| Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Thu, 28 February 2008 03:31  |
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I was wondering what the best way to use minefields in late game was. First for a Non SD, is it A) deploy and watch them cut through them hoping it'll slow them down? B) actively watch and when they come close toss it up last second and hope something goes splat? Or C) something else.
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| Re: Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Thu, 28 February 2008 18:10  |
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I wouldn't be trying to throw up minefields 'at the last second'. They'll still see them before they have to fly through them (you're talking about end game, so decent scanning will spot the minefield immediately.)
Many small overlapping minefields is the best.
You have three objectives with (defensive) minefield deployment
1) Discouragement: You want other (less fortified) races to look like more attractive targets.
2) Warning: The enemy's efforts to clear the field will often give you an extra year's warning he is coming. Don't count on more than that. (Hell, don't count on even one year, unless your network of minefields is significantly deeper than 100ly. And always be aware of cloakers.)
3) Expense: Force the enemy to expend additional resources if they want to attack you.
You can also use minefields offensively. Cloaked fleets unexpectedly dropping minefields to disrupt expected lines of reinforcement or retreat can buy you an extra turn to evade or kill enemy forces. Unless they have crash sweepers available, of course.
I guess my two main points here...
- Don't count on a minefield to achieve ANYTHING AT ALL.
- Do use them to attempt to manipulate your opponents choices.
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| Re: Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Sat, 01 March 2008 05:43 |
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They don't sound that promising as a defensive countermeasure. Early game sure, but late game... Not as much, it is a potentially good way to expend the enemy's chaff though.
Can you give some specifics on how to deploy these multiple smaller fields?
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| Re: Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Sun, 02 March 2008 18:07 |
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How to deploy small fields? Simple... Just don't lay big fields...
I tend to lay fields of between 300 and 600 mines each, then move just past the edge of the field and lay another. So long as you are carefull not to replenish a field beyond r^2 mines, where r is the distance between the centerpoints of the fields, then you'll always be able to refill that field.
In early game I'll actually tend to 'leapfrog' and just lay every second field, to get area coverage quickly, then go back and put in the 'overlapping' sections (actually, a second wave of layers will usually do this, with subsequent waves going out periodically to replenish the fields.)
In larger (size) games, you might want slightly bigger, further apart fields, since that 512 minefield limit can become an issue when you do this. Sounds like a lot of micro? It is. I've only bothered to do it in less than half my games. Only do it if you think it will actually have an impact on what your neighbours do.
I wish stars had a order 'lay mines if mines here < x', then repeating orders could be set to maintain an entire array of fields, negating most of the MM. Unfortunately it doesn't, but repeating orders can still help, if you pay attention occaisionally to make sure you don't lay too much.
[Updated on: Sun, 02 March 2008 18:08] Report message to a moderator
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| Re: Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Sun, 02 March 2008 18:45 |
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No you can, I just did a test game, you have to use deploy mines for 1 year (or 2 or whatever but not indefinite). I used it to create double a ring of minefields around a test world (46 fields in total.) The fields were constantly being replaced. Though the downside is time. It takes a lot of time for it to mature (I was only using 2 FF per pass and 2 reverse passes per ring section, cuing it is a breeze (at least it was in the small scale test I'll have to do another test for putting it into actual practice.)
But it can be done, I had the whole thing setup really quickly too and it was self sustaining. Jagged as it was, because my waypoints were jagged and irregular but I think it served to prove the concept adequately.
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| Re: Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Mon, 03 March 2008 15:58 |
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Yeah, if you do the maths you can plan it out. With the right number of waypoints it should be possible to make is self sustainig. But don't forget I'm talking about trying to put down very dense minefields, ideally with only the centrepoints only being in the one field. Being able to set orders that lay to a certain mine count would be sooooooo much easier than having to calculate the number of years laying you'll need to do to replenish... You end up having to solve the math for questions like 'if I have 1 minelayer, capable of laying 100 mines, and I want to maintain a field of MAX 24.99ly, and I want to lay for 2 years at a time, how many waypoints can I handle'. Not hard at all, but I'm lazy and wanted an easy out.
(answer 6 minefields. The fields will vary between 20 and 24 ly radius. If the same layer stops for 3 years at each field you can handle 7, but have to remember to add a dummy waypoint (where you don't lay anything at all for a year) and the fields will drop to 18ly minimum.)
Larger and/or less overlapping fields are easier to maintain, since, well, there's less of them 
[Updated on: Mon, 03 March 2008 15:59] Report message to a moderator
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| Re: Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Sun, 09 March 2008 00:13 |
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A somewhat related question ... given that fleet transfer takes place at the end of a turn, after minelaying, one logically should be able to lay mines and then give the ship to an ally. But there are no orders that allow that are there? So transfering a layer loses one turn of laying, right?
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| Re: Best Minefield Deployment Tactics |
Sun, 09 March 2008 01:29 |
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| Soobie |
 | Officer Cadet 3rd Year |
Messages: 270
Registered: May 2007
Location: Australia | |
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| gwellman wrote on Sun, 09 March 2008 15:43 |
A somewhat related question ... given that fleet transfer takes place at the end of a turn, after minelaying, one logically should be able to lay mines and then give the ship to an ally. But there are no orders that allow that are there? So transfering a layer loses one turn of laying, right?
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Transferring a layer loses one turn of laying if you are not moving the layer (and are not SD). If you are moving the layer into position anyway you were never going to be able to lay on that turn anyhow.
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