Dwarf Types in Mining and Dwarves
How miners, collectors, and full-game specialists split damage, hauling, and the later skill tree.
Mining and Dwarves is a single-player incremental from Sockhouse Studios. You break rocks, haul ore into a central deposit (the black-hole sink in the middle of the floor), and spend gold plus void shards on a persistent skill tree. There is no prestige wipe and no multiplayer. The crew you hire is the automation layer: dwarves keep hitting and carrying while you fire abilities, hover Super Auto Miner, or step away.
The store lists five dwarf types in the full game (Steam app 3987230, launched 27 August 2026) and two types in the free demo (app 4070070). This hub is the roster map. Start with the two roles every save unlocks, then read how later specialists sit on the same tree.
Miners and collectors first
The demo and the opening of the full tree only hire Miners and Collectors.
- Miners deal damage to rocks. They chip health off ore so drops appear on the floor.
- Collectors pick those drops up and walk them into the central deposit. Filling that bar pays gold and, when the sink completes, spawns the special orb you also mine for void shards.
If you only hire miners, rocks shatter faster than anyone can carry. If you only hire collectors, they idle beside rocks that never break. The first automation spike is a mixed pair, not a stack of one job. Carry limit and worker speed sit on that same split — details are in miners and collectors.
Specialists in the full tree
The launch build adds three more types on top of Miner and Collector, for five total. One later role is named in player reports as the Demolition Dwarf. Playtests also show a Foreman that boosts nearby workers; hire that after a mixed pair — details on the Foreman page. The fifth type is still unpublished. Read node text in-game when that last hire appears rather than treating community nicknames as official labels.
Demo saves only ever see two types and four player abilities. Full saves see five types and eight abilities, plus denser rocks, pies, player-only big rocks, and more floor clutter. The roster contrast lives in specialist dwarves and in the demo versus full notes.
Specialists do not replace the opening mix. They sit further along a tree that still wants miners breaking rocks and collectors feeding the sink. Buying a flashy late node while your carry limit is tiny is how gold piles sit on the floor during orb cycles.
Ranking, loop, and what this hub will not invent
Role value changes with how you play. Active sessions lean on player damage, Super Auto Miner, and Multi-ore on the orb. Idle sessions lean on dwarf damage, haul speed, and carry size. The dwarf tier list is the ranking companion: use it after you understand the jobs, not instead of hiring a collector. The click-to-sink loop itself is in how to play.
Sockhouse has not published a five-name bestiary. Confirmed: five types in the full game, two in the demo (Miner and Collector), a Demolition Dwarf in launch-week Steam reviews, and a Foreman in playtests. The fifth title stays unpublished. Worker speed and carry limit are real upgrade lines. Hit points, gold per trip, and the unpublished fifth specialist title belong on your skill screen, not here. The game is Godot, with Steam Cloud and 22 achievements. Names like Teamwork or Lazy are not a grind checklist.
If you are still on the June demo, you will not see the extra three types. That is expected. Hire a mixed pair first, raise speed and carry when the floor clogs, then open specialists only after the sink is fed on both rock waves and orb waves.
Frequently Asked Questions
Quick answers to the most common questions.
How many dwarf types are in Mining and Dwarves?
Five in the full game and two in the demo. The demo only hires Miners and Collectors. The launch tree adds three specialists on top of those two roles.
What do miners and collectors actually do?
Miners damage rocks. Collectors haul shattered drops into the central deposit. You need both or the sink starves. Details are in miners and collectors.
What is the fifth dwarf if the demo only has two?
The full game has five types total: Miner, Collector, Demolition Dwarf, Foreman, and one unpublished fifth type. Foreman writeup: Foreman. Roster: specialist dwarves.
Should I stack one role in the first hour?
No. A mixed miner-plus-collector pair beats a stack of either job early. Stacking comes later, after carry limit and worker speed are not the bottleneck.
Is there multiplayer dwarf control?
No. Mining and Dwarves is single-player only, with Steam Cloud saves. You hire AI workers; you do not drop in with friends.
Where should I go after this hub?
Read miners and collectors, then the Foreman and specialist dwarves. Use the dwarf tier list once both starter roles are hired.