Best Spells for Digging

Overview

Which spells to prioritize and grab for digging through Noita’s landscape! Includes images, descriptions, ranking, and categorizing of digging strength.

Intro

Trying to dig out of the Mines so you can explore the other areas of the game, but you can’t figure out which one of these blasted spells will get you through that rock face? Search no further!

Spoiler Warning: Minor spoilers for spell functionality and secret spells.
Wait to read if you want to be surprised by spells you don’t know.

Use Ctrl+F or Cmd+F to search through this guide for particular spells!

Quick Terminology

For those new to the game, there are a few words I use in this guide that I’d like to define:

Modifier – Refers to a spell that changes the properties of another spell.
Trigger – A common variant of certain spells. It allows the spell to trigger a second spell on impact. What’s the point? It’s so that the second spell goes off farther away from the player character, keeping you safe from potentially very harmful spells. It also allows you to chain spells.
Timer – Similar to trigger, except the second spell will be released after a certain amount of time, rather than on impact.
Long Cast / Distant Cast – Short for “Long Distance Cast Modifier” which is a modifier you can add to a wand to ensure another spell goes off farther away from the player character.

Knowing a bit about wand building as well as how Cast Delay and Recharge Delay work will also help you with this guide. Read more about that here:
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Best Digging at a Glance

Highest ranked digging spells overall considering a normal, un-modded, run.

Best Overall: Luminous Drill
* Usually in the 2nd or 3rd section of the mountain.
* Digs through all materials in the game.
* Can be used to make a constant laser digging wand.
* No use limits.

Best Digging Modifier: Matter Eater
* Spawns usually deeper down in the mountain.
* Digs through all materials in the game (except Cursed Rock.)
* Pairs great with long lasting spells.
* Drawback: Use-Limit is capped at 10. (Unlimited Spells perk doesn’t increase)
* If you get it as an always-cast, you can dig forever.

A Second-Best Spell: Black Hole
* Can be found in the first section of the mountain if you are lucky.
* Digs through all materials in the game.
* With a Speed Up modifier it travels even further.
* Drawback: Use-Limit is capped at 3. (Unlimited Spells perk doesn’t increase)
* If you get it as an always-cast, you can dig forever.
** Not to be confused with Giga Black Hole, which is likely to kill the player instead. **

Other notable runner-ups:

Chainsaw: Great for digging through rock and decreasing recharge times. Great melee and no chance of self-damage. Better than either Digger Burst or Digger Bolt. Cannot go through Steel or stronger.

Acid: In any form (flask, spell, bomb) acid can destroy up to Steel and Brickwork. Only Dense Rock and Glass are immune. The Acid Bomb spell is fairly common as are Acid Flasks. Be careful when testing in Holy Mountains as you may anger the gods.
** Beware of Circle of Acid, which creates so much acid it often kills the player **

Explosives: and not just Bombs or TNT. Any spell that has explosive damage can dig through rock (but not steel or stronger.) This includes Firebolts, Energy Orbs, Magic Missiles, Fireworks, etc. Explosion Immunity recommended. Unlimited Spells makes these have infinite uses.

Spells to Other Spells: As odd as they may be, “Spells to Black Hole” or “Spells to Nukes” can be incredibly useful late-game digging spells for clearing out huge areas! Check out the “Unique Digging” section for more info.

Epilogue Update 3.30.2021

There are quite a few new spells and perks with the Epilogue Update. I have not yet tested these, but once I get a free day I will update this guide to reflect the newest changes.

As of now, none of the new spells are in this guide yet.

Something important to be aware of though:

The Exploding Corpses Perk now grants explosion immunity
This means there are now 2 perks with the possibility of giving you immunity to explosions. Making explosive digging (and flinging holy bombs) that much more possible!

If you find any of the new spells/perks/items are particularly useful for digging, please leave a comment. I’ll prioritize adding them to the guide!

Non-Digging

The following spells have NO digging capability on their own.

No Digging at All:
• Most Modifiers (Too many to list)
• Ocarina / Kantele spells
• Mu, Nolla, Phi, Zeta, Omega
• Barriers (Horizontal, Vertical, Square, Magic Guard)
• Burst of Air
• Circle of… (other than Acid)
• Cursed Sphere
• Clouds (Rain, Blood, Thunder, Oil)
• Destruction
• Eldritch Portal, Tentacler (tentacles can grab/explode containers)
• Freezing Gaze
• Infestation
• Magical Explosion
• Mists (Spirits, Blood, Slime, Toxic)
• Necromancy
• Path of Dark Flame
• Random Spell
• Return
• Sea of… (other than Acid and Lava)
• Soil
• Spiral Shot
• Summon Egg
• Summon Rock Spirit (while they do explode on death, they are too uncontrollable for digging)
• Summon Taikasauva (unless the summoned wand has digging capabilities)
• Summon Wall / Platform
• Swapper
• Teleport
• Tentacle
• Tiny Ghost
• Water, Blood, Oil, Cement

Fragile or Very Light Digging

These spells are not optimal for digging, however they can cause some damage to materials that are Fragile or Very Light.
Fragile Materials include: Glass, Nests, Ice, Snow, Rusted Metal, and Containers.
Very Light Materials include: Wood, Rusted Steel, Soil, Mud, Coal, Frozen Rock.

Fragile / Powder Digging
• Bouncing Burst
• Bubble Spark
• Chain Bolt (from a distance, cannot be shot point-blank)
• Heal Projectile
• Magic Arrow
• Prickly Spore Pod
• Spark Bolt
• Splitter Bolt / Large Splitter Bolt / Giant Splitter Bolt
• Summon Arrow
• Summon Disc / Summon Giga Disc
• Summon Hollow Egg
• Glowing Lance is designed to cut through powders with almost no resistance. You can use this to cut 1-pixel wide trails in soil, ice, snow, and sand.
  However, this spell is unusual. Read more about it in Extremely Dense and Modifiers sections.

Very Light Digging (Wood):
• Personal Plasma Beam Perk
• Death Cross (recommended use with trigger or long distance)
• Flamethrower (use sparingly, works great on wood)
• Lightning Bolt (very likely to kill you without explosion & lightning immunity)
• Slime Ball

Dirt Digging

The following spells dig through everything up to Dirt Material. They may have some capability of digging through stronger material like rock, but doing so is very tedious.

This rank generally includes anything able to go through material hardness level of 0 to 3.
These materials are: Dirt, Ground, Wood, Sandstone, Bonewall, Soil, Ice, Snow, Sand, Wax, Rusted Steel, and Frozen Rock.

Triplicate Bolt | Rank: A
Has a small cast delay of +0.13, but can be used as a fairly fast shotgun and ground remover. It does 5 dmg per pellet, for a max of 15 dmg per shot. Works well with modifiers as each pellet is affected individually. Very useful for destroying dirt or snow/frozen-rock in the Hiisi base. Can dig through standard rock but it is too slow for extended use.

Firebomb | Rank: B
Has a decent speed and no cast delay, allowing this spell to be fired quickly. Makes both an okay starting attack (10 dmg) and a decent digging tool, though be warned it’s likely to catch you on fire. Can often be found early in the game and can be used to dig through the Mines. Can dig through rock but extremely slowly.

Intense Concentrated Light | Rank: C
This spell can dig through dirt and rock but does so extremely slowly. The +1.50 cast delay and 110 mana drain per shot makes this a poor choice for digging, as it is slow and will run out of mana on early-game wands. Can be used to chip through small bits of terrain if no other spells are available.

Other Spells | Rank: D
These spells can dig through Dirt, and slightly through Rock, but are so slow and uncontrollable that they are not of much use. They can all cause self-harm and are recommended more as attack spells than for digging:
Ball Lightning, Glittering Field, Explosive Bounce, Laser Bounce, Bubble Bounce (no self-harm).

Removing Liquids

As of the Feast Update, your Noita character is no longer capable of infinitely drinking through water. A few other methods still exist for removing pesky liquids that stand in your way.

• Drain the Pool – Using an appropriate digging spell, create a small hole in the bottom of the liquid area and drain it into a wider location. Be careful when dealing with hazardous liquids to create a very small hole, maybe just 1 pixel wide, so you can run away before the area below floods.
• Use a Flask – So long as they are not 100% full, flasks can be used to pick up new liquids. Submerge yourself in the liquid with an empty (or nearly empty) flask and it will fill with the liquid around you. Does not work with liquids you cannot swim in (Toxins, Acid, Polymorph, Lava.)

  

• Turn Toxic Sludge to Water – Toxic Sludge is the basic toxic liquid that you will find around the map, it is a slightly yellowy-green liquid that emits bubbles and will hurt you when stained or submerged. You can turn it into water by adding some of your own fresh water to it. It will slowly transform into a pool of water instead.
• Kiuaskivi – This is a brimstone-like rock item that can be found randomly in chests or in open locations, akin to the thunderstone. The kiuaskivi can be used to vaporize water. Vaporizing water will create steam that can suffocate you when it builds up. Be careful when using in small areas.
• Freeze the Liquid – With either the Freezing Liquid perk or the spells Freezing Charge/Freezing Gaze, you can freeze liquids and break through them with any light-digging spell. Be careful when freezing toxins and acids, as these will still harm you even in ice form. See more in the Modifier Digging section.
• Transform the Liquid – Turn Lava to Blood or Chaotically Transmute until the liquid changes into something safer. See more in the Modifier Digging section.
• Black Hole, Luminous Drill, and Matter Eater – Will delete liquids entirely, though very slowly. Draining the pool or exploding the area will be faster.

Rock Digging

The following spells dig through Rocks [Hardness Level 4]. This includes materials such as: Rock, Damp Rock, Toxic Rock, and Dense Rock.
(Note: While Dense Rock takes longer to drill, it has the same hardness level as regular rock.)

Chainsaw | Rank: A
Chainsaw might seem like a slower option with a small dig radius, but if you are able to get multiple copies of the spell it can be turned into a quick rock-drilling machine. This spell has a recharge reduction of -0.17, which can be used to create a rapid-fire chainsaw wand. Look for wands with a low cast delay and see if you can reduce the recharge time to zero (essentially creating a nearly infinitely-casting chainsaw wand.) Chainsaw has a mana cost of 1, but you likely will not have to worry about it unless you put it on a very slow mana-recharge wand.

Delivers great damage for melee (13 dmg per hit) and spawns lots of blood for vampirism perk. It appears commonly in all sections of the mountain, making it a spell you will find in most runs. The dig zone is a bit small but it will get you through levels quickly and reliably. Chainsaw is also useful for reducing recharge times on your combat wands if you don’t want to use it for digging. Even if outclassed later, Chainsaw can be useful to keep for its cheap recharge reduction.

Energy Orb | Rank: A
Upgraded version of Energy Sphere, with better digging capabilities and less cast delay (+0.10). Although it deals explosion damage, this is one of the rare explosion spells that does not damage the player. Energy Orb deals decent damage (11dmg + explosion) and digs very quickly through dirt and stone making it a decent option for both digging and as an attack wand. Works well with modifiers. Since it deals explosion damage you can increase the digging radius and damage using Berserkium. With a fast enough wand this spell can dig better than chainsaw, but it has a higher mana drain.

It is recommended to avoid pairing with modifiers that add explosive damage. As-is, Energy Orb already deals explosion damage and will not injure the player. Adding these modifiers will bring back player damage. If you have Explosion Immunity though, add as many explosions as you like.

Magic Bolt | Rank: A
While easy to mistake for other spells in the game, Magic Bolt actually has some fantastic digging capabilities. It can quickly destroy both Rock and Dense Rock. Magic Bolt also causes player knockback when cast, meaning if this spell is fired downwards it can turn into a jetpack wand for extended levitation. Magic Bolt’s digging paired with its ability to extend jumps makes this a great spell for exploration.

The downsides: Magic Bolt costs 30 mana per shot and has a +0.13 cast delay, meaning it will be difficult to rapid fire until mid-game. It only deals 13 damage per shot, which is very low for the 30 mana cost, and it has no explosion damage. The spell has a natural spread of 2.9 degrees, and then adds +2 degrees of extra spread per Magic Bolt on your wand. The end result is a weak wand with lots of inaccuracy, and therefore this spell isn’t recommended to use in fights.

Digging Blast / Digging Bolt | Rank: B
Cast delay of +0.02 is almost negligible but it does add up. The recharge reduction of -0.17 helps make up for it. Best for use in a wand with low cast delay and a higher recharge time. This spell also has zero mana cost, so unless you add modifiers you’ll never have to worry about running out of mana.

The only difference between Blast and Bolt is the drill damage (Blast is 3 dmg, Bolt is 8). If you manage to make your wand cast the spell fast enough there’s really no difference between the two. These spells do NO enemy damage, so it can’t second as a melee weapon. It digs fairly decently but only in a small area. Other than the zero mana cost, both spells are inferior to chainsaw.

Concentrated Light | Rank: B
This spell has a negative Cast Delay (-0.37) allowing it to be cast incredibly fast, especially on a wand with low recharge time. Deals 10 dmg and ~22 explosion damage. Due to the explosion on this wand it can dig through rock. Concentrated Light has decent attack strength and digging, though it will only dig in a small radius.
Though it may look like Luminous Drill be careful about confusing the two. Luminous Drill is superior, but Concentrated Light is not a bad option if it comes up.

Giga Death Cross | Rank: C
This spell usually will not be found until the player reaches greater depths in the mountain (appears near the Underground Forest and the Vault.) If you manage to get it though, unlike its smaller counterpart Death Cross, Giga Death Cross CAN destroy rock. It has a huge blast radius in a plus sign shape and takes out a large area of the ground. The main downsides are: limited use (8 uses), high mana cost, and high likelihood of injuring the player. Still, it can be used to deal massive damage (400 dmg) and dig through platforms. Explosion Immunity or Long Distance/Triggers recommended.

Energy Sphere | Rank: D
Cast delay of +0.17 and mana drain of 20 means you won’t be rapid-firing these much, though using a triple-spell modifier can help a bit for faster digging. This spell can be decent early digging if you don’t get anything else but it eats through rock very slow. It does 10 dmg, so it can be used as an attack but it will be quickly outranked. It has no explosion damage (unlike Energy Orb.) Timer variation not as recommended due to the high mana drain (50 mana per shot) for early-game.

Pinpoint of light | Rank: Situational
This spell deals an explosion after a slight delay, digging through rock with a small explosion radius. Interestingly though, it illuminates dark areas and thus can be used to help light your path. Due to its high cast delay and high mana cost, it’s not useful as an attack. It can be a useful torch/bomb combo spell for early game.

Rock Digging with Explosives

The following spells use Explosive Capabilities to dig through Rocks [Hardness Level 4]. This includes materials such as: Rock, Damp Rock, Toxic Rock, and Dense Rock.

Most of these spells are mainly Attack Spells that can second as a digging tool due to their explosion radius. There are lots of these spells so I will do general grouping for this section. The general drawback to these spells is their Limited Usage, Cast Delay, and Player Damage.

* Unlimited Spells – Allows you to use ALL of the spells in this section infinitely!
* Explosion Immunity – No more player damage from any of these spells!
* Exploding Corpses – Perk comes with free Explosion Immunity.
* Fire Immunity – No more damage from any fires caused by explosions.
* Exploding Gold – Releases a small explosion upon gold pickup, without player damage.
* Berserkium – Not a perk, but this liquid will increase explosion radius & damage while stained.

Bombs
• Bomb – The standard starting bomb. Rolls away and takes a few seconds to ignite. Decent blast radius. For maximum use, you probably want to get another bomb spell since 3 uses is pretty slim.
• TNT – Has a smaller blast radius than Bomb, but comes in packs of 16 and explodes faster with less chance of rolling away. Opinions vary, but I consider TNT a better choice than bomb due to the 16 uses.
• Bomb Cart– Has six uses, and a blast radius similar to a regular bomb. It takes a much longer time to explode if left alone (about 12 seconds.) It will explode earlier if hit by other explosions. TNT and Bomb preferred.
• Glitter Bomb – Better for attacking than digging, it simply won’t dig through dirt or rock that well. Great for taking out machine enemies.
• Holy Bomb – See “Extremely Dense Digging” section.
• Nuke – See “Certain Death” section.

Small Explosion Spells
• Firebomb – Uses: Infinite
• Fireball – Uses: 15
• Firebolt / Odd Firebolt – Uses: 25
• Fireworks! – Uses: 20
• Magic Missile – Uses: 10
• Thunder Charge – Uses: 3; Warning: Electricity Damage

Big Explosion Spells
• Large Firebolt – Uses: 20
• Giant Firebolt – Uses: 20
• Large Magic Missile – Uses: 8
• Giant Magic Missile – Uses: 6
• Meteor – Uses 10

Explosion Spells
• All of these have infinite uses, but will explode at player location by default!
  Long Distance modifier or Trigger recommended.
• Explosion of Spirits – Blast Size: Tiny
• Explosion of Poison – Blast Size: Tiny
• Explosion – Blast Size: Small
• Explosion of Thunder – Blast Size: Small
• Explosion of Brimstone – Blast Size: Medium

Unusual Explosive Spells
• Dropper Bolt – Uses: 25; Blast Size: Small. Only works digging down, not up or left/right.
• Propane Tank – Uses: 10; Blast Size: Large. Flies erratically and releases damaging vapor on explosion. Not recommended for digging. Can deal huge damage to enemies, but also huge damage to yourself.
• Summon Deercoy – Uses: 10; Blast Size: Medium; Explodes on damage intake.
• Summon Missile – Uses: 20; Blast Size: Small; Automatically homes towards enemies, and cannot otherwise be aimed. They do not cause self-harm.
• Unstable / Dormant Crystal – Uses: 10/20; Blast Size: Medium; Both act like mines. Interesting synergy with Matter Eater modifier.

Larpa Bounce, Explosion, Up/Down, and Chaos | Rank: A
These modifiers are unique in that they actually create copies of projectiles. They will also duplicate your explosion spells, which can be extremely useful for extending limited-use spells. Chaos Larpa is particularly notable for turning a single bomb spell into multiple explosions. Unfortunately most of the Larpa spells have high mana-costs (80 ~ 100), which means they will be limited to mid-game and use up mana very quickly.

Shown here (to right), Chaos Larpa with one single Bomb Cart use:

Explosive Projectile | Rank: A
Adds a Mana Drain of 30, but with the exchange of turning any spell in the wand into an Explosive Digging spell. Bonus effect that Explosion Immunity isn’t needed: explosions from this modifier won’t hurt the player! Best to use with a non-explosive spell to make the most of not needing immunity. The mana drain of 30 means it’ll be hard to create a rapid fire wand, but it’s still a viable option for slower digging.

Quantum Split, Spell Duplication | Rank: B
Both Quantum Split and Spell Duplication can be used to extend the number of uses of your explosion spells. Quantum Split will effectively turn one bomb into three, while Spell Duplication has numerous synergies with explosive spells in general. Both can be used to make your digging wands last longer and work better. Quantum Split is cheap (10 mana), while Spell Duplication has a hefty 250 mana drain — but it casts every spell before it twice, and if used properly, can cause intense explosions.

Firecrackers | Rank: C
This modifier causes bits of gunpowder to explode around the impact point, digging through terrain and potentially causing fires. When paired with Bouncing Burst or Triplicate Bolt you can deal a lot of damage as well as make a decent dent through the ground. Recommended to use with Fire Immunity, as things will burn.

Other Explosive Modifiers
There exist many modifiers in this game that can add explosion damage. Most of them are geared towards being attacks. They are not as useful for digging since their final explosion location is not very controllable. They can still somewhat destroy rocky terrain:
Downwards Bolt Bundle, Electric Arc, Explosion on Enemies, Explosive Bounce, Fireball Thrower, Two-Way Fireball Thrower, Gunpowder Arc, Gunpowder Trail, Lightning Thrower, Octagonal bolt bundle, Personal Fireball Thrower, and Personal Lightning Caster.
Small note: Magical Explosion does not dig at all, despite its name. It will explode at player location by default, and needs to be used with long distance modifiers.

Steel & Brickwork Digging (Acid)

These spells can go through stronger materials still, including: Steel, Brickwork (Holy Mountain walls), and Forest Wood. [Hardness Level 5]

This section mainly involves the use of Acid which eats through most materials: the exceptions being dense rock, extremely dense rock, and glass (lanterns / flasks.) Warning: Acid deals about 20 damage per second on contact, more if you are submerged. It also has a tendency to anger the gods if used in Holy Mountains. Use carefully! Toxic Sludge Immunity will not protect you from Acid.

Acid Flasks | Rank: A, though use is limited
These Flasks are fairly common in the first section of the mountain, especially if you get an Alchemist’s Abandoned Lab set-piece in the Mines. Grab one and bring it with you to help destroy ground / steel very quickly. Be careful not to accidentally drink, throw, or use in the Holy Mountain.

Acid (The Spell) | Rank: A
This spell acts exactly the same as using an Acid Flask. It has zero mana cost, infinite use, and has a generous -0.25 Cast Delay reduction, along with a -0.17 Recharge Reduction. You can use this spell to make your combat wands faster (though beware those wands will now spill acid!) Extremely useful spell well worth getting — just once again, don’t test it in the Holy Mountain!

Acid Trail (Modifier) | Rank: B
Attach this modifier to a projectile for an unlimited source of acid. Adds a mana drain of 15 to the projectile spell. Best paired with stable, straight-forward projectiles so you do not accidentally get acid on yourself. Slower spells will leave more acid, so Energy Orb or Energy Sphere are good options. Not recommended if you have Boomerang Spells, Homing Shots, or other trail-impacting perks. Remember to test your wand outside the Holy Mountain.

Acid Bomb | Rank: C
Acid Bomb melts through the terrain like nothing else, but it has a Use Limit of 20 along with a Cast Delay of +0.17, meaning it isn’t a good long-term or fast digging solution. This spell only works digging down, up/sideways will not work. The spell will also cause the wand to release flammable toxic gas particles even when not in use. Using multiple acid bombs in the same area will flood the space with toxic gas which can suffocate you. Cast with caution!

Acid Cloud | Rank: D
With a maximum Use Limit of 4, this spell is only really useful to keep around for sneaking into a Steel Bunker, or as a panic get-away spell if you don’t have any other acid on hand. You will want to use a Trigger, Timer, or Long Cast to make sure the cloud forms away from your player character, since the cloud will form at player location by default. Most other acid options are superior.

Concentrated Mana and Lava Flasks | Rank: Situational
Both Concentrated Mana and Lava can be used to melt Steel and Metals. They have no effect on non-metal materials (dirt, wood, rock), so it’s best to save these for dissolving steel bunkers in the Hiisi Base, Ice Caverns, and the Vault. Concentrated Mana is a better choice than the lava flask, since it doesn’t hurt the player.

Sea of Acid / Sea of Lava | Rank: Situational
Both not recommended as they generate a HUGE area of the fluid that generally destroys everything. The only reason these are not in the “Certain Death” section is that the “Sea of…” spells generate the fluid a good distance under the player character, saving you from instant death. However the influenced area below you is now highly dangerous and difficult to traverse. Mostly useful to clear a large section of enemies. Sea of Acid recommended over Sea of Lava, as the Acid will eventually dissolve (but the lava might stay forever.)

Circle of Acid
See “Certain Death” section.

Do not release a continuous straight-down spray. The acid will travel back up the toxic gas and damage you! This can easily kill you before you realize what’s happening.

Instead, spray in small bits over time while levitating:

Extremely Dense Digging

These spells can go through almost anything in the game, including Extremely Dense Rock and Cursed Rock. [Hardness Level 6.]

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Luminous Drill | Rank: A
Featuring a speed of 1400, a Recharge Reduction of -0.17, infinite use, and the ability to cut through any material in the game — this spell is the best for digging. It has a mana drain of 10 and is better paired on a wand with low Cast Delay and high Mana Max. If you see this spell, get it! It ignores all shields and attacks enemies with 11.5 damage per hit (and if you have an infinitely looping wand, this means intense damage.)

Works well with many modifiers. Increase Mana can get its mana cost down to zero. Increase Duration and Ping-Pong Path modifiers can extend the length of its beam. It also can be paired with its Timer variant for a longer beam (though at a high mana cost.)

Can be useful as an Always-Cast if it appears on a wand with low Cast/Recharge delay times. Throw some other spells in the wand to reduce these times to create an infinite luminous drill. Experiment with modifiers, Luminous Drill has lots of possibilities.

Some Luminous Drill and Modifier combinations shown here:

View post on imgur.com

[imgur.com], courtesy of Jase.

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Black Hole | Rank: A
Black Hole has a cast delay of +1.33, so you won’t be firing these in a chain, but in most cases you won’t need to. Black Hole goes through everything in its path in a straight line and lasts for about 3 seconds. If you pair it “Increase Duration”, “Speed Up”, or “Accelerating Shot” this spell can be the fastest, longest-reaching digging tool in the game. The only downside is its 3-use limit, and high mana-cost for early game. Unlimited Spells perk does not change the limit, it is still capped at 3.

If you get this spell as an always-cast it does not matter how horrible the wand is, take it! It’s basically infinite digging and always worth keeping. Modifiers will still impact the always-cast, so throw a “Speed Up” on there with some projectile and dig to the ends of the earth.

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Holy Bomb | Rank: B
Since the Feast Update, Holy Bomb can now dig through Brickwork, Extremely Dense, and Cursed Rock. The spell is, however, unwieldy in its explosion and digs through Cursed material very slowly — it is not recommended to use at the edges of the world. It can be a great advanced bomb option for digging up through Extremely Dense Rock.

Since this spell can destroy brickwork be careful when testing in the Holy Mountain. It will easily destroy the worm crystal with its blast. It chips at the brickwork very slowly though, it took me over 20 bombs to anger the gods. Not very useful for exploding layers of brickwork.

With a mana cost of 300 per shot, this spell won’t be useful early-game as most wands won’t be able to fire it. By mid-game, Holy Bomb can be a handy spell to get into steel bunkers. This spell has a maximum of 2 uses, so if you find a wand with multiple copies of Holy Bomb it’s worth picking up. The Unlimited Spells perk makes Holy Bomb infinite effectively turning it into one of the strongest explosion spells in the game (next to Nuke.) It deals 800 explosion damage and its radius and damage can both be increased with Berserkium. Explosion and Fire immunity both recommended. If the spell doesn’t outright explode you with its 800 damage, the lingering fire can kill you just as fast.

This spell has adds +1.33 to recharge time and +0.67 cast delay. If you can add spells to counter this (like Chainsaw or Reduce Recharge) it will allow you to make better use of firing multiple bombs at once. Makes both for good digging and good damage, so long as you are immune.

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Glowing Lance | Rank: Specific
Since the Feast Update, Glowing Lance is now able to dig (1 pixel at a time) through Extremely Dense and Cursed Rock. As it only removes 1 pixel and has a large knock-back, it would take you hours to get anywhere. Glowing Lance is still best for working with powders.

To the right: example of Glowing Lance chipping away cursed rock through a tunnel made with Black Hole.

Glowing Lance has a cast delay of +0.33, making it hard to turn into a rapid-fire spell without other spells to counterbalance. It deals decent enemy damage (35 dmg), though be warned this spell can friendly fire.
** Glowing Lance has interesting synergies with certain modifiers. See next section. **

Digging with Matter Modifiers

Outside of the normal spells, there are unusual Modifiers you can use to get yourself through the earth. These make use of destroying / altering matter to allow you to pass through. These dig through almost everything, up to Extremely Dense Rock and sometimes Cursed Rock.

This modifier will cause projectiles to delete terrain, and will destroy all materials except Cursed rock. Pairs best with spells that stay a long time on the screen such as Energy Orb (for straightforward digging) or Bouncing Burst (for chaotic, extended digging.) “Increase Duration” can be very useful with this. Does not pair well with spells that vanish on impact, such as Spark Bolt, Magic Bolt, or any of the Explosive Spells.

When used with Dormant Crystal, a spell that lasts a very long time, the crystal may literally burrow forever — though it often explodes at some point in its fall. Can also be used with Unstable Crystal, but beware there will be lots of explosions. Explosion Immunity recommended for Crystal/Matter Eater combos.

The modifier only has 10 uses, making it something you will want to save for a quick getaway rather than extended digging. Unlimited Spells perk does not change the limit, it is still capped at 10. If you find Matter Eater on a wand as an always-cast, take it! The wand will slice through the mountain with almost any projectile spell.

Example of “Matter Eater” with Dormant Crystal:

Notice the explosion, always levitate a bit while falling to avoid this.

Very similar to Matter Eater in that this spell can turn any terrain it touches into sand. Works best with spells that are not stopped by powders, like Glowing Lance. Also pairs well with Energy Orb or Bouncy Burst.

Be careful when using not to bury yourself in sand and suffocate. Always have another digging wand to get yourself out of a bury-in. This modifier only has 10 uses so it’s best for digging quickly through a thin layer of ground to make an escape. Note: With Unlimited Spells perk, this modifier can be used infinitely and is no longer capped at 10.

In its standard form, this modifier is not useful for digging through solid earth due to the sand it makes. However with the Dissolve Powders perk, the sand will instantly vanish — making this modifier an even wider-ranged Matter Eater. If you find a “Ground to Sand”, get the Dissolve Powders & Unlimited Spells perks to turn it into an infinite digging wand.

Example of “Ground to Sand” with Glowing Lance:

Note the sand buildup and potential for being buried in sand.

Example of “Ground to Sand” with Glowing Lance and Dissolve Powders perk:

Glowing Lance seemingly can dig forever with this set up, but the dig space gets narrower and narrower until you can no longer fit through. Digs about 1200m at the most, 300m on average.

There are a number of spells that turn one surface into another. Each have some use, but are not as powerful as the transformations listed above.

* Chaotic Transmutation – Transforms powders and liquids into other substances. Only has 8 uses and isn’t able to directly impact solid ground, but still merits mentioning as it can “dig” through Liquids, Snow, Sand, and Coal. Pairs well with Glowing Lance. Be warned, it is chaotic and has a chance to turn into acid or lava. Keep yourself at a good distance before firing.

* Lava to Blood – Can be used to dig through the Lava Lake and protect yourself from lava pits. Also useful to equip to attack wands when dealing with enemies that bleed lava. Worth picking up as a defensive spell.

* Blood to Acid – Turns any blood near casted projectiles into acid. For bloodied enemies, this can add intense damage per second. For digging, this often leads to uncontrollable results. More often than not will end up killing you if you have a blood stain. Acid Trail modifier is a better choice due to being more controlled.

* Toxic Sludge to Acid – Turns any toxic sludge near casted projectiles into acid. Slightly helpful in the Mines and the Vault where there is a lot of toxic sludge around, but otherwise not very useful. Acid Trail modifier is a better choice due to being more controlled.

* Water to Poison – No digging capability. Very hazardous.

Other Unique Digging Options

These spells all have an interesting way of destroying terrain that don’t quite fit in any other section.

Freezing Gaze, Freeze Charge | Specifically for Liquids
Freezing Gaze is an attack spell that can also freeze liquids. Similarly, the Freeze Charge modifier can be added to other digging spells to freeze certain liquids. Lava will turn to stone, water to ice, toxic sludge/acid into a frozen version. Most other flask liquids do not freeze. These frozen materials can then be broken and dug through.

This technique can be used to “dig” through the lava lake in the Mines. Works well when paired with Black Hole, but can also work with chainsaw or any other Rock-digging spells. Keep an eye above you when going through large pools of lava to ensure the lava doesn’t start flooding in from a weak point, as this can easily trap you at the bottom of your digging location.

Be warned that when digging through frozen toxic sludge or frozen acid you will still take damage per second when in contact with the ice. Also note that akin to the Freeze Field Perk, you can very easily get frozen in your own blood if you fire this spell too much.

Earthquake Shot
This spell can be used to displace all materials in the game, including Steel, Brickwork, and Extremely Dense / Cursed Rock. Unlike plain “Earthquake” this modifier is much more controllable. It displaces a mid-sized circle around the impact location of a projectile. This can be used to soften all materials, turning them into “Debris” or “Collapsed Concrete” versions that can be dug through with most any Rock digging spell. It can even be used on Cursed Rock at the edges of the world.

Still, be careful when firing this spell, as it does not actually remove any material. If there’s nowhere for the rock to fall, the ground will jiggle a bit but won’t give way to a walkable path. Similarly, if cast this above your head, rocks can fall and easily kill you.
The spell has 15 uses, and can be made infinite with Unlimited Spells perk.

These unique spells will turn all on-screen projectiles into a different projectile.
These have limited uses, and cannot be increased by the Unlimited Spells perk.

Spells to Black Holes | Rank: A
Turns projectiles into black holes. No chance of hurting yourself, and basically creates a ton of black holes for 200 mana. Fantastic for digging. 10 uses.

Spells to Nukes | Rank: A
Turns projectiles into nukes that explode upon impact. Same warnings apply here as with the usual nuke spell (See Certain Death section). 2 uses.

Spells to Magic Missiles | Rank: B
Turns projectiles into missiles capable of rock digging. Can self-harm due to explosion damage, but can clear out large areas of rock. 10 uses.

Spells to Death Crosses | Rank: B
Turns projectiles into cross explosions capable of rock-digging. Can self-harm with heavy explosion damage, so stay very clear! 15 uses.

Spells to Acid | Rank: C
Turns projectiles into acid. This doesn’t generate a lot of acid compared to other acid options, and has a high probability of causing self-harm. Other acid spells are superior.

Spells to Giga Sawblades | Rank: D
Turns projectiles into sawblades capable of dirt digging. The sawblades can self-harm, and will boomerang towards your player harming you.

Example of “Spells to Black Holes”

Example of “Spells to Nukes”

Example of “Spells to Death Crosses”

Certain Death Digging

The following spells are capable of great digging or destruction capabilities. However, use in a standard run is not recommended since it’s highly likely you will die.

For normal runs: This is a one-time use item that destroys nearly the whole screen and deals 1000 explosion damage. If you are anywhere near it or can even see the nuke hit the ground, you are likely dead. When paired with Long Distance Cast or Triggers, you may be able to use this to clear out a huge section of ground. Its 1-time use keeps it from being a long term digging solution. An Ambrosia stain will protect you from nuke damage.

For extended runs: Once paired with Explosion Immunity, Fire Immunity, and Unlimited Spells, a single nuke spell is capable of infinitely destroying whole screens of terrain and enemies — and the immunity perks mean you will leave without a scratch. One of the fastest ways of clearing chasms and destroying large groups of low-level enemies. As Nukes are only Rock Digging level at most, you will still need other digging spells for handling Steel, Brickwork, Extremely Dense, and Cursed Rock.

Any of these spells (Touch of Gold, Touch of Oil, Touch of Blood, etc.) will instantly turn a small area into the named material. This area defaults to your location and will turn you into said material. You will instantly die regardless of your health. The ONLY way to use these spells is with a Trigger or Long Distance modifier. Even then, these spells all have limited uses and affect a relatively small area.

As of the Feast Update, these spells can now have infinite uses when paired with the Unlimited Spells perk. This makes them a powerful option, both as an attack and for digging (and possibly gaining infinite gold.) If you happen to get one of these spells and the Unlimited perk, pair the spell with a Trigger or Long Distance modifier — then use it to dig and instantly kill enemies. Be wary that these spells leave a bit of lingering “dust” for about 1 second, this dust can still kill you. If you keep your distance and use it properly, it can be a unique option for both movement and defeating enemies.

Transforms nearby material into “collapsed” versions and breaks almost everything. This can be used to soften materials: it will work on all materials in the game, including Brickwork, Steel, and Extremely Dense/Cursed Rock. However, if it’s used with a ceiling above you, the rocks will crack and fall down, likely killing you instantly. May be a decent option if you have an excess of 500 HP to spare, and plenty of extra bombs to dig yourself out of a collapse.
Earthquake Shot, however, can be very useful as it’s area of effect is much smaller, and less likely to break things above you.

While this spell can actually destroy all materials in the game (including Extremely Dense and Cursed Rock) and it has infinite uses…the sawblade will almost certainly kill you while doing so. From the moment this spell is cast, the Omega Sawblade homes in on the player’s location and once it reaches you, it deals about 300 damage per second while in contact. The Projectile Repulsion perk can stop the sawblade so long as you are standing still, but any movement can cause the disk to boomerang and hit you.

To use this for digging, you would need a very unique build with Projectile Repulsion, long distance triggers, and path-altering modifiers to prevent the sawblade from killing you. Other alternatives are recommended instead.

Unlike its friendly and useful younger cousin, Giga Black Hole is purely an attack spell. It destroys a large area but only that area, it does not move forward like Black Hole does. Anything within that area becomes a vortex of death that causes constant damage per second until the Giga Black Hole stops. This is highly likely to damage you more than anything. It is best paired with Long Cast or Triggers to keep its area of effect far away from yourself. Its limited uses, likelihood of injury, and lack of movement make it not optimal for digging.

While a good idea in theory, the circle this forms is HUGE and there’s no protection against it. Toxic Immunity perk will not save you. The circle will take up almost the whole screen. Even if paired with Long Distance modifiers, this spell has very limited uses (4 times) and it can’t be used for extended digging. Also Dense Rock is immune to acid, so this spell cannot be reliably used between layers or at the edge of the world.

Cursed Digging

Cursed Rock is a surface that exists only at the edges of the World. Going through this allows you to enter Parallel Worlds. This comes with many difficulties and is a very late-game task.

The following spells can dig through Cursed Rock:
* Black Hole
* Luminous Drill
* Ground to Sand Modifier
* Glowing Lance (extremely slowly, not recommended)
* Holy Bomb (extremely slowly, not recommended)
* Omega Sawblade (will kill you, not recommended)
* Earthquake / Earthquake Shot can convert Cursed Rock into Collapsed Concrete.

Matter Eater can not dig through Cursed Rock. Neither can Acid.

Cursed Rock deals constant damage to the player — about 15~30dmg every second while in direct contact, and 25dmg every 2 seconds while levitating. For this reason it is important to dig fast and move fast.

Earthquake (and its Shot variant) can convert Cursed Rock into Concrete, which can then be destroyed by any other Rock Digging tool. However, Earthquake’s small range and the fact that it has to be followed with another bomb usually makes it too slow to be useful for getting to parallel worlds.

Some digging options:

• Black Hole + Speed Up / Accelerate modifiers, and a teleport wand. Use Black Hole to make a long cave, then teleport through as fast as possible. Have at least 6 Black Hole shots.
• Ground to Sand + Glowing Lance + Dissolve Powders perk, and a teleport wand. Same strategy as Black Hole, just a different build.
• Luminous Drill will require a Quad-Splitter, timer variants, and lots of mana reduction. Luminous drill has a naturally short dig area and isn’t recommended without modifiers.

There are lots of other methods for getting through the Cursed Rock, some include using Lively Concotion to heal yourself or using ambrosia to block the damage. See more here: [link]

Material Hardness Table

Gold Material, found in stones
Technically a 3 in strength (same as dirt), however being mined doesn’t destroy the gold, but rather turns it into a Powder that you can pick up. Any Dirt, Rock, or Explosion Digging spells will mine gold. Even Nukes and Holy Bombs will work (though they send the gold flying!) Gold Material will be destroyed by anything Steel digging or greater. Including Acid, Lava, and Concentrated Mana.

Gold Nuggets, dropped by enemies
Gold Nuggets are a bit stronger than gold itself. They can withstand all Rock Digging Spells, and are not harmed by Acid or Lava. Gold Nuggets, however, will be destroyed by any Extremely Dense Digging or Matter Modifying spells. They can also be destroyed by Concentrated Mana.

Outro

Some of these numbers/values for these spells may vary over time due to balancing patches or hotfixes. I won’t be updating this guide with every single patch. Be sure to double check the spells in-game.

They will respond to you faster than I can!