Mines of Dalarnia is a play to earn blockchain game and I am here today to help you learn how to play the game in order to get the most out of it, but also share a bunch of tips and tricks so that you improve your play style.
At the moment, the gameplay is somewhat limited (we’re still in Alpha stage as I am writing this) but the game itself is really cool and I absolutely love its features. I believe that Mines of Dalarnia is a good investment – both for those willing to buy its token and those looking to make money playing it.
But we’re here for advice on how to play the game better, not how to make money out of it (this is for another article) so let’s check out my top Mines of Dalarnia tips and tricks below!
Log in daily for free premium currency!
A nice way for you to get some premium currency for free is to simply play the game. At the moment, you receive 2 DAR coins for each day that you log in. You can put those coins to good use or even trade them for real life money!
Focus on upgrading your character
Upgrading your character – or its equipment, actually – is what you should mostly focus on. The more upgrades you purchase, the better you will get and the more types of resources you’ll be able to collect, as well as more biomes you’ll be able to explore.
When you start playing, you have just a few things unlocked. Upgrading your character in the right order will make things a lot easier for you. We’ll go a bit more in depth in another article, as there’s a lot to talk about this, but until then, here is what I suggest:
1. Start by upgrading your oxygen, backpack and pickaxe in this order. This way, you will have more time to spend mining, as well as mine faster and be able to carry more resource.
2. As soon as you have these sorted out, upgrade your boots (for extra jumps), and keep working on the three above.
3. You can then unlock the bomb for taking out monsters faster and then start focusing on health, Heat Sink and Antifreeze (these last two allowing you to survive more in other biomes – more on these below).
Always make a plan when it comes to upgrading your equipment, and focus on collecting the resources required for getting that particular next upgrade!
Learn the goodies on the maps you play
Even though many of the minerals are randomly generated and they change with each run, the placement of the enemies, escape pods and special treasure tiles is always the same.
This means that you should always head towards these first – grab the easy to get goodies, then focus on the rest.
So always know where everything is on the map. And when in doubt, remember that the biggest and best riches are found deeper – so the deeper you go, the better the treasure!
Keep an eye on the minimap!
The in-game minimap is extremely useful, even before unlocking the Canar-E which helps you even more.
The minimap will always show you the escape pods (if you’re relatively close to them) so make sure to keep an eye on it. It’s always wise to know where your next escape pod is, to make sure that you get out with all the resources you have collected.
Use power-ups wisely!
You have a limited number of power-ups, so make sure to use them when you really need them.
Even though the number of uses you get is decent to say the least, you still have to micro-manage and make sure that you use at the right time.
For example, use the bomb to quickly take out enemies (who drop lots of resources and at least once some extra time for you!) Don’t waste these important power-ups on destroying regular blocks, use them only when they give you a big advantage.
But don’t forget to use them! It’s free for each run once you have them unlocked, so it makes no sense to simply hold them for later, but never use them!
Rent plots to increase earnings
Unless you have already bought some land yourself, you will eventually reach a moment when playing the free to play mine no longer makes sense because you will need better resources in order to keep improving.
This is when you have to start renting out plots. This is an important part of the game, but since this costs premium currency, make sure that you do it right.
When renting out plots, first look at the amount of plays you can get out of them, but also the resources you can get. There’s no point getting a plot that offers a ton of runs, but doesn’t have the resource you need for your next upgrade.
Also make sure that you are properly equipped to at least be able to go for a run in that particular plot. This means having your pickaxe properly upgraded and either the Heat Sink or the Antifreeze unlocked and upgraded a bit.
Now, since you are actually playing to play in a premium plot, it’s the time to really be careful and make the most out of each run: collect all the resources that you need and never get back home with a semi-filled backpack!
Try to make it to an escape pod in time!
You still keep some resources if you don’t manage to complete the game by escaping through an escape pod, but you get them all only if you get to the escape pod before the time runs out.
Make sure to take this into account: sometimes, it’s easier and wiser to complete a run with 10 or 15 seconds left on a clock, but keep all the resources that you have collected, than to spend that time collecting more resources, but lose half of them at the end.
Once you get advanced enough, you will also have enough resources to keep crafting escape teleports. These are good to have around just in case!
Various land plots require different upgrades
I’ve mentioned this when about renting plots, but I want to expand it a little bit. There are various terrain types that you can encounter in Mines of Dalarnia, and these are color coded:
Purple is Terrestrial (your free zone, for example), Red is Volcanic, Blue is Arctic and Green is Toxic.
In order to be able to properly mine (and stand a chance at surviving) in any of these advanced terrain types or plots, you need to have your equipment upgraded accordingly.
Not only that you need your pickaxe to be of a specific level in order to be able to actually dig through these new terrains, but you will also need other upgrades for surviving longer.
For example, on Terrestrial plots (like the free one you get), your time limit is set by the Oxygen level you have. But it’s actually the Heat Sink that decides your time in Volcano plots, or the Anti Freeze in Arctic ones.
So have this in mind when you rent out new plots and start a new expedition. Fortunately, the game will let you know before buying if you are not properly upgraded in order to at least be able to play a plot you’re planning to rent.
Speed is of essence ALWAYS
Once you have played one-two times on a new plot, speed becomes extremely important.
Basically, the more blocks you can destroy in one run, the better. This increased your chances of getting more and better treasure and you should always focus on being as fast as possible, breaking as much stuff as possible.
Learn to quickly go through blocks, jump and dig as well as double or triple jump in order to reach those hard to get to places, but which usually hold great treasure. Be as fast as possible and collect as many resources as possible in each run in order to quickly maximize your character!
Backpack management is important
One thing that very few people know right now is that you can actually empty your backpack in order to make room for minerals you really need.
For example, if you get a slot in your backpack filled with scrap, you can right click on that slot to throw away the scrap you have found and you’ll be able to pick up a different type of material.
This is extremely useful – and essential, actually, when you are focusing on hoarding a specific type of material for your upgrades.
So always keep an eye on your backpack, see what items you have inside and remove those that you don’t need as soon as you find some that you do, but can’t pick up!
Have in mind that you can have multiple slots of the same item, so if you fill up your Scraps slots, for example and empty another backpack slot, you can collect more Scraps (works for any type of material).
Conclusion
These would be the main tips and tricks that I have to share with fellow Mines of Dalarnia players. Do you have additional advice for those who play? Or maybe some questions regarding some in-game mechanics? Let us all know by commenting below!