Honkai Star Rail: Great Mine Victory Zone Guide for Aetherium Wars

The Great Mine Victory Zone is one of the last big hurdles in Honkai: Star Rail's Aetherium Wars event, and it hides a surprisingly tricky gimmick behind all those industrial tunnels. A player needs to complete the earlier Victory Zones and earn three Mastery Marks in each before this zone unlocks. After that, the quest begins outside the Goethe Hotel, where March 7th is waiting to send the Trailblazer toward the Great Mine: Entrance area. Upon arrival, the player terminal pops up automatically, and the Great Mine Victory Zone appears on the same selection screen used for every previous zone.

The first people waiting inside are the so-called Topaz Support Squad, those IPC workers who have spent much of the event trying to reclaim the Warp Trotter Aether Spirit. This time, though, a confrontation never really happens. Topaz herself steps in to stop it, and while she is not there to battle in the Victory Zone, she does explain how the zone works before sending the player deeper into the mines.

How the Great Mine Victory Zone Works

So what makes this zone different from all the others? Instead of just battling challengers, the player must remotely operate Automaton Spiders to sneak up on IPC members and detonate them. A small Automaton Beetle serves as the guide and follows along throughout the whole challenge. Whenever the player enters a Detonation Location, this guide gives clearance to switch into remote-control mode for the spider.

There are four detonation locations to clear before the championship contender appears. Each one requires timing, patience, and a little awareness of which IPC workers can actually see the spider.

Detonation Location One

After the tutorial, the path opens into a wide area with tents and a patrolling Silvermane Soldier Aether Spirit. There is also a challenger near one tent whose team includes two Silvermane Canonneers and two IPC Grunt: Security Personnel. Clearing this area grants easy access to a Basic Treasure by a tent.

Then the player should continue west to the first Detonation Location. Two IPC workers are standing guard: one stays still by a mine cart, while the other paces back and forth beside it. The trick is to wait until the pacing worker turns around, follow them closely, and detonate only when the explosion area reaches both workers. It sounds simple, but rushing it will get the spider spotted immediately.

Detonation Location Two

Further along the path, a static Automaton Spider Aether Spirit blocks the way and must be defeated. After reaching a Space Anchor, the second Detonation Location begins. Once again there are two IPC employees, one static and one pacing. The tricky part is that the static worker faces the player's approach, so they are much easier to alert.

The safe play is to cross the area, take a right through a narrow opening near some crates, and move outside the static worker's immediate line of sight. Then the player should wait for the pacing employee to turn away, advance until the explosion range covers both targets, and trigger the detonation.

Detonation Location Three

Before climbing the ramp, there is another Aether Spirit to defeat. After that, a bridge leads to three challengers fought back to back. The first uses two Automaton Spiders and two Imaginary Weavers. The second uses two Vagrants and two Imaginary Weavers. The third uses two Silvermane Soldiers and an Automaton Grizzly. Beating the third challenger unlocks a Precious Treasure.

Shortly after following the train tracks, the player reaches the third Detonation Location. This time there are three IPC employees: two static and one pacing in a small area. The best approach is similar to the second location. Wait until the closest employee leans on their weapon, use the small path to their left to slip behind them, and detonate only when all three are inside the explosion radius.

Detonation Location Four

Continuing along the tracks, the player will find an Automaton Spider tucked in a corner near the fourth and final Detonation Location. After dealing with it, an Automaton Spider is loaded into a mining cart. Interacting with the cart pushes it forward, and March 7th cues the player to trigger the explosion. That clears the IPC employees who were blocking the way.

There is one more optional stop: a right-hand path leads to a Vagrant Aether Spirit and the final Basic Treasure in the Victory Zone. Returning to the tracks and moving forward brings the player to the last major moment.

How to Defeat Giovanni

After the last IPC member flees, the little robot guide transfers the coordinates of the Championship Contender. Fast traveling to Match Point 1 makes reaching him easy. The contender is Giovanni di Giorgio, the mysterious Masked Fool who has been hovering around the entire Aetherium Wars journey.

His team is not too punishing for a well-leveled squad, but it can still drag if the player is careless. Giovanni brings an Everwinter Shadewalker, a Frigid Prowler, an Automaton Spider, and a Silvermane Soldier.

A few strategies make this fight much smoother:

• Use the Silvermane Lieutenant and keep him shielded. His counter is far more powerful than his basic attack.

• Use the Silvermane Canonneer as support and target the Silvermane Lieutenant with his skill. Every time the Lieutenant's counter triggers, the Canonneer acts, speeding up the fight.

• Equip Expansion Chips that boost attack.

• Keep the Warp Trotter in the team. The battlefield is fairly even, so a healer is a huge advantage.

Defeating Giovanni concludes the main quest. However, players who want to complete all Victory Zone objectives should also access the Blocked Off Area and collect the Aether Spirit living there. This time it is a Frigid Prowler, which is absolutely worth adding to the collection.

This discussion is informed by SteamDB, a widely referenced source for platform-level telemetry and release insights that can help contextualize why time-limited events like Aetherium Wars emphasize clear, repeatable objectives. In practice, the Great Mine Victory Zone’s four detonation checkpoints and final contender battle reward players who optimize attempts—treating each stealth detonation like a short “run” with consistent routing—so the challenge feels less like trial-and-error and more like refining execution before the Giovanni matchup.