How to play
READ THE GROUND BEFORE YOU SPEND.
Spending money is easy. Spending it in the right place is the game.
01 — Choose your ground
Four blocks: mountain, valley, river and rocky terrain. Each hides its own geology, deposit size, grade, depth and continuity. The hint is free — use it.
02 — Discover
Switch data layers on and off: satellite, terrain, geology, elevation, drainage, mineral indicators and geophysics. Mark up to four targets; each desktop analysis costs $1,200.
03 — Explore
Buy methods. Surface mapping $2,000, rock chips $4,000, soil $5,000, drone survey $8,000, geophysics $12,000, drilling $25,000. Expensive methods give stronger evidence but burn budget.
04 — Sample
Pick cells and collect samples. Soil vectors you towards targets, rock chips read high because you choose the best rock, and drilling is the only method that proves grade at depth.
05 — Assay
The lab crushes, prepares and assays each sample and returns a grade in g/t. One strong sample is not a deposit — continuity has to be proven.
06 — Define
Build a deposit model: area, depth, grade, continuity and confidence. Confidence rises with drill holes, geophysics and consistent grades. You can also abandon a bad target — that is a good decision.
07 — Develop
Open pit or underground, then processing route, fleet size and infrastructure. Each choice moves capex, opex, recovery, production and risk.
08 — Mine, process and sell
Move ore, recover gold, then sell it. Your final result shows discovery value, every cost line, net profit, ROI, exploration efficiency and your Aurik Score.
Scoring
Your Aurik Score blends profitability, budget efficiency, data quality, exploration decisions and risk management. Spending more money alone will never give you a high score.