Core Mining ULTIMATE GUIDE | Elite Dangerous Mining Guide 2024

Here’s an IN-DEPTH guide on deep core (advanced) mining in Elite: Dangerous, fresh for 2024. Make credits, have fun and BLOW UP ASTEROIDS!! Ship building, techniques and selling are all covered.
Coriolis builds
Cobra III - s.orbis.zone/ni-6
Keelback - s.orbis.zone/ni-7
Asp Explorer - s.orbis.zone/ni-8
Imperial Clipper - s.orbis.zone/ni-9
Krait II - s.orbis.zone/ni-a
Beluga Liner - s.orbis.zone/ni-b
Federal Corvette - s.orbis.zone/ni-c
To find overlapping hotspots:
edmining.com/where-to-mine-in...
Timestamps
0:00 - Intro
0:34 - Shipbuilding
1:36 - Location
3:14 - Getting Started
4:37 - Finding Cores
6:26 - Extracting
9:02 - Collecting
10:00 - Selling
10:10 - Conclusion
This tutorial works on horizons and odyssey, or the 3.8 and 4.0 codebase. This means it can be followed on:
- PC
- Xbox
- PS4/PS5
Dituri’s Elite is a channel about the space sim Elite Dangerous. My aim is to guide people with up-to-date information, as well as focus on the fun and variety this game has to offer.
Oh also, find me at / dituriselite
#elitedangerousgameplay #elitedangerous #elitedangerousodyssey

[@cmdrHeliaxx]

Little tip for the fissures and charges, most of the time you don't really have to concern yourself with the charge of your seismic charge launchers. What works wonders in 99% of cases (there has to be at least 2 low strenght fissures) is to just fire 2 most charged shots at 2 low strength fissures. Many times this will already end with you being in your sweet spot. If not, you just select another high or average strength fissure and just fire at it with no charge at all - just a tap. Sometimes with high strenghts you might have to do this 1 more time. But better safe then sorry imo :D I have found this strategy to be way more reliable then just trying to somehow guess the amount of charge vs fissure what exactly you need.

[@DiturisElite]

Yeah, I use a strat like this when I’m mining myself. I didn’t put it in the video because it would probably make an already complex topic even more confusing! Still, hope people see this comment, or just work it out themselves 🫡

[@r4dios1lence92]

I'm starting to think everyone who does core mining for a while picks that one up alone, because most guides I've found back in the day didn't include, but everyone still knows it. Such a good strat

[@dragshampc1286]

I made billions core mining. That was a year or so ago. Took a break from elite & played that other game. Now I'm back. Gonner use my python. It's already setup hehe. Steep memory muscle curve incoming!

[@DEBANJANNANDAN]

I have been playing Elite Dangerous for 3 years now. It's refreshing to see new guides. Awesome buddy 🎉

[@hybridslinky1772]

Oh fuck you're gonna make me install Elite again !

[@camenecius4922]

I like a core miner with all the mining tools because I love the feeling of wringing every last ounce of material out of a motherlode. There are a few things to do first if you're a mining completionist: laser mine (less than a usual rock) and check for surface and sub-surface deposits of minerals you want--all are only available before you detonate the rock. Mine dangerously (but with shields, always with shields)!

[@samisaarelainen]

Nice touch with the "Elite logo" at 1:30. And a damn good video too. Thanks!

[@Solomon_Grundy]

Awesome guide. Core mining has been one of my favorite activities for a long time in Elite. My personal preference is a Python for a little more internal space than the Krait while keeping it a medium ship.

[@darthhunter69]

I like to use the Python as well

[@smokinggnu6584]

I did as well back when i still played.

[@GeneralArmchair]

The Orca is another great core mining ship. Cargo capacity is a bit lower than a comparable krait, but she's fast and extremely nimble.

[@lanceobe6801]

The Python is my go to mining ship

[@WhoTheLoL]

Very nice guide Dituri. There's so much more to core mining, but your guide covers most of the basics and the advanced stuff pretty well! At least, I haven't seen a more comprehensive guide to date. Ofc there is a lot more that can be added: - Python makes a great core miner, it's like a Krait with some general specs traded for an extra class 6 internal module, meaning 64 extra cargo space. - Density of core asteroids is essentially the same everywhere, i.e. you will see about as many cores within any 100km x 100km sector of any ring anywhere. The hotspot only makes the chance of encountering a core of the hotspot's type slightly higher. - Night Vision helps with visually identifying core asteroids (by shape) and fissures (they become easy to notice with NV at about 300m distance). You won't waste prospector limpets ever again. - Core asteroids look a lot different up close (

[@DiturisElite]

Wow, thanks so much! For some reason I didn’t spot this comment, but I’ll be happy to answer now 😅 I use davinci resolve for video editing - It’s great. It’s way more complex than I need, but I mainly stay in the ‘edit’ section which gives me all the tools I like. I do the zoom in with the ‘dynamic zoom’ functionality, then a cut to an aligned, zoomed in freeze frame to keep the shot in that area. There’s probably a better way, but this is what I’ve been using. The pointers are drawn by me in a drawing program (in my case gimp) and then the image laid on top of the video in davinci. As far as tutorials go, I don’t have any specific ones to recommend. I never used the software before I started the channel, so I just jumped in, and looked stuff up when I couldn’t work out how to get the effect I wanted. It took a good amount of practice to reduce the time it takes, but at this point I can get about 2-3 mins of edited video per hour of editing, which I’m fairly happy with. It’s a decent amount of effort but my vids don’t tend to be all that long. Hope your project ends up working out. If you’ve got any other questions lemme know 🫡

[@WhoTheLoL]

@@DiturisElite amazing, thanks!

[@barrycompton8972]

The burrpit gave you a shout out. Good job.

[@DiturisElite]

I know!! The team there are so epic. tah mate 🫡

[@DubStepTomatoFarmer]

I Use a Anaconda for mining. I can have All the essential tools for Laser or core mining plus a L4 multi cannon & L3 Laser to defend myself against pirates. Plus a fighter bay. Lots of storage space & a pretty decent jump range. 50 ly

[@Wakabatan]

Glad to know that the best asteroids are still those shaped like Japanese fried chicken lol

[@larkshadow5317]

I did my first core mining in a Keelback way back in the day, I think it was 3307. Back then I didn’t have a great shield, not that the keelback has a great shield anyways, but I didn’t know how much I needed to back up from the ice rock before I detonated it. I was thusly informed of the distance when my shields went down, and poor keelback went tumbling for a moment or two, losing some of my hull integrity as it did so. Good times.

[@lynxounet5974]

Another awesome guide! Thanks for this. I've only mined into icy rings until now, I just like the bright pale colors of these belts while flying around. It's nice that you identified the shape of every core asteroids by ring type, I might get into mining in other rings. One tip I used before I got used to the typical core shapes is turn on night vision, it does help seeing the cracks, and make the shapes appears with more contrast. Also for studying a core asteroïd, I like to find its axis of rotation. If you can place your ship at a sweet spot right perpendicular to the axis, then all you need to do to examine every single crack is stay at your position; no need to turn around. It's much easier to plan ahead the sismic charges and fire them in the allocated time properly.

[@GazBennett]

That's brilliant. Core mining has been on my list of things to try for a long time. Cheers.

[@thekingofawesomeness9173]

Great video. I personally love to run a mining ship that has the option to do every kind of mining so when the boredom sets in I can blow something up or just enjoy myself. Very satisfying. With that said I learned some stuff from this video I'm excited to use on my next trip out

[@3PADJPQep9]

Got it first try! :D thanks very helpful!

[@kaizaki9148]

Commenting to help with visibility, great video, nice to see up to date guides :]

[@thename6031]

Love the format of these videos

[@CMDREagle131]

Core mining is one of the most satisfying professions in Elite!

[@happymoonmonkey]

This was the guide I needed at the time I needed it. Simple, clear, well edited. Good job.

[@Odin314]

Awesome guide! Definitely looking forward to giving this a shot too. Also grats on the shoutout on Buur Pit!

[@MarkZeroGaming]

Didn't know about all of the core rocks looking exactly the same! That's going to save me a ton of time next time I'm out in the rings. Much appreciated!

[@darthhunter69]

I love core mining, I did it a few days ago and it's just so satisfying and relaxing

[@tiberiusdave252]

Great video. I do enjoy core mining. And this is a really good video for people who are new and old alike!

[@OmegaPaladin144]

I don't do Core mining as much as I should. It's always fun. I had missed that all the Core asteroids are the same, even after many years. This is one of the best roles for an Imperial Courier.

[@CaptainBrash]

Great video! I've done some core mining and failed more than I've succeeded. Just doing some laser mining to get Bill Turner then I'll be giving it another go.

[@geninji6117]

Great vid

[@rednarok]

I made a federal dropship for core mining and its fun =))

[@lonicera2257]

Thank you for this series of new up to date guides I'm a returning player with to much money for guides that have specific starter builds but your guilds give suggestions for all types of players and give recommendations for the viewer to build their own ship and what third party tools are good to use since EDDB is no longer running o7 CMDR and I look forward to seeing you in the black

[@MrAwesomenesh]

As an experienced core miner, I watched to make sure I haven't missed any cool tips in my time but I just really wanted to stop and say that this is the most compacted but super thorough guide 🙏🏾🙏🏾

[@vdozsa77]

Looking forward for core mining. Just need to get back to the bubble first. 😀

[@meoka2368]

I have a T10 with all the mining gear, so it can do whatever comes up. Being a large ship, I find going FA off while floating over the ring helps. Don't need to dodge rocks and can just spin around scanning, looking for bright rocks.

[@TroyMackay]

Thanks for the guide. I've been doing them one fissure at a time thinking it was just a matter of chance. Still popped, but good to know the proper technique and save a bit of time (but also worth noting the time pressure doesn't really exist). The sub-surface deposit mini-game is a bit more intuitive, but could also use a little explanation. Only a couple of months into the game, but these prospecting and mining mechanics are really interesting. If only you could do something with the ore other than vendor trash it.

[@cyvan1750]

Great Channel Dituri. Since its so critical to the Elite experience. Do a tutorial about how to link your account with Inara and what it can do for you. Also mention EDMC for collecting data and giving it to Inara as well. So many people still don't use it.

[@HyperMuffin12]

I watched this despite knowing all of this anyway. And I must say, good tutorial

[@IntangirVoluntaryist]

I've used a python and an asp explorer for core mining asp explorer is just right imo

[@DiturisElite]

Out of those two I’d defo agree. The asp is super underrated in its multipurpose capabilities, if I was starting the game again I’d be getting it asap. The Python isn’t my kind of ship, it’s too lumbering for its size, has a horrible pilot position, and kinda the opposite of fun to fly, at least for me 🫡

[@IntangirVoluntaryist]

@@DiturisElite it's nice for other things, I use it as a secure mid size hauler now

[@romariogee]

@@DiturisElite and cockpit looks cheap af

[@camenecius4922]

@@DiturisElite I do love my general-purpose mining python, but I hear you. It's probably really better for just laser mining when you don't have half a day to fill a T9 or a cutter. I think it's time to rebuild my AspX core miner--I agree it's the perfect ship with enough hardpoints, maneuver, and fabulous visibility (if you ignore all the fire hazard exposed wire draped around you.)

[@r4dios1lence92]

Laser Mining: _lasers & chill_ Core Mining: *OPENS VIDEO WITH AN EXPLOSION* Elite Dangerous really covers all bases on what fun means to you, and Dituri's covering of mining just nailed it. Also, are you going to cover Sub-surface mining? That one can even be reused to -mine- rescue people from the **cough**, so mining first can be a good practice for them. I personally run a Conda (with the Hazard cosmetic pack) that does all 3 kinds of mining really well (except for core, since I can't move between asteroids that fast), because while trying to pick one I ended up not liking how core mining relied too much on the luck of running into a core, and not having gear for laser & sub-surface meant losing good prospects while searching for cores. I ended up doing mostly Low Temperature Diamonds mining because they can be found on all 3 sources, so hotspots we really nice places to mine. On the side of what the core asteroids look like, I've seen SO MUCH straight out conspiracy theories that I gave up on believing and would just probe every asteroid. Good to know that there are actual patterns, and what they look like on a video (looking at the low res images felt like seeing "UFO photos" that were so common 10 years ago).

[@DiturisElite]

Thanks man! I might do subsurface, not much to specifically talk about though - We’ll see. Your build sounds great! 🫡

[@najlitarvan921]

sub surface is even more pain to find proper nodes then cores and i would argue is a form of pain, due to the minigame imo actually being annoying i personally stopped carrying a subsurface missile and got a second seismich charge as overkill safety

[@r4dios1lence92]

@@najlitarvan921 I probe any asteroid showing yellow or orange, and when on hotspots, usually every other asteroid has a node for the hotspot resource (sometimes I get lucky and get multiples on the same). The mix and match with sometimes laser, sometimes sub-surface, sometimes seismic keeps it interesting for me. It was bothering me more when I kept running into sub-surface nodes that could get me some cash but instead I was jumping around for targets for core or laser. On a fast ship, definitely makes sense to ignore it and go for cores tho (specially if you're good at ID'ing cores from distance).

[@thebagfather4633]

great vid i learned a few things there. any chance of tip on tritum mining as i always seam to find astroids with a low yeld

[@kronos48221]

I've been using an Orca for deep core mining. Explorer level jump range when engineered and fast enough to out run all but the fastest ships when engineered. Holds 100t but the mining multi limpet controller helps a lot as well.

[@DiturisElite]

Fair enough! Love seeing people use ships other than the ‘norm’ for stuff. It’s not what I’d recommend for a beginner, as the krait (which is cheaper) can probably match or beat it in nearly everything, but that sounds super fun if that’s what you fancy! 🫡

[@michaelsoeffing3131]

I call my method "skimming". in a fast ship I max out the speed with the pulse wave firing constantly. I fly with the asteroids above me with my head facing upwards just a bit to max the view, but no so much to where I can't see any of the controls. the idea is to cover as much ground as possible. I'm sure it's not a favorite, but I like the cutter. it's hardpoint positions take some getting used to, but once you have you can actually fire around corners somewhat, and it's got good speed and cargo.

[@jetpaq]

Another important tip about cormiing is after the explosion and after the limpets of gathered everything. Make sure you still put mining lasers on all the rocks and get every last bit.!

[@sghtless5909]

guud. i love me void opals =)

[@rigsta]

0:32 Finiding cores (I'm sorry, it's a great video!)

[@DiturisElite]

🤦‍♂️

[@mikewilson3169]

For me, my goal is shoot and detonate the core as quickly as possible. I know some guides say to work around the core and find just the right fissures to shoot. I don't do that, simply because it takes too much time to scoot from perfect fissure to perfect fissure. Which ever fissure presents itself in front of me I shoot. On the first I shot always give it a full power shot. If this is a low strength fissure, then you won't do more than half the the range needed, but two low strengths alone at full power can easily yield the proper range to detonate. You can modify the power settings for subsequent fissures, no matter if they are low, average or high, so as to hit the sweet spot. There are two key advantages of doing it this way. One is that you can usually sit in one spot in space and the core will rotate bringing more fissures into range. There is often no need to maneuver the ship around the core, but just let them come to you. The second advantage is that often the core is surrounded by other asteroids that can seriously hamper your ability to maneuver, sometimes getting completely in the way when you try to back away, or move in to shoot just the right fissure. Put you ship in a clear zone, and you don't have to worry about nearby obstructions.

[@valorin5762]

I did so, so much core mining... I even photoshopped a postcard showing my T10 mining a rock, saying "Greetings from Borann!". :D But stll, blowing up a rock really never gets old...

[@beaucoupzero]

nice video, well explained and illustrated but i have a small critique, consider using the default hud colors for tutorials, the fancy blues and reds can be confusing for new players who may be unaware of the mod. also a word of advice to beginners, do wait a bit before u start blasting the resources they tend to clip into the rock if the pieces of the blown up asteroid are super close and you will loose alot of limpets o7

[@resplendentorder8661]

icy core = popcorn

[@andie2507]

my pulse wave analyser shows up very pixelated and im on legacy so im not sure if im doing something wrong or im just impatient lol

[@jasonkinsey6428]

when do the v shaped icons pop up?

[@mickbolton2276]

When are FDev going to fix the Pulsewave analyser. Previously we got black and green bars through rocks with cores when scanning with the PWA. Since Odyssey they have disappeared making core mining mostly an exercise in wasting limpets.

[@SixStringflyboy]

I was wondering if the PWA had been fixed yet. I'm getting back into Elite on PC after a few years, and I remember back when I mined a lot on PC and console, after a certain update there was an issue with the PWA where you couldn't see cores looking forward, but if you went to external view you could see them behind you. Is that no longer a problem?

[@jong2359]

I wish that you had mentioned what that particular core run was worth, and what the normal variance is in terms of payday.

[@DiturisElite]

That, my friend, is exactly the opposite point of the video. You can find what I got if you look closely I guess, but I wouldn’t want to put anyone off giving it a go. All I’ll say is that if you do it right you’ll definitely get enough to make it worth your while 🫡

[@jong2359]

@@DiturisElite I realize that this was more instructional to open one of the many doors this game offers, but the reward is still part of the room the door belongs to. Just food for thought, I still enjoyed the video and appreciate what you are doing here.

[@kalekold]

I made 3 billion credits core mining before they nerfed the void opal prices. Now it's just not worth it. :(

[@DiturisElite]

Opals aren’t great, but a load of stuff can still be sold at 750k+ per unit. It’s not as good as it used to be, but still good enough money to be worth it, at least for me. Plus, BLOWING UP ASTEROIDS…. How awesome can you get?? 😅🫡

[@smokinggnu6584]

No Python for the ship choice? I did core mining in a Python many years back and it did pretty damn good.

[@DiturisElite]

It’s perfectly good, I just like the krait (which is cheaper and more attainable) way more. The Python is super popular, but I’m not a big fan of the lack of agility for its size. Basically I’m just not a fan, and in the end I wrote the list 😅🫡

[@smokinggnu6584]

@@DiturisElite fair enough, and i guess the agility of the krait over the python is a good point. I have both kraits and the python.

[@camenecius4922]

Oh, and this: Core mine with headphones on and room lights off.

[@TheGreatShnopy]

Why do I need mining lasers on my build then?

[@DiturisElite]

You don’’t necessarily. I put it in the ‘for multipurpose’ part of the shipbuilding chapter, so it’s in case you wanted to do both kinds. I have some on my krait because I like to get any good laser rocks mined as well. Entirely depends on your play style 🫡

[@ToriYamazaki]

Ever wonder where we'd be without Inara and Edtools?!

[@DiturisElite]

Much more frustrated!

[@alz722]

Fairly rough, covered in craters, spherical with an extra lump on the side? That describes every asteroid in the belt. The problem im having is I'm spending countless hours trying to find stations that actually stock limpets near the mining areas. There never seems to be any. Then when I'm finally stocked up and go to the mining area using the websites you mentioneed there are precisely 0 cores of the type that is supossed to be there. When i do find a core its completely at random because they look exactly the same as any other rock that glows and its always a type that i'm not looking for. Also now it seemes like mining is bugged. If i dont crack the asteroid on the first go, which is often, then any subsequent attempts to crack it fail with the sizemic charge just bouncing off every fissure. I've tried this at multiple ranges and it keeps happening. Infuriating.

[@DiturisElite]

This describes me after my first couple of trips so well. First, every station stocks limpets. Not in commodities, but in advanced maintenance, next to the livery button. Second, core mining is incredibly knack based - took me about 10 hours to truly learn to mine in ONE kind of ring, truly getting to know what a core looks like in that ring (it’s a rocky ring for me, those are still what I find easiest). Sometimes you’ll get other materials, but that’s just life tbh. If you want to get more cores of the named hotspot type you could try an overlap - that’s the only thing that’s better as far as I’ve seen. And lastly, that’s intended. If you fail to detonate you’re not meant to get another go. It’s a bit harsh, yes, but the minigame becomes super easy after a while, just a practice thing. Core mining is annoying to get started with, but it’s great for credits and massive fun. Hope your next trip goes a bit better 🫡

[@najlitarvan921]

i wish spotting the roids wasn't such a pain, the false positives are not exactly fun or if we had limpets as just modules and not cargo

[@bamcorpgaming5954]

question: why is the python not on the list for best mining ships? jw

[@DiturisElite]

I get this a lot. I just can’t justify recommending it over the krait, which in my view is better, and it’s cheaper. Yes you loose a slot, reducing your cargo space, but I’d bet that anyone who uses a krait gets more joy from core mining than someone in a python due to its agility, central cockpit, better weapon placement and higher speed and jump range. I’m happy for anyone to disagree (and many have), but those are just my thoughts that lead me to leave it out 🫡

[@bamcorpgaming5954]

fair enough man, those are all reasons i was considering grabbing a krait. @@DiturisElite

[@TheRealSuzuki6]

Don't bother looking for overlap hotspots as this doesn't increase anything on Odyssey

[@earthdog2244]

I would have added a Python to the list.

[@DiturisElite]

As would many. I just couldn’t justify recommending it over the cheaper krait, sorry! I think the manuverability and the central seat outweigh the extra internal space 🫡

[@earthdog2244]

Yes but when I'm mining I go for cargo space over the slightly better maneuvering. If you are mining, credits shouldn't make a difference.@@DiturisElite

[@DiturisElite]

If credits truly didn’t matter it would just be conda. The fact is that while it’s a very lucrative activity, you still need enough credits to get started. And on the whole I just prefer the krait, and in the end I wrote the list 🫡

[@samcruise3957]

Why isnt python in that recommended list, its just an uglier krait mk II?

[@DiturisElite]

First of all, thank you. The python’s ugliness is something we can agree on. I didn’t recommend it because it’s too sluggish for its size in my opinion, and a more agile ship is more fun, at least for me. Plus, as it’s so similar to the krait AND it’s more expensive, there’s not much point recommending the more expensive one. 🫡

[@cmdrHeliaxx]

@@DiturisElite I mean, Pythons got 1 more size 6 internal compartment which IS pretty significant, even more so for mining. But I do core mining in Phantom cuz I don't like to mine for very long without a break so Python was a bit of an overkill for me 😄 I use it for laser mining though and it's actually kinda great - and I wasn't at all a huge fan before either 😄 if you haven't you can maybe try it out for some task like that, maybe you will actually grow to love it just like I did lol

[@cmdraudaxius861]

😡 (angrily logs out of elite to watch youtube videos on elite)......man i hate this stupid game......(sees Dituris videos).....🤬.....QUIT ENJOYING YOURSELF! (angrily logs back in to keep playing)

[@garrydavey5942]

FA Off Practice

[@pville_piper5125]

Yer lazy, get yer self a Keelie, and no collectors, scoop your way to 20 million in credits... Real pilots scoop!

[@DiturisElite]

Pilots who value their own time use collectors…