How would a Protostar Drive work in STO?

kayajay

Warning, spoilers for Episode 5 of Star Trek: Prodigy!

I absolutely love the new episode and it really was terrific. I knew from the title animations that the nacelles moved, but that the Protostar actually has a Protostar inside the ship? Genius and such fun.

I'd be incredibly curious to know how fast it's able to go with that as a power source, but I was just wondering how that would translate to STO.

I know we could have the boring part of the ship being faster in Sector Space, but I'm there needs to be a fun console.

A Protostar Universal Console, where the ship can zip away or...I'm open to suggestions here. Decontamination Drones were great and I do also LOVE that Hologram Janeway took the captain's chair. I had an idea for a Hologram Janeway Trait, where she'd take command and do something great, which I think would be viable.

What would you like to see STO do with with Prodigy is giving us though?

spiritborn

I'd assume the drive functions as a special transwarp, as for the rest well depends I assume there will a console and a trait but what form those will take I can't say.

jonsills

Need to know more about how Protowarp works, and how it differs from regular warp or transwarp. Its effect seems like a cross between high warp speed and quantum slipstream, but of course that doesn't mean much - SFX are SFX, and don't tell you anything about function.

starshine

I'm not sure it's that special? like it's a big deal for Starfleet, but isn't it the same as how Romulan ships are powered by a Singularity?
I'd guess Protostar would work in STO, by using Rom Warbird style build for parts, with a pilot ships style boost console and a Crossfield like unique warp animation

crm14916

How about a special warp core that comes with the ship (if/when). The warp core in sector space grants a certain amount of travel speed, or allows a transwarp to any system with minimal cool down... In system space, it could act like a pilot manoeuvre, or a quick getaway. I think it would be best to lock that ability into a special warp core and free up a console for something else...

kayajay

crm14916 wrote: »

How about a special warp core that comes with the ship (if/when). The warp core in sector space grants a certain amount of travel speed, or allows a transwarp to any system with minimal cool down... In system space, it could act like a pilot manoeuvre, or a quick getaway. I think it would be best to lock that ability into a special warp core and free up a console for something else...

The Excelsior and Dauntless come with special sector abilities, separate from anything else. I really wouldn't want anything about the ship to only be special in sector space.

I just had a post moved to Ten Forward (which is always disheartening, because no one ever goes to Ten Forward) but I'm still suspecting that Harry Kim was right in "The Omega Directive" and the U.S.S. Protostar either has a trapped Type-6 Protostar or an artificial one that allows it to create wormholes.

rattler2

kayajay wrote: »

I just had a post moved to Ten Forward (which is always disheartening, because no one ever goes to Ten Forward)

General Discussion pertains to the game itself. The thread (And this one) is discussing a TV show. It was only a matter of time before it would have been moved or reported so it could be moved.

kayajay

reyan01 wrote: »

It's a little difficult to see how something like the Protostar drive could be applied to STO - not that I am saying it shouldn't be - not at all.
However, the sole purpose of the Protostar drive is to make the ship travel at warp+ speeds MUCH faster than it could using conventional warp drive. However, since STO is almost entirely ship combat orientated it's a little difficult to see how they'd apply that to the game beyond perhaps apply it as some form of 'enhanced' Pilot maneuver ability that only activates when the ship 'transforms'.

I think absolutely faster in sector space or maybe even instantaneous "transwarp" to locations, but maybe it could be run-rings-around console when you're in combat.

angrytarg

That's the main issue. Warp drive is irrelevant in STO because even if you could travel super fast through secotr space with the Protostar, everything of meaning is still instantly available via transwarp.

In combat, what is the thing the game is about, the thing that probably made most sense would be a jump or short speed boost, but both of those are already in the game - and of very limited use.​​

kayajay

angrytarg wrote: »

That's the main issue. Warp drive is irrelevant in STO because even if you could travel super fast through secotr space with the Protostar, everything of meaning is still instantly available via transwarp.

In combat, what is the thing the game is about, the thing that probably made most sense would be a jump or short speed boost, but both of those are already in the game - and of very limited use.​​

Do you remember when Riker ordered the Enterprise to warp to ram the Borg Cube? Maybe it could be a protowarp powered ram...you select a target, activate the protowarp, hit your enemy and deal massive kinetic damage.

Of course, the Protostar itself is a lot more than just the drive. It's gorgeous for one, but it can replicate shuttles (possibly to launch as pets), it's got workbees/holographic decontamination scrubbers and obviously Hologram Janeway for a function in battle.

For someone inventive at STO...the sky's the limit for having fun with this ship :-)

angrytarg

Of course there are a lot of options, but many things have already been done. Last years' Fek-Ihri has the ramming, pets are available en masse and how would Holo!Janeway work, other than a supercharged photonic officer? Maybe the ship reveals something else they could use in combat and the protowarp is just a sector-travel gimmick.

kayajay

angrytarg wrote: »

Of course there are a lot of options, but many things have already been done. Last years' Fek-Ihri has the ramming, pets are available en masse and how would Holo!Janeway work, other than a supercharged photonic officer? Maybe the ship reveals something else they could use in combat and the protowarp is just a sector-travel gimmick.

I do suspect there is more to the ship that already meets the eye. The Diviner wants the ship at any cost, but is that just for it's engines, or something more?

kayajay

I think the Protostar would intrinsically need Hologram Janeway as it's super power.

"Technically it's auto-targeting, but you get to push the button"...and then the ship does something.

"What would the real Janeway do? Clean house!" and then out fly shuttles or holographic ship scrubbers on full decontamination mode.

"Shut down this", "Activate that" and ideally...Kate would lend her voice to STO, or excerpts from Prodigy would be allowed to be used.

Oh and there absolutely has to be a special "Murf" Trait, which could save the day.

phoenixc

Besides whatever special ability they might give it, the devs could use the protostar animation as the transwarp jumpout the same way they do the sporedrive animation for the Crossfield.

paradox

I think it would work like a cross between a singularity core and a spore drive, you know how Romulan Warbirds have special abilities and require you to fill that meter in order to use those abilities to their full potential, just do the same thing but with different abilities.

kayajay

paradox#7391 wrote: »

I think it would work like a cross between a singularity core and a spore drive, you know how Romulan Warbirds have special abilities and require you to fill that meter in order to use those abilities to their full potential, just do the same thing but with different abilities.

It'll be interesting to see now they've discovered and activated the Protostar, what other abilities it has. I'd also be happy if instead of the Warbird abilities, it was a few Hologram Janeway buttons.

Tribble, but there's such scope and so much fun to be had with this :-)

blitzy4

Probably it'd only mean you get a console that allows for another 'dose' of transwarp speed, with a passive sector speed bonus. At least from what we've seen. Maybe giving it the power setup of a warbird to simulate the 'drain' the system has.

kayajay

blitzy4 wrote: »

Probably it'd only mean you get a console that allows for another 'dose' of transwarp speed, with a passive sector speed bonus. At least from what we've seen. Maybe giving it the power setup of a warbird to simulate the 'drain' the system has.

Honestly...I'd be fine with that. I just love the shape of the ship, but ooh...they'd have to give us the bridge. PLEASE, that bridge.

kayajay

reyan01 wrote: »

kayajay wrote: »

blitzy4 wrote: »

Probably it'd only mean you get a console that allows for another 'dose' of transwarp speed, with a passive sector speed bonus. At least from what we've seen. Maybe giving it the power setup of a warbird to simulate the 'drain' the system has.

Honestly...I'd be fine with that. I just love the shape of the ship, but ooh...they'd have to give us the bridge. PLEASE, that bridge.

Sadly, very unlikely unless they find a way to work it into an episode. Otherwise, much like the Crossfield/Constitution (DSC era)/Freedom class etc, it'll be a case of being able to see the bridge interior when viewing the ship exterior up-close.

I so wonder if the makers have an understanding of what we all really want. Things like a bridge, transporter effect, sound effects...those details make it for me. There's never ever really a cause to visit your bridge, unless you have to do that Ready Room mission or put a trophy up, so it's just for fun...which I wish there was a lot more of.

angrytarg

> @kayajay said:
> I so wonder if the makers have an understanding of what we all really want. Things like a bridge, transporter effect, sound effects...those details make it for me. There's never ever really a cause to visit your bridge, unless you have to do that Ready Room mission or put a trophy up, so it's just for fun...which I wish there was a lot more of.

PWE looks at the metrics what kind of content is bought the most and that is being developed. Ship interiors didn't sell well enough (certainly because they were also useless) while new ships and lockboxes do sell.

paradox

angrytarg wrote: »

> @kayajay said:
> I so wonder if the makers have an understanding of what we all really want. Things like a bridge, transporter effect, sound effects...those details make it for me. There's never ever really a cause to visit your bridge, unless you have to do that Ready Room mission or put a trophy up, so it's just for fun...which I wish there was a lot more of.

PWE looks at the metrics what kind of content is bought the most and that is being developed. Ship interiors didn't sell well enough (certainly because they were also useless) while new ships and lockboxes do sell.

Ship Interiors are still pretty important, I love the ones with working elevators and sittable chairs, You know the ones that let me visit the lower decks rather than trapping me on the bridge, I'm not really a fan of my Temer class Bridge, I was kind of expecting a cross between Klingon and Romulan design with a working singarity core, however it seems that Alliance Ship Bridges are of Federation Design, the Temer's Bridge alone is what's making me go back my T5 warbird.

kayajay

paradox#7391 wrote: »

angrytarg wrote: »

> @kayajay said:
> I so wonder if the makers have an understanding of what we all really want. Things like a bridge, transporter effect, sound effects...those details make it for me. There's never ever really a cause to visit your bridge, unless you have to do that Ready Room mission or put a trophy up, so it's just for fun...which I wish there was a lot more of.

PWE looks at the metrics what kind of content is bought the most and that is being developed. Ship interiors didn't sell well enough (certainly because they were also useless) while new ships and lockboxes do sell.

Ship Interiors are still pretty important, I love the ones with working elevators and sittable chairs, You know the ones that let me visit the lower decks rather than trapping me on the bridge, I'm not really a fan of my Temer class Bridge, I was kind of expecting a cross between Klingon and Romulan design with a working singarity core, however it seems that Alliance Ship Bridges are of Federation Design, the Temer's Bridge alone is what's making me go back my T5 warbird.

I remember LOVING my Wells Bridge...and being so disappointed when I smacked into invisible walls.

angrytarg

paradox#7391 wrote: »

Ship Interiors are still pretty important, I love the ones with working elevators and sittable chairs, You know the ones that let me visit the lower decks rather than trapping me on the bridge, I'm not really a fan of my Temer class Bridge, I was kind of expecting a cross between Klingon and Romulan design with a working singarity core, however it seems that Alliance Ship Bridges are of Federation Design, the Temer's Bridge alone is what's making me go back my T5 warbird.

For some players it's important, sure. I'd love to customize my ship interior as well. But mechanically, the game has no use for them and the devs actively worked on offering everything ship interiors had going for them at some other point in the game. Honestly, I expect them to entirely remove ship interiors in the long run at some point.​​