THE DARK ART OF HOVER MINERS | Spanj's Build Academy | Empyrion Galactic Survival | #13

Today we explore the art of hover miners and how to make a good one. There are a ton of them on the workshop already but the most popular ones lack in equipment. Lets see if we can change that.
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My Rig:
Intel Core i5 3500k - O/C - 4.2Ghz
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500GB Samsung SSD (game only drive)
Windows 10 Pro
Recording software Used:
OBS Studio x64
Videos Edited with:
Lightworks x64 Free edition.

[@CaptainAmaziiing]

I made a truly stable HV miner a week ago. Won't flip or bounce, drills what you point to, steady and smooth. Will eat any of these in a John Henry showdown. It's on the workshop as the Major Miner, and can be seen in action here... kzbin.info/www/bejne/l6aVl2isjseDjqM. A new way of thinking about hoverpads makes all the difference.

[@Spanj]

Dave. You sir have just blown my mind.

[@jetsetuk]

If you want a more stable journey just stick some HV engines on the outside edges just like any other normal HV... and add a P Menu switch to turn off the journey ones once you want to start mining... hey presto, the best of both worlds... ;o) Note for any one trying the Menu Switch, I found you have to go into the P Menu twice to turn engines back on, once to hit the switch on the console, the other to get the damn things to register the change and turn on... Same thing for turning them off too... :o)

[@jaide1312]

I've tried out a similar thing, but with less success. I made a miner version of this hv: steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1512282747 Which is also balanced on one engine, but when mining I found it to really have a tendency to fall over to it's side when you mine straight down and do complex turns.

[@nwanzer]

I see an update to the new miner coming...

[@kauboy9816]

At the end of the video, the name "Armadrillo" came to mind. 😉

[@HeadHunterSix]

That huge on on the far right looks like it's about to emerge from a wormhole, seeking vengeance upon Spock for the destruction of the pilot's homeworld.

[@MSouthy87]

Another great song on the timelapse Spanj! Love it! :) And it was awesome to see the design strategy behind the Spanj Miner (my first hover miner I used), thanks for another great vid!

[@michaellemmons451]

Oh man, looking back on this now after your most recent machine where it's like "Why go in the hole for the resources? Drill turret, baby!" Also the detector being a 3-block antenna rather than a small white dome!

[@duckin7243]

Sold! i'm getting and learning this game, cant wait to build a miner or my own. i was awaiting Daul Universe but i think this is going to be much better for me

[@XCalibersAnvil]

Great video Spanj. You're making me want to build a new Drill PUP that focuses purely on drilling that isnt skinny like the Elite!

[@CharlesMacro]

This is an extremely helpful video on tackling the HV Drillers. Great vid Spanj!

[@Spanj]

Thanks bro!

[@matthewmoore2851]

Great video and a great built Spanj. I have the drill pup, moved the drills wider went the laser route never stuck. added two more hovers and two more rcs's. runs good.

[@nwanzer]

My thoughts on HV drilling: The area cleared by the drills has to be the same size or larger than the length of the HV. This will always allow it to turn underground. My second thing to look for is how wide the drills are spaced. Best if they only have a slight overlap for drilled area which will allow you to use the least amount of drills making it cheaper to build.

[@LusiphurKarza]

Finally! Been waiting forever for you to make a starter Hover miner

[@jaelonquixote]

I tend to use jrandall's Scarab-SHM. Good starter HV with placements for drills and covers most of the bases. I drop two turrets on the top when I start my base and a door on it at level 10. It does sometimes flip and get stuck but overall, good and flexible HV. I'll definitely have to give your two hover miners a try. You make some very nice vehicle designs!

[@Prophitman8]

I've made a small HV with a O2 pressurised cabin with everything you could need ;) thanks for the inspiration!

[@WereWulfen]

as usual spanj great vid. was thinking that your new miner kinda reminds me of the drill balls from an old scifi horror move think it was "phantasm"

[@richardabernathy4420]

I am making my 1st one in a bit here..good ideas..thx for posting ..stay cool!

[@johnnycandles8675]

Slick drilling HV Spanj. As for that I use: I typically use the DHMT as it is compact and attainable early in the game. I rarely need anything heavy that can defend itself. On my home planet I clear POIs / drone sites with a HV tank. While exploring other planets I park my CV on top of where I am drilling to stand guard.

[@Spanj]

thanks :) - I tend to find myself with a HV miner before anything else because mining by hand is so painful. I often run into drones and stuff guarding deposits. You therefore are a far more patient man than I if you wait until you have a CV/tank to deal with the bad guys first. Kudos.

[@andyknolls1649]

I like the drill sgt. I modified mine with constructor, o2, cargo box, and med station. Later when i get enough resources or find it, i change out to t2 drills, add multi turret and line of additional thrusters (x4) around the bottem to help with manuvablity. I also add 2 minigun turrets and ammo box as soon as i can afford them. The additional thrust offset the additional equipment and gives a better balance foot print. I find that the lady bug is not very good to modify and the others are far too big.

[@savumorso]

didn't know that drillsergeant was lifts! :D great video even when i watch it a bit late ^^

[@that_guy7466]

I use the Scarab HST, slap a turret on top and your good to go, never got it stuck mining yet.

[@lilgroot135]

After trying the seargent and the bug i went to the Mole 01, its got most mod cons and hardened steel. Was made for 7.0 so its doesnt have a med bay...i redesigned a version that is only normal steel for early game though but its not too hard to find either a wreck or poi base made from hardend steel that you can salvage plates from to make it...modded version is mole 02..hope ya have a look. Nice miner you built though bloke.

[@dreamweaver8046]

had a go at your challenge......success :) was a bit of fun :)

[@mattford3627]

liking the music on this vid!

[@diazkincade5433]

I made a pretty decent one I call the (UHV) Scarab Excavator. It has quite a wide stance but it mines quite well. Because it is wider than it is long it can turn around inside a hole it digs though trying to do so vertically can be a bit tricky. I just recently updated it with new thrusters and added some other bits to it.

[@BDKober]

I often use the Bumblebee. I add a turret on top and a medkit. Should save it someday.

[@Smokeybear69420]

Personally, I think it is better to have several dedicated vehicles rather than fewer multi-purpose vehicles. So, have one HV for attacking POIs, one for exploration, and one for mining. Just my own opinion

[@Naitsirhc1986]

Very nice

[@StiffAftermath]

Looks like Master Chief helmet lol!

[@gabrieldm1982]

I use the elite drill pup and it never failed me, the others are the ones doing the flips and stucking, specially the sargeant.

[@jezchazania1336]

Awesome thanks 👍😊

[@DUD3_BR0]

what song is that when it goes into the timelapse? It's sick!

[@jamminb8589]

It appears you can no longer get a harvest box? How do you hook your drills to the regular containers? I run out of room almost immediately on miner craft. Thanks in advance.

[@paganizertube]

I heard narrow placement of hoverengines was the way to go.. the single hoverengine build by dave cooke, looks interesting, but i'm not sure if you can level it out if it tips over? From personal experience.. have a fine digger (with 4 hoverengines) and upgraded to 8 hoverengines -> went from good to really bad, so you want fewer hoverengines possibly with narrow spacing

[@sumonelse1989]

I use the XM-126D ExcavationMech steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1333444380&searchtext=mech+miner with a couple modifications. I moved the turret to one side to make room for a 2nd turret and at lvl 20 swapped the standard drills for laser drills. Finally I pulled the wall blocks off the back and replaced them with a shutter door. It's still nice and compact and with most of the mod cons and only lacks the health station and armor station.

[@Spanj]

Thats a sweet design.

[@neilempson7988]

Have a go with Ruckys 'Warmonger' , the lvl 20. It's a beast

[@alsitte]

Brilliant

[@SilentSooYun]

Looks like a zippy little drill pod, although I'm not a fan of enclosed thrusters. I typically use my own design I call the Bad Dog, but it's far from perfect and I'm always looking for something new. Right now I've been focused on making an all-purpose HV that's large enough for an interior space but small enough to drill with... a tall order, but one I find quite, quite valuable for use in hostile conditions so I can drone-explore in the warm :)

[@Spanj]

Thats a tough challenge, I had the same ambition and ended up with Betsy lol, more of a tank than a driller

[@Foxkoun]

Sorry to necro a 4y old video, but how feasible is a miner where the drills are pointed downwards? Are hv capable of this without becoming immovable or better a sv?

[@garsus3207]

just keep in mind the hover boosters are bugged atm , great looking miner spanj

[@Prophitman8]

Also with the thrusters, mediums best also because the power to thrust ratio makes the jet even LESS usefull lol the power for what you get from the medium is the best bet! ;)

[@64bitAtheist]

Could you build a mobile base miner that has a smaller miner docked in an internal bay at the rear? That way any time you get stuck you can pop out in the rescue miner, clear the obstruction and return to carry on?

[@JacobEllinger]

you going to update this for the new storage systems?

[@ASnogarD]

HWI DiggerHV Mole - steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1515445804 I have a nice digger on the workshop, HWI DiggerHV Mole, it has a interior yet is compact, with 2 turrets on the sides, and 2 gatlings forward, with the obligatory 6 drills. Its cheap to make, the only expensive item is the 4 natural plastic for the LCD's inside. If you do have a go with this digger, leave me some feedback, I would love to get feedback from a seasoned EGS player.

[@potstab2875]

I believe you are wrong on some of those points. 4 drills are just about as quick as 6, it is more of how well "you" can drain the resource. Nose down is really hard to fly getting to the resource. You can very easily raise you height and nose down until the drills catch. Cheap, they are all about as cheap as you can get, until you start adding goodies. My philosophy is utility. Can you use them in hostel environments, can they defend you when the resources are guarded by drones and ground troops, can it be used for other then just mining? Those are the real questions. To mine fast you usually need to ride the auto-level no matter what the design is because of the jagged terrain you create while mining. Mechanical drills are level 10 and lasers are 20 so not really starting gear anyway, unless you get them as loot. Here is my multi use driller: steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1518061220 it was based on the Scarab-HST.

[@benwilliams3539]

Are all the engines the same and it's just a matter of putting on more? Im new to the game and a bit overwhelmed at the idea of making my own vessel of any kind. Can you create something in creative/free mode to work it out and then import the factory template to your survival game or something like that?

[@Spanj]

you can, once you have created something in creative mode, use Alt+O while looking at it to save it as a blueprint. In survival mode hit F2 to open your blueprint library, find your saved ship and click add to factory, you can then add resources in until the required amount to spawn it in.

[@BenjaminSchiltzVlogs]

I love it. The link to the miner is broke. I would love to add the blueprint or is it a Patreon members only miner?

[@Spanj]

this miner was superseeded by the Earthmover which is far superior steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1653877851

Well the "Spanj 03" tips a bit to much the nose down for my liking but its anyway a good built. Thx. Btw., found my Swamp Planet...a nasty place :-)

[@glennwykes8251]

Shes A Balltearar Great Little Beauty GoodOnYaMate

[@lilgroot135]

I dont know if youve been asked or considered this but have you heard about the ironman competition there is a new type called ultimate ironman...i wish youd do a playthrough there is a downloadable scenario in the workshop detailing what it is id like to hear your thoughs on it!?! Hope ya check it out al least.

[@Spanj]

I've heard of it for sure, watching XCals run of it right now in fact. I've thought about it but with the Shattered Realm project quickly approaching i fear i do not have the time for now. Maybe some other time for sure.

[@LusiphurKarza]

My HyperOreMuncher had all the pro's. Had 2 turret hardpoints that didnt hinder it. Could drill straight down turn around and go straight up. Could dig into somewhere and spin to win and make a Spherical chamber underground.....then in the middle of Alpha 8 a patch dropped that just ruined everything. Gets stuck on the tiniest things, hard to turn underground, etc.....Sometimes I really hate some of this games evolution.

[@Spanj]

I don't know how you do it bud. How many builds have been ruined by the updates now. I've lost count.

[@jetsetuk]

Can't find it on the Workshop Lusi... is it published? was going to take a look at it and see if it could be "fixed"... ;o)

[@LusiphurKarza]

Nah. I took down most of my older stuff. Going to start uploading sets

[@Ender424]

My favorite so far has been the GCO Bore - check out builders video on it if youre interested - kzbin.info/www/bejne/kKTFnKJrftZmp5o

[@fragalot]

I'm a fan of the LadyBig which is a slightly bigger version of the Ladybug.

[@operatorhoot470]

Very Nice, as a miner only vehical it looks good, however it you wanted to turn it into a survival vehical thats really good at drilling, then you really need a harvester module to gather trees for biofuel. I made this steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1424226868, it can be spawned in at lvl 5, with space for upgrades all the way up to lvl 20. Its from an older version of E:GS, so I think the mobile clone chamber is obsolete, but it can be easily removed and more storage or utility be placed instead.

[@Spanj]

That is a super cool little machine. Thanks for sharing Hoot ;)

[@comcastjohn]

Why do you put med stations, clone chambers, fridges and such in them? You are just mining ore.

[@StyxAnnihilator]

Looks like a nice miner you built there, maybe can skip some back thrusters, can not try it right now. But an all-round HV need to have at least 1 turret (Multiturret you can just slap on and multitool it off when done). Biggest issue with HV mining are the lack of a kind of "proper" gyro leveling and attitude display. I have built a small simple one that works better for me, the ManicMiner. The hovers is placed in a cross, so can choose balancing. Also OK movement force forward and backward. steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1521868987 BTW: The HV 1x3x1 thrusters is actually less efficient than any combo of the smaller ones in same space, hopefully they correct that.

[@Spanj]

I figured those jet thrusters are less efficient which is why i went with the mediums and small thrusters on this one ;)

[@Belgereth75]

You should try the Scarab-dst spanj

[@Spanj]

good call, the scarab is a great starter, straping some drills to it is a good idea.

[@FSEAirboss]

Thanks for all the videos! Love discussion on the whys, and hows, and not just showcases. I found the GCO Bore to be excellent for manuvering. steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=973492612&searchtext=gco+miner

[@GrayPans]

22:34 lmao

[@JustPaladinNow]

i use the yellow one but i modify it to have a cockpit as well as i push the top drills up and add a gun in that place generally. i dont care for a fridge and anything like that its a miner so for me i just want it for short range mining i think my modified version is public if anyone would like let me know

[@jetsetuk]

I use my all purpose HV to mine - steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1530038765 ... she's longer than the dedicated miners, so I guess falls into the XCal HV size... When I first made her I put miners on to see how she handled, and she got the shake and slide I find pretty much all miners to have... then I discovered this miner steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1470266789 - with props to jerryfanfan for building it, and after playing around with it, I applied the principle to my HV... low and behold, all the problems with shake and slide disappeared... I have been advocating using this miner, or the principle since... The Principle: Either a single hover engine or a set of hover engines in a cross shape directly under the Centre of Mass or as close to that as you can manage. The cross shaped set of hover engines acts as a single point of contact as they are so close together, the same as the single hover engine does. This then eliminates the shake and slide effect as the engine\s don't contradict each other on the uneven ground that the T1 or T2 mining modules create when they dig out the hole. Simples!! :o) On my HV I have a switch on the P-Menu to turn off the running Hover Engines on the 4 corners of the vehicle (put them into a separate group on the devices menu), leaving it balanced on the Mining Hover Engine array... I do agree that having a naturally downward attitude on the front of the HV works to help drilling, although with the single point of contact, that relies more on your RCS as you can steer the miner to point where you need it to using the arrow keys...

[@Spanj]

JetsetUK - this is the first hearing about this single HV engine idea (or the cross layout) - this is genius. I saw the major miner from Dave cooke too has the same idea. the single hv engine. I may need to do a part 2 of this video lol. And i may need to revise the spanj miner to this too. great stuff, thank you!

[@jetsetuk]

Thanks mate! :o) Though the props have to go to jerryfanfan... As Eleon put more emphasis on the HV in 8.0+ I thought I'd revisit mining with an HV... so bolted on some miners to the Merlin, as I said... the resulting op was so traumatic I vowed to carry on Drone mining for the rest of my days... but wondered if there was something else out there... the difference I found when I first tried jerryfanfan's design out was like chalk and cheese, and I became an instant fan!! The fact that I could then take it over to my HV was a bit of a lightbulb moment, as I remembered a recent conversation about the minimum distance a HV engine should be from another one, and realised they were going to act as one unit when alongside each other, which meant I could put enough under my own HV to get it lifted... Simples!! ;o)

[@MrThesin]

So there is no thruster damage on this game?

[@WereWulfen]

no thrusts do not damage other blocks or entities

[@MrThesin]

not sure why i never tested it..just assumed from the start..lol....ty for the info

[@parajacks4]

MrThesin I think thruster damage will be added later, It’s still alpha.

[@jetsetuk]

Yep, a lot of designs on the workshop state they have uncovered thrusters for future update readiness... I think it's not an If, but a When Eleon will implement it...

[@Ricz9019]

Hi Spanj, your design seems very useful from early gameplay on and i like the look of it. I did build my own Hoverminer for mid to late gameplay (get the resources quick without autominers and deconstruct POI’s ). This one: steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1526206018

[@WCanyon]

"That item does not exist. It may have been removed by the author. " boo

[@Naitsirhc1986]

The link doesn't work any more

[@Janson821]

steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1598298188&searchtext=SPANJ

[@planetbob4709]

Call this thing the Dirt Dauber

[@rpicard6741]

I wonder if anyone has tried to drill all the way through a planet?

[@Viper13dragon]

so, this HV link don't exist anymore...

[@DrKuryakin]

Why would you need a fridge and crap on a miner, it needs to mine, thats all

[@calmb4126]

Obselete imo, since you can get to level 20 in an hour or so just make an sv miner

[@crazyrabbit7657]

Why should a MINER have a medi box, O2 Station, weapons and all these other useless stuff???

[@Spanj]

you ever mined on a lava planet before?

[@HeadHunterSix]

Or an arctic world, because it's getting TOLD in here. :D