Mines - what am I not understanding

[pat]

I know there's something I'm missing here - I just need it explained.

Up to now, I've always just scavenged my scrap metal from ruins. I'm in a game now (playing iron teeth) where I wanted to try a mine. It was extremely expensive to build and took a long time, but I figured it must be worth it. So now that it's finally built, it takes six beavers 3 hours plus a gear and a treated plank to mine a measly 3 scrap metal. In the meanwhile, a single beaver scavenging at a ruins is pulling up scrap metal much faster and it doesn't cost gears and treated planks.

What am I doing wrong?

[Wolfman]

scrap metal from ruins is limited, mine ressouces are unlimited.

[jaquig]

pat, mines are a perfect place to use golems, they will work around the clock.
They don't produce as fast as ruins but will never run out of metal.
you can increase their level and production but it costs more gears and treated planks.

[Alcator]

Iron Teeth also have a 2nd recipe which uses Explosives to double the yield of scrap metal.
Don't forget you can also send 10 beavers in there (you mentioned only having 6 in there).

Basically, the Underground Mine is an ENDGAME mechanic for unlimited scrap metal and thus unlimited metal production, so that _if_ if you wish, you will be able to eventually build anything you want.

[pat]

Originally posted by Alcator:

Don't forget you can also send 10 beavers in there

But I'd be better off having those 10 beavers scavenging.

Ok, so I'm getting that mines are what you use when you're running out of ruins. I'm a long way from that, so I'll shut down this mine until I need it later.

I hate that it "costs" to get the scrap metal. I mean, it takes a substantial supply force of beavers to make all that stuff. Logs -> planks -> gears, foresters, tappers, wood workshop, plus the energy...

[citablekettle]

It's an endgame need, by the time you need it you had enough time to set up everything to pay its costs.

[jonnin]

On most maps, there is no need for that much iron unless you want to build several of those high iron cost platforms. I have only built the mines maybe in 2, 3 games.

[{FU}TheForgeryTTV]

Like the other posts said, mines provide an unlimited amount of scrap metal while ruins are limited. If you want more scrap metal, you will eventually have to build mines.