A carrion house, also called a scrap shop or a net, was a kind of vessel which functioned to immobilize a smaller ship. It could then be used to pull the other vessel apart or assist in repairing it. When in use by criminal scrappers, the older model carrion houses turned the target vessel into conduits that could burn the inhabitants to death. Newer ones could simply hold the victims in place, at which point the scrappers could vent the oxygen into space or gas the victims. The goal was almost always to kill the crew and sell the ship. The electric net was supplied by a series of breaker pairs.