StrataContract guide: plan a mine route and deliver the ore
Keep unknown ground, cave-in warnings, planned carry and actual delivery separate when completing the mining order.
StrataContract rules and controls · Play StrataContract
The return to the shaft is part of the order
StrataContract gives you a mining order in one mine. You choose actions on blocks, inspect the cost ledger, rehearse a route and execute it. The objective is to bring the required ore back to the shaft, not simply to draw a route that reaches ore.
Before selecting a target, identify the way in and the way out. A short outbound path can be a poor plan if mining changes the ground needed for the return. Consider the return while choosing which blocks to inspect and support.
Unknown cells and known risks are different
An unknown cell does not provide the same information as a revealed cell with a cave-in warning. Use the probe where additional knowledge would change your route or support decision. The probe budget is limited, so read the current ledger instead of assuming every block can be checked freely.
After probing, inspect the cell again before continuing. New information may justify a different route. Keeping the original path despite a newly revealed risk defeats the reason for inspecting it.
Plan the actions and their costs together
The available actions include probing, supporting, mining and moving. A route is therefore more than a coloured line: it is an ordered set of decisions with costs. Inspect the work-hour and supply effects in the ledger before rehearsing.
Add support in response to the route and the known hazard, rather than treating every warning as identical. Recheck the return after a mining or support change. A safe approach to the ore does not by itself establish that the miner can get back.
Read the rehearsal without treating it as execution
Gold outbound and teal return paths describe the selected plan. The interface separately labels planned carry and preview carry. Neither label means the ore has already been delivered. A visible return path is likewise a prediction of the route, not a completed journey.
Use rehearsal to locate the first costly, blocked or dangerous step. Change that part of the plan and inspect it again. If a return warning remains, solve it before relying on the amount of ore shown in the preview.
Execute and check the actual delivery
Run the chosen route and watch the actual carried ore and work-hour counters. Ore in the miner's possession is still inside the mine until the return to the shaft. Check the delivered amount and the real result screen rather than the earlier planned total.
If execution fails, compare the first failed action with the rehearsal and the available ground information. Record whether the problem was an unknown cell, a cave-in, a blocked return or an insufficient delivery. Each category calls for a different revision to the next plan.
Continue playing
One mining order with a route plan, cost ledger, rehearsal and actual ore delivery to the shaft.
Try the next attempt in StrataContract. For a different game, browse the guide library. Report a rule that no longer matches the game through player support.