Mines and Missiles
We teach you how to use mines and missiles, as well as the decision to go with turn rate or damage when choosing a missile. Skip to the summary if you like.

Using Mines Defensively
Mines are a good way to shake off somebody on your tail or prevent an opponent from getting too close to you. Computer opponents will often get behind you and shoot, so dropping a mine can temporarily stop them from shooting at you, forcing them to evade the mine first.

Rhodan: "Missile launchers do not use weapon energy. This can be very helpful when you have high drain weaponry."

Using Mines Offensively
A good way to ensure a hit is to drop a mine as your target is flying straight towards you. Often they will get too close to you and most likely be hit, so the next time they might think twice about swinging around and trying again.

Missiles Away!
Missiles are self-guiding for a few seconds, flying straight towards the target. After a few seconds, they carry on in a straight line until they hit something or burn out and explode.

In order to ensure a hit, you need to fire your missiles when you are sure your opponent is not going to fly out of the way. A good time to fire missiles is when your opponent is flying straight at you, but the better the turn rate, the better chance your missile will hit a moving target.

Class 3 "Slingshot" Missile	Class 3 "Windstalker" Missile

Turn Rate and Damage vs Chance-to-Hit
Missiles have two different turn rates, 2.9 and 4.36. High turn rate missiles have less damage than low turn rate ones but are better at chasing and hitting the target.

Rhodan: "A direct hit on an unshielded ship with a mine or missile will cause extensive wing and subsystem damage."

When choosing a missile launcher, make sure you are happy with the cost for each missile, the damage caused and the turn rate. Practice makes perfect, so experiment if you have the time and the money.

The Importance of Disabling Shields
It is CRITICAL that you disable the target's shields before launching missiles. With shields, the damage is greatly reduced. This is the same for all weapons, so remember it!

Summary Points on Mines and Missiles
Mines and Missiles are best used when your opponent has no time to avoid them.

Disable their shields before using Mines or Missiles or they won't do as much damage.

Missiles take up a whole weapon slot, compare the refire rate and hull damage with a gun to see if its worth the risk.

Missiles with a high turn rate only do half the damage of low turn rate, but increase the chance to hit.