After our Delve announcement at the end of last week, there was much community discussion about many aspects of the league and its mechanics. We've collected some of the key talking points to explain further in today's news.

If you missed it, check out our full announcement, official trailer and developer introduction and ZiggyD's in depth look at the Delve expansion.

When do you first encounter Delve content?

As early as the Coast.

How common is Voltaxic Sulphite?

It's in every area. Sometimes multiple deposits of it.

Is there a minimum amount of Voltaxic Sulphite needed to enter the mine?

There's a minimum amount of Voltaxic Sulphite required to get the Crawler to go to a new location, but it's quite small for short Delves.

Is there a capacity on how much Voltaxic Sulphite you can carry?

Yes, and you can upgrade this with Azurite if you feel it's too low.

How long can you spend in the mine assuming you have filled your Voltaxic Sulphite capacity?

This depends on a number of factors, but with reasonable capacity upgrades at a reasonable depth, you can chain a few longer Delves together if you want to consume all your Voltaxic Sulphite at once.

Do you have to wait for Niko to collect the sulphite once you encounter it?

No, you can click it and walk away (or click him and go do the Delve immediately).

Can I bypass leveling in other areas of the game and spend most of my time exclusively in the mine?

No. You have to play the regular game to get Voltaxic Sulphite so that you can play Delves.

Can you use Azurite for anything other than upgrading your mining equipment?

Azurite can be spent upgrading your mining equipment (Sulphite capacity, darkness resistance, light radius) to offset the growing difficulty of deeper levels, as well as upgrades for Flares (capacity, radius, duration) and Dynamite (capacity, damage, radius). You can also directly buy more Flares, Dynamite to help with your delves.

Niko also sells Resonators to craft with, for a price.

Can you trade azurite, sulphite, flares and dynamite? Do they take up inventory space?

They can not be traded and do not take up inventory space. These track your own Delve progress and are stored for your individual character.

Is your mine progress character based or account wide?

It's character-based, but there is a catch-up mechanism for subsequent characters if you don't want to play delve while levelling.

Will your mine layout differ to other people's?

Yes, every character's mine is different. The same types of things spawn at the same depths with the same rarities, so if someone finds something cool at a specific location, have a look around that depth!

Can you teleport to any checkpoint in the Azurite Mine?

Yes, like the waypoint system.

Is the Mine only infinite downwardly?

It's also infinite laterally (side-to-side).

Does the mine get harder than maps?

Yes. Very much so.

Is the mine a single area or are there loading screens between checkpoints?

It creates a large area around your starting point, so if you travel through a lot of Delves you'll eventually hit a loading screen. In practise this rarely comes up.

How will the mine work in parties?

Everyone in a party gets their own sulphite when anyone clicks it. When you go to the mine, you leave behind a portal that your friends can use to enter your mine. The Crawler's progress is tied to the owner of the mine. If that person leaves, then the Crawler stops and the party will not be able to proceed.

Do maps drop in the mine?

They're not in the regular drop pool, but some city and encounter rewards are specifically maps.

Will you find masters or trials in the mine?

No.

Can you run the same Delve twice?

Each Delve can only be run once (because the encounter is rewarding), but you can return to the areas you cleared to hunt in the darkness with flares afterwards. The path that you have previously Delved along is now lit by a cable of lights laid by the Crawler.

Are you able to backtrack with the Crawler?

You can go on any Delve connected to a node that you have completed before. It transports you and the Crawler to that location.

What happens if you die in a Delve?

If you die, you fail the Delve and have to repeat it. You don't get the items that the Crawler has picked up for you on that failed attempt.

Is there a ladder for both solo and group play?

Previous answer has been replaced with this article!

Will there be global announcements when players reach new depths in the mine?

Probably.

What kind of damage is the darkness? How does it stack?

It's its own damage type. Only defenses that reduce all damage can reduce darkness damage. It stacks up twice a second, and can get very dangerous quickly.

Does light radius on items affect your experience in the mine?

No. The darkness suppresses regular light, so players have no light radius in the mine themselves.

Is darkness resistance only available through the upgrade panel or can you get it on item mods?

It only comes from the upgrade panel.

Will I be able to use Flicker Strike in the mine?

Yes, absolutely. Just note that the darkness will kill you.

How does darkness affect minions and totems?

It does not.

Does the scaling of the mine apply to spectres? Can we summon high level spectres as we get deeper into the mine?

Spectres are the level corresponding to the depth you entered the mine at. You can summon high level spectres from the mine.

TELL ME ABOUT THE DRAGON!!!

Delve has a variety of interesting bosses and encounters :-)

Can we stack copies of the same fossils in a Resonator?

No.

How do the rarities of the various Resonators compare?

There are two types of Resonators - Chaotic and Alchemical. These have the functionality of Chaos Orbs and Orbs of Alchemy respectively. Each can have a number of sockets. Ones with many sockets are harder to find than ones with few.

How rare will Fossils be? Will they have an equal drop chance?

Most fossils aren't that rare. You'll have plenty of opportunity to craft cool items this league. Certain powerful ones are rarer than others.

What's the difference between the Reliquary Keys in Delve and the Reliquary Keys in Legacy?

Timeworn Reliquary Keys (the ones in Delve) drop less frequently, but have more valuable results. The Relics that can be found in the Timeworn Reliquary are shiny versions of any unique items that were available in past Path of Exile leagues that aren't in the main unique drop pool (like Headhunter). All 151 have equal chances of being in the Reliquary.

Are there any hideout changes coming?

Yes, but not in 3.4.0. We will be making major changes in 3.5.0.

Will the Delve soundtrack be added to the supporter pack?

Yes, but we don't have an exact timeframe on when.

Which items will the Crawler pick up?

Any items dropped from monsters within a large radius around the Crawler.

What is the maximum speed of the Crawler?

The base speed is proportional to your run speed. For example. if you use a Quicksilver Flask, that speed increases. The Crawler can also move faster than your run speed if you get in front of it via movement skills. All of this is really not important because the monsters are hard enough that the challenge is not being left behind. You're not escorting the Crawler, it's escorting you.

Note: The following answer has changed since this was originally posted.

Which items will the Crawler pick up?

From: Anything within the light radius of the Crawler.
To: Any items dropped from monsters within a large radius around the Crawler.