Mines
An age-old tactic in warfare, a minefield denies an enemy access to a flank or other sensitive area where forces cannot be dedicated to cover. Unfortunately most minefields are deployed and forgotten about - until inadvertently discovered much later.
Mine deployment
Mines require special equipment to use. They are stored aboard starships in Mine Magazines and launched using a Mine Launching Bay. A starship equipped with such a bay is known as a mine layer. Modified shuttles or starfighters can also be used to deployed mines in small numbers.
To defuse minefields, special minesweeper vessels may be used.
Types of mines
Mines are typically nothing more than static torpedo warheads with a proximity detonator. Some known types of mines include:
Most mines are visible in order to serve as a warning, however cloaked mines are not entirely unheard of. The density of a minefield determines how difficult it is for a starship to traverse without being struck.
Most navigational data networks maintain a list of all known minefields so that other ships do not run into them. When a ship encounters a minefield an entry is created in the Known Minefields list. When a ship passes through a known minefield and does not encounter any mines, the entry is removed from the list.
