The map is hidden on purpose
Most of the underground is black until you dig into it or reveal it. Digging blind is the single biggest waste of a day: you burn time on empty rock and arrive at the wave with a half-empty pack. The fix is not skill — it is recon.
Recon gadgets do the looking for you
Two gadgets exist purely to find resources:
- Probe (Cellar Keeper Suit slot) — sends a pulse that reveals iron within a 4-tile range.
- Prospecting Meter (sole Keeper Suit slot) — shows the distance to the nearest iron within 5 tiles.
Pair either with the Underground Station (Mine Shaft slot) to control the dome remotely from deep in the mine, or the Droneyard (Primary slot) to auto-haul what you find. A recon gadget plus a hauler turns “I hope there is iron here” into “I know exactly where it is.”
Dig with intent
A tunnel that leads to a revealed cluster beats three that wander. Once recon shows a vein, commit: dig to it, fill up, and go home. Random exploration feels busy and produces little.
The mining guide covers the distance trade in detail, and the resources guide covers mining to a shopping list rather than by instinct.
Know when to stop
The hardest skill in Dome Keeper is going home. Leave time for the walk even when the next vein looks good — the wave does not care how much ore you almost had. If your route home is long, the gadgets guide explains the Lift and Teleporter, which collapse that distance.
Related guides
- Mining Guide — depth pays, distance costs.
- Gadgets Guide — recon, transport and the slots that matter.
- Resources Guide — mine to a plan, not by instinct.