Elite Dangerous has released a patch built around mining, adding a surface-mining gameplay loop, a new vehicle to carry it out, and a set of adjustments to how existing mining pays out. The update went live on September 3, when MassivelyOP covered it.
The headline addition is the Rhino SRV, a heavy-duty mining buggy that can extract materials directly from a planet's surface using the newly added surface-mining loop. Access to it is monetised for now. As with other vehicles the game has added, players have to buy the Rhino from the cash shop, with availability for in-game credits to follow later. A video from YouTube channel The Buur Pit, embedded in MassivelyOP's report, previews both the Rhino and surface mining in action.
The patch also retunes mining that was already in the game. MassivelyOP lists adjustments to mining time, to resource yield and density, to recharge rates, and to the percentage of a commodity contained within a single mined unit.
The update also adds new commodities to mine, including magnesite and rubies. Those two come from surface mining only, so reaching them means engaging with the new loop.
Outside mining, the patch adds an operation called Under Siege, in which players have to retake an outpost. A list of bug fixes rounds out the release.