Infinite Lagrange offers a huge expanse of space to explore, heaps of upgrades to obtain, and a load of amazing ships and battles to engage with. But before you can launch off on your real interstellar voyage, you’ll need to get to grips with gathering resources in order to expand your base and enhance your fleets.
That’s where we come in. We’ve put together this guide to take an in depth look at what resources you can find, how to gather them, and how to boost your mining rates. We will also delve into operation circles and how to use them, as well as the dangerous but lucrative art of region operation.
Resources are of the highest importance, as they are needed to upgrade your base, recruit ships, and assemble more advanced fleets. Without a steady flow of resources, you won’t get very far. But don’t worry – we’re here to help. If you want to find out more about Infinite Lagrange, we’ve got an in-depth guide on base upgrades to get you started.
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What are the different types of resources?
There are three different types of resources in Infinite Lagrange. Metal and crystal are the initial two, though they may feel a bit scarce in the beginning. As you progress, you will acquire deuterium, which is needed for later upgrades.
Where can I find resources?
You can gather resources through resource buildings located in a city, but the main way is through mining. Mining requires utility ships, which we will go over later. Resources are not unlimited; you won’t be able to exhaust them early in the game, but as you progress you will need to move further afield. After you complete the beginner period, your shields won’t be available any more, and your utility ships will be attacked by enemies. We recommend checking on the battle reports first thing when you log in to keep an eye on them.
How do I mine resources, and what is an operation circle?
Before you can get to mining, you will need to create an operation circle. Operation circles are the first step of all actions – whether you are mining, transporting resources, initiating a battle, or doing support actions, you need to place a circle first. Their core purpose is to monitor interactive targets, and allow the player to move more efficiently. All interactive targets within the circle are detailed on the left-hand side of the screen, along with their status – for mining, you will be able to see the total amount of each resource available.
If you have a ship in the operation circle, you can access warp options. Tap ‘open the operation’ to see what warp routes your ship can be sent on. Any ships sent to the operation circle will also travel at warp speed. These options are only activated when a ship is in the circle, so if it is removed or the circle is cancelled, warp routes will no longer be available.
How do I create or cancel an operation circle?
There are two ways to create an operation circle.
- Tap ‘create operation’ and select somewhere in the expanse to place the circle
- Select a target (e.g. a resource, enemy aircraft, or city), then choose the corresponding interaction. This will prompt you to create an operation circle
There are three ways to cancel an operation circle.
- Tap the number on the operation circle, then hit cancel
- Go to the operation menu, select the circle from the list, then tap cancel
- When a ship retreats, you can select the ‘cancel operation circle’ option
There isn’t a limit on distance when placing an operation circle, but ships can only travel a certain amount at a time. For longer voyages, you will need to split it up into sections, placing a circle at intervals until you reach your destination. There is a limit to how many circles you can place at one time, but you can increase this number by upgrading your base. Circles can be stacked, but we wouldn’t advise it; they are still considered as separate operations, but the whole area covered is reduced, and you won’t be able to cancel one without cancelling the others.
Resources can only be mined when they are inside an operation circle. A resource node can be mined by one of your utility ships at a time, but you can share nodes with enemy or friend utility ships without conflict. When placing a circle, try to avoid overlapping and aim to cover as many resources as possible, to ensure you have plenty of operation opportunities at the beginning of the game.
Utility ships are very important from the start, and we would recommend aiming to have one for metal, one for deuterium, and six for crystal, allowing you to yield plenty of materials for destroyers in the early stages, and for more utility ships in the middle stages of the game.
How can I boost the mining rate of resources?
Through upgrading buildings, researching utility ship blueprints, and gaining EXP by mining, you can enhance your ships’ mining capabilities and capacity. In the early stages of the game, we recommend you first activate one mining speed up, then two warehouse enhancements, then go for more mining speed-ups, to help you gather resources faster. As you progress through the game resource nodes will be further away, so it’s good to spend your spare tech points on ship movement. When you get yourself a medium utility ship, it’s best to start phasing out the lower level ships in favour of building more medium level ships, maximising mining efficiency without having to use too many operation circles.
What is region occupation?
Region occupation is considered one of the biggest highlights of Infinite Lagrange’s gameplay, and can be extremely lucrative – but is also perilous. You can occupy any region and create your own territory, giving you access to massive amounts of resources, but will face many problems and obstacles that require planning and skills to overcome.
How do I go about region occupation?
Here are some tips if you are hoping to get into region occupation.
- Set up a logistics base – this should be your first port of call. Occupying a region means you are competing with multiple galactic factions, and resource and ship losses are pretty much inevitable, so you need to ensure your own logistics. Aim to set up your logistics base in a sufficiently hidden place – preferably a hidden corner. You should go for an area where a full variety of resources are available. Since an advanced mining platform can be used for mining alone, without requiring utility ships to return to the base to hand in materials, they are generally used to build the logistics base.
- Build more outposts – outposts are very practical buildings. Not only can they be relocated after docking with special buildings, they also have great defence and protection abilities. Thanks to these features, they can be used to support friendly forces in battle when placed around allies or union cities, or can be moved in an act of self-preservation if your base is under attack.
- Plan and arrange a fleet – if you want to succeed, you will generally need two kinds of fleet when getting into region occupation. The main fleet should be mainly made up of patrol ships, aircraft carriers, and cruisers, and is mostly used to attack cities and enemy bases. The second is a quick response fleet, mainly made up of small and medium ships with a focus on recon and quick support. Its line up depends on your personal selection of ships.
- Ask allies for support – as you go up against other unions, you won’t be able to rely on personal strength. Communication with other union players is crucial in order to make agreements and form a more powerful fleet to fight enemies. When your fleet participates in a battle, you can also ask other union players for direct fleet support, which can help improve the strength of your fleet. While small-scale frictions can be solved amongst players, large-scale regional battles need to be discussed with union executives in advance.
- Guard your occupied region – once you’ve occupied a region, defending it is your next hurdle. Each city’s garrison is dominated by the city frigate fleet. After occupying a city, the fleet will generally be restored within one or two hours, and the higher the level of the city, the stronger the fleet is. Therefore, it is a must to set up even more outposts after occupying a region, to allow rapid base relocation if you are attacked by other unions.
- Allocate occupied resources – when you occupy a region, it’s important to allocate the resources out fairly. Take into account the involvement of other players and any losses to their fleets, rewarding them based on their contributions. Every high-level city will generate high-level mining nodes, so handing these out based on how much help you are given is a great call. You and other players can also dock with special buildings beside the city to enjoy the bonus effects they give.
Infinite Lagrange is a vastly intricate and complex game that calls for some real strategic thinking and planning. Hopefully, this guide has helped you get a grasp on some of the key ways to mine resources, along with the basics of region occupation and operation circles. If you want to get lost in this enveloping intergalactic adventure, you can download Infinite Lagrange from your mobile store of choice for free today.