Selane's Tactical Odyssey Build

[Vorlok]

http://skillplanner.stoacademy.com/?bui ... trious30_0

This is a work in progress; I haven't gotten to this point in the build yet, but this is the current goal. I'd like to hear any thoughts, especially if you notice any obvious shortcomings or missteps.

Selane is an Engineering captain. I took the Tac Odyssey because it had the best console layout of the three. I play the ship as a front-line tank with good damage and aggro potential. Not great damage, but as strong as I can manage without sacrificing a lot of durability. I like being able to wade into an enemy formation and blast the crap out of them to get their attention, while allied ships cut them up.

Some notes:

My Space DOffs are all Rare or VR. I run one Conn Officer (Tac Team CD), one Energy Weapons (+Shield Power on beam weapon use), one Warp Core (VR, +System Power on EPTX use), and two Damage Control (EPTX CD).

The Shield Refrequencer is a placeholder for a Fleet Emitter Array with +Threat and +Shield Heal.

The Antiproton consoles are placeholders for the Fleet AP consoles (currently +CritD, might switch to +CritH when the spire unlocks).

The Impulse engines are current, but I'll replace those with Fleet engines; I just didn't have a list of the Fleet engines at work. I'll modify the build with that later.

I'm not a fan of the FOTM 'Aux2Bat' build; it's too gimmicky and expensive for my tastes. It is also not as reliable as I like. The current DOff/BOff synergy is based on using EPTX frequently to get system and shield power boosts. The Tac CD helps shield distribution, keeps boarders off, and provides a moderate damage boost.

Thanks for reading!

[daBelgrave]

if you notice any obvious shortcomings or missteps.

Just a few thoughts glancing over your setup...

1. Cruisers are tanky enough. Replace all the Neuts with RCS. Consider alternatives to using Field Generators since you naturally have large shields.
2. That is a lot of EPtX abilities. No EPtE?
3. The ability choice seems to provide decent self-sufficiency. Abilities to support your team seem to be lacking.
4. Starship Sensors: Everyone should have this, at least 6 levels, if not maxed.
5. Feel free to take three levels away from Warp Core Efficiency and Performance.

I play the ship as a front-line tank with good damage and aggro potential. Not great damage, but as strong as I can manage without sacrificing a lot of durability. I like being able to wade into an enemy formation and blast the crap out of them to get their attention, while allied ships cut them up.

To be a good tank, you need to take the aggro. Bump up your Threat Control as high as possible, and add on some [+Threat] consoles. Then you might just manage to take the aggro away from that escort on the team. This is a support role, so you probably want to also be able to do other supportive things than just shoot and heal yourself. Keep in mind, it is impossible to "tank" if you ever attempt PvP.

I'm not a fan of the FOTM 'Aux2Bat' build; it's too gimmicky and expensive for my tastes. It is also not as reliable as I like. The current DOff/BOff synergy is based on using EPTX frequently to get system and shield power boosts. The Tac CD helps shield distribution, keeps boarders off, and provides a moderate damage boost.

The 'Aux2Bat' build is technically the current best option for cruisers and similar ships. The other less-known FotM build is the A2D (Auxiliary to Dampers) build that gives you a slight increase in speed, turn, and damage resistance. However, it is possible to do well without either of those.

[Vorlok]

Thanks, One, I appreciate the input!

I may go 2x Fleet RCS and 1 Neut instead of the other way round; haven't decided yet. The current build has 2x Neut, I'll try it with a second Mk XI RCS and see how it does.

I think I'll do EPTE1 instead of EPTA1... that is kind of a dead slot ATM. I had Engineering Team 1 there, but it rarely gets used. Engines is probably a better bet than Aux.

This is not for PVP; I'll never willingly PVP in STO, especially not in a huge slow-moving target. Starship Sensors seems to be almost exclusively useful in PVP, since NPC ships rarely cloak. My experience has been that NPCs also don't jam you very often, I can't think of any NPCs that use jamming. Romulan DD's use Viral Matrix sometimes, but I don't think Sensors mitigates that.

It is a very "me" centered build, no question about that. I'm not sure I'll change that; I mostly play alone, or PUG STF's, and very rarely need to watch what others are doing. If I regularly played with a team, I'd adjust to their needs (if any), but typically I build towards self-sufficiency. I'm not against the idea of doing team stuff, but when 90% of my time is solo play, there's no point in carrying Extend Shields or similar abilities.

I'll probably heed your advice on shields, and get two of the Embassy +threat +Shield Heal emitters instead of another (very expensive) Field Generator. I'm not convinced that the healing from an extra emitter console is better than the extra padding of another Field Gen, but I can explore both options in time.

I'm going to try to figure out how to eke out three more points in Threat Control, but mainly I plan to use +Threat consoles and Attract Fire (+100% threat generation). So far, that has worked fine; Attract Fire + DEM-enhanced FAW generally attracts a good amount of ire. My nature is to err on the side of durability over aggro, since I usually can't expect anyone to be healing me.

[Vorlok]

I tried using a second RCS console last night in place of one of the Neut consoles. While I did notice that my turning was improved, the thing I noticed more was the dramatic increase in intertial sliding (to the point I thought the CE was using a tractor beam on me). I think that also had to do with having a lot more power to the engines, which makes the boat much faster, and turn better, but doesn't do anything about inertia. I may consider trying out Aux to Dampeners as you suggested, see if that improves the inertia on turns.

I'm not sure the slightly improved turning is worth the added handling headache, but I guess my main takeaway was that doubling up on either RCS or Neutron didn't yield a huge difference in performance. That being the case, I'll probably end up going with the Neutronium fleet console, since I can use the moderate extra resist more than the moderate extra turning (typically I use Evasive Maneuvers for any advanced wiggling I need to do).

The revised Engineering BOff skills paid off extremely well. I maintained Weapon and Shield power at 125-130 throughout every fight, with Engines and Aux between 60-80 most of the time. The only time it got at all hairy was at the tail end of a Starbase 24 when most of the team had left, and I took on about 18 Klingon raptors and Negh'vars by myself. I didn't get sunk, but I had to do a lot more repairing to stay above water.

This may be the darkest heresy, but is NOT using the Assimilated Module and Cutting Beam at all viable? I prefer having an aft torpedo launcher to share the love via Torpedo Spread, while the cutting beam can only ever bear on one target at a time (since FAW doesn't affect it). I have enough surplus power that the +5 to Weapon Power is not significant, and the hull repair is minor. The main loss is the CritH and CritD from the console, but... I'm not built to pour out crits in any case. On the other hand, losing what little I have doesn't help my damage output!

[daBelgrave]

is NOT using the Assimilated Module and Cutting Beam at all viable?

Sure! I only use the cutting beam as a laser pointer so I know where to find my target. If you don't have the console slots for the Assimilated Module, or you have better console options, don't use it.

I made a spreadsheet to help work out the best combination of armor consoles for you. It will show the damage resistance you get with any combination, as well as any from abilities you might use. It also shows the diminishing returns you'd get so you can decide at what point it becomes beneficial to slot something other than armor.
http://bit.ly/STOShipDamageResistance

As for team stuff, this is where I get miffed. They aren't just for PvP, but also for PvE. Pug teams might be unreliable when it comes to team healing, but that shouldn't influence your build. With the exception of Extend Shields, every heal you can share can also be used on yourself. You will be just as tanky with sharable heals as you would with solo heals. Strategically, being able to assist a teammate can be a "force-multiplier" because you can keep someone else in the fight longer.

Now that you know my opinion on that, I failed to mention earlier that YOU DO have some team heals and buffs! Hazard Emitters and Tactical Team are both very potent ways to keep someone else alive. Share them freely with those who need them. Also, I recommend replacing the Polarize Hull with Transfer Shield Strength so you have a sharable shield heal.

Good luck. I don't think you can change your ship's inertia, but being able to spin while sliding can open up some tactical opportunities for you.

[Vorlok]

Thanks for the spreadsheet! That is very useful information.

I didn't mean to imply that I never, ever heal anyone else, just that typically I don't think about it. I do keep an eye on my team in STF's, and I have no problem throwing a shield or hull heal if someone is getting hurt badly. I also make sure to repair objectives I'm guarding, like starbases or location assets (transwarp gate, shipyard, etc). And in any actual FLEET action, with TPD, I can easily swap out "selfish" BO's for the "team" BO's I have if needed.

I have TSS on another Sci officer, but I really need tractor beam protection. Diving on a fresh enemy formation I can get hit with 3-4 tractor beams, and being immobilized is bad even for a heavy cruiser. TSS is a great skill, and not hard to obtain; if I can figure another reliable tractor beam deterrent, I'll add it back in.

Yeah, the electric slide takes some getting used to, especially in a big ship. I use it a lot in my BoP and smaller warbirds, but the Odyssey looks more like it's falling out of the sky than spinning on a dime.

I found I can move 3 pts from Inertial Dampeners to Threat Control. With Polarize Hull, I don't need as high an innate tractor resist, and the increased aggro and DR from Threat Control is useful all the time.

[daBelgrave]

Thanks for the spreadsheet! That is very useful information.

Be sure to look at how using additional abilities might help you increase your damage resistance temporarily. Using heals at the right time while your defenses are otherwise low might be able to keep you alive even longer.

I have TSS on another Sci officer, but I really need tractor beam protection. Diving on a fresh enemy formation I can get hit with 3-4 tractor beams, and being immobilized is bad even for a heavy cruiser. TSS is a great skill, and not hard to obtain; if I can figure another reliable tractor beam deterrent, I'll add it back in.

3-4 Tractor Beams is hard for anyone, even those of us with fast ships and active protection against holds (Attack Pattern Omega). That is when other abilities come into play, to increase your damage resistance, or heal through the incoming damage. It's how I stay alive when fighting someone with lots of tractor spam. The additional thing to know, especially in PvE, is that NPCs almost always use 50/50/50/50 power levels. They won't hit hard, except for those Borg torps you sometimes see in STFs that will one-shot anyone. Keep your shields and damage resistance up, and you shouldn't have any problem in PvE.

[Vorlok]

The build I am currently aiming at puts me at about 42% resist to all damage (before temporary boosts from abilities), which seems quite solid.

I may forsake the Cutting Beam (and the Omega Amplifier proc) for another torpedo launcher, and keep the Assimilated Module. The benefits of the module appear to outshine adding another RCS or armour console.

I'd love to be able to get some use out of the Aquarius escort, but it's just so stupid and fragile. Even in simple PVE content like Tau Dewa patrols, or B'tran Cluster, it can't be relied on to act sensibly or perform well. Ah well, they can't all be Plasmonic Leeches!

[daBelgrave]

With armor/RCS, I am around 28-34% damage resistance depending on the ship. With abilities, I sometimes hit 45-50%. That is about where I personally put the cutoff in how much resistance I am willing to spend console slots on.

I hesitate to use consoles/devices that give me pets. They're too unreliable at doing anything other than aggro control.

[Vorlok]

I ran out of respecs, so I have to wait to move those points around. I hate to buy a respec with Zen to move three points, but I don't think I can earn any more ingame.

My in-progress build came in First Place in CCE last night, which delighted me. I haven't even managed that with my pure DPS ships. I also spent more time watching out for the ships around me, keeping them afloat with ASIF3 and HE2. It's just hard to keep people healed while doing the EPTX dance and trying not to get sunk myself.

After doing a bit more reading, I found that healing is an essential part of placing high in this event. I'm glad to continue my track record of haplessly stumbling onto the correct solutions for video game conundrums.