Complete mining guide — Heart of the Mountain, powder, gear progression, and which method to choose.
Last updated: 2026-04-05
Mining in SkyBlock is a deep progression system built around the Heart of the Mountain (HotM) skill tree. Unlike vanilla Minecraft, you earn Mining XP, Powder, and special resources from ores that scale dramatically with your gear and HotM investment.
Unlock Dwarven Mines first
To unlock HotM, talk to Rhys in the Dwarven Mines and give him 15× any enchanted ore (e.g. Enchanted Cobblestone). The Dwarven Mines are accessed via the portal in the Hub near the Gold Mine.
HotM is your mining skill tree — it has 10 tiers and dozens of upgradable nodes. Leveling it up requires Mithril Powder (from Dwarven Mines) and Gemstone Powder (from Crystal Hollows).
| HotM Level | Key Unlock |
|---|---|
| 1 | Unlock HotM tree |
| 2 | Mining Speed II node |
| 3 | Quick Forge (faster crafting) |
| 4 | Crystal Hollows access |
| 5 | Efficient Miner node |
| 6 | Mining Speed Boost ability |
| 7 | Vein Seeker node |
| 8 | Glacite Tunnels access |
| 9 | Mineshaft access |
| 10 | Full tree, all nodes available |
Token of the Mountain
Each HotM level gives a Token of the Mountain which can be spent to unlock new HotM nodes (perks/abilities). Spend them wisely — focus on Mining Speed and Mining Fortune nodes first.
| Type | Where From | Used For |
|---|---|---|
| Mithril Powder | Dwarven Mines, Glacite Tunnels | HotM upgrades |
| Gemstone Powder | Crystal Hollows | HotM upgrades |
Both powder types share the same upgrade pool — you can use either for most HotM nodes.
Drills need fuel
All drill tools require fuel (e.g., Volta, Biofuel, Comet Fuel). Keep fuel stocked — an empty drill is a dead tool. The Oil Barrel accessory helps automate this.
| Area | Access | Best For |
|---|---|---|
| Gold Mine | Default | Tutorial only |
| Deep Caverns | Hub | Early pre-Dwarven |
| Dwarven Mines | HotM 1 | Mithril, early Powder |
| Crystal Hollows | HotM 4 | Gemstones, Powder, Topaz/Ruby |
| Glacite Tunnels | HotM 8 | Powder, Glacite Ore |
| Mineshaft (Glacite) | HotM 9 | End-game Powder + Mining XP |
Mine Ruby, Sapphire, Amethyst, Jade, Topaz, Amber, and Jasper in the Crystal Hollows. Gems are always in demand for gear upgrades.
Good early-mid game method for both coins and powder. Mithril is used for HotM upgrades and crafting recipes.
Glacite Ore is used for high-level crafting. The tunnels also have dense ore veins.
Mining Fortune multiplies your ore drops. Stack it from:
| Source | MF Bonus |
|---|---|
| HotM tree nodes | Up to +250 |
| Divan's Armor | Large per piece |
| Mining pet ability | Varies |
| Equipment (Gauntlet) | +50–100 |
| Reforge: Refined | Moderate |
Fortune > Speed for profit
Mining Fortune directly multiplies drops. At 300+ MF you get 3× drops from every ore. Speed helps you mine faster, but Fortune is the actual multiplier. Prioritize Fortune nodes in HotM first.