SE 4: Laying mines from planets: What's needed?

[Dethgod74]

Hi folks,

What is needed to lay mines from a planet? I had played the SE 4 demo a long time ago and thought planets could lay mines just by building them and then 'launching' them the following turn, like fighters?

If I'm wrong, would some one please correct me on the procedure?

If I'm not wrong, do the mines appear in TACTICAL combat and if so, where?

Thanks in advance!

Regards all,

Rob aka dethgod74

[Phoenix-D]

They can. Mines don't appear in combat ever; they only detonate when a ship moves into the same sector.

[Fyron]

Planets can launch any unit into space without any additional facilities. Mines can be launched strategically, at any point during your turn.

[PvK]

Don't mines appear in combat (and have no effect but can be shot up) if they are launched after an enemy enters the sector?

[Arkcon]

PvK said:
Don't mines appear in combat (and have no effect but can be shot up) if they are launched after an enemy enters the sector?

There's no way to do that in strategic combat in SE4. It's a pretty dumb thing to do in tactical too, they just sit there, and are easily destroyed by anything that can target sats.

I never saw mines hurt something in tactical combat, I wonder if it was even possible?

*EDIT*

Oh wait I see, you mean a turn based sequence of -- enemy enters, mines launch, combat starts. Hmmm. Does it ever work like that?

[PvK]

It's usually not a great idea, since they don't do anything much except possibly get shot. However I think there may be a few ways for it to happen:

1) Tactical combat, human player uses Launch Units during combat.

2) Mines are laid and enemy ships entire while non-aggression treaty is disarming them. Then treaty is broken and combat ensues without any new enemy movement into the minefield.

3) Enemies are in the same sector at the start of a strategic turn, either because they didn't kill each other off during the previous turn due to insufficient violence, strategies used, intervening terrain, cloaking devices, whatever. One or both players then give strategic-level orders to lay mines. Combat then ensues before anyone new moves into the sector and sets off the mines.

PvK