Hold The Mine guide

Hold The Mine Upgrade Priority Guide

Last updated: June 11, 2026Early AccessUpgrade priority

Prioritize upgrades in Hold The Mine by solving the next failure, not by buying the flashiest option. Spend first on the layer that keeps the next night alive: buildings if the surface lacks structure, heroes if the fight lacks active pressure, relics if they reinforce your current route, perks if the same failure repeats across runs, and deeper mining only when the resources can be converted before the wave.

Upgrade Priority Table

PrioritySpend on this when...Why it worksAvoid
1Immediate wave survivalThe run ends at night, so survival gaps beat long-term greed.Saving resources while the next wave is already failing.
2Buildings that answer the current pressureBuildings and relics create the board identity that carries multiple nights.Constructing effects that do not work with your hero or mining route.
3Hero powers that cover a visible gapHeroes are best when they solve a specific damage, control, or economy weakness.Investing in a hero plan before knowing why the last night failed.
4Relic or demolition pivotsRun-changing effects are strongest when they redirect a weak plan into a clear one.Pivoting every day and losing the benefit of earlier choices.
5Meta perks and deeper miningPerks and depth scale future power, but only after the immediate loop is stable.Treating meta progression or depth as a substitute for bad night prep.

Start With the Failure, Not the Shop

Hold The Mine gives you many attractive ways to spend: buildings, relics, heroes, perks, ruins, and deeper mining goals. The safest rule is to name the failure before spending. If monsters break through because the surface lacks control, buy for control. If you lose because resources stay unconverted, spend earlier and simplify the route. If you survive but cannot scale, look for a building, relic, or hero plan that makes the next two nights easier.

This matters more after the Perks and Demolition update because the game now supports stronger pivots. The April update added dwarf perks, Mithril Shards, the Engineer hero, and a Demolition Service that can replace existing buildings. Those systems make upgrades more flexible, but they also punish random spending. A pivot is useful only when it fixes a named problem.

Buildings vs Heroes vs Relics

If your run needs...Usually prioritize...Reason
Reliable surface defenseBuildings that support the next waveBuildings create repeatable value across nights when they match the pressure you are facing.
Active damage or controlHero investmentHero powers can patch a combat weakness faster than a slow economic plan.
A new direction after weak offersRelic or demolition pivotRelics and demolition choices can reshape a run when the original board plan is failing.
Long-term account powerPerks after repeated failuresPerks work best when you know which failure they are meant to prevent.
More options later todayMining depth only if you can spend in timeDepth is value only when resources become power before night.

Spend Timing Audit

Before spending, check whether the upgrade can change the next night or only make the run look busier. Hold The Mine punishes upgrades that arrive after the wave has already exposed the same weakness. A spend is good when it turns mined value into a specific answer before the next pressure check.

Audit pointQuestion to askGood spendBad spend
Next wave answerDoes this upgrade answer the wave that is about to happen?It adds survival, damage, control, or recovery where the last night failed.It is long-term value while the same wave problem remains unsolved.
Resource conversionWill mined resources become usable power before night?The spend turns daytime mining into a visible defense or hero plan.Resources sit unused because the route pushed too deep too late.
Route identityDoes the upgrade reinforce the current building, hero, or relic plan?It makes the strongest current route easier to read.It starts a second plan because the offer looks interesting.
Recovery optionIf the next night goes badly, does this spend leave a fallback?The run can still pivot or stabilize after one bad wave.The spend commits everything to a narrow line with no backup.

Pre-Night Upgrade Lock-In

The final spend before night should lock one job, not start a new shopping plan. If a choice does not change the next wave, save the idea for tomorrow and spend on the weakness that is about to be tested.

Before night, ask...Lock inReasonAvoid
What broke first last night?Immediate damage, control, or a cheap defensive answer.Early failure means the wave is testing survival before any long-term plan matters.Buying scaling while the first pressure point is still open.
What almost worked?One upgrade that reinforces the working building, hero, or relic layer.Strengthening a nearly stable layer is cheaper than replacing the whole route.Over-pivoting away from the only part of the board that held.
What resource is still idle?The spend that converts it into visible wave power now.Idle resources do not protect the entrance after night starts.Saving for a perfect purchase while the current wave has no answer.
What will you learn from this night?A narrow test: survival, scaling, hero support, or route timing.A clear test makes the next day easier to diagnose.Changing several layers and losing the evidence.

When to Invest in Perks

Perks are meta progression, not a magic fix for unclear runs. Mithril Shards and perk points let future runs start with a different kind of support, so perk choices should follow evidence from your own failures. If you repeatedly lose before stabilizing, choose support that makes early survival smoother. If you survive early but fail to scale, look for perk value that improves the part of the run that collapses later.

Do not spend perk points just because a node looks powerful in isolation. In Early Access, perks can be adjusted by patches, and official hotfix notes have already changed Mithril Shard availability and perk-related behavior. Use perks to support a known route, then revisit the choice after a few runs instead of assuming the first setup is permanent best practice.

When to Push Deeper

Push deeper when three things are true: the next wave has a plan, the extra resources have a use, and there is enough time to convert those resources before night. If any of those are false, depth becomes risk. New players often treat deeper mining as progress because the mine is the most visible activity, but the game loop still requires the surface to hold until sunrise.

  1. Before digging: name the upgrade you are mining toward.
  2. During the day: stop if the next wave has no answer yet.
  3. Before night: convert resources into one useful building, hero plan, relic use, or recovery option.
  4. After the wave: decide whether the failure was caused by weak spending, weak mining, or wrong upgrade direction.

Demolition and Pivot Rules

The Demolition Service matters because it lets a weak construction plan become a different plan instead of staying dead weight. Use it when a building no longer supports the current run, when a relic or hero changes what the board needs, or when your wave failure proves that an earlier choice is not solving anything. Do not use demolition simply because a new option appears. A replacement should fix a problem that you can name.

A good pivot is narrow: replace one weak piece, then test the next night. If the run still fails, read the failure before replacing more. Over-pivoting can be as damaging as never pivoting because each change resets part of your plan and makes it harder to understand what actually improved the run.

Upgrade Failure Checks

ProblemLikely causeFixRelated guide
You buy upgrades but still lose the same wave.The upgrades do not answer the actual failure.Watch the next night and classify the problem as damage, control, economy, timing, or scaling.Beginner Guide
You survive early but collapse later.Too much spending went into short-term survival with no scaling plan.Use one day to add a building, relic, or hero direction that carries multiple waves.Game guides
Perks feel weak.They were chosen before identifying repeated run failures.Track three losses, then choose perks that support the most common failure point.Beginner Guide
The board has too many disconnected effects.Buildings, relics, and hero powers are not supporting one plan.Use a demolition or spending pivot to reinforce the strongest current route.Mining Route

Patch Context

Patch context: use this page to keep spending tied to the next wave. Upgrade priority can change with balance, but the habit should not: buy the thing that turns mined resources into survival, damage, control, or scaling before the night exposes the same weakness again.

Related Guides

Start with the Hold The Mine Beginner Guide if the day and night loop still feels unclear. Use the Mining Route Guide to decide what each limited expedition should buy. Use the Buildings and Heroes Guide when your spending choices need a clearer board role. Use the Wave Survival Guide to diagnose failed nights and prepare stronger defenses before pushing deeper. Return to the Hold The Mine guides for more route and wave planning.