Any starship whose mission is set to Pull Minefield or Push Minefield will attempt to move the minefield whose center is at the waypoint. Minefields will be moved immediately prior to laying mines. Starships will attempt to move minefields in order of increasing starship ID.
In order to move the minefield, the following conditions must be met:
One starship can only move one minefield per turn. If multiple minefields have the same center and the proper owner, the following prioritization will take place:
When the above conditions are met, the minefield will move either directly towards the starship ( Pull Minefield mission) or directly away from the starship ( Push Minefield mission). The distance that the minefield will be moved is the square of the Warp setting.
When the minefield moves, the starship will consume fuel. The amount of fuel consumed is dependent on the effective mass of the minefield (the number of mines in the minefield divided by 10), the engines in the starship and the distance the minefield is to be moved. The amount of fuel consumed to move the minefield is the same as to move a starship of the same effective mass, the same distance, at the same speed, with the same engines.
As an example, if a minefield with 10,000 mines is moved 16 light-years (starship speed set to Warp 4), by a starship with Quantum Drive 7 engines, the fuel consumed will be 9 KT. This is based on moving 1000 KT a distance of 16 light-years at Warp 4 with Quantum Drive 7 engines. The details of this calculation can be found on the Fuel Consumption Details page.
In the event that the starship doesn't have enough fuel to move the minefield the full distance, the minefield will not move at all.
The starship moving the minefield will not be able to move under its own power on the turn that it attempts to move the minefield, but it may be towed.
See also: Out of Fuel.