Breaching Pod Questions

[Jason Duncan 264]

The description of the breaching pods states it travels in the same way as a long range tracking weapon. My questions are, since it is an expansion bay and does not specifically state it is a weapon, would launching a breaching pod trigger starship combat? Or the drop of a active cloaking device/gray cloaking device?

[Lavabeing]

As a GM, I would definitely start starship combat as long as the defending ship has functioning sensors. I wouldn't even have the defending ship roll to detect the breaching pod (I.e. they automatically succeed) unless their sensors/computer were malfunctioning, damaged, or inoperative.

I'm not familiar enough with the rules to state if there is an official specific rule for what does and doesn't triggers combat.

With regards to the grey cloak, I am confident that the breaching pods are not meant to be used while the ship is cloaked. From a printed adventure that uses it, I believe the instructions for the "sample acquisition bay" (another expansion bay) is that it can't be used while the ship is cloaked. I would apply the same rule to breaching pods.