How To Mine

trav · December 2002

<div class="IPBDescription">please not on floors</div> marines please post your mining tactics here. I've recently started trying to mine up the entrance to get a quick start as marines, but i constantly see people doing the dumbest things with their mines.

1: mines on floor - can i have someone confirm this?
mines on floor are mostly stupid, if the aliens jump over them they don't go off. they don't cover a lot of area and are mostly wastefull PUT THEM ON WALLS

2: mine high and low
skulks can walk on walls. consider this when you mine. there should be one at crouching level, one at standing height and one at jumping height. if a passageway is too high to mine effectively, try looking for a better spot for your mines

3: mine both sides
i like to alternate which side of a hall i put mines on, like top and bottom on one side and middle on the other, in case they can slip through with only most damage by sticking to one end

4: mine vents
if there is any way you can get to a vent to lay a mine then do it, get a friend to boost you up if you have to

ideally as a commander you should be able to give out two mine packs at the start of the game and have your base completely secure (for a while) if you see mine packs and know how to mine, grab em fast before the idiots get them. as a commander i usually end up having to place the mines myself, yes it really gets that bad, i gotta stop playing on isp pub servers <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/sad.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='sad.gif'>

Ardesco · December 2002

Mines on the floor act as claymores. It can be effective to simply line a refinery with a few claymores + trips to keep it secure. Another use would be for phase gates. Any alien that teleports thru gets smushied.

Also, some really stupid aliens fall for mines placed on turret factories, esp. if they're setup as claymores and not trips (factories and mines are a pretty close shade of green).

BlueGhost · December 2002

Hmm I imagine you can put mines inside the TF....

I would personally only consider putting mines inside a vent that leads to your base, (hera for example). And only directly at the start so I can have 2 marines hold the base against litrally any skulk invasion.

I think putting mines around a res point at the start is a good idea, deny the aliens res is always good.

BlueGhost

Evildwarf · December 2002

If you place mines on the floor and say they are useless you do it all wrong, most mines are utterly pointless unless you have a marine on defense. ALL mines can be avoided if none is on guard, mines in my opinion is mostly to add some measure of "offensive power" to the marine on defense.
A clever marine will keep mines as a shield, using the to keep skulks on distance while blasting his LMG, Pistol, or whatever he got as they try to run past the mines.
Mines are also great to guard turrets, a skilled skulks can easily take out a TF with three or for turrets, mines at the base of the turrets are certain to keep these skulks away. Mines at nozzles, phasegates and infportals are also great.
I seldom place mines on walls, this is most often done "around corners" that way they are a bit harder to avoid, also remember that tripmines cause less damage then ground mines since they have a larger blast radius. They are also easier to avoid, place them on places where they cant be avoided or where you wont see them before its to late, vents, corners, ladders, etc.
Note that mines are close to useless once Fades start to pop-up, try to stick with heavier gear when they show up.

Dhu, I should write a strat about mines <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'>

trav · December 2002

ok, please let me clarify, i use mines, at the very start of the game on pub servers

a single mine is easy to go around, but you get 5 in a pack. 5 mines can seal an entrance off completely. i usually drop 2 packs at the start. this can slow down skulks a hell of a lot, and if they're really dumb it can turn them off the base completely

it's not meant to last the entire game, just long enough to set up at a different hive. the main reason i posted was because every time i drop mines people seem to put all 5 in a random pattern on the floor in front of the entrance, and this is stoooooooopid

MeltedSnowman · December 2002

Mine next to buildings on the floor.

If you place a mine at the most likely angle of attack, you'll probably get the skulk on its first trip.

On subsequent trips it will either check first or just give up on attacking that building entirely.

Nm3-Col_EcLiPsE · December 2002

put mines on floors with mines on walls as well.

erm why put mines by TF this just helps the aliens tbh.

eg, was playing on a map 4get name (1 where marines start in the bridge) the marines was being stuiped with mines and put up 15mins all on the hall way entrance next 2 each other with 5 turrets placed there as well all i did was shoot the mines and it too kout 4 of the turrets and 1 that just needed a couple slaps.

dont for get to put mines on both sides of walls or u loose blast radios and does less dmg to a skulk if it goes on side with non mines on.

MeltedSnowman · December 2002

Mines aren't supposed to hurt friendly buildings last I checked ...

Blackout · December 2002

Dark places like mines. Claymores in well-traveled but dimly lit areas can bag a couple of skulks before they learn to avoid them. At least, it's more effective than putting up 15 trips, then watching fades blow them up along with a few of your teammates later in the game.

Nm3-Col_EcLiPsE · December 2002

well they hurt turrets. go test it if u dont beleave me.

Pika-Cthulhu · December 2002

Mines work FAR more effectivly if their on the floor, think about it, A skulk runs over a mine, it goes boom, all damage to that skulk. A skulk jumps through a tripmine at the FAR end of the mine, BOOM, skulk takes less damage because hes moving through it, AND is a distance away from it. The ammount of times Ive survived simply by jumping through a tripmine on the wall is pretty funny, it has a bit of a delay and you can make it to safety so long as the marines havent mined up the place like a disco. (which wastes mines, as 1 skulk can clear 3 mines on walls, which ive done as a suicide unit several times to let my friends in to play) Mines work best on the floor because they are harder to see (no Telltale big red neon sign) and are more effective (all blast radius goes up into the skulk/fade/onus) But a few on the walls can be a good detterant, Although I prefer the art of suprise mines on floors, to make sure that they dont expect them and are taken fully unaware.

Alien_Bob · December 2002

I wish <i>more</i> commanders would give out mines early in the game. Usually when I ask for mines people say "What? Mines are useless, I'm not wasting the resources."

Feh. As a skulk you have to stop and think when you come to a heavily mined corridor. Isn't it worth those few resources to slow/halt a skulk rush?

Give us mines, curse you! *shakes puny fist at sky*

Alpha_1 · December 2002

Mines will hurt friend AND foe. I've been killed by mines I place because a gorge or lerk has fired at the mine as I place it. So yes there is friendly fire from mines, be careful where you set them.

I like to use them to mine switches, like the one on the map with the holo room. Mine the switch on the ground by it and around the switch itself and you can keep the skulks from getting into the room at the start of the game just by keeping that door closed (I don't know the map names very well yet).

Mine placement is an art form, and you can get the best results at the start of the game because they have no upgrades yet so damage is not minimized. As upgrades are recieved on the alien side damage is lessened but still good enough to consider laying a few for a surprize.

Pika-Cthulhu · December 2002

heh, those mines wont hurt me, I parasite open each switch I come across, Im a lazy Skulk but at least im alive.

But yeah, mines on the floor in a dark room coridoor = dead paranoid aliens, well untill the walk the walls that is

Tunkeutuja · December 2002

mine field can be really effective to stop early rushing to marines base.
who would be foolish enough to run into a mine wall ?

* a dead <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/skulk.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='skulk.gif'>

<img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='tounge.gif'>

Error404 · December 2002

I can't remember the last time that I got killed by a trip mine unless it was deliberate as a skulk, but I've been killed plenty of times by carelessly stepping on claymores, either by moving too quickly or its been well hidden behind structures or dark areas.

Trip mines, particularly 3 spammed in one doorway are excellent for (as someone else said in another thread) are gift-pack xenocides for skulks.

Mine the floor if you want to take out the good aliens, mine the walls if you want to take out the stupid ones.

Amorphous · December 2002

Mines are best when placed on the floor, in a virtual minefield, if you place them on a wall in a open map, such as ns_bast, you are just asking a fade to blow it up, if you put it on the floor (Where aliens dont normaly look) you get an easy kill... Put them on the walls AWAY from the proxy's so that they dont get blown up with it...

I saw some idiot mine an entire base with walking level mines at the start, he didnt get a single kill... (But then, the lasers for the mines were 50ft long, DUH! stupid marine)

I normally place them in doorways (I am good at mining... the skulks that avoid them once think they will be gone by the next time they rush base) the doorways are good because as soon as a skulk or lerk opens em BOOM![B] dead alien... just try it, it taked practice

Vertigo-1 · December 2002

Mines are good for defending the blind spots on turrt factories, but darn near useless for protecting your base. As a skulk, I fear the floor mines because they're harder to see and seem to trigger faster. If I see a laserbeam in a doorway, I can run right through it and usually get enough distance before the explosion to survive.

Unless the game is modified to have the laser-triggers react faster, it's just too hard to make effective.

rugay · December 2002

mines on the ground.... smart if your smart:
I got 2 fade kills and 1 skulk kill with 5 mines placed on the ground... Two of the mines were right below a ladder (most fades dont think twice about using blink) 1 mine was right above a ladder (most of the aliens dont stop at the top of a ladder to see what is there. 1 mine was hoovering on top of a resource nozzle (omg how funny it looked I am sure the skulk that died to it was hopping over it to bite the backside of it so he wouldnt get shot at by turrets) And the last one was simply on the floor right behind a closed door (most just dont look that far down when heading somewhere)
Never rule out ground mines, may not cover as much space, but fades dont expect it(if the game gets that far) and skulks often run right into them. I have also noticed they seem to do a bit more damage then most trip mines, cause the victim is right ontop of it.

RU

Edcrab · December 2002

JP and claymore's in a vent: "lol" aplenty.

Of course, early game (presuming a commander bothers with mines) my own tactic is to place a tripmine as far up a doorway as possible and then place three or four claymore-mod mines beneath it. Any gorge (or unaware skulk) trying to get beneath the tripmine will be forced to stand on one of the claymores, or jump over and trigger the tripmine. Often, they get lured into a false sense of security by the more obvious light beam and just run beneath it, splattering helpfully...
Blasted Fades. Wish there was someway of researching gags for those acid-launching parasites of theirs...

Zuron · December 2002

it is really funny to go bad **obscenity** with them by mining those res nozzles in which the aliens are gonna expand into, one mine in a nozzle is hardly seen if the roof isnt too high, and when a gorge goes to build a resource tower.. the moment he clicks "resource tower 22" he blows up with his tower. i've both done this and been done this to and, its quite effective.

verbose · December 2002

</span><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Zuron @ Dec 21 2002, 05:15 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'>the moment he clicks "resource tower 22" he blows up with his tower.</td></tr></table><span class='postcolor'>
It takes 2 mines on a res node to kill a gorge; 5 if he has level-3 carapace. Even 5 mines will not blow up the tower, so if you see the gorge go down, send a marine to take out the tower before it builds itself.

Keiran · December 2002

An effective way to seige a Hive is for you to carry a cache of 5 mines and go seige it on your own/

Its for solo rambos only

Charge into the hive, and load them on the floor with random placing.

Then pump your weapon into the hive and watch the jokers come back and detonate the mines.

Or you can just place them on the hive and fire off your gun at the mines and watch the hive go up in smo0kes.

BelrickNZ · December 2002

Im a little confused by ppl talking like tripmines and claymores are different things. Claymores are trip mines.

Karisu · December 2002

claymore = mines on floor with no laser
tripmine = mine on wall with laser

SemperFi · December 2002

I personally think mines suck. They just end up killing more friendlies than actually helping.

And i also believe they are better on the floor this way they have less chance of being seen and therefore parasited/acid rocketed.

nethyr · December 2002

if theyre killing friendlys too much, stop putting them up 3 feet away from fades who are watching u do so. theres nothing i find more amusing than a chain of floor mines running straight up to the pile of marines hiding in the corner

Wolv · December 2002

About the mine friendly-fire stuff:
AFAIK mines only damage friendly structures and units (and other mines?) when they are detonated by gorge or fade fire.
And of course they damage whomever places them incorrectly and doesn't run away fast enough.

verbose · December 2002

An incorrectly placed mine will detonate a few seconds after placement. The manual does a good job of explaining what "incorrect placement" is.
Marines do not trigger mines. You can toss a few on the floor, stand there, run over them (they'll beep), and break-dance if so inclined.
Mines do not appear to damage marine structures. I'm fairly sure of this, but haven't explicitly tested it. Even if they do, with at most 100 damage a pop, I'll still mine my own resource towers.
An exploding mine, no matter what triggered the explosion, damages marines.

Overall, the manual's description is quite good. The only aspect it doesn't touch on is whether marine structures are injured.

Acheron · December 2002

Mines are silly, I never give them out as comm. Not only is it a total waste of money (less than half your mines will actually kill something), but as a skulk I find they never stop me. Not only are they ineffective (unless they're well-blended claymores), but they are great ways to kill packs of marines. Just run in and trigger the mine from the far end of the laser. Usually you can do this without dying, at least 2-3 times. It's great fun.

NaturalRaptor · December 2002

I am new to this forum so hi everbody <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/biggrin.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='biggrin.gif'>

Anyhow, I also never hand out mines as a commander. Why?

1. They never ask for it
2. I always forget there are any mines
3. Whenever I see some newbie walking around (When I am not a Commander) he probally attaches the mines to a most ridiculous spot you can find (I.E near a door that's about 3 meters wide, or too close to a friendly turret..)
4. I have NEVER seen anyone smart enough to mine the vents
5. The <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/skulk.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='skulk.gif'> usually rush in from the very start (A la StarCraft) and doesn't give me any time to get an armoury up..

But after reading this thread I think I'll give mines a try.. <img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html/emoticons/wink.gif' border='0' valign='absmiddle' alt='wink.gif'>

How To Mine

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