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New to STO, Looking for Ship Advice
hawkflight
Member Posts: 31 Arc User
Hello everyone. I'm new to this game, and as a result of the double EXP weekend, I basically shot up to close to level 50 in under a week. But now that I'm almost there, I would like to start looking towards my endgame gear so that I don't waste my time and virtual money on stuff I won't use.
I plan to start out by getting a heavy escort carrier, but at some point I want to nab a carrier cruiser. For now, though, I'd like to focus on just the carrier. That said, I'd like an experienced pair of eyes on my build to make sure I'm not TRIBBLE anything up.
For the weapon type, I decided to go with phasers because frankly, I'm a purist, and having something like disruptors on a Starfleet ship just breaks the immersion for me.
The dual cannons and torpedo launcher seem obvious, but I decided to get the proton weapon for three reasons. One, it partially bypasses shields, which is neat. Two, it boosts the power of my photon torpedoes. And three, it still counts as a cannon, thanks to the set bonus, so it's still a cannons build.
For the aft weapon, obviously I'm using two turrets. I was originally planning on using chroniton mines for crowd control, but Eject Warp Plasma fulfills that role here, so I might switch it with either tricobalt mines or another turret. If I grab another turret, obviously I'll replace Dispersal Pattern Beta.
For the deflector, I chose the CC Deflector because I'm a DPS ship, and this deflector is, by my understanding, the best for enhancing DPS. I could grab the MACO Deflector, but I think my skills give me good enough survivability as it is.
We'll get back to engines in a bit, but for the warp core, I chose this one because of the shield bonuses, the power transfer boost, and the bonus power from weapons to shields (since weapons will always be maxed out).
The shields is an interesting choice. The MACO shields were originally my only choice, but the Dyson shields are actually fairly tempting thanks to its abilities. Plus, the set bonus. I wouldn't mind help picking one of these.
Devices ... I don't even know. I'm just throwing stuff at a wall and seeing what sticks. The Distress Call is basically a "f*** it" button.
Consoles are where things get interesting. RCS is because turn rate is always good. Neutronium Alloy is a nice flat bonus. The Warp Burst Cap is good because it gives me immunity during my first alpha strike, and by the time it recharges it makes a nice "oh s***" button.
The Proton console is nice because it completes the set, giving me some nice bonuses as well as enabling me to use Cannon Rapid Fire with my Proton weapon. Plasmonic Leech will be expensive to get, but its effect of draining system power is really nice, and it's passive so I don't have to remember to do anything. The Phase Decoupler is a thing I'm 50/50 on. The ability to become untargetable and then explode is nifty, but I'm open to replacing it.
The tac consoles are just a flat damage bonus, nothing special here.
Abilities. Most of this stuff is fairly obvious, such as Tactical Team and all the heals. Attack Pattern Beta III is my attack pattern of choice because it debuffs the enemy, allowing my fighters to do more damage. I also have an alternate commander tac officer, because there may be times I want to spike single target damage. Beam Target Weapons is neat, because I can put it on my proton weapon since it functions as both a beam and a cannon. Eject Warp Plasma is a fun thing to dump on enemies as I pass by on my alpha strike.
Now, engines. This is a tough decision. The MACO engines give me more speed in sector space, but for battle, the others are better I think. The Romulan engines give me a significant bonus to my attack patterns, which is very tempting, but the CC engines give me a defense bonus, and the 2-piece set bonus which gives me more defense. So I really can't decide. (Between the last two, I might pick the CC engines if I can't decide, simply for RP reasons.)
I plan to start out by getting a heavy escort carrier, but at some point I want to nab a carrier cruiser. For now, though, I'd like to focus on just the carrier. That said, I'd like an experienced pair of eyes on my build to make sure I'm not TRIBBLE anything up.
Weapon Type: Phasers. I'm a purist. Though the retro blue phasers (tetryon) are tempting. Fore Weapons: x2 Fleet Dual Cannons Mk XII, Experimental Proton Weapon, Gravimetric Photon Torpedo Launcher Aft Weapons: x2 Turret Mk XII, Turret Mk XII OR Chroniton Mine Launcher Mk XII OR Tricobalt Mine Launcher Mk XII Deflector: Counter-Command Deflector Array Mk XII Impulse Engines: M.A.C.O. Impulse Engines Mk XII OR Counter-Command Hyper Impulse Engines Mk XII OR Romulan Advanced Prototype Impulse Engines Mk XII Warp Core: Dyson Field Stabilizing Warp Core Mk XII Shields: M.A.C.O. Resilient Shield Array Mk XII OR Dyson Regenerative Shield Array Mk XII Devices: Subspace Field Modulator, Nimbus Pirate Distress Call Engineering Consoles: RCS Accelerator Mk XII, Neutronium Alloy Mk XII, Warp Burst Capacitor Science Consoles: Proton Particle Stabilizer, Plasmonic Leech, Fluidic Phase Decoupler Tactical Consoles: x3 Phaser Relay Mk XII, Photon Detonation Assembly Mk XII Commander Tactical Station: Tactical Team I, Torpedo Spread II, Cannon Scatter Volley II, Attack Pattern Beta III Alternate Commander Tactical Station: Tactical Team I, Torpedo High Yield II, Cannon Rapid Fire II, Attack Pattern Beta III Lieutenant Tactical Station: Tactical Team I, Dispersal Pattern Beta I Ensign Tactical Station: Beam Target Weapons I Lieutenant Commander Engineering Station: Engineering Team I, Emergency Power to Shields II, Eject Warp Plasma I Lieutenant Science Station: Polarize Hull I, Hazard Emitters II
For the weapon type, I decided to go with phasers because frankly, I'm a purist, and having something like disruptors on a Starfleet ship just breaks the immersion for me.
The dual cannons and torpedo launcher seem obvious, but I decided to get the proton weapon for three reasons. One, it partially bypasses shields, which is neat. Two, it boosts the power of my photon torpedoes. And three, it still counts as a cannon, thanks to the set bonus, so it's still a cannons build.
For the aft weapon, obviously I'm using two turrets. I was originally planning on using chroniton mines for crowd control, but Eject Warp Plasma fulfills that role here, so I might switch it with either tricobalt mines or another turret. If I grab another turret, obviously I'll replace Dispersal Pattern Beta.
For the deflector, I chose the CC Deflector because I'm a DPS ship, and this deflector is, by my understanding, the best for enhancing DPS. I could grab the MACO Deflector, but I think my skills give me good enough survivability as it is.
We'll get back to engines in a bit, but for the warp core, I chose this one because of the shield bonuses, the power transfer boost, and the bonus power from weapons to shields (since weapons will always be maxed out).
The shields is an interesting choice. The MACO shields were originally my only choice, but the Dyson shields are actually fairly tempting thanks to its abilities. Plus, the set bonus. I wouldn't mind help picking one of these.
Devices ... I don't even know. I'm just throwing stuff at a wall and seeing what sticks. The Distress Call is basically a "f*** it" button.
Consoles are where things get interesting. RCS is because turn rate is always good. Neutronium Alloy is a nice flat bonus. The Warp Burst Cap is good because it gives me immunity during my first alpha strike, and by the time it recharges it makes a nice "oh s***" button.
The Proton console is nice because it completes the set, giving me some nice bonuses as well as enabling me to use Cannon Rapid Fire with my Proton weapon. Plasmonic Leech will be expensive to get, but its effect of draining system power is really nice, and it's passive so I don't have to remember to do anything. The Phase Decoupler is a thing I'm 50/50 on. The ability to become untargetable and then explode is nifty, but I'm open to replacing it.
The tac consoles are just a flat damage bonus, nothing special here.
Abilities. Most of this stuff is fairly obvious, such as Tactical Team and all the heals. Attack Pattern Beta III is my attack pattern of choice because it debuffs the enemy, allowing my fighters to do more damage. I also have an alternate commander tac officer, because there may be times I want to spike single target damage. Beam Target Weapons is neat, because I can put it on my proton weapon since it functions as both a beam and a cannon. Eject Warp Plasma is a fun thing to dump on enemies as I pass by on my alpha strike.
Now, engines. This is a tough decision. The MACO engines give me more speed in sector space, but for battle, the others are better I think. The Romulan engines give me a significant bonus to my attack patterns, which is very tempting, but the CC engines give me a defense bonus, and the 2-piece set bonus which gives me more defense. So I really can't decide. (Between the last two, I might pick the CC engines if I can't decide, simply for RP reasons.)
PLEASE, for the love of all that is chocolate. If your advice involves me spending IRL money on this game, save us both the trouble and don't bother. I've already spent as much money as I can afford on this game. Thank you for your time.
Post edited by hawkflight on
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Comments
Some of that gear may take you a little while to obtain. In the short term, the Solanae set from "A Step Between Stars" will be a good fill-in until you get reputation stuff(the engines are pretty nice, regardless).
For the Commander Seat: I'd recommend the first option.
For the Ensign Seat: Torpedo Spread 1.
For the Eng Seat: I'd suggest running Aux2Sif/Damp or EPtW3 as your Lt.Cmdr. power.
For the Sci Seat: I'd suggest HE1 and Science Team 2(there are too many debuffs this clears to no be running it these days, especially in the Delta Quadrant).
which carrier are you looking at? did you get the one from the winter event?
and the cannons arent going to be very effective on a 'carrier cruiser' at all.
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Well, mostly I'm looking for an experienced person to confirm that I'm not a bloody idiot.
I also intend to use the Solonae shield for screenshots. :P
For the Commander Seat: I actually purchased an extra pair of bridge officer slots so that I could have both, one on standby and one on duty so I can switch between them as the situation dictates.
For the Ensign Seat: Why the extra Torpedo Spread? I already have that on my Commander.
For the rest: ....Can you repeat that in English please? ^^;
EDIT: Okay, I deciphered what you said. :P You're suggesting Auxiliary to Structural or Dampeners, or Emergency Power to Weapons, as opposed to Eject Warp Plasma. Any reason for that? I presume I would use chroniton mines for crowd control instead? Also, why not Reverse Shield Polarity?
As for the science slot, why Hazard Emitters I and Science Team II, and not the other way around? HE2 would offer a great hull heal, would it not? And do any of these provide freedom from tractor beams and hold effects?
I can't. In my experience, I need to have something equipped to use it.
I joined too late to get that one. I was thinking a Fleet Dreadnought Cruiser, but a Fleet Caitian Atrox Carrier isn't out of the question. That's a bit further down the line, though.
Oh, I don't plan to use dual cannons on them. If anything, I would use plain old cannons for full coverage, and either cannons or turrets in the back. That's quite a bit further down the line though.
you can also remove things from your powertray if you right-click drag them out of the powertray.
i am not super familiar with the fed ships, but i know enough about the atrox to know that it has perhaps the lowest turn rate of any other ship in the faction. im not sure if an atrox is even allowed to use cannons, but if it were i dont think it would be able to turn quickly enough to keep the cannons on target. i suppose you could invest in rcs consoles and aux2damp to try to milk some turnrate out of it, but youd be losing consoles and skills to a degree that would likely overshadow any and all benefits.
i only mention this because i think it would be unfortunate if you invested heavily into cannon gear/skills, then invested in an atrox only to learn the two arent really compatible.
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Well, cannons have a 180 degree arc. And if I'm not going to be able to turn well enough to keep my broadside to the enemy, then beam arrays seem somewhat pointless. Though I have to wonder if, since the base damage of cannons is less than double that of turrets, turrets all around might not be the better option.
1. Nimbus Pirate Distress Call just needs to be in your inventory. Save device slots for things like the Subspace Field Modulator and batteries.
2. Turrets have lower DPS but you get some of that back by having more weapons able to hit the target. Some trade off but especially for a worse turning ship, it might be better.
The only advice on what ships to get I can give is this: Fly what you want to fly. If you really like the ship, you will find a way to make it work for you. As to playing the game, as long as you're having fun and enjoying yourself, you are indeed playing STO correctly.
One of the Story Missions gives out TOS Phasers, complete with TOS sound effects, as a mission reward. I cannot remember which one this is. These level up with your char. They are also upgradeable. One of my Fleeties has them and they are really well done. They are decent weapons as well. Planning on getting them for one of my Vestas...ahem...someday. lol
I am aware of the actual retro phasers. However, there are no retro phaser cannons, which ... makes sense, frankly, though I would like to see some. Hence, tetryon weapons.
Okay, this is very interesting, I'll have to keep this in mind. If I do get the fleet consoles, then I'll probably acquire one of each, to spread my stats between defense and turn rate (though I might just get neutronium alloys and get the RCS secondary). As for the weapons, for mods I was looking at [Acc] to boost my accuracy and try to spill over into Crit Chance.
that being said, if you are serious about trying a full turret build or a cannon atrox, dont invest too much into the weapons. i reckon you wont be very impressed with the build.
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How about a Kinetic Cutting beam and Zero Point Energy Console instead of one of the turrets?
Fine choice, I'd say.
I would say pick the M.A.C.O. Engines and Shields and get your great 2 piece bonus, and stick a Plasma Integrated Fleet Warp core there. Or you can stick M.A.C.O. Warp core and shield to stick with the Romulan Engine, but I would prefer the first option.
Better.
Uhmm.. I dont really think this is really useful.
I wouldnt live without Reverse Shield Polarity. But thats a bit personal taste, EPtS can work just fine.
Ah, okay, sense makes.
Oh no no no, I'm not talking about the cruiser yet, I'm sticking with the escort carrier for now.
I thought about that. The Isokinetic Cannon is really tempting. But the fact that the current torps create a miniature gravity well is just too neat. Could I get the three-piece set by using three Advanced Thoron Infused Polaron Dual Heavy Cannons?
I don't like the cutting beam. It deals kinetic damage, so it's practically useless against shields, and I don't want to mix too many different types of weapons.
I dunno, I'm not sold on the MACO engines. The stats seem inferior on paper. Mind elaborating on this?
Why not?
Why is that?
I'm actually tempted to use the Hydrodynamics Compensator and a pair of the bio phaser turrets. I'm not sure if that would give me the 2-piece bonus or the 3-piece bonus, but....
EDIT: Here's what I have so far: http://skillplanner.stoacademy.com/?build=bellerophond_0
Wait, do the bio-phasers have different colors and sounds to regular phasers?
And actually, the escort carrier is, for all practical purposes, an escort. It has the same turn rate as the Fleet Advanced Escort.
If you're gonna go with a Tetryon build, the Nukara set and at least 2 of the console/weapons set can augment Tetryon damage. I have the full Nukara on my Assault Cruiser Refit and the mines and console on top of some Tetryon consoles. Pretty decent too. Then again I'm also running Phased Tetryon, which sacrifices one mod for a phaser proc and cyan coloration instead of standard Tetryon blue. Tetryon's good for an economy build for sure, as most people devalue the proc as being useless once shields go down. But it still does damage to the hull. Its up to you if you'd want to stick with standard Tetryon, try Phased, Destabilizing, or even Refracting Tetryon.