Guide to Mining

Introduction to Mining

For a job that is primarily out in the frigid, phoron-filled outdoors, mining is a relatively safe, even boring, occupation… depending entirely on where you mine. Still, the entire station is depending on you to bring back those all-important phoron crystals and other minerals. Just follow along with the guidelines given here to keep yourself from becoming lost to the mines.

Mining Operations, the place you will gear up and semi-frequently revisit, is just a short walk west and then north of the Tram Station.

The Workplace

Immediately entering from the Mining Lobby, you will find yourself in Mining Operations. A look to the west will reveal two locked lockers of mining gear, three equipment-laden racks, and a suit cycler while a mining equipment vendor will be located just off to the side.

The room to the east, Mining Storage, contains four ore boxes, an oxygen tank dispenser, and a single O2 canister for refilling tanks -even though one tank will last you for most of five to six hours easily.-

Straight north will be the Processing Room, which is where all your precious ore is converted into much-more-usable sheets to spoil the station with.

Heading through the airlocks to the west, you will find a third locked locker of gear, some washing machines for when if your voidsuit gets torn by an unfortunate accident and leaks phoron into your clothes, various bits of equipment for using the stationary drills, a mechanical toolbox and portable cooling units for synths, chargers for regular and heavy-duty cells, and a box of mining NiFsoft. Just outside of the airlocks leading outside, an Airlock NanoMed waits with a supply of anti-toxin airlock pills and a health analyzer in stock.

Pre-Preparation

First off, you are going to want to make sure you are well-fed. Depending on how you feel about it, overeating means you won’t have to worry about getting hungry out in the mines for a while. Before you ask, yes, co-workers count as pre-preparation rations in a pinch. Also something of note is that one can still eat Liqui-Food or Liqui-Protein rations while wearing a voidsuit helmet unlike most other comestibles, which would require shelter to remove your helmet. As such, picking one up from a SweatMAX vendor or from maintenance is somewhat recommended.

Ideally, you will want to set up the Processing Room’s material processor before you leave just to save you a few moments of button-pushing later on. For information on what ore you can expect to find and what should be done with it, refer to the relevant section of the guide found below.

Assuming you think you’re a bad enough dude to skip past surface mining and right into the Underdark, you might want to grab a backup implant from Medical so they can resleeve you, when something inevitably goes wrong. Even if you opt to play it safe on the surface initially, grabbing an implant before heading down into the Underdark is very strongly recommended!

The Equipment

• Mining Hardsuit and Helmet: Used so you can mine with impunity in the phoron-filled, freezing, resource-rich mountain and what lays below it. The helmet also has a built-in helmet light, useful for seeing more than a few inches in front of you. If you happen to be a species that cannot wear the default humanoid suit, simply feed both voidsuit and helmet through the suit cycler after choosing your species. Also worthy of note is that the Mining voidsuit will protect its wearer from any and all hail damage if fully worn; it will be rather loud, however, (as in, your message window WILL be spammed) so carrying an umbrella is also recommended.
• Breath Mask and Oxygen Tank:So you can have oxygen when mining. Get an O2 tank from the dispenser, and wear it on your suit storage slot. The breath mask is technically optional, however, due to the voidsuit helmet doubling as a breath mask itself.
• Optical Material Scanners: Lets you see where the ore is through all that solid rock. Also allows you to see stray objects and structures like trees and airlocks that are out of your direct line of sight.
• Mining Tools: For tunneling through everything, such as rock or giant rats. The mining drill you start off with is very slow, yet you can get various upgraded drills from Science and high-tech “pickaxes” from the mining equipment vendor.
• Shovel: For gathering sand and striking the earth. You can stick this in your backpack, or just not bother with it and trust the drill technicians to bring in any sand the station may need. Other tools are also capable of digging up sand, such as advanced mining drills, diamond mining drills, and proto-kinetic accelerators.
• Lantern: For seeing in the dark. Despite serving as a decent light source, however, it is prone to running out of charge. For a more reliable static light source, consider using marker beacons.
• Marker Beacons: Little light sources that come in a variety of customizable colors that can be plugged down into the ground and will not run out of charge. In other words, futuristic prism stones.
• Analyzer: A device that can be pinged to scan for ore in the surrounding rock. Inferior in every way to optical material scanners, yet they are better than nothing if you cannot wear a pair.
• Ore Detector: Used to scan for ore resting in the sand underneath your feet, it is a priceless tool for a drill technician or a shaft miner armed with mining charges. You must stand still until the detector gives a reading, or else you have to scan again.
• Mining Satchel: A shaft miner’s best friend, them and every drill technician starts with one in their backpack. Used for a variety of ore-collecting needs, and can hold up to 50 ore nuggets before needing to be emptied. By default, the satchel will pick up as many ore nuggets as it can from a tile if you left-click on the ore with it in your active hand.
• Ore Box: The bigger, hotter sister (or brother) of a shaft miner’s best friend. Whereas the mining satchel can only carry up to 50 ore nuggets at a time, this bad boy can house an absurd amount of the stuff without breaking a sweat. Simply use ore nuggets on it to drop them in, or use a mining satchel on it to dump any ore held within into the box. To unload its contents, simply drag it over to the unloading machine’s input slot or unload it manually through right-clicking. Alas, not even the strongest of shaft miners can bear its massive weight; without a Ripley exosuit to lift it with its hydraulic clamp, one must simply drag it around.
• Crowbar: Every shaft miner and drill technician will start with one of these in their backpack. Used for maintaining and modifying certain equipment, like stationary drills and industrial hardsuits. Also useful for rescuing crew members from a powerless Tram Station.
• Wrench: To secure objects down, specifically the stationary drill.
• Mining Winter Coat and Winter Boots: Almost always optional, even if the winter boots are extremely comfortable, but they will be mandatory for setting foot outside if there are no voidsuits or hardsuits available. Sadly, due to how they lack the airtight seal of proper suits, your clothes will become contaminated with phoron and require a wash after returning to the station. This also means you cannot wear optical material scanners without being blinded! Being limited to the goggles in your emergency internals box, you either need to use Mining NiFsoft or an analyzer to spot ore.
• Portable Suit Cooling Unit: Absolutely essential for any synth miner, hooking this up to your voidsuit will prevent any and all instances of your untimely self-immolating. Without this, a synth’s body heat will steadily build up as they wear the suit, soon leading to higher and higher burn damage. If it is missing, another can be printed up in the Cargo Office’s autolathe.

Gear that will be very handy, yet is not immediately available within Mining Operations:

• Screwdriver: Needed to open the maintenance hatch on the drills. Also generally handy.
• Multitool: Used for cracking the code on the abandoned crates that are occasionally found buried in the mountain and in the Underdark.
• Ripley: These mechs are awesome at mining. A Ripley equipped with a drill and with an ore box loaded up (using the Hydraulic Clamp) mines three squares at a time and automatically picks up any ore gained from the squares. Upgrading it with a diamond drill will let you drill through reinforced walls, etc., but will not actually speed up the mining time.
• Umbrella: Available in your character’s starting loadout should you spend the loadout points on it, this will keep all the pesky elements that come with working outside off of your fancy suit and the upstanding worker inside it. Except for storms; have fun chasing your umbrella. Strong storm winds will rip them from your hands so stay on-top of the weather forecast.
• Industrial Suit Control Module: The most integral part of an industrial hardsuit, it can be bought from the mining equipment vendor for 2000 points and is cripplingly heavy when unpowered. To put it on, take off your backpack and ensure you aren’t wearing anything in your head, hands, or exosuit slots. Put the control module in your backpack slot, navigate to the Hardsuit tab, click Toggle Hardsuit, and wait patiently for it to extend and turn on. Finally, slip your backpack back on in your suit storage slot. The hardsuit comes with a built-in air tank, helmet light, magboots, cooling unit, and camera. The magboots and cooling unit consume the hardsuit’s cell charge when activated, and the camera can be looked through via some consoles when turned on. As for protection, the industrial hardsuit has better radiation resistance than the voidsuit, but less blast resistance; at the same time, it cannot tear like a voidsuit can, and its parts will automatically tighten around a broken bone like a splint would. Very useful for when your fellow shaft miner accidentally shoots you in the chest with their proto-kinetic accelerator. There are also a number of modules that can be slotted into the hardsuit’s control module with the aid of a crowbar, ranging from an arm-mounted diamond drill to optical material scanners embedded directly into your visor.
• Proto-Kinetic Accelerator: A very robust mixture of a mining tool and a ranged weapon with limited reach, the KA fires blasts of kinetic force that break down stone walls and impart blast damage on other targets. It has a limited number of shots, yet it will also recharge over time even if fully emptied. Its effectiveness is also strictly tied to the temperature of the environment it is used in; very little damage will be done at room temperature, yet out in the mines one can be capable of fracturing bones in a single shot with certain upgrades. Several upgrades exist for the KA: range (increases the reach of its shots; stacks), damage (increases the damage dealt per shot; stacks), efficiency (increases the number of shots that can be fired in quick succession before the KA has  to recharge; stacks), tracer rounds (gives the normally invisible shot a white or colorable trail), and Area-of-Effect (lowers damage dealt per shot, yet turns the blast radius from one tile to a 3x3 square originating from where the initial shot hits).
• Surfluid/Luxury Shelter Capsule: These neat little capsules can be activated in your hand and thrown into an open area; after a short waiting period, clouds of smoke will start to come out of the capsule should there be enough room to deploy before a fully-stocked shelter pops into existence! The regular shelter capsules do not have much in the way of space or extras, yet they will definitely serve as a good place to treat wounds and lewd co-workers eat per-prepared rations. The luxury shelter capsules, however, come with all of a regular capsule’s amenities and more! Soft carpet, a table lined with a chicken dinner and wine, cozy leather chairs, a working shower, and others. Especially of note are the advanced first aid kit that comes with every luxury shelter for treating organics and charging station for synths. They also make for the perfect dorm away from the dormitories for all your various desires, now with added surprise gaslamp action!

Smashing Rocks like a Pro

Before you embark on a mining adventure, it is highly advised that you obtain a proper mining voidsuit, an oxygen tank, optical material scanners, a mining satchel, and a mining drill. All you need to do is walk up north from Mining Operations and into the surface mines; there, you walk around and look for ore within the walls with your fancy optical scanners. When you find a spot you want to tunnel into, left-click the wall with the mining drill in your hand and wait for the rock to give way. When you have a gathering of ore beside you, click on your mining satchel to pick up any ore in an extended radius by you. Alternatively, you can click the tile with your mining satchel to collect all the ore nuggets on that space. As an alternative to that alternative, if you simply walk over the ore with your satchel in your inventory or pocket, it will automatically pick up the ore you walk on and, if you are dragging an ore box behind yourself, automatically deposit it into said ore box. If you tire of clicking or don’t want to accidentally introduce your macro mining buddy to the business end of a pickaxe, you can also simply walk into rock walls with your mining tool in your off-hand to automatically start mining said walls.

Be forewarned, however, that the mining satchel does not discriminate in what ore-like objects it scoops up, be it from you walking over a pile of ore or clicking on it with the satchel in-hand. Strange rocks, a type of object of interest for Research, are picked up this way and are destroyed if fed through the material processor. As such, take care to store them separately, such as in your backpack, so you can weld them open back in Mining Ops deliver them to Research for examination.

Strange Rocks and Radiation

While digging your shafts and what have you in the mines, you may or may not find a wall covered in brown outcroppings and sporting glowing green cracks. A somewhat uncommon occurrence, these “deposits” will be mainly of interest to Research, for they tend to contain anomalies inside them. Care must be taken around these walls, however, for even regular stone in their vicinity can hide anomalies inside them, and you run the risk of breaking them if you drill into and tear down the stone it’s encased in. If you’re lucky, however, a strange rock will still drop from within… yet, if you’re unlucky and the anomaly is big enough, it will send out a pulse of radiation throughout the entire Z-level before being destroyed. You can tell if you have been afflicted with radiation poisoning if the wall emits a loud, thunderous sound, as well as a sudden weakness and burning sensation.

((Editors note. Anomalies come in all shapes and sizes, so possible danger is not just limited to Radiation. Please show cautious to any anomalies found.)) If irradiated, it is strongly recommended to return to the station as soon as possible, preferably warning Medical in advance that you have radiation poisoning. Due to how radiation poisoning slowly increases the amount of toxins in your system, taking an airlock pill from the vendor by Mining Operations’ airlock is also recommended; said pills contain a mixture of antitoxins and painkillers, helping alleviate nausea and the aforementioned burning.

Mining Tools

Your major source for tools, other than your stationary drill and what the mining equipment vendor can vend, will be Research & Development. The better you keep them supplied, the better their research goes and the more likely it is they'll be able to make you high-level tools. No matter where you get them, some mining implements are better than others.

From slowest to fastest:

1. Mining Drill: Your basic drill. Slow, but you can get it right away.
2. Advanced Mining Drill: Get this from Research. It does not need any special materials from the mines to be made, so it is entirely possible to start the shift with one if R&D is on the ball.
3. Silver Pickaxe: Can be bought from the mining equipment vendor, and makes no metallurgical sense.
4. Sonic Jackhammer: Get this from Research. Twice as fast as the basic drill, it requires silver from the mines. Also guarantees the destruction of anomalies, yet also prevents radiation from being released by those anomalies.
5. Plasma Cutter: Made at Research. As fast as the sonic jackhammer, but smaller and also cuts through walls. Alas, practicality is limited due to chargers tending to be far away.
6. Borg Drill: The drill you start off with if you’re a mining cyborg. It’s faster than a plasma cutter, but not as fast as either diamond tool. Similar to the sonic jackhammer, yet can be upgraded to a diamond mining drill if a scrambled equipment module is used on them.
7. Diamond Pickaxe: Can be bought from the mining equipment vendor, and DOES make metallurgical sense. Mines twice as fast as a plasma cutter.
8. Diamond Mining Drill: The fastest digging tool out there. Research can make you one, but it takes at least one diamond sheet and high-level research.

Ripley APLU 101

If Robotics is kind (insert: functioning), odds are one of the first creations from their lab will be a Ripley APLU for Mining. The machine is typically outfitted with a drill and a hydraulic clamp. Although a good roboticist will quickly explain the features when asked, the Ripley does offer external lighting, life support, and various user-control security measures. To access the APLU's menu, click on the "Exosuit Interface" tab followed by "View Stats." To select your active tool, click on the name under "Equipment." An underline means it is not active. To load a box into the Ripley, click on the box while facing it with your hydraulic clamp active. To mine, walk into the rock wall with your drill active.

Thanks to recent advances in the advanced science of robotics, roboticists have now also discovered the proper way to duct-tape jury-rigged weapons to Ripley APLU mechs. Ever wanted to riddle the Underdark’s various nasties full of holes? Now you can! Simply ask your local roboticist if they can spice up your Ripley with something loud and sloppy, and soon enough you can add giant rats and giant spiders to the rubble you’ll leave behind.

Stationary Drill 101

For most drill functions, you will need a crowbar, wrench, and a screwdriver. At time of writing, the drill is found in three parts - A mining drill head and two mining drill braces. In order to set the drill up, drag all three pieces to the drill site. The mining station has two drills available for use.

As for where that drill site in question will be, you will want to use an ore detector to find a cluster of ore to drill into. The following is a rough list of categories:

• Surface Resources: Hematite, Carbon, Silicates (Sand), and Marble.
• Precious Metals: Lead, Gold, Silver, and Diamond.
• Nuclear Fuel: Pitchblende.
• Exotic Materials: Platinum, Phoron, and Metallic Hydrogen.
• Anomalous Matter: Verdantium.

To set up the drill, place the two braces beside the drill head, and if necessary, turn them so the arms face the drill. Click on the braces with a wrench in your hand to secure them in place. To turn the drill on, click on the drill.

As the drill is powered by a power cell, the occasional change is required. To change, click on the drill head with a screwdriver in your hand. Click on the drill afterwards to remove the power cell. Science can upgrade the drill with bigger power cells.

To empty the drill, place an ore box beside it. Click "Unload Drill" under the "Objects" tab.

The stationary drills can also be upgraded from their basic forms with better parts obtained from Research and, occasionally, abandoned crates. Specifically:

• Matter Bins: Increases capacity.
• Capacitors: Increases power efficiency.
• Micro-Lasers: Increases mining speed, and unlocks ability to unearth additional ore types.
  • Level 2: Marble and Lead.
  • Level 3: Verdantium.
  • Levels 4 and 5: increase mining speed even further, but do not unlock any other ores.

Material Processor 101

Once your ore box is filled up to a satisfactory amount with ore, next comes processing it all. Back in Mining Operations’ Processing Room, the processing line will technically have two places where your ore box can be fed into it: the inbound conveyor belt leading in from outside will automatically place it in front of the line’s unloading machine, or you could place it there manually if you use the airlock to get back inside (though why would you do that; letting in traces of cold air and phoron leads to poor morale and humorous fire hazards). In order to operate the material processor, you need to interact with the production machine console directly in front of it. This is what you use to determine how each type of ore is processed, and, if you use your ID on the console, you can claim any unclaimed points for later redeeming. Do not forget your ID in the console, though, lest you lock yourself in Mining Ops. As for the ore itself...

The Ores

Wall	Raw Ore	Smelted	Compressed	Coin	Door	Name	Uses
		Iron	None	None		Hematite	For use in steelmaking.
				None		Impure silicates	For making glass, which has a plethora of station applications.
			None			Pitchblende	For various radioactive tasks.
		None				Phoron	The reason you're here.
			None			Native gold	For making various electronics.
			None			Native silver	Making mechs and for material research.
		None				Diamond	For making mech parts, among other industrial uses.
			None	None	None	Coal	For use in steelmaking and plastics.
			Osmium	None	None	Platinum	For making osmium or selling to Centcomm via Cargo.
None		Tritium		None	None	Hydrogen	For making tritium fuel or metallic hydrogen for R&D.

The Alloys

Raw Ores	Product	Name	Uses
		Steel	For use in all kinds of tasks around the station.
		Plasteel	An alloy of hematite, platinum and coal, for reinforced tables and reinforced walls, as well as Mech.
		Durasteel	Incredibly tough and also reflective. The inner walls of the AI core are made of this. Reflects Lasers
----------		Borosilicate glass	Used in engineering, for high strength windows in locations such as the super matter engine.

Shipping the Ores

One half of of the main reason why the NSB Adephagia exists is to mine phoron to send back to Central. Although phoron is always in demand with Medical and Science, by shipping phoron back to Central you receive an abundance of cargo points.