wastes a mining cycle if the asteroid depletes halfway through), although if you ''really'' want that particular asteroid you can always ask nicely if you can have it. There is usually no central belt for everyone to be working on at once, but it can be a majestic sight to see a fleet of barges and exhumers emptying a belt efficiently.  
+
See [[Creating an Alt Hauler]] and [[Creating an Alt Miner]] for tips on creating these [[alternate characters]].
  
−
=== Mining fleets  ===
+
== Cooperative mining ==
 
{{main|Mining Fleets}}
 
{{main|Mining Fleets}}
−
The next type of fleet is more structured. A standard mining fleet in [[High Security Space|high security space]] generally includes a mix of mining barges, exhumers, and haulers (industrials). The miners will work on a single belt constantly, and transfer the ore they mine into a jetcan. The haulers will ferry the resources from space to a station. This makes for increased proficiency as the mining lasers never need to stop, unless you need to switch belts. Fleet boosters are usually present here as well, and an [[Orca]] may be used instead of a jetcan. Mining fleets in low-sec will also include combat ships to protect the fleet against rats and hostile players.
+
[[File:Orca.jpg|thumb|The Orca: the easiest way to make yourself loved by miners.]]
−
 
 
−
==== Splitting the ISK ====
 
  
−
Since all the ore is combined into a single pot (and often refined and sold later), you need to agree on a method of splitting the proceeds from the mining fleet between the participants. Since a fleet often includes not only miners with different skill levels flying different ships, but also fleet boosters, haulers, combat ships etc, the simplest way to split the ISK proceeds is to allocate them based on time spent in the fleet; however, this might discourage larger ships from joining the fleet. [[Scrapyard's Mining Op Worksheet]] can accomodate several different methods of weighing the contributions of fleet members. Whichever way you choose, make sure that the method of splitting the ISK is agreed upon by the fleet before the mining op starts.
+
A standard mining fleet in [[System security#High security|high security space]] generally includes a mix of mining barges, exhumers, and haulers. The miners will work on a single belt constantly and transfer the ore they mine into a jetcan. The haulers will ferry the resources from space to a station. This makes for increased proficiency as the mining lasers never need to stop unless you need to switch belts. Fleet boosters are usually present here as well, and an [[Orca]] may be used instead of a jetcan. Mining fleets in low-sec will also include combat ships to protect the fleet against rats and hostile players.
  
−
==== Mining fleets in the Uni ====
+
=== Splitting the ISK ===
 +
Since all the ore is combined into a single pot (and often refined and sold later), you need to agree on a method of splitting the proceeds from the mining fleet between the participants. Since a fleet often includes not only miners with different skill levels flying different ships, but also fleet boosters, haulers, combat ships etc, the simplest way to split the ISK proceeds is to allocate them based on time spent in the fleet; however, this might discourage larger ships from joining the fleet. Various spreadsheets or web applications such as [https://eveminingfleet.ovh/ eveminingfleet.ovh] can accommodate several different methods of weighing the contributions of fleet members. Whichever way you choose, make sure that the method of splitting the ISK is agreed upon by the fleet before the mining op starts.
  
−
Periodically, the Uni will undertake a large-scale, long-duration operation in a system other than [[Aldrat]]. These expeditions are planned and announced several weeks in advance to allow for adjustment of training schedules, acquisition of desired ships and fittings and research/scouting of the target system and surrounding space. Because of the travel involved and the length of planned stay, expedition locations generally provide opportunities for mission/complex running as well.  
+
=== Mining fleets in the Uni ===
 +
Periodically, the Uni will undertake a large-scale, long-duration mining operation. These expeditions are planned and announced several weeks in advance to allow for adjustment of training schedules, acquisition of desired ships and fittings, and research/scouting of the target system and surrounding space. Because of the travel involved and the length of planned stay, expedition locations generally provide opportunities for mission/complex running as well.
  
−
The Expedition Boss for a particular expedition will publish the rules for that expedition, including record keeping requirements for any Common Can portions, rules for interaction with locals and what happens to the ore mined.  
+
The Expedition Boss for a particular expedition will publish the rules for that expedition, including record keeping requirements for any Common Can portions, rules for interaction with locals and what happens to the ore mined.
  
−
Such fleets are often run to donate minerals to the University, with the added bonus of attempting to break the record for the previous donation fleet.  
+
Such fleets are often run to donate minerals to the University, with the added bonus of attempting to break the record for the previous donation fleet.
  
−
When completing a mining operation, you should consider posting your results here: [[Past mining fleet results|Past Mining Fleet Results]]
+
Mining fleets are generally more relaxed than combat fleets, co-operative mission running or [[Combat_sites#DED_rated_complexes|complex clearing]]. Chat and/or [[Mumble]] deal with a wider variety of topics and separating the required tasks to specialists provides everyone time to participate in the conversations. Not only does this atmosphere provide a social element of connection with the other members, but it also lets the "teaching" move beyond mining to cover a myriad of subjects.
  
 
== See also ==
 
== See also ==
 +
* [[Ice harvesting]] and [[gas cloud harvesting]]: The other two kinds of mining
 +
* [[Refining]]: What to do with all the ore you just mined
 +
* [[Orca Guide]]
 +
* [[Mining aligned]]: a technique that sets you up to make a quick getaway if you need to
  
−
*[[Ice Mining]] and [[Gas Cloud Mining]]: The other two kinds of mining
+
== External links ==
−
*[[Refining]]: What to do with all the ore you just mined
+
* [https://www.fuzzwork.co.uk/blueprint/ Fuzzworks blueprint Calculator]
−
*[[Web Resources for Miners]]
+
* [https://www.fuzzwork.co.uk/ore/ Fuzzworks ore table]
−
*[[Orca Guide]]
+
* [https://ore.cerlestes.de/index.html Cerlestes ore table]
−
*[[Lillik%27s_Guide_to_(relatively)_Safe_Ice_Harvesting|Lillik's Guide to (relatively) Safe Ice Harvesting]]
+
* [https://greedygoblin.blogspot.com/p/why-was-i-ganked.html greedygoblin - mining safety tips from a ganker]
 +
* [https://eveminingfleet.ovh EVEMiningFleet]
  
−
==External links==
+
== References ==
 +
<references />
  
−
*[https://www.fuzzwork.co.uk/blueprint/ Fuzzworks blueprint Calculator]
 
−
*[https://www.fuzzwork.co.uk/ore/ Fuzzworks ore table]
 
−
*[http://ore.cerlestes.de/index.html Cerlestes ore table]
 
−
*[http://eve.grismar.net/ore/ Grismar - ore chart]
 
−
*[http://greedygoblin.blogspot.com/p/why-was-i-ganked.html greedygoblin - mining safety tips from a ganker]
 
 
{{Mining Links}}
 
{{Mining Links}}
−
[[Category:Guides]] [[Category:Industry]] [[Category:Mining]][[Category:AMC]]
+
 
 +
[[Category:Mining| ]]
 +
[[Category:Industry]]

Latest revision as of 13:40, 28 August 2024

This page should be updated due to game changes.
Reason: Major rewrite needed due to December 2021, Version 19.11 major changes to mining mechanics.
Need ore info about the border/A0 ores #Cosmic Anomalies.


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This page details the mechanics of mining ore. For a step-by-step beginner guide, see Mining Primer for Complete Beginners. For details about harvesting ice or gas, see Ice harvesting or Gas cloud harvesting, respectively.

Mining is the activity of extracting ore from asteroids, though it is also used to describe ice harvesting and more rarely, gas cloud harvesting. Once extracted, ore can then be refined into minerals. These refined substances are used in the production and maintenance of all player-created items and structures in EVE, such as ships and modules. It is one of the few professions immediately available to beginning players and many industrialists started their careers by mining. Mining is considered a very economically safe profession, as minerals are always in demand. Mining requires specialized modules or drones, and specialized mining ships also exist.

As a profession

It ain't no trick to get rich quick
If you dig with a shovel or a pick
In a mine, where a million diamonds shine.

Advantages

  • Low entry cost: The ORE Venture mining frigate is provided for free as a mission reward from the career agent missions Balancing the Books (2 of 10) and Making Mountains of Molehills (2 of 10).
  • Relatively low risk: It is usually very safe to mine in high-sec (the principal dangers being suicide gankers or war targets).
  • Low level of involvement needed: In most scenarios, miners only need to be active 5 seconds for every 3 minutes (to target new asteroids) and an extra 1 minute for every 30 minutes (to unload the full cargo of mined ore in station).
  • Guaranteed income: Mining products are always in high demand because ships and structures are constantly being destroyed and replaced, and replacing ships and structures requires materials. Mining in fleets with boosts can earn 15-20 million ISK per hour or more, depending on the resources being harvested.
  • Fun factor: Mining in fleets is often a very social activity.


Disadvantages

  • Skill intensive: Despite the low entry cost, it takes a lot of training time to become an efficient miner.
  • Non-transferable skills: Mining skills are useful only for mining.
  • Fun factor: Solo mining, in particular, can be less than exciting. Mining fleets can provide conversation with other players in comms, but there usually isn't much going on otherwise.
  • Income ceiling: It is difficult to earn much more than 10 million ISK per hour mining solo in highsec. While it's possible to earn more money mining in lower-security systems (at higher risk), other professions can be much more lucrative.

Ore locations

Asteroids and belts

Main article: Asteroids and ore

As their name suggests, asteroids are primarily found in asteroid belts, and most systems in New Eden have at least one. Asteroid belts can be viewed in the overview when enabled, and can also be viewed via the contextual menu by right-clicking in space. Each asteroid belt is composed of a variety of asteroids, each containing a particular type of ore noted in asteroid's name. The types and quantities of ore are determined by the system security rating of the system and which quadrant it is located in. Rarer and more valuable ores are found in lower-security systems, and ore deposits tend to be larger there as well. Once depleted, asteroid belts do not respawn until server downtime, so belts may sometimes be found empty, or lacking a certain type of ore.

  • High-sec belts contain simple ores (Veldspar, Scordite, Pyroxeres and Plagioclase).
  • Low-sec belts contain coherent ores (Omber, Kernite, Jaspet, Hemorphite and Hedbergite) and additionaly Pyroxeres.
  • Null-sec belts contain complex ores (Bistot, Arkonor and Spodumain), special ore Mercoxit and additionally Kernite, Pyroxeres and Veldspar.
  • Triglavian space belts contain abyssal ores (Bezdnacine, Rakovene and Talassonite).
  • Wormhole belts contain Arkonor, Bistot, Gneiss, Kernite, Omber, and Pyroxeres.

Mission pockets

Asteroids can also be found in the deadspace pockets created for certain missions. While these sites are a bit more difficult to find, they also tend to have no competition giving richer pickings and provide relative safety.

Cosmic Anomalies

Asteroids can also be found in certain cosmic anomalies. Generally the type of ore matches the regular ore from the asteroid belts in this area of New Eden but there is an important exception referred to by players as border/A0 ores. These ores provide a high amount of a singular resource.

Border/A0 ores are Ducinium(Megacyte), Eifyrium(Zydrine), Mordunium(Pyerite) and Ytirium(Isogen). They are found in special cosmic anomalies that infrequently spawn.

Rare asteroid sites

Opportunities tile

All sites spawn a beacon upon the first ship initiating warp to it which anyone can warp to.

  • Empire Border Rare Asteroids Spawns in high-sec 0.5 [1] systems bordering a low-sec system. Contains asteroids with Ducinium, Eifyrium, Jet Ochre, Pellucid Crokite and Ytirium.
  • Nullsec Border Rare Asteroids Spawns in null-sec systems bordering a low-sec system. Contains asteroids with Imperial Ducinium, Augmented Eifyrium, Mordunium, Pellucid Crokite and Moonshine Ytirium.
  • Nullsec Blue A0 Rare Asteroids Spawns in Blue A0 star systems in null-sec space [Verify]. Contains asteroids with Imperial Ducinium, Augmented Eifyrium, Jet Ochre, Plunder Mordunium and Moonshine Ytirium.

Moon mining

Main article: Moon mining

Moon mining can take place only at refineries anchored within 250 km of a mining beacon in 0.5 space or below and fitted with a Standup Moon Drill I service module, which appears on the outside of the structure as a giant laser turret aimed at the moon. The Moon Drill is then used to extract a chunk of the moon for mining. The extraction process is beyond the scope of this article, but once the chunk has been extracted, it exists as an asteroid field that contains moon-specific ores which can be mined for moon materials. After extraction, the mining is performed using the same mining equipment and processes described in this article, with the exception of Tier 2 strip miners and modulated mining lasers requiring moon ore-specific crystals for good efficiency.

Mining missions

Main article: Mining missions

Mining missions are given by Mining agents and require you to mine an asteroid or set of asteroids in a mission pocket — usually until the asteroids are depleted — and bring the ore back to the agent. They use unique mission ores which are separate versions of normal ores.

Mining mechanics

Mechanics

The basic mechanics of mining are very simple: Fit your ship with a mining module, approach and target an asteroid, and activate your mining module. At the end of each cycle (usually between 1 and 3 minutes, depending on the module used), the ore mined is automatically deposited in your ship's cargo or mining hold. The mining module will then automatically continue mining until either your cargo/mining hold is full, or the asteroid has been "mined out" (all the available ore in that asteroid has been mined and it disappears). Make sure that you keep the asteroid within range of your mining module (usually by stopping your ship, or orbiting the asteroid) - if you are too far away, the mining module will finish its current cycle regardless, but you will receive no ore.

If you're using mining drones, launch your drones once you are near the asteroid, and give them the command to "mine repeatedly". They will then fly to the asteroid you have targeted, mine for one cycle (60 seconds), fly back to your ship, deposit the ore they have mined in your cargo or mining hold, then automatically fly back to the asteroid and continue mining it (until, as above, either your cargo/mining hold is full, or the asteroid has depleted because it no longer contains any ore). Since the drones have to fly back and forth repeatedly between your ship and the asteroid, it's worth flying as close as possible to the asteroid to keep their travel time down to a minimum.

Once your cargo or mining hold is full, bring the ore you have mined to a station (either fly there yourself or transfer the ore to another player's ship to fly back (see solo mining and cooperative mining for more details)), then return to the asteroids and continue mining!

Efficiency computations

Main article: Mining yield

All computations with income from mining are typically done in (ISK per m3). The reason for this is that all mining modules mine a certain volume of ore/ice/gas in a given time. For example, a beginner miner in a Venture with, say, 200m3/min yield would mine 2000 units of Veldspar per minute, as volume of 1 unit is 0.1m3, or, for example, 100 units of Jaspet per minute, as volume of 1 unit is 2m3. Therefore it makes sense to compare not prices per unit, but prices per m3.

Since the market is player-driven, ore and mineral prices are ever-changing, hence miners should always check the market for the most efficient ore/mineral to mine for. Websites like Cerlestes ore table can look up the current market prices for ores and minerals, and give you a recommendation on which ores are the most profitable. Remember to double-check the prices that any automated tools give you - they will often use regional averages to determine mineral prices; if you plan to sell your goods at a specific station or hub then your priorities might come out differently. Lastly, most expensive types of ore are typically assotiated with most dangerous parts of New Eden so you might want to limit yourself to safer areas.

Once you have chosen a type of ore, you will want to maximize the mining yield over time. This involves choosing what ship to mine in, what modules to fit to it, and what skills to train; see those links for more details.

Do not forget to include Hauling time into your profitability computations. There may be different strategies involving Compression or lack of such, Refining ore or selling it in raw form, selling locally or in Jita, hauling yourself or paying someone to do it.

Compression

The Rorqual, backbone of null-sec mining operation, released with a signature ability known as the ore compression, which is now available to Orca and Porpoise too.
Main article: Compression

Raw ores are very large items and they take a lot of cargo space to haul. The compression offers to convert raw ore into compressed ore which allows to save valuable cargo-space, extended operation time for mining fleets, and more hauling capabilities for haulers. There are two ways of compression: visiting an Upwell Structure with Reprocessing Service online which is available to you, or using a nearby Industry Command Ship with a compressor activated.

Mercoxit mining

Any ore mining module can mine any type of ore, with one exception: Mercoxit, the rarest ore type (and only source of Morphite minerals), which is found only in nullsec systems and can only be mined with Deep Core mining modules (any module with "deep core" in its name). In order to use these modules you need to train Icon skillbook2.png Deep Core Mining, and whilst they can be used to mine other types of ore, they are less efficient at it than "normal" mining modules.

Mercoxit mining has one other notable feature: when you mine a Mercoxit asteroid, it will randomly release a cloud of toxic gas which will damage your ship if you're caught in it. Fortunately, the cloud only forms within 5 km of the asteroid, so keep your ship further away to escape any damage (note that this precludes you from using the basic Deep Core Mining Laser I module, as it has a maximum range of only 5 km). Additionally, you can train Icon skillbook2.png Deep Core Mining, which reduces the chance of a cloud forming by 10% per skill level - in other words, at Deep Core Mining V, only half the amount of clouds will spawn when you mine Mercoxit.

Ice and gas harvesting

In addition to ore, ice and gas can also be harvested. While the actual harvesting mechanics are fairly similar, the ships, equipment, and locations differ significantly from mining ore. (Further details can be found in ice harvesting and gas cloud harvesting.)

Ships

Main article: ORE Basic Ship and Skill Overview

There are three types of ships used in mining: a mining ship, a hauler and a mining support ship.

Mining ships

The Venture, an entry-level dedicated mining frigate.

The best option for a new miner is to train into the Venture, a dedicated ORE mining frigate (before the Retribution expansion, each race had its own mining frigate, but this is no longer the case). The Venture is given out for free by the industrialist career agents. The Venture is a mini mining barge with a substantial mining hold (which minimizes travel to stations to unload ore), very good mining yield and built-in warp core stabilization (which makes it easier to escape from hostile ships).

After a week's training, a budding miner should have the necessary skills to fly a mining barge, which have more than double the mining yield of a Venture, as well as even larger mining holds and/or a stronger tank. These ships are also more expensive (15-40M ISK, plus modules), but given that a Venture can mine about 500-700k ISK worth of ore per full mining hold, this money is soon earned. There are three different mining barges, each with a different focus (see table below).

The last word in mining ships are the exhumers (Tech II variants of the mining barges). These ships require many more skills to fly, and are even more expensive, but have even greater mining yield, mining hold space and/or tank than the mining barges. Additionally, miners can train into the Prospect and the Endurance, improved variants of the Venture which are designed for covert mining in dangerous areas of space and ice mining, respectively.

Before the Retribution expansions, players often used cruisers or battleships as mining ships, but these ships are no longer competitive with mining barges and exhumers.

Haulers and support ships

A hauler's purpose is to take the ore that has been mined from a mining ship and transport it back to a refining station or to the market. Hauling is normally done in an hauler or a freighter.

Finally, a mining support ship can either come in the form of a security detail against rats and players looking to steal ore, or as a ship designed to provide mining efficiency bonuses. The ultimate mining support ships are the Orca and Rorqual, of which only the Orca can enter high-security space and fit through normal stargates.

Ship Type Ship Use
Frigate Venture Low yield, tank and mining hold compared to specialized ships. Greater agility and speed. Is cheap and takes minimal training.
Expedition Frigate Prospect Improved (but much more expensive) variant of the Venture. Can fit a Covert Ops cloaking device and Ice Miners.
Endurance Specialized version of the Venture, bonuses towards ice mining.
Mining Barge Procurer Specializes in defense (shield tank and drone damage).
Retriever Specializes in mining hold capacity.
Covetor Specializes in ore yield.
Exhumer Skiff Specializes in defense (shield tank and drone damage).
Mackinaw Specializes in mining hold capacity.
Hulk Specializes in ore yield.
Support Command Ships Can fit Command Bursts modules and provide security.
Industrial Command Ship Porpoise Cruiser sized ship, bonuses towards Command Bursts, has considerable cargo room, can compress asteroid ore and gas for self and fleet member.
Orca Battleship sized ship, bonuses towards Command Bursts, has considerable cargo room, can compress all types of ore for self and fleet member.
Capital Industrial Ship Rorqual Capital ship, cannot enter in high-sec, bonuses towards Command Bursts, can compress all types of ore for self and fleet member.

Skills

Basic skills

These skills are the bread and butter of any miner and should be trained up to level IV reasonably quickly (primarily for the increased mining yield, but Mining IV in particular is a prerequisite to many other mining-related skills). However, note that these skills only increase the yield for ore mining!


Specialty mining skills

These skills are only relevant if you want to expand from basic ore mining to Mercoxit, ice, or gas cloud harvesting.

Asteroid Ore reprocessing skills

  • Simple Ore Processing (3x): +2% per skill level to veldspar, scordite, pyroxeres, plagioclase and mordunium reprocessing yield.
  • Coherent Ore Processing (6x): +2% per skill level to omber, kernite, jaspet, hemorphite, hedbergite and ytirium reprocessing yield.
  • Variegated Ore Processing (9x): +2% per skill level to gneiss, dark ochre and crokite reprocessing yield.
  • Complex Ore Processing (11x): +2% per skill level to bistot, arkonor, spodumain, eifyrium and ducinium reprocessing yield.
  • Mercoxit Ore Processing (5x): +2% per skill level to mercoxit reprocessing yield.
  • Abyssal Ore Processing (12x): +2% per skill level to bezdnacine, rakovene and talassonite reprocessing yield.

Moon ore reprocessing skills

These skills are important if you wish to reprocess your own ores, and they unlock access to mining crystals which massively boost mining yield when fitted to appropriate mining harvester modules.

Spaceship command skills

In addition to letting you fly the mentioned ships (which only needs level I), training higher ranks of these skills greatly enhance their respective ships. For instance, the Venture gains +5% mining yield per level of the Mining Frigate skill - which is on top of the bonuses provided by Mining and Astrogeology! So if you've found a ship you like, train the corresponding spaceship command skill to make it even better.


Upgrade module skills

  • Mining Upgrades (4x): Required for fitting and using Mining Upgrades. Requires Mining III.

As mining lasers and mining upgrades are CPU-hungry, training CPU Management will make it easier to fit your ship.


Drone skills

  • Drones (1x): Increases number of drones in space by 1 per level, for a maximum of five drones in space at level V.
  • Drone Interfacing (5x): Increases drone damage and mining drone yield by 10% per level. Requires Drones V.
  • Mining Drone Operation (2x): Increases mining drone yield by 5% per level. Requires Drones I.
  • Mining Drone Specialization (5x): Further increases mining drone yield by 2% per skill level and unlocks T2 mining drones.

Mining ships use drones both for defense and increased mining yield. The Drones skill is the foundation skill and should be eventually trained up to V (once you start flying Exhumers it's highly recommended, and valuable even before). To use drones defensively, train up Light Drone Operation, whilst mining drones need Mining Drone Operation. Drone Interfacing is somewhat of a long train, but even getting it to level IV makes a big difference in how effective your drones are. Advanced Drone Avionics is only needed if you plan to use ECM drones, and the drone specialization skills are needed when you start using Tech II drones. For more details on how drones work, see drones.


Fleet Support skills

These skills become highly desirable once pilots start flying Orcas or Rorquals, and want to run mining fleets (and provide mining boosts to your fleet members). For more details on how fleets and Command Bursts work, see Command Bursts.


Other skills

  • Almost all the mining ships are shield tanked, so shield tanking skills are useful to make them less vulnerable to ganking.
  • General fitting skills will improve the PG and CPU output of your ship allowing better fits.

If you are still short on CPU, Electronics Upgrades allow you to fit co-processor modules (which increase your ship's CPU further). Mining upgrade modules increase your mining yield, while drone augmentor rigs increase the yield of mining drones.

Implants

A number of implants can improve a miner's performance, such as increasing mining yield, increasing laser range, or decreasing the CPU penalty for mining upgrade modules. For details on these implants, see implants and skill hardwiring implants ("Industry" implants).

Mining strategies

Bookmarks

An example of mining bookmarks in an asteroid belt

When you warp to an asteroid belt, you will land in the middle of a semicircle of asteroids about 50 km in diameter. Since the (unboosted) range of mining lasers is only 10 km (15 km for strip miners), you will then need to fly closer to your target asteroid in order to mine it - and mining ships are not particularly known for their speed. You can cut down on this travel time by using bookmarks, which allow you to warp directly next to an asteroid, and start mining immediately. If you're using mining drones, it's particularly important to be close to your target asteroid, as the drones have to otherwise spend a lot of time traveling back and forth between your ship and the asteroid.

It can be helpful to create bookmarks in the asteroid belts you mine in frequently. While there are many different approaches to creating these bookmarks, the picture on the right shows a simple example: warp to an asteroid belt in a fast ship (e.g. a shuttle or a frigate), and create three bookmarks along the perimeter of the belt. Position them in such a way that most of the belt is within 15 km (the range of a strip miner) of any of the three bookmarks. Then, switch to your mining ship, and warp directly to one of the three bookmarks. You will then have a large selection of asteroids within range of your lasers, and be able to efficiently use mining drones on the closest ones. If a part of the belt is depleted, warp to a nearby celestial (e.g. a planet) and then warp back to one of the other bookmarks in the belt.

When mining in NULL sec space it is extremely important to create a couple of tactical bookmarks around the asteroid/ice belt that you should warp to first. When you are in a large mining ship the align and warp speed can mean that hostile pilots can appear in local and beat you to the belt before you get there. By warping to the tactical bookmark first you are giving yourself a chance to warp away to a safe spot or station before the hostile pilot can get a lock on you.

Survey scanner

The results of a survey scan. Note the different kinds of asteroid which make up this asteroid belt, and the different amounts of ore in each.

The survey scanner (a mid-slot module) is a very useful tool for any asteroid miner, as it shows how much ore each asteroid in the vicinity contains. This is important, as asteroid mining modules (mining lasers and strip miners) will always complete an entire cycle (60s for mining lasers, 180s for strip miners), irrespective of how much ore is actually left in the asteroid.

For instance, say you are mining an asteroid that contains 200 units of Veldspar (Veldspar has a volume of 0.1 m3 per unit, so this asteroid contains 20 m3 of Veldspar). Your Mining Laser I has a yield of (say) 100 m3/min, and a cycle time of 60 seconds. Even though there are only 20 m3 of Veldspar left in the asteroid, the module will complete its entire 60 second cycle before shutting off (with a message saying "the asteroid is depleted") - but those 60 seconds of mining only yielded 20 m3 of ore (instead 100 m3)! The problem becomes even worse when using strip miners, as they have a much higher yield and a cycle time three times as long - which can result in a lot of wasted time if you're mining asteroids that don't contain much ore.

Therefore, when mining, refresh the survey scanner window from time to time (it does not refresh automatically, you need to reactivate the survey scanner module) to check whether the asteroid(s) you are mining are close to depletion. If an asteroid is almost empty, you can "short cycle" your mining laser (i.e. turn it off manually before it completes its full cycle, by clicking on it) to mine out the last dregs of ore before moving on to another asteroid. Note that each time you activate your mining laser it takes energy from your ship's capacitor; activate it too often and you might empty your capacitor and have to wait a moment for it to recharge.

You can target asteroids directly from the survey scanner window (much like the asteroids in the overview); this can be a useful shortcut to help you mine the particular asteroid you're interested in. A little marker shows you which asteroids you are targeting (note that, just like the rest of the information, this is only refreshed when you refresh the survey scanner window).

Appraising an Asteroid Belt

Survey scanners can be used to provide the approximate value of an asteroid belt with the help of 3rd party appraisal tools. This activity is relatively easy when in a fleet that provides range bonuses to Survey Scanner. Without range boosts an estimate can be done by scanning one area of the belt at a time and removing duplicate asteroid entries before submitting.

Steps to get an estimate

  1. Move into a position where the Survey Scanner range-indicator overlaps all the asteroids to be appraised
  2. Perform Survey Scan by clicking on the module's icon or appropriate hotkey
  3. Expand any category of ore in the Survey Scanner Results window that is collapsed (ores in collapsed categories do not get copied)
  4. Copy the results from the Survey Scanner Results window:
    1. Click on any item in the window to select it
    2. Press CTRL+A to select all items
    3. Press CTRL+C to copy
  5. Submit the values into a 3rd party appraisal tool like Janice

Buy values in Jita or one of the other trade hubs would be the closest estimate to actual returns from an immediate sale of the ore.

Avoiding threats

Nowhere in EVE is safe as soon as you undock your ship. You consent to PvP no matter where you go as soon as you undock.

Highsec

In highsec, the main threat will be suicide gankers. Suicide gankers typically act in groups, trying to find vulnerable and/or valuable mining ships and attempting to destroy them before Concord shows up. Then a neutral pilot will come in and scoop the remains of your wreck. You're less likely to have your pod destroyed, as doing so hits the offending pilot with a large security standing penalty, but it can still happen, so warping out immediately is recommended.

Popular ganking ships include:

  • Catalyst: Most popular suicide ganking ship. Relatively inexpensive and good DPS.
  • Coercer: Often used to take down ships with sturdy shields due to decent amount of EM damage which shields are usually weaker to.
  • Talos: Usually used against big and/or tanky targets due to its high DPS against larger ships. Relatively expensive compared to other options.

To avoid suicide ganking:

  • Equip your mining ships with defensive modules. The more EHP your ship has, the more ships it takes for a group of suicide gankers to take down your ship. It also makes it less financially motivational for them to attack you.
  • Don't equip expensive faction or officer modules on your ship. This makes you a juicy target by increasing the financial incentive to suicide gank your ship. T2 modules are more than appropriate for most needs.
  • Mine further away from trade hubs, as this makes it less likely for a suicide ganker or a scout to spot your ship in the first place.
  • Don't mine while away from the keyboard. Dock if you must leave the keyboard unattended.
  • Set negative standings for known suicide ganker pilots/corporations/alliances. If you see someone or a group appear in local with negative standings, dock up as soon as possible.

Other threats:

  • If you're enrolled in faction warfare, then the opposing faction can freely attack you with no consequences, even in highsec as long as you are enrolled.
  • If your corporation is at war with another corporation, the hostile corporation can freely attack you with no consequences for the duration of the war. This is more rare nowadays since corporations need a structure to be war eligible and the practice of holding corporations for structures pretty much voids this risk.
  • ♢ pirates can appear in asteroid belts if there is a pirate stronghold present in the system. These rats can call other ♢ combat rats as reinforcements that can disrupt/scram your warp drive. You can check the presence of a pirate stronghold using your directional scanner.
  • ♢ NPC miners can appear in asteroid belts. If you have low enough standings to the NPC corporation, they'll be hostile to you and call combat ♢ NPCs as reinforcements that can disrupt/scram your warp drive. You can warp out safely as soon as you spot them, but delaying will likely result in you losing your ship.
  • Normal NPC pirates aren't much of a threat, but with enough time they can potentially destroy your ship (depending on fittings) and assist pilots in destroying your ship. Drones can take care of them easily.
  • Triglavians can be a problem if you have no/low standings with them. EDENCOM similarly can be an issue if your standings are low enough.
Lowsec

In lowsec, pretty much anyone can attack you for a relatively small standing penalty (Concord won't intervene). Gate and station guns will shoot at pilots that attack you unprovoked, but they can be tanked and thus not be a good deterrent. Gate camps are fairly common. Smartbombers can be an issue if you use smaller ships. You'll often see people deploy covert cynos to drop a group of enemy pilots on you.

Avoiding ganks:

  • Definitely use the directional scanner to gather intel on locals and spot threats.
  • Learn the locals. Find out who attacks other people unprovoked and ships they typically use. Find out who snitches your position too if it happens.
  • Equip a cloaking device and try to mine on the opposite side of the asteroids, with enough distance so you can immediately cloak in case someone appears in the system.
  • Stay away from systems near highsec, as these have a lot of traffic and you can easily be scouted.
  • Avoid popular paths through lowsec, for the same reasons as above. Best to pick dead-end systems off the main travelled paths.
  • Mine while nobody is present in the system, or only if you're sure the locals are of no threat to you. If someone shows up, cloak or dock.
  • Don't leave wrecks hanging around as their presence can betray your purpose in the system. If people see wrecks in an asteroid belt or ore anomaly, they can think you're there mining and persist in trying to find you. Either salvage or destroy them.
  • Try to be wary of where people are and were in the system. People can log out in a belt and login later to catch you unaware.

Avoiding gate camps:

  • Use third-party utilities to find gate camps. Note that these third party tools won't have knowledge of gate camps if you're the first person to encounter one.
  • Alternatively you can check ship/pod kill statistics for systems in your route.
  • If you have an alt, you can make them jump ahead of you to spot gate camps.

Other threats:

  • Normal NPC pirates start fielding destroyers up the battleships the lower the security of the system descends.
  • Mordu Commanders can rarely spawn in the asteroid belts and can warp disrupt.
  • Clone Soldiers can rarely spawn in the asteroid belts.
  • Triglavians can be a problem if you have no/low standings with them. EDENCOM similarly can be an issue if your standings are low enough.
Sovnull

Mining in sovnull is usually done if you've the backing of the sovereignty holder or its allies. Hostiles will usually be neutral pilots or enemies of your sovereignty holder. Warp disrupting bubbles can be deployed.

Sovnull systems are lawless, so there is no consequence for attacking another pilot.

NPC null

Warp disrupting bubbles can be deployed.

NPC null systems are lawless, so there is no consequence for attacking another pilot.

Other threats:

  • Normal NPC pirates can show up in battleships or more lethal ships.
Wormholes

In wormholes, other pilots aren't shown in local unless they have recently sent a message. The only way to spot other players is to use the directional scanner, or if they appear in your grid. Warp disrupting bubbles can be deployed.

Wormholes are lawless, so there is no consequence for attacking another pilot.

Other threats:

  • Sleepers typically spawn once per day in each ore anomaly after 20 minutes or so of the first pilot entering the site for that day. In higher classes of wormholes, sleepers can warp disrupt/scram. Once the sleepers have been destroyed, they do not respawn until the next day (after the maintenance).
Pochven

In the Pochven regions, other pilots aren't shown in local unless they have recently sent a message. The only way to spot other players is to use the directional scanner, or if they appear in your grid.

Other threats:

  • Triglavians can be a problem if you have no/low standings with them. EDENCOM similarly can be an issue if your standings are low enough.

Solo mining

The Hulk: sucking asteroid belts dry since 2003

Mining hold mining

The most basic way to mine is to fill the mining hold of a ship full of ore and then return to a station to drop it off. Its advantages are that it requires only one character, can be done at very low skill levels and is completely theft-proof. Its disadvantage is that the time you spend traveling to and from a station is wasted (i.e. not spent mining) - however, most mining ships (with the notable exception of the Covetor and the Hulk) have large enough mining holds that they do not need to return frequently to a station to unload.

As an example: An average-skilled miner flying a Venture can mine about 250 m3/min of ore, which is enough to fill the Venture's mining hold (5000 m3) in about 20 minutes. Given that the Venture aligns and warps like a frigate, round trips to a station will take only a minute or two, so very little time is lost. A highly-skilled miner flying a Hulk, on the other hand, can mine about 1600 m3/min of ore, which will fill the Hulk's mining hold (11,500 m3) in about 7 minutes, requiring frequent return trips to a station (made longer by the slow align time and warp speed of the Hulk).

(Note: Prior to the Retribution expansion, cargohold mining was very unprofitable, as the cargo holds of non-industrial ships were so small that they filled up too rapidly. However, with the introduction of dedicated mining holds on all mining ships, this is no longer the case.)

Jetcan and GSC mining

Players can jettison items from their holds into space, which results in a cargo container (more commonly called a "jetcan" or just a "can") forming within 2,500 m of the ship. This jettisoned container has a volume capacity of 55,000  m3. Miners can take advantage of this capacity by transferring the ore in their mining hold into the jetcan. Typically a player will fill a jetcan with ore, and then (once the jetcan is full) swap to a ship with a larger mining/cargo hold (most often an hauler) and haul the ore to a nearby station.

If you're flying a mining ship with a mining hold that's considerably smaller than a jetcan (such as a Venture (5,000  m3 mining hold) or a Covetor (9,000  m3 mining hold)), this method can increase your efficiency, as you can spend more time mining and less time hauling. As all other mining ships have mining holds which are as large or larger than a jetcan (in addition to the time lost in changing ships and the risk of getting your ore stolen), using jetcans is probably not worth your time. They do, however, come in very handy if you're mining with two accounts or in a fleet (see below).

Note that jetcans only have a lifespan of 2 hours and they are not secure, meaning anyone can open and remove items from a jetcan. This is a common form of theft and griefing in the game, where a player will "flip" a jetcan either to steal the ore or to induce a fight without CONCORD intervention. While it's possible to combat this by using secure containers (which can be programmed with a password), the largest of these (the giant secure container, often called a GSC) can only hold 3,900 m3 of ore, which is less than the mining hold on even the smallest mining ship (although using them was a commonly-used practice in the past when mining ships had much smaller cargo holds).

A better alternative to GSCs are mobile tractor units. They have nearly as much capacity as a jetcan, are unable to be accessed by random people, and have a decay of 2 days. They also suck in and store any ore a miner might jetcan into a safer place. A mining barge can store 3 MTUs and deploy them for a temporary total of 81,000m3 of extra space. This allows for a large amount of time to be saved from station mining, as a miner instead of having to dock up can just jetcan the ore to be stored for later.

Dual account mining

If you have two EVE accounts, you can multibox them (i.e. play them on one computer simultaneously). One of these can mine while the other one flies a hauler to drop the mined ore at a nearby station. The miner transfers the mined ore into a jetcan or a GSC (see above) which is then picked up by the hauler. This way, the miner can mine non-stop, obtaining more ore. Eventually, the hauler character could train towards an Orca (to provide mining boosts to the miner, further increasing yield), while the miner character is free to train and fly ships like the Hulk, which have very high mining yield but small mining holds.

See Creating an Alt Hauler and Creating an Alt Miner for tips on creating these alternate characters.

Cooperative mining

Main article: Mining Fleets
The Orca: the easiest way to make yourself loved by miners.

A standard mining fleet in high security space generally includes a mix of mining barges, exhumers, and haulers. The miners will work on a single belt constantly and transfer the ore they mine into a jetcan. The haulers will ferry the resources from space to a station. This makes for increased proficiency as the mining lasers never need to stop unless you need to switch belts. Fleet boosters are usually present here as well, and an Orca may be used instead of a jetcan. Mining fleets in low-sec will also include combat ships to protect the fleet against rats and hostile players.

Splitting the ISK

Since all the ore is combined into a single pot (and often refined and sold later), you need to agree on a method of splitting the proceeds from the mining fleet between the participants. Since a fleet often includes not only miners with different skill levels flying different ships, but also fleet boosters, haulers, combat ships etc, the simplest way to split the ISK proceeds is to allocate them based on time spent in the fleet; however, this might discourage larger ships from joining the fleet. Various spreadsheets or web applications such as eveminingfleet.ovh can accommodate several different methods of weighing the contributions of fleet members. Whichever way you choose, make sure that the method of splitting the ISK is agreed upon by the fleet before the mining op starts.

Mining fleets in the Uni

Periodically, the Uni will undertake a large-scale, long-duration mining operation. These expeditions are planned and announced several weeks in advance to allow for adjustment of training schedules, acquisition of desired ships and fittings, and research/scouting of the target system and surrounding space. Because of the travel involved and the length of planned stay, expedition locations generally provide opportunities for mission/complex running as well.

The Expedition Boss for a particular expedition will publish the rules for that expedition, including record keeping requirements for any Common Can portions, rules for interaction with locals and what happens to the ore mined.

Such fleets are often run to donate minerals to the University, with the added bonus of attempting to break the record for the previous donation fleet.

Mining fleets are generally more relaxed than combat fleets, co-operative mission running or complex clearing. Chat and/or Mumble deal with a wider variety of topics and separating the required tasks to specialists provides everyone time to participate in the conversations. Not only does this atmosphere provide a social element of connection with the other members, but it also lets the "teaching" move beyond mining to cover a myriad of subjects.

See also

External links

References

  1. ^ Patch notes: Version 20-11 release 2022-12-13.1 > Features & Changes > Science & Industry.
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Mining
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