Re: Technological arms races
 

In real-life mines are extremely hard to detect. In the game, rather than add some sort of game concept called 'really hard to detect', Malfador gave them the same abilities as cloaking devices put ramped up the level to one higher than any scanning tech available in the game.

So, personally, I think the idea of putting a cloaking device on a mine to be sorta superflous. :-)

Re: Technological arms races
 

The way I understand cloaking and sensing is the are 5 possible types of sensors, passive active gravatic psychic and temporal and 5 types of cloaking, same types but each cloaking level only stops level 1 of each type of sensor.
I like the idea of a cloaking device that only stops, for example active. Its abilities would prevent the maximum level of sensors of all types except 1, it is always a vulnerable to one type of sensor. You could have 5 levels of each cloak device and need to choose what type to put on your ship. Might be a pain but it makes sensor building and cloaking more challanging IMO.

Re: Technological arms races
 

I think you could have sort of a crude mine, like the first sea mines and then make them better and give them the cloaking ability. Allowing you to design the mines is even better! Give them no ability except what you put on it.

Re: Technological arms races
 

I think that I have this same discussion earlier about mines and cloaking.

Early mines where easier to detect than later mines. That's why we invented mine detectors and then developed pLastic mines to defeat them.

If we have everything component based then it then based on the tech you have against the tech I have and not on an ability of just having tech 1 mines.

Each to there own I supposed that's what is good about the game!

Re: Technological arms races
 

The idea about is not just about mines, I know this has been talked about a lot in other threads. You could just as easily create engines that faster between sectors and slower in combat.
There is already such a good base of components to work from that I think it would add a lot to the game if more specialized abilities were created. Then you would really have to think about how you designed your ships.