The basics of building your ship, the amount of bad builds I've seen over the years shows that players have no advise concerning that
Starship boot camp FTW. Equipment gets thrown at you and you can say, Hmmmm.... Plasma this and plasma that because you loot a lot it. Then you set out in your plasma wrecking machine with every slot with "Plasma something" in it, run into a Ferengi scavenger and wake up before the wisest tribble of them all asking you, "Now, smart guy, how'd that make you feel?"
The game scales to level, not build and if you are building for success, then you will need to pay to win. Acquiring sets through play takes a LOT (hours) of respawn unless you fall in with a fleet that isn't using you for food, but still enduring the respawn to victory for item "X" means you are one item, out of 12, closer to viability. Proven builds you find online are end game hard grind, fleet find or pay the zen kind.
Yeah we get great ships that can only be as great as the Captain that has them. I'd suggest a series of Tutorial missions that teaches you how to equip for tactical, science or engineering captains, drops the gear you need, "expresses" the importance of this skill here and that skill there... I'd put the ring in the nose right out the gate... yeah, mission one:
Target Practice: "See Captain, when we load the Plasma cannons the "object" suffers x, y and z and with the poloran cannon... blah blah blah...
Damage AMP: "Captain, I see you have taken a fancy to antiproton weapons, this particular tactical console... bah blah blah.
Defense: "Captain, you see, although the shields intact, we are taking DOT damage, see the little tag on the ship icon... what we need is for the science officer to put down his beer and engage the damn HAZARD EMITTERS!!!"
I have fumbled through the game, poured all over the web trying to work out how to make a more viable build... I'm still very clueless and I would happily run tutorials to level 30 on every faction working through every possible build if those tutorials were available.
Perhaps you could use the wisdom of millenial generation and make a few apps that work for STO and not with... although a DOFF, reputation, admiralty app would be awesome to manage from my phone... training apps wouldn't tie into the code and bug it out.
So consider a few apps; Faction Fleet Academy, DOFFing 101, Admiralty (This is where your ships come from and how you get better), Reputation... huh, yeah, good god, what is is good for... listen to me.
It may seem a bit superfluous but utilizing training (Simulator) apps would help people better understand the game, would allow people to access STO "stuff" when not on a console or PC and could, in theory, allow you to flesh out your captain(s) with the apps and take those builds/knowledge into the game. It could make a map of how to handle the core and satellite aspects of STO.
I'd venture that there are a few app developers that play the game that could be interested in this if Cryptic gave a shout out.
The old republic starts you out as a new recruit and has several missions to teach you mechanics. there does not have to be just one long tutorial. also, they could bring back the ship hologram from what back when. you click on the ship, and a voiceover can talk about it. "defiant: an Escort class ship, tier 4 due to it's sped an maneouverability, this class ship can benefit from using dual cannons or dual beam banks. Pros: higher DPS Cons harder to keep target in fireing arc." "Galaxy: A cruiser class ship, tier 4. More weapon hardpoints, less maneouverable. Reccommended weapons are beam arrays. Pros: more weapons, mor hit points more shield capacity. Cons, turns slow, limited tactical enhancements." Intrepid: Science class, Tier 4. fewer weapons hardpoints, but enhanced abilities, generating exotic paricle damage or energy drain abilities. Pros: enhanced tamage from science abilities, good maneouverability. Cons. Fewer weapons, tactical enhancements."
like the tutorial where you shoot the bad guys on the holodeck, a mini mission for ground and space from each of your officers, tactical, Science and Engineering. the space tactical can show maneouvering, and weapons, Science can show Shield management, and a primer of EPG and Drain, Engineering can cover damage control/hull resoration, and power management, such as when to use EPTS/W Aux to Bat etc.
The advanced tutorials should include teamwork, such as the ability of eng/cruisers to heal, or the synergy between Sci and Tac powers. Teamwork can magnify the powers of each class of ship, but is almost an unknown concept in the game.
Lots of people, specially new players, don't know (or confuse) the concepts of flying speed: Full Impulse, Warp, Transwarp, Slipstream, Sector Speed, Turn rate in and outside systems, etc
Two annoying/big things that have me confused is drains and ship explosions.
To elaborate, I'm often doing fine and then suddenly all my shields are drained and my ship gets the **** blown out of it. I don't consider myself overly slow yet it seems full shields, no shields, half hull happen before I have a chance to click on an officer ability to try and get shields up again. I'm sure this can't be by design as it feels far more arbitrary than it should, not so much about reacting to the situation or the like as opposed to, sod this for a game of space ships.
The next is I'm flying along blowing up the enemy ships and then one of them explodes and destroys my ship with horrendous damage. Now sure warp cores explode, but they seem more damaging than torpedoes and overly punishing for people that use cannons and fly towards their target. I seem to be spending much of the fights trying to get away using turrets to finish them off. This can't be right.
Kind of on the same level but only really an issue on the barge or the dead and the gates of Grathor or whatever that place is. There seems to be a hideous amount of ground based damage, i.e. shields gone and half health before you can take a step. Now maybe its the curse of having the graphics on high that it blends in more with the effects but surely such random horrendous damage just makes for a bad experience as opposed to tactical or skillful combat.
Linked to these those less of a learning experience is the immersion of defeat. It seems defeat in the Star Trek universe is akin to some form of time loop transporter thing. Your ship gets destroyed another brand new one magically appears a few kilometers out, your away team gets defeated it magically reappears back at the last respawn point. I know its only a game and there is only so much that can be done. But at least with the ship side of things, in keeping with the source material the player ship could be treated more like the mission critical ships and under go a repair phase better explaining whats happening as opposed to magically reappearing back a few steps. While the ground experience could have the player waking up in sick bay, having been emergency transported out.
Make some of the 'solo' missions team missions, maybe even as a requirement-you can't run this one by yourself, you have to go find someone to run with you. build on that, and you'll have a lot better informed playerbase.
and it's exactly 180 degrees from the course the game's followed for the last seven years.
Maybe not change the missions already in game but add new ones that require team play. I do know of a lot of missions that can be done as a team *my fleet does those when we can* but the missions are not marked (solo only) when you look on them in the mission list. Makes it frustrating when a person gets together a group leveling team and then they can't continue together.
Some sort of a tree explaining and linking compatible weaponry, consoles, Boff skills, Doff skills, captain skill planner etc. As a noob it's pretty complicated, and downright embarrassing when you are dying 6 times while someone else is crushing Borg cubes like tin cans around you. Some kind of fleet tutorial would be helpful also, as not having a clue about what is involved is off-putting and I suspect people with a (friendly)fleet are more likely to stay in the game which would be a win/win. Also, being able to make bids for exchange items (same as the dil/zen exchange) rather than unwanted items just being returned if nobody meets the asking price.
Escorts are designed to hit hard, but are fragile. Their intended playstyle reflects their ability to hit and run, (or kill and pick a new target.) It is almost always best for an escort to avoid being the center of the enemy squadron's attention; thus, hitting an already distracted and weakened target is superior to rushing to attack the boss ahead of your team's arrival.
Cruisers are intended to get into the mix and tough it out. A cruiser that stands at 10km spraying broadside beams is not as effective for a team as one which gets into the furball and generates aggro. This also requires the cruiser player to select self heals and disables as his main powers, but his job is to be the hub of the wheel.
Science Vessels are not simply small cruisers or large escorts. Their role is to weaken or trap their targets so their team can more easily deal with them. They are also the firemen of the team, intended to deal with persistent effects on friendly vessels and to help the escorts kill friendly targets.
These are simplified and basic roles and, of course, advanced players will know there are many ways to tank a 'scort or healboat a cruiser or DPS a science vessel. The idea is that for beginning players all ships have the same playstyle: rush into the middle of the action, fire weapons, and respawn, rinse, repeat. Knowledge of the basic principles of the intended roles of ships will make the average newbie a far better player than simply giving him weak foes he can survive with a bum-rush attack.
An in-game damage, drain, and heal meter would be useful. Not everybody has or knows how to use a parser and different third-party parsers will often give different results anyway.
"Great War! / And I cannot take more! / Great tour! / I keep on marching on / I play the great score / There will be no encore / Great War! / The War to End All Wars"
— Sabaton, "Great War"
I've just finished collating and analyzing all the data in here and passing it on to the team. Thank you so much for all of your feedback, we really appreciate it. I'm going to un-announce the thread now, but it'll still exist and if you have more feedback, please feel free.
I've just finished collating and analyzing all the data in here and passing it on to the team. Thank you so much for all of your feedback, we really appreciate it. I'm going to un-announce the thread now, but it'll still exist and if you have more feedback, please feel free.
Is it possible to get a highlight of what you are sending on? Something like a bullet point list of these are the areas that need addressing?
Comments
Starship boot camp FTW. Equipment gets thrown at you and you can say, Hmmmm.... Plasma this and plasma that because you loot a lot it. Then you set out in your plasma wrecking machine with every slot with "Plasma something" in it, run into a Ferengi scavenger and wake up before the wisest tribble of them all asking you, "Now, smart guy, how'd that make you feel?"
The game scales to level, not build and if you are building for success, then you will need to pay to win. Acquiring sets through play takes a LOT (hours) of respawn unless you fall in with a fleet that isn't using you for food, but still enduring the respawn to victory for item "X" means you are one item, out of 12, closer to viability. Proven builds you find online are end game hard grind, fleet find or pay the zen kind.
Yeah we get great ships that can only be as great as the Captain that has them. I'd suggest a series of Tutorial missions that teaches you how to equip for tactical, science or engineering captains, drops the gear you need, "expresses" the importance of this skill here and that skill there... I'd put the ring in the nose right out the gate... yeah, mission one:
Target Practice: "See Captain, when we load the Plasma cannons the "object" suffers x, y and z and with the poloran cannon... blah blah blah...
Damage AMP: "Captain, I see you have taken a fancy to antiproton weapons, this particular tactical console... bah blah blah.
Defense: "Captain, you see, although the shields intact, we are taking DOT damage, see the little tag on the ship icon... what we need is for the science officer to put down his beer and engage the damn HAZARD EMITTERS!!!"
I have fumbled through the game, poured all over the web trying to work out how to make a more viable build... I'm still very clueless and I would happily run tutorials to level 30 on every faction working through every possible build if those tutorials were available.
Flight Academy would be most welcome.
So consider a few apps; Faction Fleet Academy, DOFFing 101, Admiralty (This is where your ships come from and how you get better), Reputation... huh, yeah, good god, what is is good for... listen to me.
It may seem a bit superfluous but utilizing training (Simulator) apps would help people better understand the game, would allow people to access STO "stuff" when not on a console or PC and could, in theory, allow you to flesh out your captain(s) with the apps and take those builds/knowledge into the game. It could make a map of how to handle the core and satellite aspects of STO.
I'd venture that there are a few app developers that play the game that could be interested in this if Cryptic gave a shout out.
Junae, Girquay, Meman'Ikan, Deanna, Elisa Flores, Nuno Espadinha, Heidi, Kolez, T'Vrell, Zarva, Vocan, Oeshi
To elaborate, I'm often doing fine and then suddenly all my shields are drained and my ship gets the **** blown out of it. I don't consider myself overly slow yet it seems full shields, no shields, half hull happen before I have a chance to click on an officer ability to try and get shields up again. I'm sure this can't be by design as it feels far more arbitrary than it should, not so much about reacting to the situation or the like as opposed to, sod this for a game of space ships.
The next is I'm flying along blowing up the enemy ships and then one of them explodes and destroys my ship with horrendous damage. Now sure warp cores explode, but they seem more damaging than torpedoes and overly punishing for people that use cannons and fly towards their target. I seem to be spending much of the fights trying to get away using turrets to finish them off. This can't be right.
Kind of on the same level but only really an issue on the barge or the dead and the gates of Grathor or whatever that place is. There seems to be a hideous amount of ground based damage, i.e. shields gone and half health before you can take a step. Now maybe its the curse of having the graphics on high that it blends in more with the effects but surely such random horrendous damage just makes for a bad experience as opposed to tactical or skillful combat.
Linked to these those less of a learning experience is the immersion of defeat. It seems defeat in the Star Trek universe is akin to some form of time loop transporter thing. Your ship gets destroyed another brand new one magically appears a few kilometers out, your away team gets defeated it magically reappears back at the last respawn point. I know its only a game and there is only so much that can be done. But at least with the ship side of things, in keeping with the source material the player ship could be treated more like the mission critical ships and under go a repair phase better explaining whats happening as opposed to magically reappearing back a few steps. While the ground experience could have the player waking up in sick bay, having been emergency transported out.
"The Iconians and their allies are here...we must stop and save them at the same time before they destroy us...out of TIME"
I will take a screenshot, and the exact direction to open the darn thing, when the game comes back up.
I hope I can remember what I did to find it. LOL!
+++++++++++++++++++
Eureka!! I found it.
It is in the "?" menu of the Mini Map.
Click on "Access Library Computer".
It is on easily accessed by every single character.
https://i.imgur.com/g33sXKx.jpg
“Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.” -- Benjamin Franklin
what does this post have to do with how to teach newbies the game better?
(Absolutely nothing. - BMR)
At the moment I'm struggling with mission replays. Some missions have a Replay button, but others don't, even though I've played them before. As an on again/off again player since open beta, I'm baffled. Latest example:
https://forum.arcgames.com/startrekonline/discussion/1245141/just-want-to-replay-sunrise-why-is-this-so-hard
Escorts are designed to hit hard, but are fragile. Their intended playstyle reflects their ability to hit and run, (or kill and pick a new target.) It is almost always best for an escort to avoid being the center of the enemy squadron's attention; thus, hitting an already distracted and weakened target is superior to rushing to attack the boss ahead of your team's arrival.
Cruisers are intended to get into the mix and tough it out. A cruiser that stands at 10km spraying broadside beams is not as effective for a team as one which gets into the furball and generates aggro. This also requires the cruiser player to select self heals and disables as his main powers, but his job is to be the hub of the wheel.
Science Vessels are not simply small cruisers or large escorts. Their role is to weaken or trap their targets so their team can more easily deal with them. They are also the firemen of the team, intended to deal with persistent effects on friendly vessels and to help the escorts kill friendly targets.
These are simplified and basic roles and, of course, advanced players will know there are many ways to tank a 'scort or healboat a cruiser or DPS a science vessel. The idea is that for beginning players all ships have the same playstyle: rush into the middle of the action, fire weapons, and respawn, rinse, repeat. Knowledge of the basic principles of the intended roles of ships will make the average newbie a far better player than simply giving him weak foes he can survive with a bum-rush attack.
— Sabaton, "Great War"
Check out https://unitedfederationofpla.net/s/
I've just finished collating and analyzing all the data in here and passing it on to the team. Thank you so much for all of your feedback, we really appreciate it. I'm going to un-announce the thread now, but it'll still exist and if you have more feedback, please feel free.
Is it possible to get a highlight of what you are sending on? Something like a bullet point list of these are the areas that need addressing?
Thanks in advance.
Quality of Life Improvements for the Mission Journal
Enhancement for the Duty Office Assignments
Enhancement for Admiralty Missions
Enhancement for Accolades and Reward
Enhancement Bridge Officers