I know artifact points are more important in the long run, for increase ship stats / size and crew. The question is which is more important for a lowbie ( range 100 - 200 ) mining or artifact. I have 3 empty planet slots right now and I am currently saving most of what i make off of mining for rank 200 so that I can make one big tech upgrade on my ship.

any insight would be helpful, thanks

Get decent mining then go all out artifact. You don't want too many mining planets as it'll probably hurt you in the long run.

Ok, I'm not a lowbie, but here's my opinion for you. Maintain your mineral production at a level where you can cover your daily upkeep (without being a builder) AND pay for 1 invasion per day AND do gradual upgrades to your ship/planets. For mining planets, go exclusively with VL Toxics (unless a really cherry planet shows up). You'll also want to keep your research up (VM Gas is priority). I would recommend getting 1 Mining planet, 1 Research planet and 2 Artifact planets. Try to avoid taking whatever is available just to fill a slot by being a little picky and take GOOD planets. You'll lag a bit in the short run, but you'll thank yourself later in the game.

As a side note, don't do massive upgrades to your ship. Upgrade gradually so (A) you get a feel for the increased upkeep and (B) you don't spend bunches of points on decks increasing your damage cap. The worst thing to do is pile on a ton of decks, upgrade loads of stuff then find out you can't afford the new upkeep. Then you would have wasted all the credits/minerals when you downgrade to fit your income, yet you'll still be stuck with the higher damage cap.

its how ive been doing it so far, upgrading every 40 levels, saving cost by skipping a research tier or two between upgrades, though that is what prompted this post, looking ahead and viewing upgrades / upkeep costs.

most of the mining planets I have are volcanic, but I do have a couple of toxics [ neither I nor anyone in my legion have found many larger than small ], I try not to take anything under large or rich unless something really good shows up.

I know you can increase the mineral production with races ( im currently doing Myalarai chain right now ) so I'm hoping that will pay off.

Sorry, I should have been a little more clear on what I meant by upgrading gradually. I was referring to upgrading one module at a time rather than everything at the same time. When you do upgrade, install only the BEST from a set. Heavy weapons, Mk3 energy cores, etc... Don't put in any of the lesser versions. And don't focus your upgrades based on your rank. Base it on your income. If you're only upgrading every 40 ranks, you'll find a lot of people passing you (especially at lower levels). Think of your ship as an organic construct. For the best health, it needs to grow gradually rather than in spurts.

good luck (: