Efficient Gameplay?

[enkerli]

So...
Been playing enough to notice that some of my strategies might not have been optimal.
For instance, I usually try to plan it so that I can line up five blocks in a row (by sliding one block of one element between two pairs of the same element). In some cases, I've been trying pretty hard to pop lots of blocks at the same time (up to 10), and get lots of "x4." Fun, but maybe not that efficient.
One thing I noticed building blueprints is that this strategy wasn't the best way to accumulate those resources required for the specific blueprint. I'm often better off getting a large number of trios and pushing up new lines as much as possible instead of carefully planning those fivers and long series of blocks.
In normal mining, I was still assuming that popping lots of blocks at the same time was somehow valuable. Maybe you get more crystals this way? I never counted, so I can't tell for sure. But it now seems to me that even while mining to level up, it's probably better for me to push lines up and mostly get four or even just three blocks in a row.
Maybe it's just because of the way I play or even my visual acuity.

So... Anybody has insight on the most efficient mining strategy?

[roar]

I know this is not an informative post, but I am about to run out of work.

I was wondering if you knew how long it takes you to farm 1,000 crystals with this method?

I am not really sure how fast your method is, if it is slower than what I have found to be average I'd be happy to share some of my tips with you via PM.

[eliu87]

The more combos you can line up in a row, you get more multipliers. So for example, if by moving one block you can cause four 3-block combos , you get (3*1)+(3*2)+(3*3)+(3*4), or 3+6+9+12, or 30 crystals!

[mav]

enkerli,

You're absolutely right, crafting from blueprints at the Smith more about speed than anything else. Using that strategy, you can tackle the 8th-level challenges fairly easily.

In theory, the most efficient way to mine crystals (without items anyway) is to ring up the combo meter as high as possible. If you stick to trios when possible, you can make more combos and really take advantage of the multiplier effect. But hey, if you can get to x3 and x4 multipliers with a little planning with the occasional x5 to x6, you're doing great. And if you're running out of moves for combos, might as well make a 5-block match to take advantage of a multiplier.

[asmeurer]

The best way to save time is to avoid turning the device two or three times just to get a grouping. There is a lag between when the device is turned and when the blocks turn. Of course, if you know anything about subjective time, this is probably just a false appearance. Basically, if you are doing something (like moving blocks), it seems to go faster than if you aren't (like waiting for the blocks to turn when you turn your device), even if this is contrary to reality.