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Optimal Power Levels For Sci?
e30ernest
Member Posts: 1,794 Arc User
Hello, new player here.
I was wondering what the optimal power levels should be for a Science Captain in a Science Vessel. I know much of the Science abilities are utilizing Aux Power, and more is better. However, what would be the absolute minimum level for Aux to remain effective? How much does power levels actually affect skills?
Thank you so much!
I was wondering what the optimal power levels should be for a Science Captain in a Science Vessel. I know much of the Science abilities are utilizing Aux Power, and more is better. However, what would be the absolute minimum level for Aux to remain effective? How much does power levels actually affect skills?
Thank you so much!
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Yeah, pretty much this. I fly a Vesta and have my Aux at 15 - relying on buffs to keep effective power over 75. It's a matter of boosting science abilities that you can use once every 30+ seconds versus weapons which fire off every second or so.
Forward weapons are two torpedos (right now I'm using the gravemetric and the Neutronic) and the Dyson special weapon.
Back is a 360 array, a cutting beam, and usually a turret, but I've been using a beam array back there lately.
Here's the deal... you should be using science powers a lot more then every 30 seconds, and you don't need weapon power on torpedoes. Grav Well III, TBR, Tyken's Rift. Use Energy Siphon to boost your energy levels and consoles to do the same and cause more exotic damage and energy siphoning.
Doing all that, the enemy generally doesn't have the shields left to matter, even on the hardest of levels. Using traits that boost kinetic shield penetration help when they do have them up and on bosse where it's harder to drop them down.
This goes doubly true on a vesta where you can use Aux Cannon.
People complain that science ships don't do dps, then you see posts like "125 weapon energy them." Sorry bout you're not flyng a cruiser or an escort. You're flying science, you need to think outside the box.
Builds that focus on killing with guns (not counting Vesta cannons) will run max weapons and use buffing/debuffing sci powers that are OK with low aux. Adding a plasmonic leech, maco shield, or an engineer captain help these builds out by giving them high power all over.
Torpedo builds capitalize on the fact that torps don't need weapon power at all. These tend to split power between auxiliary and shields and often only run a single 360-degree beam for use wit built in subsystem targeting powers because why not.
Particle generator builds run max aux, often 135 after buffs because they don't need anything else. They kill with sci attack powers and guns are irrelevant. Even subsystem targeting is worthless because why knock shields offline if 95% of your damage already ignores shields anyway?
Some players run multiple saved power settings. For example my recluse has a normal 75-25-25-75 power setting with balanced weapons and aux and I use gear to pump it to 125 weapons and aux if I need to spike my guns or a gravity well. I also have an all shield and aux for healing and support, and an all weapons for blasting. Many people just have a second max aux setting for healing, even when they fly an escort.
Will you ever get escort/cruiser dps with a science ship? Hell no, not even with an Aux Cannon build. But I try to do the best dps I can (the only thing that actually determines anything in this game) without relying on those sparse science gimmicks and that requires weapon power.
I have hit 18k dps with aux cannons. It is all about power level management. Synergy in your build, timing, and positioning. Of course this also depends on group mak up and mission requirement.
No, the shared CD between GW and TR is 15 seconds. One strategy is: throw GW -> Energy siphon, subsystem targeting, fire works or whatever and then TR. The GW will keep the targets on place and the TR will drain them down. They loose their shields, don´t shoot back and can´t escape.
Personally I don't keep weapon power at 100, I keep mine at 50 (actually 60 with the extra power efficiency) and with only using 2 phasers, one front one aft, if i'm firing both they never go below 50, which is the standard power level for the weapon. The damage you see on gear (DPS) is measured based on a 50 power level rating.
With a sci ship you get target subsystems so I pump as much extra damage I can in my torpedos then keep aux power levels at max. This works for me because I don't keep my phasers always blasting, I only use them for delivering subsystem targeting. When I do need to terrorize an enemies shields with phasers I have a high EPS rating to quickly change power levels to weapons at max or use a weapons battery for ~15 seconds of constant phaser fire.
You just have to figure out how you like to play and work from there. But, in general, it's best to have maximum power distributed when using weapon/ability that uses that system. Either through manual power level adjustments, batteries, or ship design/skills.No purpose firing off a sci ability with power to aux at 50 when it can at least be 100.
Joined January 2009
Now caveat I'm taking the Vesta with aux cannon out of this equation, that changes a lot of things.
I'll give you my reasoning for not doing it. First off, weapon energy will never be your strong suit, ever. I don't think anyone here really is arguing that fact. To boost it to 100 to 125 levels, you're really beginning to weaken your strengths, which almost always is aux and shields. So first play to your strengths. Also, you really don't have enough engineering slots to boost your weapon energy to proper levels as generally you have just enough for damage mitigation.
Secondly you really don't have the tactical slots around to truely spread your focus. Assault cruisers and escorts, you can do a ton of stuff with different weapon slots because you generally have the BOff slots to do that. Science ships you have 3 to 5 slots, meaning you kind of have to focus on torps or energy weapons.
Thirdly, you also really don't have a ton of tactical console slots you can use either.
So while you can make a average to above average energy weapon ship, you'll never really make it great that way. Cryptic just doesn't give you the tools to make it great.
However if you play to your strengths, you don't need them. Dropping shields is one of our strengths, meaning torps become much more useful, especially since you don't need energy for torps.
Exotic damage, through the use of aux, is also one of our strengths, meaning that you don't really need to rely all that much on energy weapons.
Also with the right console build, using energy siphoning, you can raise your weapon energy to decent levels. At rock bottom 15 level weapon energy, using the proper consoles that also boost my strength and various energy siphoning powers and techniques I can easily get my weapon energy steadily to 75 and boost it to 100 with minimul issues, not even using warp cores and batteries.
So my view is, play to the science ships strengths, aux (and therefor exotic damage) and shields and draining ships of their shields. Doing that you don't even really need energy weapons... at all except for one beam really to target systems with.
^
Welcome to advice from captains that have no idea how to run a proper sci ship.
Actually, particle gen science builds can outperform many beam builds.
Here's a very good post complete with end-game build:
http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showpost.php?p=19418131&postcount=52
Edit, to save you the trouble, here's the quote:
Exotic damage builds generally don't require a lot of aux power(stacking a lot of particle gens is more important), but there are some sources/setups that do.
Gravity Well and Torpedo builds are synergistic with benefiting greatly from aux power and not needing to waste power on weapons.
Drain Builds are quirky in that that all your power levels will go up over time and you're primarily using energy/polaron weapons.
Aux is also important if you want to run powerful, active heals(as opposed to running high shields/engines for a strong passive tank).
depend on your build, but remember that most sci abilities (both healing and debuffing) greatly depend on aux power (see sto.gamepedia.com) and low aux power means you will fail.
So, never thinking "125 weapons enery level"... that is the best way to fail, because your healing abilities, your sci abilities to deliver exotic damage, or debuff or to control you oppont will not work good...
Moreover a sci vessell does not have so much tactical consoles, or access to many tactical boff's abilities (instead you have many sci slot to bust your shield and/or your science abilities).
A sci/sci captain should care first about helping his teammates, healing them and debuffing and controlling the enemies...
If you can't deal enough exotic damage, you can tray to build a torpedo boat... a good torpedo boat can easly deal 15k dps and still be an excellent as healer and/or debuffer (ex. my build for pve is a plasma torpedo boat with some healing abilities and several abilities for crowd control).
Playing STO spamming FAW is like playing chess using always the computer's suggested moves
And it should be noted naz4 is one of STO's best PvPers, who used that build to essentially two person a Disconnected Advanced with all optionals.
Normally I have aux power set at around 75. In normal sector space it's being pushed up to around 110 but in combat plasmonic leech pushes it off the scale.
I have flow capacitors, particle generators, and graviton generators on the skill tree maxed out. I use personal traits like astrophysicist, Conservation of energy, and Particle manipulator.
I am still moving stuff around a lot, but I now slotted:
Advanced fleet tachyon deflector (+26 PG, + 17 FLC)
Obelisk warp core (+10 max aux power)
Adapted MACO shield and engine
Nukura conolse, Zero-point console, Quantum field foxus controller in Eng.
Multi-dimensional wave module, Mk XI Plasma generating thingy from Embassy, Mk XII Shield-repairing thingy from embassy (+33 PG), Purple Mk XII Particle generator, MK XII Exotic Field Exciterin Sci
2 MK XII Vulnerability Exploiters and Plasmonic leech in Tac
Sci BO abilities are tractor beam 1, Energy siphon 1, Tyken's rift 2. Hazard emitters 1, Feedback pulse 2, Gravity well 3, and tachyon beam 1 (I'm not sure I really need this one). Others are EptS 1, EptA 2, THY1, CRF 2.
DO's are 3x deflector officer, gravimetric scientist, Warp core engineer, damage control engineer.
There's still some room for improvement but I'm fairly happy with this.
Thank you for all your input. I've learned a lot so far from you.
Can I save custom power presets? Is there a way to type in a number for power levels instead of using the slider? The interface isn't clear on how to do that.
I did not realize these ship abilities ignored shields. I'd definitely ttry out those BOff abilities. Speaking of BOffs, when I retrain my officers, they lose the skill points I assigned to those abilities. Where do those skill points go? If they are gone for good, do I earn them back from missions and patrols?
Some posts on this forums say that energy drains are more or less useless but is Energy Syphon worth the slot?
I'm mostly playing this game for nostalgia (I used to watch the Trek shows) and continue on where the shows left-off so I'd prefer to play my Fed Science Vessels with Beams and Torpedoes. The Vesta line is an exception since they were really equipped with cannons in the books (am I right?). That's for weapons, however I'd still want to build on these ships' and my captain's strengths (which are science abilities). My weapons will be there to merely augment those. If I focus on science abilities, do I still need weapon buffs from consoles or can I focus on consoles that improve aux power and science stuff? Can I survive on that built philosophy?
I am still learning, levelling up and building up my gear. I've just started on the Borg episodes (those are tough nuts to crack and they hit hard too) so I've started to look into detail on my build and flying techniques to find how I can improve. Soon I hope to try out the STFs and maybe join a fleet, but that is down the road.
| USS Curiosity - Pathfinder | USS Rift - Eternal |
The Science Ship Build Thread - Share your Sci Ship builds here!
Indeed, and it came so early in the thread that I'm sure it's sent some guys running off into a completely wrong direction in properly running a science ship.
Most Science abilities rely on Aux Power. Denying that to them in favor of Weapons Power? You're flying the wrong ship and should be looking at the Escort or Cruiser lineup of ships.
As far as I know, that's the MACO shield, not the adapted MACO. I haven't noticed anything, but I should try with a different shield someday. Thanks for pointing that out.
| USS Curiosity - Pathfinder | USS Rift - Eternal |
The Science Ship Build Thread - Share your Sci Ship builds here!
I think the adapted MACO isn't effected by it, but I'm not sure. To be honest I don't use the MACO set, I use the Solanae Set personally.
Yes you can. Press the 3 on your set and play with the sliders. There is a button that looks like an old 3 1/2 inch floppy on the power tray, that saves you current settings to whatever setting you currently have set. I've tried the numbers, but they don't always work, the sliders do though.
I lucked out that there was an XP event (which I did not realize was happening) when I started the game. I was 50 by the time I was on the Romulan episodes. Now half-way through 55 3 episodes into the Borg missions. Since I breezed through so many levels, I'm pretty much a high-level newbie.
I'll read-up on the skillsets and try to understand how they work and how they interact with each other and other ship systems. The game is quite different from other MMOs I've played before so there is quite a learning curve to tackle. Everyone's input here has been highly valuable.
Thank you.
| USS Curiosity - Pathfinder | USS Rift - Eternal |
The Science Ship Build Thread - Share your Sci Ship builds here!
For example my sci is currently running in a tal shier battlcruiser with cmdr slot as sci.
- it has the command to reduce my weapon power costs.
- I have all sorts of nice gear including a plasma leech
- I run one copy of energy drain
and so on.
With my specific setup, I can keep my weapon power above 100 and my aux power above 100 with a setting of something like (approximately, I am away from the ship for exacts) 75 weapons, 25 shields, 25 engines, 75 aux. In-battle that becomes something like 100, 50, 50, 100 roughly (weapons can reach 125 but can't sit there, they drain down). I do not have an amp bonus here but its not optimized for dps (I can do that by swapping the power levels, warp core, and put in cmdr tac but thats not the a sci heavy build anymore).
When I need it, I can use my rep sci booster for a uber GW or heal or whatever. Or once in a while I use an aux battery.
But a true sci ship does not have the reduced weapon drain, but it also is 2 weapons short of a load -- not sure what that means in the grand scheme of keeping your weapons at a decent level.
The issue is also compounded by your weapon layout -- many sci ships run torps which can run on 0 weapon power.
About the best advice I can give you is --- if you use energy weapons, keep your weapon power over 100 and your aux over 100. How you get there depends on dozens of variables. And there are numerous oddball setups you can use that do not require a high weapon power, not just torp boats but 3 or 4 other working builds can run low weapons.
The cancelation is with the maco shield, not the adapted maco. For Klingons the maco shield is renamed "adapted honor guard".
Just read the description of the shield, if it says it drains power from attacking enemies, do NOT use it with the leech. If it placates attackers, no conflict.
I'd look at Energy Siphon more as a buff to you than count on it seriously draining your enemy (though it can drain them). My Sci Alpha Strike using the Dyson Science Destroyer was firing off Tyken's Rift 2, Energy Siphon 3, and Tachyon Beam 1. Then following up with Torp Spread 3 using the Gravimetric or Enhanced Bio Molec. Torp. I'd also use Sensor Analysis and Sensor Scan if the opponent looked tough.
If you pursue the Romulan Reputation there is a Beam Arraythat uses no power.
Oh, and I run my ships at full Aux. I prefer using science ships. I run all torps (mostly shield bypassing damage) on my boat.