Starminer is an extremely detailed and difficult sci-fi simulation game with one of the most difficult learning curves I’ve seen in a while. Working out how to deal with the game’s impressive physics is a challenge in itself. But the game is about building a deep-space industrial empire. And just like every industrial empire, you need to start by making money.
Although you can automate the process of making money in Starminer, you’re a long way off from that at the start of the game. Instead of automating ships to go make money for you, you’ve got to put in the work and do it yourself; who wants to work when a fleet of automated money-making machines can do it for you?
Setting Up Your Ship for Money Making
If you’re looking to progress quickly in Starminer, learning how to make money fast is the best way to progress more quickly. To make money, the first thing you need to do is make sure that your ship is equipped with the right tools for the job. Especially if you’re playing in Sandbox mode and have a debt to repay first.
To make money quickly and pay off your debts in Starminer, you’re going to want to make sure that you’ve got enough Tier 1 Mining Lazers to make sure that it doesn’t take too long to bring in resources. But, to do that, there’s a careful balance you need to be aware of. Too many, without enough Solar Panels and Energy Batteries, will leave you waiting for your craft to recharge.
It’s not just power you need to worry about, either; you need to make sure that you also have enough Thermal Dumpers and Thermal Radiators to keep the heat down. Otherwise, yet again you’ll be left waiting, slowing down how quickly you can make money.
Once you’ve got the right combination, you should be able to go from rock to rock, stripping them of their valuable resources without needing to worry about being slowed down.
Mining the Best Asteroids for Money
Now you’ve got yourself ready to get out there mining, it’s important to pay attention to what resources you’re aiming to get. Some resources are worth more than others, making them a better target for making money quicker.
There are a few resources available immediately at the start of Starminer, each with its own use, and more importantly, sell value. The most common are Iron and Silicone, but there are more lucrative resources, even at the start of the game.
Price Per Resource
Of course, as you get further into Starminer, there are more resources and more opportunities to make money, but these are the ones you should focus on at the start of the game, especially if you’re looking to make money and clear off your debt.
Here’s how much you can expect to get per unit for each resource:
- Iron: 12
- Silicone: 12
- Cobalt: 72
- Thorium Chunk: 360
OK, so iron and silicone are everywhere; you might be tempted to just farm the heck out of those and sell them. Don’t. Both iron and silicone are useful when it comes to upgrading your ship, or even your fleet, later in the game, so just keep hold of those and focus on cobalt and thorium chunks.
Although you can scan the asteroids to see which resources they contain, you will start to pick up a pattern. Debris will often contain cobalt, while C-class asteroids will usually contain thorium chunks. Looking for both of these, I was able to pay off the debt from my ship in Starminer in no time at all.
Once you’ve got enough materials, simply load them up in a Tier 2 Metal Storage module and sell them. Once you’ve got enough money, if you’ve got debt to pay off, simply click the top left corner and select the option to pay off your debt.
Complete Missions
If you get bored with mining, you could go off on a side quest and start doing some missions. OK, so these aren’t as lucrative as mining the heck out of every rock in sight, but they often give a much-needed break from the labor-intensive farming at the start of the game.
Missions don’t just offer financial rewards for completing, they offer XP as well, which can be useful in speeding up how quickly and efficiently you are mining, therefore helping you make money even quicker in the long run.
Leveling Up
As I’ve already mentioned, completing missions is a great way to level up. But you will get XP for other basic tasks, such as simply flying around mining. You can use your XP to help speed up the money-making process by applying the right perks to make you a more efficient miner.
If you’re playing with enemies on, you might want to consider picking a perk that will help keep your ship from complete annihilation, but if you’re just looking to make money quickly, focus on perks that improve your mining skills, or work hand-in-hand with making sure you’re a deep-space money-making machine.
Sometimes you won’t be offered perks that are linked directly to mining. But, if you get something like Energy Battery Expertise, that can still be used to help improve your efficiency, since you’ll be able to keep on flying and using your lazers for much longer.
