Question time.......
 

Ok, I'm currently playing a game against the AI, it's me against 3 AI, and 4 Neutral AI's. Was 4 regulars but the computer took out one of the other empires before I met them. Come to think of it I've only met one race so far, and I'm 7 years into the game. I'm at war with them as we speak. But the question... I'm trying to block them off, well it's working actually so no trying involved, but I put some mines in a system of theirs just so I could monitor their activity for awhile. But the mines don't monitor anything. I don't see nothing but what planets are in the system and my mines, when I take a ship in there all the planets in there show up as theirs. Why is this? In a previous game I had going I used this tactic and it worked fine, mines acted as scanners. Which to me makes no sense in the first place since mines don't got scanners on them. I was just wondering why it's not working in this game and it did in the other one. Yes I used to same Version in both.

But again... haha... If you don't understand my question in all my rambling there, I'll put it in simple terms... Are mines supposed to be able to see what's going on in an enemy system?

It's probably a simple answer as always. Thanks for any help though.

Re: Question time.......
 

Nope, mines are the one unit that cannot give you 'vision' in a system. The reason is obvious. In the default game they are cloaked so that NOTHING can detect them. It would be very unfair to have an undetectable spy unit. You'll have to drop a satellite or fighter in the system to get a full view of what's going on.

Re: Question time.......
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Ok thanks, that's what I thought. But I wasn't sure cause they worked as a 'viewer' in my Last game so that threw me off.

Re: Question time.......
 

Were you in a Partnership in the previous game, with some of your partner's stuff in the mined system? That's the only other thing that would let you see a system; your mines shouldn't have.

Re: Question time.......
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">No, no partnerships or nothing like that. That's what confused me this time about it all. I was at war with the empire in my Last game. Which makes no sense at all.

Re: Question time.......
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Are you sure the prior game was solely a MINEfield, and not a SATTELITE group?

A cloaked, sensor-equipped sattelite in an out-of-the-way corner is a good way to keep track of a star system you're not going to be colonising in anytime soon ...

Or just a cloaked -remote mining- sattelite, in MODs that allow miniaturised components ... 8)

Re: Question time.......
 

It might have been a somewhat-recent change... I know in SEIII, a common tactic was to leave mines in an area of a system that normally wouldn't be traveled in, to spy on any activities going on there. Unrealistic, sure, but it was a nice early-warning system http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon7.gif

Re: Question time.......
 

No, it's not a recent change. Mines have given no vision as long as I can remember in SEIV.

Most likely what happened here was something like he was partners with a thrid empire that had a cloaked ship in the system and he thought he was getting a view from his mines, when he actually wasn't. On PBW we have had about 8 to 10 reports of a "bug" in which a player gets a view of a system they should not, and in EVERY case it's turned out to be a cloaked ship belonging to a partner that they were not aweare was in that system.

Geoschmo

Re: Question time.......
 

Hmmm, no ships at all partners or not were in the system, and I'm positive it was mines and not satillites. Is it possible that one of my partners were partners with the empire I was at war with which would've given them the veiw of the system and thus it relating back to me? I doubt it is but that's one possible explimation.

Forgive my latenight spelling errors. I know I did someplace. Just too tired and to go back and look through.

Re: Question time.......
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">Yes that is how it would happen. Or even if your partner was partner with a partner with a partner ... no matter how many levels it goes.

But if that were the case ... you should have seen everything your enemy had. So if you don't remenber seeing all that, then I don't know what's the cause.

It is pretty funny tho ... I didn't understand at first how an enemy was able to track my cloaked scout -- I didn't know that's what partnerships mean.

Recently I was at war with just about everybody, and a neutral wanted to be partners -- and everyone was partners with at least some one else. So I said yes. And saw the entire map, and all ships cloaked or not, and IIRC all SRY. And of course, they saw all mine. So I made some mental notes of where to hit and broke the treaty.

Yeah, that was a little cheezy -- but these were TDM races. I need every trick I can get.

[EDIT] I think somebody said that partnership cloaked ships only show up if some partner has a sensor to penetrate the cloak -- even if it's your own ship with cloak and sensor http://forum.shrapnelgames.com/images/icons/icon10.gif Which is really too funny -- it was my own scout that gave away it's position.

[ July 14, 2002, 15:07: Message edited by: Arkcon ]

Re: Question time.......
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">No offense Ragnarok, but how are you so sure that none of your partners did not have a cloaked ship in the system? Keep in mind if they did have a cloaked ship in the system, you would NOT have seen their ship, only what their ship saw. Unless they had TWO ships in the system. But if they only had one ship in the system and it was cloaked, you would have seen only what it saw, and not the ship itself.

As Arkon says, if it was a parnter chain thing, you would have seen all your eneimies ships and planets everywhere, not just in the system where you thought the mines were spying for you.

Geoschmo

[ July 14, 2002, 15:09: Message edited by: geoschmo ]

Re: Question time.......
 

[quote]Originally posted by Ragnarok:

Quote:

Ok thanks, that's what I thought. But I wasn't sure cause they worked as a 'viewer' in my Last game so that threw me off.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I once dropped one mine just to monitor a system I abandoned -- and noticed that they definitely don't work as "presence". I was ambivalent about the result -- but the Baron is right, the 100 % undetectable spy is unfair. It's supposed to be a weapon after all.

I abandoned the system because I was fighting the Rage for it and the sun was about to go nova. I really wished I could have seen their dozens of PPB armed BB go *poof*. Shame their leadership didn't listen to their scientists like I did. Heh Heh.

At least I knew when it actually happened and could deploy the cruiser hull remote miners (is that the smallest size where it's profitable, I can't recall).

My people were so cold, so hungry. Forced to abandon their even the meager homes they had scratched out in a harsh system, surrounded by enemies. *Snif* Why doesn't anyone like us? Can't we all just get along?

Re: Question time.......
 

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">No offense taken Geoschmo. I'm not fighting the fact that it's possible for this to be the case. I'm just saying I'm pretty sure there was no partner ships in there. Your theory as to why this was the case brings another question to mind... I thought that you could see your partners cloaked ships if you're partners with them? I'm going off memory for this one but I was sure that I saw my partners cloaked ships in a system where I didn't have any cloak scanners. I'm probably mistaken here as well. Which is fine if I am, I'm more thenwilling to accept that I'm wrong. Just curious.

Re: Question time.......
 

Rag: you can see what your partners cloaked ships can see, but not the ship its self. if your partner has two cloaked ships that can see each other, then you can see them both. if not, then you can see the system but not your partners single ship.

like Geo said. this is also why you cant see partners ships when they go into a red nebulae.