Bridge Officer Abilities You Need - Beginner Guide (2024) - Star Trek Online

[@Pelinore_04]

Thanks for making content like this. I recently started playing again after many years away, so it's nice to have some clear initial priorities established as quite a few things have changed/been introduced.

[@MCStu]

My pleasure, if you have any questions please ask.

[@Alphahuf]

I feel the same way, I haven't played for a few years either. Thanks MC Stu for this kind of video.

[@tarron3237]

I can second this. Just returned after a 8y hiatus and I'm finding these videos very helpful. The game has actually become a bit overpacked, but that's probably inevitable for an old f2p title.

[@adrianbanks8478]

Ensign Banks here, new cadet and just subbed to your channel . Thanks for all the beginner guides Captain Mc Stu!! Lower decks let’s go!!! 🤣

[@stewa4067]

I wanted to say thank you. These videos and a macro to run a full tray have made the game much easier to manage.

[@olecwow]

@mc Stu. just got back into Sto after like 5 years only because my son started playing. I forgot a lot of stuff and now watching your vids which helps a lot!

[@MCStu]

Awesome, Welcome back....

[@thomasdarnell8595]

Just coming back to STO and I love your Basics videos to help me relearn some things and clear up others I never really understood. Keep up the great work!

[@MCStu]

Thank you

[@TheBamaChad-W4CHD]

I watched a video a year or so ago and I can't find it again at all. It was hilariously bad because it was all about how boff abilities or the boff themselves don't matter at all in sto. It definitely wasn't a Stu vid but I sure wish I could find it again. Great video here Stu.

[@riwanramli7604]

Wow this is just what i need. I just started plaing again after 4 or 5 years out. It was a long time, and now I am lost. This really helps. Thanks. You got my subs. Cheers mate.

[@MCStu]

Thank you Riwan I appreciate your support!

[@CommanderX47]

I really appreciate your videos. I have always been a casual player because the game seemed way to daunting to get those higher DPS numbers. But you really help and I appreciate it.

[@MCStu]

Glad I could help

[@Miswired-2501]

Recently comming back after a 2year break. Had no clue about photonic officer Good shit man

[@gausssto570]

Good video. Nice to see more STOtubers.

[@AugmentedDictatorGames]

I have been bugging them all to make videos. lol

[@TriZander07]

Greetings! 07.. ty for stopping by yesterday.. ive just started sharing my STO stuff but I have been playing since 2014. I just try to stay canon and do builds around that. Great vid!

[@emperorathos8058]

Thanks for this! You wouldn't believe how much this helped me!

[@MCStu]

You are welcome, thank you for watching!

[@rogerwilco2]

I never played this game before, and you seem to be making nice tutotials.

[@regalgiant1597]

I have a Voth carrier and i think its geared right, is it a good one or should I be targetting a specfic ship? I am not too far off being able to get a t6, last time i got the Khopesh version of the scimitar for my romulon, but i am not super savvy with the information for end game gearing at all.

[@MCStu]

Is it the Voth flight deck T5U? If so, solid ship, there are better but you can do very well in that ship.

[@millefune]

Your content is so much more digestible than most of the other STO content. You give good advice, and provide the details needed to understand why said advice works. But your speaking ability, organization, and clarity are the biggest things... lightyears beyond the other STO channels. While they also give good advice, it's so disjointed and slurred or grammatically bad, it's harder to follow. Thank you for your content.

[@MCStu]

@kuya Millefune thank you I really appreciate your kind words! It means a lot!

[@loganhermanns2675]

I’m not sure how difficult it would be, but putting the abilities into a battle demonstration would be cool. That way we could see how they are used in actual battle.

[@tommyt7566]

Put them all to your favorite “auto” setting and forget about it.

[@nunya3163]

@@tommyt7566 How does one do that?

[@SpearHead1011]

I mean....do you have a guide on how to assign bridge officers? I have an extra slot for a Bridge officer but I cant put that Science officer there.

[@simonwillis1529]

Always learning stuff this really helps

[@TheAsvarduilProject]

So, some interesting notes: While EPtW (Emergency Power to Weapons) is definitely a powerful ability, all of the "Emergency Power to [Subsystem]" abilities actually get put onto a _shared_ cooldown when activated! Some ships allow you to seat multiple types of officer (e.g. two Engineering officers). So, it may be tempting to seat two Engineers with different Emergency Power abilities. Just be aware that if you do that, and activate one, you'll have that same 15 second shared cooldown trigger before you can use the other ability. EPtW is _so_ powerful of an ability, that if you pop open your wallet, you will want to buy the Arbiter Battlecruiser or its KDF version _first._ The reason is that either ship improves EPtW to grant firing cycle haste (!!!) and some other bonuses that make EPtW one of the best offensive powers _in the game._ Firing modes tend to work in a similar way - if you attempt to slot Fire at Will and Beam Overload, the activation of one sets the others on that shared cooldown. Photonic Officer is indeed underrated. It's a powerful cooldown ability. I highly recommend getting the Science Department Photonic Studies DOFFs as soon as possible if you're going with a PhoOff build, as they can reduce the cooldown of Photonic Officer (this is similar to how you want Technicians for the Aux2Bat builds.) ...Which, Aux2Bat probably deserves its own video to discuss, as it's easily the most prolific build that exists in STO, and will certainly dip into the DOFF system - in particular, the B'Tran Nebula in the Beta Quadrant, which is where you *will* go to get the best Technician DOFFs to reduce the cooldown of Auxiliary to the Emergency Battery* *: There's also a couple of Auxiliary abilities like, Aux2SIF, that - you guessed it - also implement a shared cooldown!

[@MCStu]

These are all great points, thank you for expanding on this. I 100% agree that the Arbiter Battlecruiser is probably the best buy if your going to spend money for your first ship. Excellent ship and trait!

[@TheAsvarduilProject]

@@MCStu Yeah, I typically only buy one ship at around Christmas time. All the rest of the year, when I play STO, I fly my Arbiter. It has a very flexible officer seating, the trait is great, and the 5/3 weapon layout makes it work well as an aggressive support cruiser. You can even swap a Science officer into the Universal seat if you want to do a doubled-up Photonic Officer build, as opposed to the more standard Aux2Bat setup...though, Arbiter is _unquestionably_ more suited to Aux2Bat. My other favorite Cruiser, is the Buran-class Dreadnought. Its ability empowers Aux2SIF to not only boost hull regen, but also grants a 10% cooldown reduction _to your entire team._ Turning Aux2SIF - already a competent heal and resistance buff - into a miniature Photonic Officer is something that can't be understated. It's also a ship that seems purpose-built for beam-broadside aggro tanking (so, purpose-built for Fire at Will), and due to its good defensive stats, if you build it out properly, PvE content basically stops being dangerous whatsoever. The only downside is it flies like a drunk elephant swimming through a lake made of syrup.

[@djdaethstar238]

I appreciate your content. I like that you are talking to a group that may be new or coming back after the changes from many years ago which I am. The game has changed so much and I am learning to play this game again. I got the lifetime sub since it was half off so I will be around for a while. Also at some point can you discuss which traits we should go after as a free/minimal money to play. So many that are useless and most of the guides out there are years old or outdated. I want to maximize the Zen/dil/EC i spend to not waste on useless ships to level up. Thanks!!

[@MCStu]

I will add a vid to the queue for best traits/ships for first buy for new players. Thank you for your input.

[@NoChance999]

how do i get officers ?

[@MCStu]

Either from the bridge officer vender under admiral Quinn's office on ESD or from the exchange. You also get them as you level up.

[@NoChance999]

@@MCStu wow thanks

[@chromenuke5596]

Excellent content for sure in all of your videos. I got the T6 Arbiter Battle Cruiser on your suggestion and am loving it. The trait that you mention is the only ship trait listed. It is fully unlocked, and I did the little upgrade for an extra two slots. Question is do more traits show up from acquiring more ships ? I have Zen and wouldn't mind getting a few suggested ships that have top quality traits. ( May be an idea for a new video ).

[@MCStu]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/nJrbfXiHhNuJsLc

[@RFA_The-DuDe]

Very nice, but its not going to work if my fleet Admiral has bridge officers with only 2 powers available.

[@timothykidd8073]

Hi I know this is a old video but I just started this game last night and I have a question I want to build a support class what is a good support class and ship please help me lol

[@fabianmaryanowski2252]

Luv your content! When i started i had to figure out everything on my own because most guides are outdated, outright shit or they demand the best of everything. Now that i have everything since i traded the hell out of the exchange i start to look around and i hope to see ideas here ;)

[@pragmaticeagle4832]

On paper, APs delta & omega seem better overall than AP beta. Any particular reason beta is chosen instead of the other two? Is this a PC specific thing or is it due to being available at a lower bridge officer slot or is there some other nuance? If that's the case, why beta over delta? I've notice several differences already in the PC version (mostly quality of life stuff) that console version (where I play).

[@smartalec2001]

Shorter cooldown. Can use Beta every 30 seconds, rather than Delta's 45 and Omega's 60.

[@bradjohnson4]

Nice video as always... How did you enable the extra power tray on the lower right?

[@MCStu]

Here is a clip on how I set up my tray on the right kzbin.info/www/bejne/nmSbaJeba7NlbqM

[@RFA_The-DuDe]

I use Omega instead of beta, but all in all a good advice for beginners. In my experience Photonic Officer isn't boosting everything.

[@MCStu]

Omega is also a good choice. I have personally test Photonic Officer, it makes a big difference on cool down all be it things like Aux to Bat and The Boimler Effect do work better.

[@RFA_The-DuDe]

@@MCStu It does. I just started my first Klingon, Using disruptor that i never did before, and PO helped me out quite a bit so far. Before you told me about FO in another video, i never even knew it existed, so thanks for that. I bought "The Doctor" in the Zen store, so that i always have it from the beginning. Besides, i like the character..

[@ThomasPrattEsq]

how did you get your skill trays set up like that?

[@MCStu]

This will show you how kzbin.info/www/bejne/nmSbaJeba7NlbqM

[@markhalverson7645]

Could you do something on how to deal with the enemies that tractor you like the romulans and borg at low level?

[@MCStu]

I will look in to this for you.

[@QueenKittyMonster]

On my low level character I often use evasive maneuvers to deal with tractor beams until I can get polarize hull

[@tanek_09]

As ​ @Christine F said, Evasive is a good option early on. At the very least, if you can't get out of range, you can angle to where you have more shielding.

[@AugmentedDictatorGames]

Polarize Hull starts out at ensign level and makes you immune to tractor beams while giving a large boost to your damage resistance. One of the better abilities to use against the "tractor beam ride to plasma pound town" tactic Romulan NPCs like to use.

[@MCStu]

Polarize Hull has a fast cool down as well.

[@Harbinger4Freedom]

Great content as per 💯🖖

[@paulhoffman778]

What is a really good tier 6 ship for tactical and anti proton.

[@MCStu]

Arbiter Battle Cruiser

[@paulhoffman778]

@@MCStu thanks 😊

[@ssejr01]

cool vid, this is great heads up

[@adampyke4037]

I like the name of that ship. It is named after my hometown.

[@CitizenNerd]

so im blind i guess u said link it at the end of this vid i dont see any links.. for the t5 ships :D

[@Kalknight382]

Good Vid!

[@Alnarra]

Did you name her the Chattanooga on purpose?

[@MCStu]

No it was randomly generated.

[@AugmentedDictatorGames]

>.> Why is this coming up as new when you put it up like a week ago.

[@MCStu]

I don't know LOL

[@travisboatright7384]

Appreciate the guides but they seem to be written for experienced players. No where does it show where you are picking or assigning these abilities from.

[@MCStu]

This should help - kzbin.info/www/bejne/i6mynmyKjZWhZq8

[@mattbrown817]

Love it

[@mathewweeks9069]

Your awesome

[@Stone7C1]

this game feels a bit overloaded in terms of customization and game systems. i just recently started playing through the episodes because i want to enjoy the story, and i have to admit that i have no real understanding how most of the game systems work, or how to make real coherent builds. there is just too much. you get your carreer option that basically just seems to influence your ground abilities (?) but not your space abilities. apparantly it doesnt really matter what ship type you take for your carreer (e.g. tactical doesnt need to focus on escort class ships). so there are already dozens of different ship types that you need to learn and understand what you want to go with. then there is not just regular gear to work with but ground and space skills. ok those are just your average RPG skill trees, fine. but then the choice of who you put on your stations matters, apparantly you can promote your officers though i have no idea what that does or affects. i dont know how you switch out abilities, like when you dont use torpedos, how can you switch torpedo skills out for better ones for your tactical officers that match your weapons. what even are the different advantages between plasma, phaser, disruptor and all of the different weapon types? theres a shitload of those too. the reputation system is another system where your character gets passive abilities? so ANOTHER set of specialization choices. then there is specializations thats like a second mmo skill tree which also has a secondary spec, in addition to traits which are perks, and then like 2 or 3 more skill tree options like endevours that opened up.... like i just lost track where to even start. it doesnt help that the game seems to be pretty unforgiving in terms of speccing your character wrong, because it costs mtx currency to just reset your basic skill tree. i wish this game would cut some fat, and simplify the customization options to one skill tree for ground abilities, and one skill tree for space abilities. if they made it big, thats fine, but they got to condense all this mess into one system, and not 5 or 6. as a newby this isnt even understandable anymore tbh. its not like classic wow, where its just a matter of chosing a class and then a spec for that class, which then kindof decides what gear you want for that spec. in STO its like 5 different separate skill tree systems that are all kind open, work differently, and can be mixed and matched, so there you have no real direction where to start building. the tutorial also explains a lot of the game systems poorly or not at all.

[@MCStu]

I hear what your saying and I agree. I played this game for over a year before i really started to understand that I really didn't grasp all the ends and outs of it. At the same time I was still having a lot of fun just playing the game. Had I been aware of all this as a new player and try to pursue the min/max I would have been mind boggling, especially as someone that had never played MMOs before. With that being said, its a blessing and a curse, the complexity and endless amount of ways to build your ships and characters is why I play this game, there is nothing else quite like it.

[@eatatjoecs]

That's very true of STO. It's easy to start playing but can get confusing fast. What I like to think is that starships are very complicated to begin with and very customizable. In the US Navy no two ships are identical even though they may look identical at first glace. Luckily people like MC Stu, Augmented Dictator, Stu1701, etc make videos explaining items. I'd recommend you just find one topic of interest and research that. Couple things for a new player: 1) When you get to max level you will want to stick to one energy type if you are doing cannons or beams, then always fill your tac consoles with Vulnerability Locators from the Fleet Spire of that type. Usually you want to stick with phaser for Fed and Distuptor for KDF. If you are Rom, I'd suggest switching over to one of these two as plasma can get very expensive (end-game it needs Lobi for one set) 2) In general, you want to use cannons on small fast escorts and beam arrays on big slow cruisers. In between stuff is good for dual beam banks. 3) For DPS, Use Intel primary and temporal or strategist secondary. 4) For energy dps, spec mostly into the Tac tree, make sure to get long range targeting from the science tree. I hope this helps and if you need anything else please feel free to reply!

[@IwanTimmermans]

You’re not gonna show them?!