[Moonid]

I don't know why people feel x-raying is necessary, finding diamonds isn't hard.

I usually branch mine at 12, as it puts me right above the lava pools (instead of them being in my face!) and I usually end up with the bottom of caves at foot or face level. 

For those who don't know, branch mining is something like this:



The idea is that if they're 3 blocks apart, you're not digging more than necessary as that'll cover enough surface area to find diamonds since clusters are usually 2 wide and will likely touch at least one of the walls. I found a dozen or two dia within about 6 tunnels in my first branch min on res.

I've been experimenting with a zig-zag style of mining as of yesterday, however, wherein I dig four paces and turn left or right, leaving a 3 block gap between my turns hoping to cover as much surface area as I can without actually strip mining. I find strip mining to be very rough on pick resources if you're just starting out. 

It's kinda fun and I've had weird success with it (and I found a TON of caves this way yesterday???), assuming because it's not relying on going straight in one direction. I found nearly a stack of dia this way, using Fortune II, before I used up all my iron picks last night.

I think it's interesting seeing/hearing the different strategies people use and why.