Wells Temporal quality/price

thilias699 · October 2013

I finally have enough zen to be able to get enough keys to sell to buy the Wells, I just wanted to make sure it was a good idea before I did so. It is one of the best all around science vessels right? The price right now is about 130m EC, which is a lot more than it was when i first started looking at it months ago. Are there any known price trends with the ship, is there something that could bring the price down a lot later?

Thanks

dahminus · October 2013

Only thing that will bring that price down is a re-release of temporal lock boxes which is plausible but has not been disclosed.

I would wager a vesta out classes a wells on some accounts. That saying, if you suffer from "special snowflake" syndrome (I know I do, I just got my black Mobius today)...then the wells will be adequate.

Best things about the wells are the insane shield multiple and the way above average turn rate (for a sci ship)

My advice...wait for the Voth lockbox, there hasn't been a sci ship in a long time. there may be a new one soon enough.

shmn · October 2013

You might perhaps also want to consider the choice between pure sci and a sci carrier such as Recluse which can put out much better damage while retaining nigh all of the sci capabilities. Carriers are, of course, stiff bricks and feel very different to nimble zig-zaggers such as the Wells. It comes down to which playstyle you enjoy more, wells is definitely aesthetically pleasing and Tipler is possibly the coolest console in the game. In any case, those two are your best bets for sci that exist in the game currently.

I'm also kinda beating myself for not getting a Wells back during last winter event when they were down to 40m at lowest. I actually expect all lockbox ships to come down in price again when the winter event gets going, assuming there will be a lobi option for expediting acquisition of the prize (which seems highly likely).

So if you're not in a rush, it would be smartest to wait, not to mention the broadened options brought by a new lockbox as well. Mass unboxing will affect the most recent box most, obviously, but some of it will translate to other ships as well -- of course, if they introduce secondary deflectors to science ships before the winter event, demand for Wells could rise. It's a bit speculative either way -- quite doubtful however that the price can rise significantly from where it is now. Science is and will remain very much a niche role.

Maybe get a fleet nebula in the meantime or something.

pwstolemyname · October 2013

Well I wrote a huge pro's and cons for you comparing different sci ships and builds, but then my dog hit a key and it all went poof.

Summery: There isn't one 'best' science ship build. Different ability, console and weapon configurations are more or less usefull in different types of content. The Wells is a very good ship, But it is not the 'best' ship for all purposes. The vesta and some of the fleet science ships will outperform it in many circomstances.

The biggest fault with the wells is the engineering ensign. If it's ensign was universal and its universal lieutenant was engineering then it would probably have a much larger lead on the other science ships when used for dedicated science..

Most builds are best served by having a tactical team 1 and an emergency power ability running at all times. Con officers turn one tactical team into 2 with just a two doff investment, but damage control engineers turn an emergency power ability into two with a three doff investment. It is also preferable to have two different emergency power abilities rather then two of the same.

Duty officer slots are very valuable to the enhancement of many science abilities so for some builds it is instead preferable to have fixed lieutenant engineering and tactical slots.

Some builds benefit more from stacking science consoles then others. So those science ships with 5 science consoles can outperform the wells in these circumstances as well.

Now it may sound like I am down on the wells. I am not, its a fantastic ship. But it is most fantastic for builds which require exactly 6 science abilities. If your build calls for more or less then another science ship is often (not always) a slightly better fit.

pwstolemyname · October 2013

shmn wrote: »

You might perhaps also want to consider the choice between pure sci and a sci carrier such as Recluse .

This isn't bad advice at all. The recluse has the option of pets that use both attack pattern beta 3 and beam fire at will 3. This alone makes the recluse a huge force multiplier as just about everything in the vicinity of its pets will have their damage resistances debuffed by a large amount.

This makes them more venerable to conventional and science damage both.

neos472 · October 2013

as noted the Wells has spectacular turn rate for a sci ship as well as the best shield multiplier

in the game but i disagree going the carrier route due to the turning like a brick since lots of

sci ships need to fire their abilities in a arc like a torp or phaser beam they need

manuverability and i have flown both the Atrox and the Wells and i take the Wells anyday

because without the pet spam carriers have they are just slower versions of your ship and if

that spam is locked down good luck trying to get out of a situation. The Wells also gets a nifty

panic button that when upgraded stop everythig in a around it in a 5Km radius.the Ensign uni

does not hurt as bad as ya think since the Wells is a multipurpose ship like the vesta and can

fill a variety of roles so id say take the Wells over Recluse it may have a commander uni and

hangars but without the hangars it really only good as a healer.

paulyman · October 2013

wells is nice but honestly I am in love with the orb weaver

cookiecrook · October 2013

The Wells is a great ships but it ultimately depends on what you want out of it. It's very versatile but also expensive, as mentioned with the current price on the Exchange. On top of that, some of the other Temporal goodies available in the Lobi Store are nice additions to make it even better. In the end it all comes down to what you want to spend and what you hope to get out of it.

The Vesta pack offers up an excellent variety for the price. It will cost you less for the entire pack than it will cost you selling keys or other C-Store items on the Exchange. The Aux Cannons are anice bonus that work well with high Aux builds and Warp Cores that push your Aux power to 130. It has one hangar for that slight carrier feel, each one has a very good universal console with it, and it has a variety of nice looking parts between the three. The ship comes off as a little squishy but being outfitted right can make it a power house. Three different BO choices and console layouts really go the extra mile wit this pack. Persoanlly, this is the best ship pack to have ever been released in STO.

shmn · October 2013

neos472 wrote: »

sci ships need to fire their abilities in a arc like a torp or phaser beam they need

manuverability and i have flown both the Atrox and the Wells and i take the Wells anyday

because without the pet spam carriers have they are just slower versions of your ship and if

that spam is locked down good luck trying to get out of a situation.

Sci skills come with relatively high cooldowns and for instance Grav Well has a 135' firing arc (after which all the nearby ships are nicely bundled for any subsequent abilities). So for most intents and purposes that is not an issue in PvE. PvP is different, of course, and Recluse fills a different kind of sci role there.

But for PVE such as elite stf's or fleet alerts, I would argue that in 9 out of 10 cases a Recluse (similarly fit) is more useful than a Wells -- the prevalence of dps in the current (eternal?) metagame is chiefly to blame. Usefulness and enjoyment piloting are two separate things of course, which is why OP and anyone contemplating their options should weigh the differences and make that determination for themselves.

twam · October 2013

Tbh, there are ships at least equal to the Wells, in various respects. It is a very good sci ship, but there's some fleet ships worth considering (as well as the Vesta). Which are cheaper too.

For example:
http://sto.gamepedia.com/Fleet_Science_Vessel_Retrofit
http://sto.gamepedia.com/Fleet_Reconnaissance_Science_Vessel

Wells is very nice, but not the sci ship to end all sci ships.

Wells Temporal quality/price

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