Enabling Tractor Beams & Tethered Magnets

[baobobafet]

Adding more variety to asteroids

Although a station will pay for raw ore tonnage at a fixed rate (dependent on variety)
Asteroids could have varying percentages of minerals (dice throw?)
If a player has sophisticated enough sensors, he may be able to determine mineral percentages as well as discover other valuable internal items.
In the event a player has the ability to mine the asteroid by himself efficiently, he could do so and sell the extracted minerals at a much higher return.

Depending on a players mining equipment and asteroid type - some asteroids may only be fractured by impacting them upon a surface.
(like seagulls dropping clams on rocks :)
Finding an appropriate place for such a tactic without friction creating atmosphere and with a solid surface, could present a challenge unless an appropo moon happens to be nearby.

Once an asteroid had been smashed open, the player could harvest any exposed minerals via his ship or delegate the job out to special robotic terrain mining drones (harvesters) that a player would launch to ferry minerals back to his ship. Once all minerals had been recovered and the drones recalled, the player could proceed to a nearby starport, selling the newly extracted minerals and any other valuable finds.

[baobobafet]

Mining with Magnets

There are probably many models to create and distribute minable minerals to planets and asteroids. as well as ways to simulate extraction and probabilities of yield, those methods could all remain valid for usage in game.

Other minable items might require more elaborate simulation and extraction models. As mentioned previously, among these could be usage of some type of connectible property or 'connector nodes' (in this case) disguised as minable objects that could be harvested by having them stick to 'special' active 'magnets' when such items are contacted during mining operations.

Essentially, anything with such connector nodes attached, could be anchored onto by such magnets or similar harpoons. ie: Asteroids, special cargo items or mooring trees.

The reverse is true as well, any free floating connector nodes will stick to any active magnet if coming into contact with it.

'Magnetic' devices on tethers as well as terrain based mining drones or pilot driven harvesters would all be able to readily extract any special artifacts and minerals embedded with such connectible nodes from amongst any raw ore and debris using this type of 'magnetic' mining method.

[baobobafet]

A Shipyard Install Option

A possible way to install connecting nodes (or connective properties) onto existing ships without having to bake them in from the start.

Any ship that installs a magnetic hoist, docking clamps or tractor beam, could also be simultaneously installing their own connect nodes allowing other ships the ability to connect to them via comparable tractor or tethering systems.

Connect nodes could also be universally installed on ships with all front and rear weapons (& some turrets), creating built in logical anchor points for tethering vessels. A magnetic winch or tractor beam installed could offer more centralized connect or tethering options onto a ship.

This type of approach also enables such shipyard items to be tractored or picked up independently via magnet as salvage or trophies of war.


The property that binds

Connector nodes by themselves can not bind with each other, so a tether or beam is required to extend between the ship and any target connect node before a ship or item can become towable. (or able to anchor to a mooring site)

The point where tether and any connecting node meet is where a property must exist to allow the tether (or suspended magnet) and connect node to bind with each other on contact (whenever the magnet or tractor beam is enabled).
When the tractor beam or magnet is disabled, any previous bond between tether and connect node would be immediately severed.

[baobobafet]

If some weapons and ship equipment can be isolated by individually targeting their connect nodes using 'magnetic' harpoons,
A whole line of magnetic harpoon weaponry might also be created.

Magnetic harpoons could be used to attach explosive charges, EMP devices, jammers or trackers to these same individual ship connect nodes.

A standard magnetic harpoon would operate similar to marine fired harpoons or TOW missile's in that they would be tethered to the launching point. Any trailing tether need not be made visible until a connect node is within range and successfully struck by the harpooner.

If a tether is attached to a component node on an enemy ship during battle before the enemy ship is destroyed, the chances of salvaging that particular component might be increased.