Earlier it was recommended to me that I could switch to Polaron to take advantage of the drain synchronicity already in my build. I considered it, but I like this BoP having AP for the higher proc (ie one based on my Crit Chance and not a base 2.5% Chance). I have thought once I have access to Elite Fleet Weapons and a reason to buy new Tac Consoles (say from a Tac-based Fleet Console), I might switch to Disruptors, both for the debuff proc and to be more canon (and I happen to like the color green lol).
It is true the AP will do more damage and the higher your Critical chance the more you do but I like Polaron because they help out a team more. I have used Scatter Volley before draining multiple Borg Spheres dropping their shields allowing team to get good hits on multiple Borg Spheres with Torpedo Spreads. I have also been able to save teammates from death when Borg have been drained being unable to use their weapons.
Disruptors are great weapons in team based stuff allowing the entire team to do more damage when their debuff. Another good weapon is the Romulan weapons from Reputation have you though about trying them at all?
Over the years I've read various posts both for and against this school of thought. I know when STO came out there was a soft cap, but then the last Official update (from years ago) was that 125 was a Hard Cap, and there was no soft cap overflow. However, since then, especially fairly recently, I've seen more and more people advocating the effective use of overcapping.
Twam, have you any good links/research available to substantiate your tip?
Nope, just anecdotal evidence, I'm afraid. I just seem to notice less of a dip, the more power I have there. Particularly noticable when using a (or multiple) beam/dbb somewhere in there. Also been reading posts along that vein all over the place (with people going so far as to claim that their Aux2Bat cruiser can maintain max weapon power while firing 6-7 beams). Now, I don't run those, but that should be verifiable easily; I just figured it was probably true, as it's pretty easy to see whether weapon power dips or not, lol.
Doh! I put in the wrong BOF's. I updated the link.
I originally had 3 dual cannons and a dual beam bank up front but have changed it since and didn't update the officers.
I took another look at your build, and it does make more sense now, heh, thanks. It looks like fun to play, if you're into mines. How do you use them in a way that they are effective? I wasn't able to figure it out satisfactorily.
I would question two of your consoles. What's the point/purpose of the Biofunc monitor? Crew has so little bearing on the game in general, and none that I know of on anything you've got on your ship. It's a wasted console slot, right now. I'd replace that with just about anything else. Maybe another Field Generator for more shields, or some universal console like a Plasmonic Leech, Zero Point Energy Conduit, Tachyokinetic Converter, or Subspace Integration Circuit. Maybe one of the Fleet Embassy Sci consoles with Threat Removal and Shield/Hull Heal Proc.
Similar with the SIF Generator. It's got some use, improving your heals, but personally I'd rather put in another armor console*, or maybe one of the new Fleet Mine consoles that buff Hull or Turn.
* ETA: There would be no point in adding another armor, and the SIF Generator is actually better than a second or third armor console. I'm embarassed to admit I'd forgot about the Diminishing Returns on Resistances. I'd still rather take a Fleet/Rep or Universal over the SIF Generator, though.
It is true the AP will do more damage and the higher your Critical chance the more you do but I like Polaron because they help out a team more...
Excellent point on Polaron/helping the team. I've already got toons using Polaron, but my BoP is the only one using AP. I try to have some diversity between my Alts, just so I can enjoy different play styles between them. It's a personal/arbitrary reason, I admit, and while I may lose some of my min/maxing potential, it's an acceptable loss vs. the "fun quotient". Heh.
...Disruptors are great weapons in team based stuff allowing the entire team to do more damage when their debuff. Another good weapon is the Romulan weapons from Reputation have you though about trying them at all?
Yup, love Disruptors, and I talked about them in that post you quoted (that I'm considering them if/when I have reason to change my Tac Consoles and have access to Elite Disruptors). As for the Romulan Rep weapons, yeah, I've got those on several toons already.
Nope, just anecdotal evidence, I'm afraid. I just seem to notice less of a dip, the more power I have there. Particularly noticable when using a (or multiple) beam/dbb somewhere in there. Also been reading posts along that vein all over the place (with people going so far as to claim that their Aux2Bat cruiser can maintain max weapon power while firing 6-7 beams)...
Yeah, I've been experiencing a viable soft cap, so I do try to use it when I can. Alira's build has a base of 125/100 power, then with her Leech it jumps higher into the Soft Cap to help keep her weapon power from dipping.
I have an A2B Excel Beam Boat that has a base 123/100, no Leech, but uses +24.4 WPwr from A2B, cycling EPtW1 (+17.5), and MACO shields for extra power. That build also has DEM with the Marion "DEM" DOff and Omega Weapon Amplifier passive, both of which help reduce power drain/buff power. Firing 6x regular beams, Borg KCB, and Rom Experimental Beam Array (no drain) and when everything is cycling right, WPwr stays at/near max. Even during the "dips", pwr stays at/near 100 at full broadside.
So I agree, anecdotally, overcapping works. I was just wondering if anyone's recently tested it with charts, graphs, parsings or other empirical evidence.
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
I took another look at your build, and it does make more sense now, heh, thanks. It looks like fun to play, if you're into mines. How do you use them in a way that they are effective? I wasn't able to figure it out satisfactorily.
I put mines under the category of "if the mission calls for them". Although if you wanted to take the time and do a hundred parses of beta3 bombings of structures and see if it beats out a turret, I suppose you could. Yes. I know that presumes you could just "do without' your current commander tac. I was teasing. In elites, in particular cure and KA, I can see two mines being more useful than two turrets in stopping the pats. In conduit, no. but they will do more damage on the objects in conduit. Again, they also could be used as slows, allowing for longer on target time on pats. Remember time is a factor. This is sort of the 'soft squishy area' of working a build. Sure you COULD do a hundred parses, I don't think you need to though.
I would question two of your consoles. What's the point/purpose of the Biofunc monitor? Crew has so little bearing on the game in general, and none that I know of on anything you've got on your ship.
Yah I see the live crew helping with hull regen rate, but um...not so much in combat I think. I'm totally lost there I just think they SHOULD be useful so I include one.
Similar with the SIF Generator. It's got some use, improving your heals, but personally I'd rather put in another armor console, or maybe one of the new Fleet Mine consoles that buff Hull or Turn.
This is different. The SIF may be inferior to the fleet consoles, but it is better than an armor. Even if you had zero armor.
.
Anyways, the reason you want the SIF is because (and only if and because) you are using things like hazards or Aux to sif. Those abilities also buff your resistances. And since the more resistances you have when you apply your new resistances the less you get out of those resistances...starting off one console shy isn't really a bad thing. Plus you get the heal and possibly heal over time. This adds up to a better effective health pool than just putting on another armor, and it has the added bonus of better heals for your team.
So there's a bit of give and take there. Oh and there's SOOOO many active ways to stack on resistance AND give those resistances to others, it isn't just with hazards and aux to sif.
Anyways I've said it poorly but I'm sure you'll work it out.
...Anyways I've said it poorly but I'm sure you'll work it out.
Not at all Thissler, and thank you/welcome to the thread.
I see what you mean about Mines. And if one was tactically able to deploy them, they could be useful, possibly better than turrets. Seeing as I am a sloppy flyer and can't keep track of those little tiny things once they're dropped, fugettaboutit. Heh. Mines ain't for me.
Yeah, during combat, innate hull regen/crew mechanics are so negligible as to be worthless. That being said, if you want to "waste" a console slot because it "should" work/RP reasons. I got no problem with that at all. Seriously, no slight intended. I get it.
You are spot on about a SIF Generator being better than a third armor. >smacks his own forehead< What was I thinking? I completely forgot about Diminishing Returns and didn't consider he already had two armor consoles. I'm so embarrassed about it I'm gonna have to go back and edit my post. LOL :P
The SIF Generator is a viable option, though I'd still go with one of the Universals or Fleet/Rep Consoles instead.
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
It seems like you would know the answer to this. How do you calculate how much damage damage resists resists? You know the old question, does a fifty percent damage resist save me from half the damage? I absolutely forget if there was some sort of arcane cryptic formula or it just "is what it is".
I'll be right back. It's late but I must need some coffee!
It seems like you would know the answer to this. How do you calculate how much damage damage resists resists? You know the old question, does a fifty percent damage resist save me from half the damage? I absolutely forget if there was some sort of arcane cryptic formula or it just "is what it is".
It is the arcaniest of Cryptic formulae... Muahahaha!
OOOoo ok ty! But what I mean to ask is once we finally get a number out of THAT formula, does that simply tell us how much the damage we are taking is reduced?
Like if my damage resistance is 50%, not my magnitude but my DR, is that a straight up damage reduction of half? Or do they do MORE secret things to you?
Sorry if I'm slow. I'm remastering like every video I ever made to comply with copyright. A bit of lack of planning on my part there.
Oh I found it in there thank you. Here's the part...
"The game internally differentiates between damage resistance magnitude and damage resistance. The former is what is indicated as bonus in the UI (e.g. the item or skill description), the later is the actual percentage by which incoming damage is reduced."
At first when I saw that I thought it meant I had to wait and I figured you were all playing trix on me. Sorry!!
I took another look at your build, and it does make more sense now, heh, thanks. It looks like fun to play, if you're into mines. How do you use them in a way that they are effective? I wasn't able to figure it out satisfactorily.
I would question two of your consoles. What's the point/purpose of the Biofunc monitor? Crew has so little bearing on the game in general, and none that I know of on anything you've got on your ship. It's a wasted console slot, right now. I'd replace that with just about anything else. Maybe another Field Generator for more shields, or some universal console like a Plasmonic Leech, Zero Point Energy Conduit, Tachyokinetic Converter, or Subspace Integration Circuit. Maybe one of the Fleet Embassy Sci consoles with Threat Removal and Shield/Hull Heal Proc.
I had the bio monitor in because I thought it helped hull regen but I did swap it for another field gen after some of the advice I've gotten lately.
The third damage resist console doesn't help much so I just stuck in a console that I thought would be useful.
But in regards to both of the console questions, You don't have to max this build out to fly it in ESTF's and have fun with it. I never really had a hard time keeping this alive in an ESTF. If you fly it smart and watch your health, you won't get into any real danger and you can still do respectable damage.
It looks like fun to play, if you're into mines. How do you use them in a way that they are effective? I wasn't able to figure it out satisfactorily.
I built it just for fun. Sitting in one place and pew pewing away with energy weapons got boring to the point where I almost quit playing. So I built some crappy ships (like a bort cruiser with all turrets) just to see what I could do, have some fun, and inject some strategy back into the game.
I wrote a step by step walkthrough of how I use mines in the ESTF's and posted it on my fleet's forums but I've got to update it and then I'll post it here.
In general, using mines simply requires some timing and awareness of your targets behavior. Obviously your main targets are stationary transformers, cubes, gates, and targets on a fixed vector.
You have two escape powers, EM & APO. You can add polarize hull if you want to be ready even more often. AND you have the battle cloak.
Against dangerous targets (like gates) you can cloak, move toward the target, prep DPBeta3, uncloak, drop your mines point blank, and then use one of your escape powers to get to min safe distance, turn and keep pew pewing until your mines are ready again.
Each run takes less than 30 secs. You can drop a set every 30 secs or less if you have the mine doff's.
For cubes you can round robin them. Drop a DPB3 set of mines and keep rotating around the cube. As long as you keep an angle toward the cube your forward weapons will continue to fire. If you start getting hurt, bail using EM and/or your cloak. Most regular free flying cubes can only withstand two sets of DPB3 tricobalts before they pop. For tactical cubes wait until they're under 50% health and asses your teams effectiveness. If your team sucks, wait until it's below 30% before you go in.
I'll post my mine walk-through soon and hope it isn't too long winded.
The whole point of it is that you're deliberately flying into the most dangerous areas against your biggest targets. You have to think about what you're doing, when to do it, and how to get out of trouble if you blow your timing. And you have to do it often if you want to take advantage of the mine's spike damage.
That and it's really fun watching those huge yellow numbers pop up just after you flew into the maw of certain unconciousness and came back in one piece.
I took another look at your build, and it does make more sense now, heh, thanks. It looks like fun to play, if you're into mines. How do you use them in a way that they are effective? I wasn't able to figure it out satisfactorily.
...I am aware there is some benefit to being over the cap, how much so vs. cost is debatable and hard to calculate. Besides, I do get even more power from my Plasmonic Leech to push me near a hypothetical 145 WPwr when in the thick of things...
So I did some testing on over capping power (granted with another build, but it's relevant to this one), and I could not find any benefit to having resources dedicated to extend weapon power over 125. Details here:
So I did some testing on over capping power (granted with another build, but it's relevant to this one), and I could not find any benefit to having resources dedicated to extend weapon power over 125. Details here:
hi from having done both Aux2bat Build and now Photonic officer Build
Im liking the PO better its gets most out of a bop as you can battleCloak away for cooling after the PO stops working
In fact most CD is better than Aux2Bat and the Healing is MUCH better and any Sci ability's like GW1 so tanking is doable with PO Build ... and so here is my Build that i am working towards
so far i have no rep consoles or fleet stuff .... but SOOON XD
Comments
It is true the AP will do more damage and the higher your Critical chance the more you do but I like Polaron because they help out a team more. I have used Scatter Volley before draining multiple Borg Spheres dropping their shields allowing team to get good hits on multiple Borg Spheres with Torpedo Spreads. I have also been able to save teammates from death when Borg have been drained being unable to use their weapons.
Disruptors are great weapons in team based stuff allowing the entire team to do more damage when their debuff. Another good weapon is the Romulan weapons from Reputation have you though about trying them at all?
Nope, just anecdotal evidence, I'm afraid. I just seem to notice less of a dip, the more power I have there. Particularly noticable when using a (or multiple) beam/dbb somewhere in there. Also been reading posts along that vein all over the place (with people going so far as to claim that their Aux2Bat cruiser can maintain max weapon power while firing 6-7 beams). Now, I don't run those, but that should be verifiable easily; I just figured it was probably true, as it's pretty easy to see whether weapon power dips or not, lol.
I would question two of your consoles. What's the point/purpose of the Biofunc monitor? Crew has so little bearing on the game in general, and none that I know of on anything you've got on your ship. It's a wasted console slot, right now. I'd replace that with just about anything else. Maybe another Field Generator for more shields, or some universal console like a Plasmonic Leech, Zero Point Energy Conduit, Tachyokinetic Converter, or Subspace Integration Circuit. Maybe one of the Fleet Embassy Sci consoles with Threat Removal and Shield/Hull Heal Proc.
Similar with the SIF Generator. It's got some use, improving your heals, but personally I'd rather put in another armor console*, or maybe one of the new Fleet Mine consoles that buff Hull or Turn.
* ETA: There would be no point in adding another armor, and the SIF Generator is actually better than a second or third armor console. I'm embarassed to admit I'd forgot about the Diminishing Returns on Resistances. I'd still rather take a Fleet/Rep or Universal over the SIF Generator, though.
Excellent point on Polaron/helping the team. I've already got toons using Polaron, but my BoP is the only one using AP. I try to have some diversity between my Alts, just so I can enjoy different play styles between them. It's a personal/arbitrary reason, I admit, and while I may lose some of my min/maxing potential, it's an acceptable loss vs. the "fun quotient". Heh.
Yup, love Disruptors, and I talked about them in that post you quoted (that I'm considering them if/when I have reason to change my Tac Consoles and have access to Elite Disruptors). As for the Romulan Rep weapons, yeah, I've got those on several toons already.
Yeah, I've been experiencing a viable soft cap, so I do try to use it when I can. Alira's build has a base of 125/100 power, then with her Leech it jumps higher into the Soft Cap to help keep her weapon power from dipping.
I have an A2B Excel Beam Boat that has a base 123/100, no Leech, but uses +24.4 WPwr from A2B, cycling EPtW1 (+17.5), and MACO shields for extra power. That build also has DEM with the Marion "DEM" DOff and Omega Weapon Amplifier passive, both of which help reduce power drain/buff power. Firing 6x regular beams, Borg KCB, and Rom Experimental Beam Array (no drain) and when everything is cycling right, WPwr stays at/near max. Even during the "dips", pwr stays at/near 100 at full broadside.
So I agree, anecdotally, overcapping works. I was just wondering if anyone's recently tested it with charts, graphs, parsings or other empirical evidence.
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
Anyways, the reason you want the SIF is because (and only if and because) you are using things like hazards or Aux to sif. Those abilities also buff your resistances. And since the more resistances you have when you apply your new resistances the less you get out of those resistances...starting off one console shy isn't really a bad thing. Plus you get the heal and possibly heal over time. This adds up to a better effective health pool than just putting on another armor, and it has the added bonus of better heals for your team.
So there's a bit of give and take there. Oh and there's SOOOO many active ways to stack on resistance AND give those resistances to others, it isn't just with hazards and aux to sif.
Anyways I've said it poorly but I'm sure you'll work it out.
I see what you mean about Mines. And if one was tactically able to deploy them, they could be useful, possibly better than turrets. Seeing as I am a sloppy flyer and can't keep track of those little tiny things once they're dropped, fugettaboutit. Heh. Mines ain't for me.
Yeah, during combat, innate hull regen/crew mechanics are so negligible as to be worthless. That being said, if you want to "waste" a console slot because it "should" work/RP reasons. I got no problem with that at all. Seriously, no slight intended. I get it.
You are spot on about a SIF Generator being better than a third armor. >smacks his own forehead< What was I thinking? I completely forgot about Diminishing Returns and didn't consider he already had two armor consoles. I'm so embarrassed about it I'm gonna have to go back and edit my post. LOL :P
The SIF Generator is a viable option, though I'd still go with one of the Universals or Fleet/Rep Consoles instead.
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
I'll be right back. It's late but I must need some coffee!
http://sto.gamepedia.com/Damage_resistance
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
Like if my damage resistance is 50%, not my magnitude but my DR, is that a straight up damage reduction of half? Or do they do MORE secret things to you?
Sorry if I'm slow. I'm remastering like every video I ever made to comply with copyright. A bit of lack of planning on my part there.
Oh I found it in there thank you. Here's the part...
"The game internally differentiates between damage resistance magnitude and damage resistance. The former is what is indicated as bonus in the UI (e.g. the item or skill description), the later is the actual percentage by which incoming damage is reduced."
At first when I saw that I thought it meant I had to wait and I figured you were all playing trix on me. Sorry!!
I had the bio monitor in because I thought it helped hull regen but I did swap it for another field gen after some of the advice I've gotten lately.
The third damage resist console doesn't help much so I just stuck in a console that I thought would be useful.
But in regards to both of the console questions, You don't have to max this build out to fly it in ESTF's and have fun with it. I never really had a hard time keeping this alive in an ESTF. If you fly it smart and watch your health, you won't get into any real danger and you can still do respectable damage.
I built it just for fun. Sitting in one place and pew pewing away with energy weapons got boring to the point where I almost quit playing. So I built some crappy ships (like a bort cruiser with all turrets) just to see what I could do, have some fun, and inject some strategy back into the game.
I wrote a step by step walkthrough of how I use mines in the ESTF's and posted it on my fleet's forums but I've got to update it and then I'll post it here.
In general, using mines simply requires some timing and awareness of your targets behavior. Obviously your main targets are stationary transformers, cubes, gates, and targets on a fixed vector.
You have two escape powers, EM & APO. You can add polarize hull if you want to be ready even more often. AND you have the battle cloak.
Against dangerous targets (like gates) you can cloak, move toward the target, prep DPBeta3, uncloak, drop your mines point blank, and then use one of your escape powers to get to min safe distance, turn and keep pew pewing until your mines are ready again.
Each run takes less than 30 secs. You can drop a set every 30 secs or less if you have the mine doff's.
For cubes you can round robin them. Drop a DPB3 set of mines and keep rotating around the cube. As long as you keep an angle toward the cube your forward weapons will continue to fire. If you start getting hurt, bail using EM and/or your cloak. Most regular free flying cubes can only withstand two sets of DPB3 tricobalts before they pop. For tactical cubes wait until they're under 50% health and asses your teams effectiveness. If your team sucks, wait until it's below 30% before you go in.
I'll post my mine walk-through soon and hope it isn't too long winded.
The whole point of it is that you're deliberately flying into the most dangerous areas against your biggest targets. You have to think about what you're doing, when to do it, and how to get out of trouble if you blow your timing. And you have to do it often if you want to take advantage of the mine's spike damage.
That and it's really fun watching those huge yellow numbers pop up just after you flew into the maw of certain unconciousness and came back in one piece.
I posted my Mines for PVE guide in case you'd like to read it.
http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?p=12367941#post12367941
I broke the said document into multiple smaller docs to make it more palatable.
What I have been using lately. It hurtz more than just the paint on other ships.
Player and forumite formerly known as FEELTHETHUNDER
Expatriot Might Characters in EXILE
Cool build! Thank you for sharing!
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
http://sto-forum.perfectworld.com/showthread.php?t=859091
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
Excellent, thanks. Edited the power settings on my cannon escort
I wonder if it's the same for DBB's. Probably, I guess. My Romulan tac would be exceedingly happy...
You can find/contact me in game as @PatricianVetinari. Playing STO since Feb 2010.
Im liking the PO better its gets most out of a bop as you can battleCloak away for cooling after the PO stops working
In fact most CD is better than Aux2Bat and the Healing is MUCH better and any Sci ability's like GW1 so tanking is doable with PO Build ... and so here is my Build that i am working towards
so far i have no rep consoles or fleet stuff .... but SOOON XD
http://skillplanner.stoacademy.com/?build=elitefleetningtao_4951
http://skillplanner.stoacademy.com/?build=wliger_3674
how does it all look
I have 2 Purple TT Conn Officers that reduce the CD down to 15sec as well