1.7.0.14 - Super Laser empire policy not working?

[Bebop Cola]

I have my empire policy set to never use super lasers to destroy enemy colonies. I then equipped my capital ships with super lasers with the intent of using them to take out tough bases and capital ships.

My first opportunity to test, however, resulted in a blown up planet that I think had a mining base on it, though it might have been a colony moon. My fleet was set to automated attack orders against an enemy empire. The last order given was to attack a mining base in the same system, but this was less than a minute before I flipped over to check on them to see an exploding planet.

Unfortunately, my game barfed from a memory leak shortly thereafter, so I don't have a recent save. That said, I imagine it could have been one of the following scenarios:

1. The empire policy only applies to the actual Planet Destroyer ships, not just the super laser.
2. The empire policy only applies to actual colonies, not planets/moons with bases on them.
3. The empire policy works, but in the process of blowing up a mining base with a super laser the planet it's on is also destroyed simply as collateral damage.

Needless to say, my empire took a reputation hit from admired to dubious. I was actually somewhat amused and inclined to keep the game going, dismissing the admiral for criminal negligence, suing for peace with the empire I had just wronged, and immediately redesigning my capital ships. Alas, I can't justify intentionally wasting a planet when I pick it back of from an earlier auto-save just to replicate the scenario.

[Fishman]

Wait, what? You can get Super Lazors? Not just the regular Death Ray? Where do THOSE come from? Because I could sure go for a new, improved Death Star. The default designs are a joke. How the hell do you even *USE* the 50 cargo bays, and why on Earth would I want to a Death Star Cargo Shuttle?

[Bebop Cola]

Seems to be an unmarked tier 8 weapon technology. I believe it requires following the RotS storyline and might require max tech before you complete it. Not entirely sure on that last bit.

[Fishman]

I've done that before. Maxed tech tree, searched all ruins and found the superweapon ruins, seen the Shaktur arrive. There's more?

[Bebop Cola]

Have you followed the storyline discoveries? Should be initiated by finding one of the ruins and loads a story screen, then points you at the next discovery(might take another ruin or ship discovery to move along). You follow that trail to discover a series of bases. Have you found all of those?

[elliotg]

This empire policy only applies to Planet Destroyer ships used outside of fleets. If you equip your standard Capital Ships with planet-destroying Super Laser components, then this may happen

In this case though, if the capital ships are not part of a fleet then they probably will not attempt to destroy planets.

[Bebop Cola]

Ha! Amusing.