Any tips for going deeper into the mine quickly?

I'm struggling to explore the mine. I got the game yesterday and I'm already on fall. But I'm only on 15 floors down. Is that normal or should I be deeper by now? I guess it's partially my fault because I don't go to the mines everyday because I don't like being attacked by monsters when I'm trying to find the stairs . Also for me, finding the stairs can be tedious when it doesn't just automatically appear on the first few tries. Also I get low on energy and health and have to go before I pass out. And this thing happens on certain floors where it turns green and these flying bug monsters start attacking me,,, Is that supposed to happen? Is it luck based?

Any tips for making exploring the mine easier and quicker? I just wanna complete that goal where you have to go 40 freaking floors down...like seriously, first you had to go down about five or so, and now the game is telling you "hey, go down all the way to 40 floors even though you just started". /i feel like it should be like, 5 floors, then 15, then 25, and so on. That's just my thought on it,,,if you even understand what I'm rambling on about.

 

I posted this on another thread, and you might find it helpful:
http://community.playstarbound.com/threads/mining-help.116627/#post-2933571

To this previous advice I would also ask what weapon you're using, and if you're at a point financially and combat-level wise to be able to get a better one from the Guild.

Cave Fly swarms are perfectly normal and your luck has no influence on running into one. If you get a swarm (And deeper in the mines you'll get swarms of other critters, too), just get into the open where you can turn quickly to defend and attack. Walls are no protection against flying monsters, sadly.

 

1) Salmonberries. They sell for crap, but they restore a good bit of health and energy, and you get a TON of them mid-spring, when you are likely making your mine-dive. Save them, eat them, you'll get further in the mines.

2) Upgrade your pick. No, seriously. If your focus is going to be on mining, you *NEED* a copper pick soon.

3) once you kill ten slimes, the adventurer's guild has gear you can purchase, depending on how far you've gone. Early on, it's crap and a trap. Just go with what you find, either from random mob drop or from the chest at level 20.

 

I don't have much to add to what's already been said, but I will say I was also terrified of the mines when I first started playing. Every time Sebastian gave me something he'd found in the mines I was SO thankful because there was no way I was going down there to get it myself. lol
The problem is that you basically get the crappiest weapon ever to start with, and fighting things off when they start swarming you is next to impossible. Add to that a low energy limit and time passing by way too fast, and mining is one great big NOPE. So, when you are able to, go see Marlon at the Adventurer's Guild and get the best weapon you can afford. You will be rewarded with better gear as you go further down, but sometimes the boosts these things give you aren't much so it's better to just go buy the sword you want. Pay more attention to the damage points for each one vs. the speed, weight etc. You'll eventually work your way up to a really good weapon and by then, mining is a breeze because you can kill most enemies with just a couple hits.
Unfortunately, once you reach level 40 the game is then going to challenge you to get all the way to the bottom, but the good news is there is a bottom! lol And you'll get better stuff the further down you go.

 

You shouldn't worry about how far you should be. There's no time limit to the game, just enjoy whichever activities you want c:

 

heres a couple tips for you, courtesy of drakkov farms. first off, i usually mine in the winter (for obviose reasons) and on rainy days or what i like to call "free days", i suggest doing the whole thing for the adventurers guild, and i suggest smashing crates and barrels in hope of geting the semi-rare wooden mallet witch is real good for defending thyns self, other than that wear any boots you find, ant try to avoid monsters, rather than fighting em, unless your high enough leveled, also i suggest leveling up your mining atleast high enough to get the miner's treat recipe, and make plenty of those, thank you. oh and if you jut wanna speed thru levels than farm stone and make a shit ton of the stone stairway thingys

also i suggest taking your time and collecting materials rather than rushing thru, also the green thing is not a bug its a random occurance and its a bitch to fight off i know, i suggest either running or fighting back with a sword

hey btw can anybody add on some tips on how to reach level 20-something in the skull cave of death and misery so i can please that sonnavabitch in the casino. also dont fucking tell me im the only one who had to go on the wiki to figure out what giving the sand dragon his last meal was

 

Just one thing to add. Once you reach level 40 the quest changes to telling you to reach the bottom of the mines, which is looooooong way further down.

So, there's no urgency on completing these quests. Only the ones from the board outside Pierre's shop or occasionally the mail have time limits and clearly state what the time limit is. If there's no time limit stated then do not worry about when you get it done... just enjoy the game.

p.s. just a thought: you are using the lift to go down to where you've been before instead of starting at the top again?

 

Update: ok so I'm on 2nd of winter now and I'm on the 20th floor. I found a better sword. I don't really like to go down in the mines for some reason...I just don't like the place. But if I'm feel determined (lol obvious undertale reference is obvious) I can manage to get down to the next floor with the elevator...so basically I think it's just going to take me a while because I'm lazy and I just don't like the mines. But Your tips have helped.

 

well, im glad you were able to progres

 

I find the first levels of the mines the hardest ones, soon that you have acess to the iron (LV45 I think) the others levels will go like a breeze.
Also, the best way to advance in any cavern (or skull cavern) in this game is using:



Bombs!

 

Update: I'm on the 30th floor and it's super dark, is there a way to light it up?

 

yes, you can place torches along your way, or brake crates and kill the ring slimes to get the glow ring

 

If you find a torches on the ground you can pick those up as well, and if you carry one it'll light the area around you. Not quite as good as a glow-ring but it's better than nothing.

Also, I think if you ignore those stone golums they won't bother you, just don't get too close.

 

Take note of what you find in the way of ores as you progress down. These tend to cluster on certain levels. If you need more of a given ore, you can always backtrack where you've been before, and find fresh ore deposits.

Also, early on in the mines, field snacks are your friend. They're easy to create, and give a slight but decent amount of health and energy. Maple bars are far better, however, so once you get the tapper, that's a route to consider.

 

Cheese is an amazing cave-diving food. Gold-star cheese (from large milk) gives more energy and more health than the health elixir you can make at higher levels of Combat. Takes a bit to get going, though.

I second the previous statements about a Glow Ring. Find one, put it on, never look back. Until then, you can grab torches with your pickaxe and place them in a more convenient location.

30-40 is good for farming copper. Even later on, when I need copper, I head to 30, work down to 40, and if I'm not done yet, take the elevator back up to 30 and start over again.

 

Just take it slow. If you don't have upgraded pickaxe and a nice sword, just go 5 by 5 floors. Enter the mine, go up 5 floors, get to the next elevator then go home. You'll get better equipment naturally as you progress and will be able to do more in a day.

Try to take food to the mines. As Shneekey said cheese is an awesome food for the mines, even the regular one, but if you don't have cheese most of the forageables are good also. Also you can befriend linus, get the maki roll recipe, put on some fishtraps and get some seaweed from sea fishing and just get a lot of sashimi. It's the easiest(early on) food to get in my opinion (aside from raw fish, wich is really easy to get and early on).

If the auto pause is on just put the food in a way that you can quickly access it. If you get surrounded by monsters just press esc(the game will pause), press the key for the food(while on pause) and when you press esc again just spam the right click and you should eat before anything happens. This way you'll never die if you have food.

If you are not very good with the weapons and get a green (monster) floor just leave and try again tomorrow. It's faster, you don't lose a lot of your progress(4 floors max) and you save your resources.

Get the iron pickaxe ASAP. Its not hard nor expensive and will make your life much easier on the mines (it'll save you a lot of energy and time).

And try to go to the mines on lucky days. On lucky days you'll be less likely to find monster floors and the stair will appear more often.

 

Watch for days when your luck is really great, and go to the mines. Very bad luck days translate into levels where there's endless combat and no rewards (other than the standard improvement to combat skill). Great luck days may mean levels where there's next to no combat and lots of loot. Most of us have seen both. Just recently, my relatively new character hit a great luck day on level 29, and found about 20 chests/barrels and a green slime in one room: 5 hardwood, three coal, and a small glow ring. So it's worth keeping an eye on that.

Periodically check out the Adventurer's Guild for new weaponry. I find that speed is an important factor, but others have their own preferences.

Keep track on every level of where the exit is, and the time. You don't want to be caught too far away from it too late, for obvious reasons.

If the combat spawning on a given level is annoying and you're only down a level or two from your last elevator stop, consider going back and down again. Unless it's an extremely bad luck day the monsters may spawn at different locations.

If you don't have a kitchen, grab forage for a quick pick-me-up. Salmonberries are great for this in spring. And splurge on a few salads from Gus, when things really get out of hand. If you have the basic farm layout you can easily create plenty of field snacks after grabbing Foraging 1, but on some of the newer maps there just aren't enough maples and oaks to manage it (the Hilltop, in particular).

Carry around a set of stairs. When time gets low and you're one level from getting to the next elevator stop, you'll be glad you did.

 

What everyone above has said.

Also, I'd add for future reference -- try starting on the Wilderness map. The monsters that spawn there (golems, bats, and slime) can be fought off with the scythe at first. They won't count toward your Adventurer's Guild goals, but they will raise your combat level.

No one above has mentioned this, but try to get down to the next elevator level each time you go and don't try to go beyond that unless it's fairly early in the day and you have plenty of food.

 

Try and go on rainy days, or days when you just have a lot of energy left. You'll need it, especially if your mining level's low and/or your pickaxe is weak.

If you haven't noticed yet, some of the floors have mine tracks on them. Often, at the end of the tracks, where there's a minecart with coal, there'll be an "open" way down (not covered by a rock), so go to the very end and you'll find the way down pretty often. I'm not sure if this is true for the levels that have a backpack with coal instead.

From what I can tell, on floors that end with 5, the stairs are usually close to the elevator.

If you need the items, put a chest or two by the elevator. Once you reach a floor with an elevator, go back up and deposit your items so that if you faint, you won't lose them.

If you're into fishing, keep the bug meat, as well, since you can make bait out of it.

If you haven't already noticed, the different weapon groups have different qualities. Swords are quick and have a wide radius, clubs are slow (you have to wait a second or two to hit again) and have a wide radius, and daggers are very quick but only hit what's right in front of you. I've never used slingshots, so I don't know about them.

Finish the boiler room (minecarts) ASAP, if you haven't already, since it makes getting back SO much easier and quicker.

Imo, the Ring of Yoba is basically useless. You'll be invincible, but only if the skill activates, which it rarely does, and only for a short time. If you can find one, go with a Vampire Ring instead.

 

I usually finish all 120 levels on my first season. Despite this fact, I'm also in the group that doesn't enjoy mining as much as the weapon progression is rather terrible if you have no starting cash flow. However, I feel that getting your mining done is very important. Unlocking mine carts makes your travels to town amazingly fast, the tool upgrades are very important, crafting is required for many community center items, and sprinklers cut down a lot of watering time so you can enjoy other aspects of the game that isn't watering crops. Here are some tips that might help you.

- Bring food. You're going to moving at a snails pace if you have no way of recovering energy. This is especially true if you're late in the game when you have tons of crops to water everyday. Best seasons to do mining is during spring when you have spring onions and salmon berrys. Fall is also good during black berry season. Winter is when most people suggest you get it done since there's no crops to tend to, but there's also not that much money coming in for food.
- Set goals of multiples of 5. Every 5 floors you get a checkpoint in form of the elevator. If it's late in the night and you've just finished a set of 5, maybe take a break and do some late night fishing to buy more food for the next trip. Of course if you need the ores, feel free to stick around.
- When you hit level 2 mining, consider crafting an emergency staircase. Use this to skip infested floors. Infested floors are set everyday so you can't avoid them by resetting the mine unfortunately. Best way to get through them is to just skip them with stairs. This also saves tons of time as infested floors tend to take the most amount of time depending on your current weapon.
- Stair cases can also be used for getting that last 5th floor for the day if you're running out of time.
- Check the strength of your weapons. Just because you get a weapon late into the game doesn't mean it's better than what you already have. For example the crystal dagger you get on floor 60 is fast, but only deals 6-10 damage and has a small reach. The common lead rod drop is very slow, but deals 18-27 damage and gives you a lot of range to play with. I also find combat more enjoyable when things die in 2 hits opposed to 5.
- Get at least a copper mining pick around the 30-50, the rocks start becoming a pain to get through and eat up your energy.