D&D 5E (2014) PotA: Earth Cultists wouldn't mine the earth. Alternatives?

[Agglomérante]

Ogrémoch hates mining, since any fruits in the crust of the earth are his.

The only alternative that's come to mind is some sort of slave plantation, on an expansive plateau with well-protected entrances.

Ideas?

Edit: after LMoP, everybody's tired of mines and this mine map is pretty weak

 

[DEFCON 1]

Another option...

Ogremoch wants more obvious earth expansion. More "stuff" on the land. Thus, his priests are working to trigger and direct earthquakes and/or volcanic eruptions to bring more earth/lava from below up to the surface. Plate shifts that cause more hills/mountains to explode up from the ground, or magma that erupts up and then cools and hardens on the landscape.

 

[Agglomérante]

Another option...

Ogremoch wants more obvious earth expansion. More "stuff" on the land. Thus, his priests are working to trigger and direct earthquakes and/or volcanic eruptions to bring more earth/lava from below up to the surface. Plate shifts that cause more hills/mountains to explode up from the ground, or magma that erupts up and then cools and hardens on the landscape.

Cool. Just need to imagine a role for slaves.

 

[Uller]

The product of the slaves work is being taken into the temple of black earth for sacrificial rites?

 

[Shadowdweller00]

Keep in mind that cultists don't necessarily have the same goals and priorities as the evil elemental princes. Just as said princes don't necessarily care about or have the same goals as their cultists. They're all kind of using each other. That said, earth cultists might very well seek out places where there is a lot of rock or mud to "listen to the earth" or "wake the earth". Places like natural caves, rocky canyons, desolate bogs where there is a lot of mud, barren mountains, or anywhere else there is a lot of exposed earth and rock.

 

[dd.stevenson]

How does earth conquer air? Dunno--but maybe stuff like pollution, dust storms, unnatural things like flying mountains.