Detonator
Seismic Survey Tool Turned Tripmine
The Detonator was a seismic survey tool that deployed laser tripmines onto almost any surface. Built for drilling prospection, it was reworked by survivors of the Necromorph outbreaks into a trap that detonated when its laser beams were broken.
The Detonator was a seismic survey tool deployed by engineers and survivors during the Necromorph outbreaks. It planted laser tripmines that adhered to almost any flat surface, and survivors of the outbreak on the Sprawl and beyond turned it into a defensive trap. (Dead Space 2; Dead Space 3)
Design and origin#
The Detonator was a seismic survey instrument built for drilling prospection rather than combat. Its purpose was to be planted and to register disturbances, and it could fix itself to almost any type of terrain, including floors, walls and ceilings. Once placed, a Detonator mine projected laser beams across the space in front of it. The beams ran outward indefinitely until something crossed them, at which point the mine detonated. (Dead Space 3; Dead Space 2)
A mine that had not been triggered could be disarmed and picked back up for reuse elsewhere, which made the tool valuable to anyone trying to conserve supplies during an emergency. The device could also be used in a more direct fashion, firing a canister that burst on impact in the manner of a thrown charge. (Dead Space 2; Dead Space 3)
Use during the outbreaks#
Survivors of the Necromorph outbreaks adapted the Detonator into a weapon of survival. Its tripmines were well suited to the cramped corridors and chokepoints of stricken ships and stations, where a mine planted across a passage would tear apart creatures that charged into the beams. Because the mines held their position until disturbed, they let a lone survivor cover flanks and approaches while moving or fighting elsewhere. (Dead Space 2; Dead Space 3)
Detonator mines were found planted in corridors throughout the Sprawl, apparently left behind by survivors who had set traps against the advancing Necromorphs. Many of these abandoned mines could not be disarmed and remained live, forcing later passers-by to destroy them in order to move on. (Dead Space 2)
Sources
- GameDead Space 2, Visceral Games, 2011
- GameDead Space 3, Visceral Games, 2013
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Followed from this entry
Necromorph
Necromorphs were aggressive creatures formed when the Markers' electromagnetic signal reshaped dead tissue into monstrous new forms. Driven to kill the living and gather corpses for Convergence, they were the recurring plague that destroyed the Aegis VII colony, the USG Ishimura, and Titan Station.
The Sprawl
Titan Station, known informally as the Sprawl, was an EarthGov metropolis built around the last fragment of Saturn's moon Titan. Home to over a million people, it housed the secret Project Telomere and the Site 12 Marker, and fell to a Necromorph outbreak in 2511 that destroyed the station entirely.
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Arc Welder: The Schofield Tools Welding Gun
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Contact Beam
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Mentioned in2 entries
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