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Phantom escort
valkarie14
Member Posts: 762 Arc User
Im thinking of going full beams is that a good idea? I was going to use the phaser lance but unsure if it will be useful or just put a other console in, can i equip the phaser lance and the eclipses structural integrity field on other ships? I was thinking of running on eng n sci console slots all universal like tachykinetic converter, bounty hunters friend etc and have about 3 or 4 tac consoles, any input?
Post edited by valkarie14 on
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No.
The phaser lance is nice because it does spike damage AND triggers the intel vulnerability (weaken enemy defense or damage). Or if you do the "gather intel" thing first (a little like science ship sensor scan) then it does even more spike damage.
But if you aren't using phasers you might be better off using another tac console instead.
> Im thinking of going full beams is that a good idea?
Maybe. It has 3 aft weapon slots so if you use the Borg cutting beam and a crafted omni 360 beam, then the only way to get a third 360 beam is if you go with Antiproton beams and get the ancient beam mission reward.
Cryptic really ought to let us put 2-3 crafted omnis into the aft slot if we want to use beams instead of cannons. Or make it so the ancient reward is available in all beam types.
> I was thinking of running on eng n sci console slots all universal l
Depending on your space set and ship mastery traits you might want to include one fleet neutronium console for defense.
The Eclipse does seem a little on the delicate side from what I've experienced so far, so davefenestrator's advice about defensive consoles is probably sound.
The Reciprocity trait is awesome, but to be fully effective it requires you to keep moving so your defense rating is as high as possible. This play style is not nearly as compatible with the Cannon style of play then it is with Beams. With Cannons, you often have to stop your ship to keep opponents in front of you, making sure you don't fly past them. The quick start/stop style doesn't keep your defense rating high which is what you really need to make people miss you.
Again, this is my personal experience. I'm not saying that anyone that uses Cannons on a Phantom is 'wrong,' but beams are not only viable on the Phantom but incredibly effective. You can go all single beams or mount DBB's on the front. Most people go with at least a couple DBB's front and omni/single beams Aft. That's how I have mine set up and it's quite effective.
Ah, broadsides. People in escorts normally use dual beams or dual heavy cannons for the extra damage, with omni or turrets in back. Escorts turn much better than cruisers so it's not that hard to keep nose-on to your target.
Yes you can get a crafted 360 omni phaser from the exchange for 3(?) million EC, but you can only equip one of them on your ship. So with dual beam banks in front plus an omni and cutting beam in back, you have one slot left.
You could put a beam array back there for when you beam fire at will, or a turret even though your beam skills won't help it, or a mine launcher or torp.
That's an excellent point - but you're not forced to use Reciprocity on the Eclipse, if you have other traits you'd rather use. Also, since the OP sounds like they are setting up a new ship, they presumably won't have that trait yet.
Yeah, it's pretty amazing how good the fed T6 traits work with each other, unlike the kdf and rom T6 traits which are kinda "meh".
As for your boffs, they are either in your inventory or your candidate roster if you didn't outright put them among your active boffs.
As for the Phantom, it works perfectly with DBBs and 1 omni, 1 kcb and 1 turret in the back. Mostly because of the magical surgical strikes which works with every energy weapon.
The phaser lance gets really awesome if you decide to go for a phaser build. I know AP is and probably will be king of DPS forever but that thing boosted by 5 phaser console is devastating, totally worth it.
And thanks to many past additions we now have a wide array of different phaser flavors and colors so you're not limited to the bad random subsystem disable proc.
The Phantom's end tier trait gives you a glimpse into how it should be flown. Max speed, Dual Heavy Cannons, full INTEL powers as a single target intercetpor....and laugh at the enemy trying to even hit you.
Intel powers are so totally inferior to the new Command powers, and when you get the right build they are even better than the good ole TAC powers like CRF III.
The first thing you do is decide whether you want to go Phasers and keep the console, or go Antiproton and put in another console slot. The actual Gather Intel ability built in to the Intel ships are bad, don't even think about those. The Phaser Lance is a gimmick, nothing more. You fire it, and for two minutes that console does you no good. And when you start doing the math you will find that ditching the lance and going full anti proton cannos is the way to go when you factor in the Intel Powers.
Your Command Intel powers should be the following.
Ensign Intel Team: This is a nice cloak as well as a defense boost and makes you untargetable.
LT Evade Target Lock II: Very important, gives the enemy a -60% accuracy debuff and cannot be targeted by mines and topedoes.
LT CMD: Override Subsytems
CMD: Surgical Strikes III.
With those 4 Intel Powers, plus the Phantom trait you are a single target killing machine. Every miss ticks down those BOFF powers so you can dump any Aux 2 Bat doffs. Fly at Max weapon and Max speed, then the rest in Shield. It takes a while to get used to fighting at that speed but you quickly realize that the slower firing rate for Surgical Strikes actually does not hurt so much when you also have a huge turning rate.
You Lt CMD Tac station should have Attack Pattern Omega I and Tac Team I in your ensign slot. The LT ability can be a torpedo ability OR put in Beam Overload and make sure the only beam on the ship is your kinetic cutting beam....so you get an 100% crit on the Kinetic beam and when the enemy's shields are down that will be a big number.
You will need Eng Team in one slot to off set the power debuff from OSS. You can put in Directed Energy Modulation and even slot in Aux Power to Inertial Dampeners for even more speed and turn rate. Put in Emergency Power to Shields in the Universal Ensign slot and assign the appropriate DOFF.
For Science BOFFs put in Hazard Emitters and Science Team. Science Team can be important as it will clear all those pesky science debuffs. Hazard Emitters is a nice heal but you can put in whatever you want.
Dump the Ancient Obelisk Warp Core/Omni Beam even though you get that 10% damage bonus. Put in a Fleet Warp Core with AMP, and with your power levels you will actually get more damage.
Get CRIT D dual anti proton heavy cannons. Either buy cheap 2x Crit D or try to get the expensive 3x crit Ds, all at MK II and use your Omega Upgrades to get them to Ultra rare or Epic by the time they get to Captain Rank. If you farm a ton of omegas, you will have more than enough to get everything to Epic. Use the Fleet Crit D+Anti Proton consoles. You might be tempted to put in an Crit H console, but keep in mind that Surgical Strikes is not only a 40% crit increase but a 40% accuracy buff as well.
Stack your Engineering consoles with Fleet Neutronium that have the turn rate increase, then put in a crafted RCS as well. For those two science slots you can put in the Borg piece and any other thing you want.
For your **** traits, use things that create synergy with your single target cannon attacks. There are a plethora of traits to use, some might be found on the exchange and some might require hitting level 15 in crafting, so it will take a while.
Rep traits/powers just require time. Pick whatever you feel comfortable with.
For Doffs, well, if you have that Marion Doff that is great but most dont. You don't need any Aux 2 Bat DOFFS, put in stuff that helps with power. If you are using a torpedo, put in torpedo boffs.
Add a Fleet shield, and you are good to go.
Then go to Argala and figure out how to fight at max speed with slower firing critical hitting cannons with a massive turn rate. It will take a while but once you figure it out you will be laughing at the enemies.
Escorts are not meant to stop, so keep that speed at max all the time. Time your attacks correctly and all those BOFF traits will be recharging in no time.
This is for PVE.