How to detect Cloaked ships?

[Davout]

I have started playing a PBW game, and would like to know how do I detect Cloaked enemy ships? Is there more then one way? What are different levels of cloak...? Reading some of the old Posts I am not 100% sure. Can someone S=P-E-L-L it out for me?

Thanks.

[Suicide Junkie]

If your sensor level beats the related cloak level of the enemy's cloaking device, then you can see them.

EG. you have temporal sensors 1. You can beat any cloaking device that has "temporal cloak" less than or equal to 1. The other cloaking types have no effect on your sensor.

A sensor will reveal any ships in the entire system, whose cloaking device it can defeat.

For standard SE4:
Sensors available: Temporal, Active, Passive, Psychic, and Gravitic.

Any sensor can see past stealth armor.
A sensor level X, can see any ships with a cloaking device level X or weaker.
Note: I am talking about the "Version" number of the component, not the underlying ability value

Cloaking devices must be activated in order to work, most use supplies every turn while working (only stealth armor uses no supplies). A ship with an active cloak will be shown with a dashed circle around it.
I believe the hotkeys for Cloak/Decloak are "z" and "x", but the buttons are the two with the "ship in a blue circle" icon.

[This message has been edited by suicide_junkie (edited 10 September 2001).]

[geoschmo]

quote:

---

Originally posted by dogscoff:
1> Hyperoptic sensors (research physics + sensors, I think)

---

Actually these can be found by researching "Military Science" then "Advanced Military Science" then "Hyperoptics".

quote:

---

2> Gravitic sensors (Somewhere in the astrophysics tree?)

---

Astrophysics, then "gravatic technology".

quote:

---

3> Psychic sensors (reqires race trait)

4> Temporal sensors (ditto)

5> The other one. (Ummm....)

---

That would be Tachyeon sensors. They are the one's you get by researching way up the sensor branch.

Geoschmo

[capnq]

This seems like a good thread to ask about this:

I've been working on a mod, and trying out the ability System - Sight Obscuration. In one of my test games, I could see an AI player's ship that I didn't think I should have been able to.

The standard nebula systems have Sight Obscuration set at 3 or higher. I was in a system set at 1, and had no sensor techs at all. Does the setting have to be 2 or higher to do anything?

------------------
Cap'n Q

The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the
human mind to correlate all of its contents. We live on a placid
island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity, and it was
not meant that we should go far. -- HP Lovecraft, "The Call of Cthulhu"

[Kimball]

A level one "cloak" can be seen when any ship is in the system. This is basically like when you can't see what is in the system next to you unless you have a ship in it.

[HreDaak]

quote:

---

Originally posted by capnq:
This seems like a good thread to ask about this:

I've been working on a mod, and trying out the ability System - Sight Obscuration. In one of my test games, I could see an AI player's ship that I didn't think I should have been able to.

The standard nebula systems have Sight Obscuration set at 3 or higher. I was in a system set at 1, and had no sensor techs at all. Does the setting have to be 2 or higher to do anything?

---

Level 1 has no effect in my experience. You must set it to 2 or higher... btw that ability works in the components.txt file too... (cloaks planets also).

[tesco samoa]

Sensors 1 detects level 2 ECM.

------------------
L? GdX $ Fr C++ SdT T+ Sf* Tcp+ A M++ MpTM ROTS Pw+ Fq+ Nd Rp++ G+

[capnq]

quote:

---

Sensors 1 detects level 2 ECM.

---

Thanks, I've seen that mentioned before in a thread, but entirely forgot about it.

A little editing, another test game, and I think my first mod will be ready for release.

------------------
Cap'n Q

The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the
human mind to correlate all of its contents. We live on a placid
island of ignorance in the midst of black seas of infinity, and it was
not meant that we should go far. -- HP Lovecraft, "The Call of Cthulhu"

[Suicide Junkie]

As a note:

ECM does not cloak your ship, it just makes it harder to hit in combat.

A Class 1 sensor, has a detection ability of 2.
A Class 1 cloak, has a Cloak ability of 2.
Stealth armor, has a cloak ability of 2.
In the end-game, max sensors beat max cloak.

Thus, a sensor of class X, can beat any cloak of class X or lower, and any sensor can defeat stealth armor.