Type-11 ProspectorMining

Every other 'mining ship' is really a freighter or multirole with mining tools bolted on. The Type-11 Prospector is different: Lakon designed it from the keel up for one job. Its hardpoints are dedicated mining mounts, it accepts the exclusive Mk II mining modules unavailable to other hulls, and its specification — an outsized class-7 power distributor, strong shields, genuine speed — reads like a mining engineer's wish list.

The class-7 distributor is the headline. Mining tools are distributor-hungry, and most miners throttle their lasers to avoid browning out; the Type-11 simply doesn't, sustaining full tool output continuously. Add medium-pad access, real shielding and a turn of speed that lets it work and survive in high-yield rings, and you have a ship that mines faster, safer and longer than any barge — even if its hold is smaller.

Four things make the Type-11 the purpose-built mining apex:

• Class-7 power distributor. Mining tools are distributor-hungry; the Type-11's oversized distributor sustains full laser and tool output without throttling — more ore per minute than any rival.
• Dedicated mining mounts and Mk II modules. Purpose-built hardpoints and exclusive Mk II mining tools that no other hull can fit, tuned for maximum extraction.
• Speed and shields that survive. 367 m/s boost and ~275 MJ of base shield let it work hot, high-value rings and escape pirates a Type-9 never could.
• Medium-pad access. Docks at far more stations than the large barges, shortening market runs and opening more selling options.

The only purpose-built miner — exclusive Mk II tools, a class-7 distributor that never throttles, and medium-pad reach — capped only by a hold the big barges easily out-haul.

The 95/100 headline is a verdict against the mining role's priority-ordered factors. Each factor carries a weight (its share of 100); this hull earns part of each based on how it performs against the whole field. The points sum to the rating.

Both tables rate ships for the mining role specifically. The role column is approximate maximum cargo — one input to mining value alongside speed, shields and tool sustain, where the Type-11 leads.

Same class — medium-pad miners

Among medium miners the Type-11 is in a class of its own — the only purpose-built option, and the only one that sustains full tool output. The Python is the flexible runner-up and the Type-8 the budget-volume choice, but for serious mining the Type-11's dedicated design wins decisively.

Other classes — the big barges

The big barges out-haul the Type-11 on tonnage per trip, but all need a large pad and either a rank grind (Cutter, Corvette) or careful safety management (Type-9). The Type-11 trades some cargo for speed, shields, sustained tools and medium-pad reach — the better choice for active, efficient mining rather than slow bulk hauling.

At ~66M Cr the Type-11 is a premium purchase, but it carries no rank or permit gate — just credits. For a dedicated miner the price buys capability you cannot get elsewhere: sustained tools, dedicated mounts and survivability in one hull.

A mining fit avoids costly combat engineering, so the all-in figure is dominated by the hull and the Mk II mining kit. Given how fast a well-run session fills a hold with high-value ore, it repays the investment quickly for anyone who mines regularly.

A dedicated mining fit built around sustained tool output and survivability. Initial is a working laser-mining starter; A-Rated is the efficient all-method baseline; Engineered tunes the cores and shield. The mining tools themselves carry no blueprints, but the class-7 distributor lets them run flat-out.

Buy the hull and fit the signature 3C Mining Volley Repeater to the large mount and a 2D Mining Laser to a medium mount — laser extraction works from session one. Add a 0E Pulse Wave Analyser utility to spot mineable and core-bearing rocks instantly.

Round out the working kit buy-only: three 6E Cargo Racks, a 4E Refinery, and one Collector and one Prospector Limpet Controller. Thanks to the class-7 distributor you can run the lasers continuously from the first session. The hull ships with stock Lightweight Alloy bulkheads — no armour purchase needed; a dedicated miner trades plating for mass.

The core, sub-surface and abrasion mounts, the two spare size-1 hardpoints, the bi-weave shield, the shield boosters and the extra limpet controllers all stay empty until the A-rating pass — the buy-only fit is a pure laser-mining starter.

A-rating priority for a dedicated miner — the distributor is already large, so protect sustain and transit:

• 1Power Distributor → 7A — The class-7 unit is the ship's heart; A-rate it so tools never falter. ~10M Cr
• 2Thrusters → 5A — Speed to work the ring and escape trouble. ~7M Cr
• 3FSD → 5A — Shorter market runs with a laden hold. ~9M Cr
• 4Power Plant → 6A — Run tools, limpets, refinery and shields together. ~8M Cr
• 5Shield Generator → 5C bi-weave — Strong, fast-regenerating shields to work hot rings. ~5M Cr

With the core A-rated, finish the tool fit: drop a 2B Seismic Charge Launcher, a 2B Sub-Surface Displacement Missile and a 1D Abrasion Blaster into the spare mounts for core mining, and fill the last two size-1 hardpoints with extra 1D Mining Lasers — three lasers firing at once lift the laser-extraction rate. Replace the redundant second 1A Prospector controller with a 1A Collector Limpet Controller: the controller family skips size 2, so the size-2 optional slot can only hold a size-1 unit either way — spend it on collector throughput and keep one 1A Prospector in the size-1 slot. Leave the stock Lightweight Alloy bulkheads as-is; a miner does not up-armour.

Mining engineering on the Type-11 is about sustain, transit and survivability. Mk II mining tools aren't engineered; the cores and shield are. Pin blueprints for remote G1→G5 application.

Recommended order

• 1Distributor and thrusters first — uninterrupted tools and the agility to work and survive a ring.
• 2FSD Increased Range to shorten laden market runs.
• 3Low-Emissions plant to stay cool and low-signature while running a full limpet fleet.
• 4Reinforced bi-weave plus Heavy-Duty boosters to confidently mine hot, high-value rings.

Approximate progression across the three states (figures are representative, not exact rolls):

Engineering lifts boost past 420 m/s, more than doubles shields and extends laden range for market runs — while the class-7 distributor keeps the Mk II tools running flat-out at every stage, now driving three mining lasers and the Volley Repeater alongside the core-charge trio. The stock Lightweight Alloy bulkheads are kept light — mass-shaved by engineering rather than up-armoured — so laden jump range stays the priority. The result is the fastest, safest, most sustained mining platform in the game.

• Fit the Mk II mining tools to the dedicated mounts — they are the reason to own this ship over a Python or Type-8.
• Don't throttle the lasers out of habit; the class-7 distributor is built to run them flat-out.
• Balance the limpet fleet toward collectors for throughput, with one or two prospectors for yield.
• Its shields and speed make open-play hot-ring mining viable — but a Pulse Wave Analyser and situational awareness still beat a fight.
• Medium pad is a quiet superpower: more selling options and shorter runs than any large barge.