FFXIV Beginner’s Mining Guide (Leveling 1 to 80)

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Final Fantasy XIV’s Eorzea is a land of wealth, both natural and otherwise. But if you want some of that wealth for yourself, you’re going to have to work for it. Learn how to make the most of your pickaxe-powered gathering career in this FFXIV Beginner’s Mining Guide.

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Starting Your Miner Career: FFXIV Mining 101

Like any Job in Eorzea, you’ll start your journey with a quest. Make your way to the Miners’ Guild in Ul’dah and pick up the Way of the Miner quest from the receptionist. A few short steps later and you’re on your way!

Notice that weathered pickaxe you got from the guildmaster. The pickaxe is the tool of choice for the Miner job, at least at first. You’ll get a sledgehammer later on to help divest the realm of its mineral goodness. But all along the way, the core tool shall remain the trusty pickaxe.

How to Get Around

It’s best to ensure you have a mount for getting around. Mining will take you over hill and dale and back again, and that’s a lot of walking with occasional sprinting for anyone to do. Progress along the main questline until you reach the Level 20 quest “The Company You Keep,” where you’ll join with one of the Grand Companies of Eorzea. Then simply complete the follow-on “My Little Chocobo” quest to get your very own Chocobo mount.

All set? It’s time to start swinging your pick.

Nodes, Quests, & You

Your introductory class quest, “My First Pickaxe,” will see the guildmaster dispatch you into Western Thanalan to gather some copper ore. Pay close attention — what you learn here will form the bedrock of the hundreds of hours that yet lay before you.

As with all Disciples of the Land, you’ll find the goodies in Gathering Nodes strewn about the world. Fortunately for you, they spawn (and respawn) in clusters, with different types of ore generally congregating in the same places so you’re not sent on a wild goose chase. 

Prospectin’ and Pickaxes: FFXIV Miner Gear

Using your Prospect ability will cause the nodes to appear as a handy pickaxe symbol on your minimap. Once you hit Level 3 — which is likely right after turning in the “My First Pickaxe” quest — you’ll unlock the Lay of the Land ability, which will point you to the nearest node. Then you’re off to the races. Make sure to pick up each new class quest from the guildmaster as they become available every few levels or so. They generally provide enough experience for a level and introduce you to new resources and areas.

There’s also Fieldcraft Levequests for Miner, offering simple goals and more bundles of experience to keep the grind to a minimum.

Keep in mind: all the Disciples of the Land and Disciples of the Hand Jobs — gathering and crafting respectively — work symbiotically with one another. You can stockpile the resources you’re gathering for your own crafting endeavors down the road or keep an eye out for a crafter in need of raw materials. See if they won’t agree to a trade for completed items or some gil. Maybe you’ll make a friend or find a free company in the process. Worst case, you can always sell the materials on the market for some gil.

A Field Day in Mining

But let’s say you want to grind out some levels. You’re all quested out. Or maybe you’re just in the mood for some Netflix & Skill. What’s a day in the life of a Miner look like?

Let’s break it down.

You’ll be scouring the world for resource gathering nodes, generally in the form of rocks and boulders or other hard surfaces minerals might like to hide in. You’ll use Prospect to spot them and Lay of the Land to direct you to them. Once you arrive, you right-click them to start the gathering process.

As with all gathering professions, there are (as of this writing) two variants of every item: normal and high quality (HQ). High quality resources are a big boon to crafters, as it makes turning out HQ versions of the items they make that much easier. So naturally, HQ resources you gather have a higher price tag. Make of that what you will.

The Grind from 1 to 80: FFXIV Mining Leveling Guide

Here is but one path from 1 to 80. Feel free to mix it up as desired:

Levels 1–50

Levels 51–80

Unearth the Unspoiled: FFXIV Mining Guide 50+

Starting at Level 50, you’ll unlock some unique opportunities to mix things up. Hidden items make Mining even more of a treasure hunt, with unique items in level 50+ gathering nodes that only appear infrequently. And then there’s Unspoiled, Legendary, and Clouded mineral deposits that only appear once in a blue moon.

No, literally — the conditions that reveal these mysterious mining spots include the time of day and the weather. Revisit familiar haunts as you level with the Truth of Mountains ability active, and you may find one of these rare deposits with equally rare items for you to hoard.

Collect ‘Em All: FFXIV Mininig Collectables Guide

You’ll also unlock Collectibles at Level 50, after seeking out and completing the quest Inscrutable Tastes. Some rare gathering nodes allow you to harvest unique items that only the discerning (and careful) Miner can pluck from the earth.  

There’s a bit of a minigame involved — you have to balance the target collectability level of the item with the integrity of the node. Work the node too hard, and you lose your chance to get the item. Consequently, the sorts of collectors interested in such items will only reward you if it meets their high threshold for quality. Use your minigame-specific abilities like Scour, Brazen Prospector, Meticulous Prospector, and Scrutiny to increase the item’s collectability to the desired, but keep and eye on the integrity. Make sure there’s enough left for you to reap the reward. Then turn it in at a Collectible Appraiser at any Scrip Exchange for Scrips which you can use to get unique gear, materials, and other bonuses.

The Miner Rotation

By now, you have the gist: enter a new area with Prospect on, use Lay of the Land to find the nearest mining nodes, then get to work. Make sure to keep Truth of Mountains on to sense those ultra-rare nodes, snatch up any collectibles you come across, and grind out your way through the Heavensward, Stormblood, and Shadowbringers areas.

We’re sure that you’re already familiar with the different types of materials you’ll come across, from ores to gems and even some surprises. You should have some friendly crafters you can trade with by now, or (if all else fails) you can sell your goods on the Market Board for gil or keep them for your own future crafting endeavors.

We may seem like a broken record, but stay on top of your Miner class quests. They offer bundles of experience points as well as equipment and gear to keep you swinging away. You’re a Miner now. Go forth and conquer Eorzea as only one who can pull bountiful wealth from earth and rock can.

But perhaps it would help to cast an eye over the other tools you’ll be using along the way: your skills and traits.

Miner Skills & Traits: FFXIV Miner Guide

We already touched on a few fundamental Miner skills with Prospect and Lay of the Land. But of course, you’ll unlock a full hotbar or two as you gain in mining prowess. Let’s keep this FFXIV Beginner’s Miner Guide rolling as we take a peek at the core Miner abilities and traits!

Core Miner Abilities

There’s many more we could list, of course — not to mention upgraded variants — but the aforementioned skills are the core ones you’ll get the most mileage out of.

Beside skills, there are passive traits you’ll acquire as you level, which generally improve gathering odds and yields or otherwise buff your abilities. You don’t have to specifically choose to activate them as they represent your increasing competency in the profession.

Core Miner Traits

Who Needs Your Help? — Paired Crafting Classes

So you’ve got a retainer filled with ores and minerals. If you’d like to establish a mutually beneficial business relationship with a crafter, which ones should you reach out to? Wonder no more — we’ve got you covered, at least for the early levels:

Of course, Culinarians need Rock Salt too. And everyone needs elemental shards. When all else fails, go mine some shards for a while. Either you’ll find a use for them in the future or you can sell them for a stack of gil.

As you level, be sure to keep in touch with your crafting compatriots. Their needs will change as they level in turn, sending you farther afield to keep their forges ringing or their alembics…well, doing whatever alembics do.

Looking to the Future

Now you’re acquainted with the fundaments of the Miner profession, but there’s still a whole world out there for you to discover. New ores, gems, and other surprises await around every turn. And those rare and legendary mining nodes that only reveal themselves to master miners? You never know when you might stumble across another one. Perhaps in the middle of the night, perhaps in a raging thunderstorm. There’s always something new to set your pickaxe to ringing.

Thought a career smacking soil would be boring? Think again. This is Eorzea we’re talking about, after all. Just make sure to keep up with your class quests.

Join the High Ground

We hope you feel confident and well-equipped for a long and profitable career thanks to this FFXIV Miner Guide. If you liked this guide and want more content like it, be sure to give us a follow on Facebook and Twitter. Questions, comments, or concerns? Voice them in the comments section below. 

If you need us, we’ll be racing Chocobos in the Gold Saucer. Until next time.