I feel like I'm the only one who doesn't >.>
I do just fine without it - why is it 'need to have?'
RSP is a wonderful skill and very useful but it's starting to irritate me. It's not even overpowered - it's just abused. Can we get some dynamic please? RSP chaining is still rampant.
My PvP games are basically reverse whack-a-mole. I shoot someone, they turn green. I switch to their friend, they too turn green. I switch to another, and they turn green. By this time the first target's RSP is down and I can shoot him again - assuming the three green glowing ships didn't button mash me to death while sitting back drinking a beer and laughing. Of course when I get in that situation I disengage then return when their RSP is down, but I'm disappointed that this is what gameplay has become.
Even better - people often just charge a ball of ships then pop RSP immediately and they're nearly immune to 5 ships pounding on them?
So what's my point? There are other ways to play! People are relying on RSP to play the near-invulnerable game and are neglecting other skills (like healing skills). I haven't used RSP since...well...I never really used it at all.
It's a huge crutch. Wean yourself off it! You may realize that you can still properly survive and you'll find that extra Lt slot most rewarding

Anyone who doubts me - see you in game :P
Comments
Anyway I agree that the extra Lt. Slot can be used more effectively. Emergency Power to Shields is more effective and can be used more often.
I use 2 RSP as on my Cruiser, it seems like the perfect amount. If I was in a fleet and could rely on a healer than I could swap it out for Extend Shields. But I hate the whole, oh look he must be a healer lets get him. Im more discrete with my healing.
But believe me there are times I wish I had RSP on those ships, because a tac in an escort type ship can still obliterate you quickly, shields or not, and if he has friends, RSP is very possibly the only thing that is going to save you. You can't depend on extend shields anymore from teammates, and TSS is pretty rare to see too, so you are on your own for shields most of the time. Hull resists have so much of the diminishing returns that they aren't overly efficient after a point.
Shields can just drop so very fast without resists that RSP's simple existence in the game is pretty necessary from my point of view, even though I don't always use it. And there is not enough shield healing to counter that kind of damage that comes in. The system needs a lot of work if people want RSP to disappear. RSP isn't strictly necessary, but they would have to do another damage nerf without it, I think.
As it is, SNB is a hard counter to RSP while not making it useless. Transphasics need improvement then they would be another tool against it. DEM is a useful tool too, more useful if a whole team is using it though. Target shields and energy drains can still work too.
Would love to see you beat me in a 1v1.
EPTS is great but it's got nothing on RSP when theres 3+ escorts beating down on you. RSP gives me the time I need to take 2 of them down with me.
As long as people are firing at you and you're spamming Distribute Shields it is the best shield heal in the game...bar none. The Rank I power is virtually equal to the Rank III power. Something no other power can claim. It gives you an shield invulnerability for 15 seconds allowing for other heals to come off cooldown, emergency evasion/defense tactics, or employment of specific strategies like the APD/RSP maneuver. It also happens to be the most powerful engineer skill at Lt. and does not need to be trained or acquired via the Exchange.
Someone suggested carrying two copies of EPtS instead. Really? Why? You can't use them together, they do not provide anywhere near the defense capability or potential shield healing of RSP, and require you to have some shielding to make maximum effect of its resistance bonus. Why not carry one of each? You can use EPtS early on and use resistances and shield heals to stay alive. If things get to hot and team healing isn't up to par then pop RSP. Or if you use EPtS and you are being focused down and they quickly burn through your shields you could instantly use RSP whereas with a second EPtS you have to wait for the global cooldown to pass.
RSP can be found on almost every ship on the battlespace. So much so, it should just be a Captain skill already so everyone gets one very strong version with an appropriately long cooldown and absolutely no chaining.
P.S have you actually ever know someone to use RSP3? I thought the use of the skill was a myth told only to frighten small Andorian children.
No, not really. There's no way two EPtS II's is a viable alternative to an EPtS II and an RSP I. Be that as it may, I don't quite understand the new forum QQ over RSP. It's been around virtually unchanged since Beta. Almost every player has had at least one copy since Beta. All the top fleets have multiple members who use it (yes, including the OP's). It's not game-changing or game-breaking. It may take a little longer to kill someone with it but they still die.
Won't say who...but if you look at a popular fleet and a PvP video they posted...you can see it in the ship BO assignment section for that Cruiser. That and I've sold two BO's on the exchange with RSP III and they've sold for over 1 million credits. In addition, a lot of the "hybrid" types (tac/cruiser or sci/cruiser) use it to fill the Commander's BO slot since Aceton Field after the patch straight blows and they can't train ES III and A2SIF III is 8 million on the Exchange thus freeing up a lower level slot for another useable power. So, yeah, short answer is people do use RSP I, II, and III. Some guys have all three. Different strokes for different folks...;)
With so many engineering slots on a cruiser, I keep 1 RSP 1 for emergencies.
And yes, I used RSP3 back when I thought RSP had a cap on the damage they took
I have yet to see a better skill than Eject warp plasma for the commander slot on a cruiser. Everyone should have this skill as it is so pretty when used at speed
Auxiliary to the Structural Integrity Field III...;)
That's not prettier at all! :P
Nope but I find the orange alien glow hot and the 15 kills on my side of the board prettier...:D
Cruisers laying a line of green diarrhea across the sky? Not so much...;)
on my klingon i dont really need it since like the OP said you can just evasive out and as a klingon can cloak to be save and return to the battlefield for the next attack run. Of course i use evasive aswell on my fed escort but the chance of beeing followed while on low health with no option left to run is on the fed side alot higher then as klingon.
on my cruiser i also have 1 copy but try not to use it besides in some real emergencys, before that i use every way to shield tank first and my various healing BO skills to stay alive if focused.
I think to make RSP a captains power for all kind of captains would be the best solution to not abuse or heavily chain this skill and go back to use healing skills which in the end would help your team more since you can use those heals on your teammates if the cruiser pilot isnt targeted himself.
I use RSP III on my tank build cause I don't really like ace III and Auxiliary to the Structural Integrity Field III is waaaay too expensive. However, on my healing build I use extend shields III.. It gives around 290 shield regen per second with it which is a big help.
My Scientist doesn't use it currently, I instead packed Aux to SIF 1 for extra healing support, and I got Transfer Shield Strength to give myself some resistances. I can't survive a full focus fire, of course. At least in Capture and Hold, Science doesn't seem to be the first target. Also, green-glowing enemy: Invitation for Subnuclear Beam.
My Engineer didn't use it for quite some time, but I found that I ultimately could spare a Lt. Engineering Slot for it.
My Klingon Engineer needs all the slot he has for support, can't sacrifice RSP for that.
But my present character, a science vessel/science captain does not... and won't. I don't like Reverse Shield Polarity's being the universal panic button. There ought to be other good skills I can use out there and survive.
My BoP, however, does have it because the group it flies with is not cross-healing heavy.
How can anyone not have RSP.. this topic is absurd lol. Although I do understand what the thread starter means by reverse whack-a-mole. It's funny to unleash a scatter volley on a fedball and seeing 4 or 5 fed ships light up green with RSP. If it bothers you that much, you can just make a science and rip off their RSP with subnuc and finish them off.
You just lack balls :cool: admit it..it will help you
I'm least likely to use RSP in my carrier or science ship, but I'll still have one if I'm being focus fired. In those classes of ships I tend to use high regen shields with emergency power to shields or transfer shield strength running in a loop with shields constantly being re-distributed.
Easiest way to get past RSP is disable shields or SNB, and I have seen really massive amounts of damage still get through.
Usually this, Although sometimes in an escort or BoP I fire it to lure a subnuc before putting on my attack buffs.