After months of play and nearly a dozen characters across all three factions I remain mystified and unable to find any single source that tells me which ships (or even ship categories) can equip which cannons.
Any ship can equip beams or torps, I got that, but every time Ive designed what I thought would be an awesome cannon build, I discover after training my boffs and getting the ship that the ship cant slot the weapons I had wanted to slot.
Furthermore, I cant seem to figure out the strategy behind the limitation. For example, dual cannon can be slotted on a (small) light cruiser, or battle cruiser or a (huge) dreadnaught, but not a (mid sized) regular or star cruiser?
To even further confuse me, one of the Klingon ships I tried out last week came equipped standard with dual cannon, even although it left the equip limitation text red/unslottablemeaning I shouldnt have been able to slot what came standard on the ship.
So please, can anybody tell me, which ships can use which cannon?
(quad/dual heavy/dual/normal, and are even turrets banned from some ships?)
The best way to tell if an individual ship can have cannons would be to look at the ship itself in the ship seller. It will say in the list of stats at the bottom if it can equip cannons.
But for a general rule:
-Turrets and single cannons on every ship.
-dual and dual heavy cannons on: escorts, raiders, raptors, warbirds, and battlecruisers.
(Battlecruisers are a specific class, distinguished from regular cruisers in that they can equip dual cannons.)
Some weapons are unique to one ship, or a certain set of ships. It will tell you on the weapon.
dual cannons can be used by all raiders, all escorts, all warbirds, most carriers, and Vesta/Dyson Science Destroyers, and fighter class shuttles. I think battlecruisers can use them as well. Along with the Gal-X (not usually recommended)
Dual heavies can be used by all dual cannon wielding ships i believe.
Quad's are limited to Raiders and Escorts, Rom quads im not sure about.
Every ship can slot single cannons, though they only go into front slots.
Every ship can slot turrets, which are technically cannons that also go into rear slots but with a 360° firing arc.
When the game launched only Escorts on Fed side could slot dual cannons (with the exception of the jack of all trades Miranda light cruiser).
On KDF Side you could slot dual cannons on all ships since, they don't have science vessels and all their cruisers are battlecruisers.
Later Cryptic introduced a Battlecruiser/Dreadnaught to Fed side: The Galaxy-X which also can carry dual cannons.
Even later they released a new ship type. Destroyers which are very close to Escorts but usually fullfill a hybrid role. The Chimera is one such a ship as is the Temporal Science Vessel.
Everything fitting those types can fit dual cannons.
Every pure cruiser, science ship or carrier won't be able, though there might be an exception or two to that rule somewhere. There always is.
Also I should note that the factional fighters (Peregrine, To'duj, Scorpion) can all use dual and quad cannons.
To my knowledge this is the list of dual/quad cannon capable ship classes:
Fighters (Lobi fighters not included)
Escorts and Escort Carriers
Raiders
Raptors
Battlecruisers
Dreadnought Cruisers
Warbirds (all)
Multi-mission Science Vessels
Temporal Science Vessels
Tholian Orb Weaver
Destroyers (including Dyson Science Destroyers)
Warships
Carriers (though generally not a good idea)
This leaves the following unable to load dual/quad cannons:
All small craft except the Peregrine, To'duj, and Scorpion
Cruisers not identified by name as battlecruisers or dreadnought cruisers
Flight Deck Cruisers
Science Vessels not noted above, including Gorn Support Vessels
this is largely what I'm talking about. little ships and big ship can but not middle sized ships? why can a 2 hangar ship and a fighter equip something that a one hangar ship can't?
if there is any logic in the setup, I don't get it.
There's a pattern in everything, I just can't see the pattern here.
this is largely what I'm talking about. little ships and big ship can but not middle sized ships? why can a 2 hangar ship and a fighter equip something that a one hangar ship can't?
if there is any logic in the setup, I don't get it.
There's a pattern in everything, I just can't see the pattern here.
It's not about size, it's about roles. Dual Cannons are reserved for ships with the turn rate (or close to the turn rate) required to use them effectively, given their small arc, and/or ships designed to be heavy hitters - hence the general restriction to Escorts on the Federation side. KDF and Romulan ships are sort of the opposite to Federation ships; most get dual cannons, for both canon and design reasons (although it's not always sensible to use dual cannons on every KDF or Romulan ship...)
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There used to be a picture here, but they changed signatures and I can't be bothered to replace it.
It's more to do with the in-universe construction standards, honestly. Starfleet loves their big, slow cruisers and beam arrays, the KDF will always want more dakka, but the Orions and Gorn have their own ideas about that.
There isn't really any pure gameplay justification.
actually... every single 2 hanger carrier can equip dual cannons. Flight deck cruisers cannot. Heavy Escort Carriers Can though.
I stand corrected. I never flew a full carrier before. In my mind they generally register more like science ships/cruisers than battlecruisers, though they probably are mostly classed as dreadnaughts then.
I never noticed one using dual cannons either, I guess because they rarely make sense on slow turning carriers.
I stand corrected. I never flew a full carrier before. In my mind they generally register more like science ships/cruisers than battlecruisers, though they probably are mostly classed as dreadnaughts then.
I never noticed one using dual cannons either, I guess because they rarely make sense on slow turning carriers.
i've flown every carrier in game, which is how i know.
Even later they released a new ship type. Destroyers which are very close to Escorts but usually fullfill a hybrid role. The Chimera is one such a ship as is the Temporal Science Vessel.
The temporal science vessel can't slot dual cannons. The mirror temporal destroyer can.
FKA K-Tar, grumpy Klingon/El-Aurian hybrid. Now assimilated by PWE.
Sometimes, if you want to bury the hatchet with a Klingon, it has to be in his skull. - Captain K'Tar of the USS Danu about J'mpok.
There is this mystical source called STOwiki, just select the ship ypu want to fly and you will know.
Well yeah, but reading is hard, y'know? (Anyone wanna guess why "Let me Google that for you" is one of my favorite web sites of all time, bar none? :P )
I stand corrected. I never flew a full carrier before. In my mind they generally register more like science ships/cruisers than battlecruisers, though they probably are mostly classed as dreadnaughts then.
I never noticed one using dual cannons either, I guess because they rarely make sense on slow turning carriers.
One of the aspects of "power creep" is that most carriers can slot enough turn to support cannons for PVE with a little bit of piloting skill. Every ship can slot enough to support dual beam banks, by the way. With the new undine console added to the mix for 20 more turn... Regardless, I could get my carrier to turn as well as a stock escort if I put in 4 of the fleet turn consoles + the undine + helmsman trait, and that is not to mention using the solanae set item that improves it under fire or other such toys.
"cruiser", "battlecruiser" and "dreadnaught" are all so loosely defined as to be meaningless in this game. Carrier is at least strongly defined: 2 hangar bays = a carrier. With some carriers having a lot of firepower and others being giant science ships, and still others being tanks, but all lacking weapons, they are a class of their own and the only unifying theme is the 2 bays.
Comments
But for a general rule:
-Turrets and single cannons on every ship.
-dual and dual heavy cannons on: escorts, raiders, raptors, warbirds, and battlecruisers.
(Battlecruisers are a specific class, distinguished from regular cruisers in that they can equip dual cannons.)
Some weapons are unique to one ship, or a certain set of ships. It will tell you on the weapon.
dual cannons can be used by all raiders, all escorts, all warbirds, most carriers, and Vesta/Dyson Science Destroyers, and fighter class shuttles. I think battlecruisers can use them as well. Along with the Gal-X (not usually recommended)
Dual heavies can be used by all dual cannon wielding ships i believe.
Quad's are limited to Raiders and Escorts, Rom quads im not sure about.
Every ship can slot turrets, which are technically cannons that also go into rear slots but with a 360° firing arc.
When the game launched only Escorts on Fed side could slot dual cannons (with the exception of the jack of all trades Miranda light cruiser).
On KDF Side you could slot dual cannons on all ships since, they don't have science vessels and all their cruisers are battlecruisers.
Later Cryptic introduced a Battlecruiser/Dreadnaught to Fed side: The Galaxy-X which also can carry dual cannons.
Even later they released a new ship type. Destroyers which are very close to Escorts but usually fullfill a hybrid role. The Chimera is one such a ship as is the Temporal Science Vessel.
Everything fitting those types can fit dual cannons.
Every pure cruiser, science ship or carrier won't be able, though there might be an exception or two to that rule somewhere. There always is.
actually... every single 2 hanger carrier can equip dual cannons. Flight deck cruisers cannot. Heavy Escort Carriers Can though.
To my knowledge this is the list of dual/quad cannon capable ship classes:
Fighters (Lobi fighters not included)
Escorts and Escort Carriers
Raiders
Raptors
Battlecruisers
Dreadnought Cruisers
Warbirds (all)
Multi-mission Science Vessels
Temporal Science Vessels
Tholian Orb Weaver
Destroyers (including Dyson Science Destroyers)
Warships
Carriers (though generally not a good idea)
This leaves the following unable to load dual/quad cannons:
All small craft except the Peregrine, To'duj, and Scorpion
Cruisers not identified by name as battlecruisers or dreadnought cruisers
Flight Deck Cruisers
Science Vessels not noted above, including Gorn Support Vessels
if there is any logic in the setup, I don't get it.
There's a pattern in everything, I just can't see the pattern here.
It's not about size, it's about roles. Dual Cannons are reserved for ships with the turn rate (or close to the turn rate) required to use them effectively, given their small arc, and/or ships designed to be heavy hitters - hence the general restriction to Escorts on the Federation side. KDF and Romulan ships are sort of the opposite to Federation ships; most get dual cannons, for both canon and design reasons (although it's not always sensible to use dual cannons on every KDF or Romulan ship...)
There used to be a picture here, but they changed signatures and I can't be bothered to replace it.
There isn't really any pure gameplay justification.
I stand corrected. I never flew a full carrier before. In my mind they generally register more like science ships/cruisers than battlecruisers, though they probably are mostly classed as dreadnaughts then.
I never noticed one using dual cannons either, I guess because they rarely make sense on slow turning carriers.
i've flown every carrier in game, which is how i know.
The temporal science vessel can't slot dual cannons. The mirror temporal destroyer can.
Sometimes, if you want to bury the hatchet with a Klingon, it has to be in his skull. - Captain K'Tar of the USS Danu about J'mpok.
i think thats the ship he meant, as they mentioned the chimera, possibly just a derp moment and put the wrong temporal ship down.
Well yeah, but reading is hard, y'know? (Anyone wanna guess why "Let me Google that for you" is one of my favorite web sites of all time, bar none? :P )
One of the aspects of "power creep" is that most carriers can slot enough turn to support cannons for PVE with a little bit of piloting skill. Every ship can slot enough to support dual beam banks, by the way. With the new undine console added to the mix for 20 more turn... Regardless, I could get my carrier to turn as well as a stock escort if I put in 4 of the fleet turn consoles + the undine + helmsman trait, and that is not to mention using the solanae set item that improves it under fire or other such toys.
"cruiser", "battlecruiser" and "dreadnaught" are all so loosely defined as to be meaningless in this game. Carrier is at least strongly defined: 2 hangar bays = a carrier. With some carriers having a lot of firepower and others being giant science ships, and still others being tanks, but all lacking weapons, they are a class of their own and the only unifying theme is the 2 bays.