Show of hands: Who wants to be Assimilated?

I follow the official STO boards as often as I can, and one recurring theme that I see popping up from time to time is the suggestion from players that the Borg STF's should be available for solo players.

What part of "Task Force" is unclear here?  In every other MMO that uses the term, it means "Content intended for team play".  Cryptic continues to reiterate that STF's will never be revised for solo play.  And though I tend to play solo most of the time, I have no problem with this.

One of the main reasons for this pro-solo sentiment is the exclusive Borg set.  Can't get it any other way, and I fully agree that there should be an exclusive reward for the Borg STF's.  Cryptic has suggested that there will eventually be other sets, hopefully some obtainable outside of an STF, and I think this will satisfy many players who --

• Can't or won't play an STF and, 
• Can't or won't craft the Aegis set at Memory-Alpha.

Homogenizing all of the game content so that all missions and all rewards are easily available to any group of any size is a bad idea, and I'm glad to see Cryptic standing fast.  Hard core players need the kind of challenges offered by Endgame content like the Borg STF's, and they deserve the exclusive rewards they get (as long as I don't have to face them in PvP!  I don't thrive on humiliation).

The concern I have revolves around Endgame content.  There is a story that solo players are missing out on.  It would be nice if there were other, complimentary missions available at that level that helped to fill in some of the blanks and had different rewards.  Even at Vice Admiral, players want something to DO that isn't mindless grind.

Someday, I hope I can get together with members of my Fleet and we can tame the STF beasties at least once in our fictional careers.  Cryptic has promised a difficulty slider for the STF's and this should help ease the concerns that they are PUG team-wipe train wrecks; missions to be avoided as a waste of time for those who aren't experienced team players.

What do you think?  Will more sets fill in the demand?  Will more single-player Endgame content help?  Will the difficulty slider for STF's end the debate once and for all?

The Romulans...

They're obviously going to be the next faction in the game, but what does that actually mean? There's been a lot of talk about them being fractured, that there could be a civil war, and even that there could be sides that lean towards the Federation and the Klingon Empire (though I honestly don't see that happening without some huge event to do away with centuries of hate and distrust). For the faction itself, though, I think certain things need to be considered:

1. The home base (akin to Qo'nos or Earth Space Dock). For me this absolutely HAS to be something like Romulus. Losing that planet, as much as it helped the storyline and the like, was a loss to the Star Trek universe, and honestly, playing a game as a Romulan and not being able to visit some grand Romulan City (akin to the planet from "Cutting the Cord", though with more) would be something that would hurt. People are still clamouring to this day for Earth to be included, and I honestly believe it's a necessity.

2. The races. I'm a perfectionist that will only have a Klingon crew on a Klingon ship (and once we get more PVE content, will have a Gorn ship with Gorn crew and so on), and as such with the Romulans will most likely be the same route. That said, three starting races does seem a tad small. The Romulans, Remans and Hirogen are great, but I can't help feeling that they could do with a little more just for variety's sake.

3. The ships. For me, this is the most important part of the entire thing. Yes, obviously we'll get the D'deridex (T5 cruiser hopefully), and the Mogai (T5 escort), but what of the others? Yes, we'll get the Hunter Escort (Hirogen ship), and the Bird of Prey, but there are still going to be massive holes in the tiers. To that end, I'd like to see the ships used in TNG episodes like "The Defector", "The Next Phase", and the shuttle seen in the DS9 episode "In The Pale Moonglight". If we get those added to what's in the game already, I think we'll be fine.

4. The Eras. People are going to want their TOS ship patterns and their TNG/DS9 uniforms and weapons (though thankfully as of the latest series, we have the disruptor), and my bet is that Cryptic will of course use the C-Store for such things.

5. The missions. By no means the least important part of the whole thing, people are going to want missions involving subterfuge and sneaking around rather than diplomacy or blunt force. Thankfully Cryptic being Star Trek fans themselves means that the odds are good for such a thing.

That's how I feel about the Romulans as they are: There's a good foundation already laid, and as long as the Klingons get their content issues sorted during the year, there should be little to no problem getting the Romulans out in to the game, and their faction, if it's even half as good as people are hoping, will make a lot of people very happy.

Links:

The Defector - Romulan Scout Ship
The Next Phase - Romulan Science Vessel

^ As you can see, both ships are quite similar, so a tier one ship might be the answer for those designs.

In The Pale Moonlight - Romulan shuttle

I want an Exocomp!

The thought has been nagging at me for days... I want a pet Exocomp!

I'm geeked with the idea that I could have one of those floating along behind me wherever I went.

Even better if it were a defensive pet... one that could 'fix' your equipment malfunctions, or something.

Who else wants an Exocomp?!

Featured Episode: Series 3, Part 5 "Cutting The Cord"

I had a chance to play through the latest Featured Episode in the "Cloaked Intentions" series, "Cutting The Cord".  There was a lot to like in this new episode, and a few new twists and gimmicks.

The first part of the mission is basically to blast your way into orbit over the Tal Shiar base.  This was probably the most boring part.  It was both too easy and too time-consuming as a solo mission.  More enemy ships and fewer enemy space turrets would have been better, I think.

One of the new gimmicks is a "virtual path guide" that basically shows you which way you're supposed to go.  This was a neat gimmick, and I hope they port that feature over to the Foundry for use by players.  The three dimensional nature of the map was very nice and added to the experience.

I also liked the ability to call in an "Orbital Strike", even though it's mostly just a couple of cutscenes.

The respawning mobs (both Romulan enemies and Reman allies) were another interesting feature that I hope gets into the Foundry.

I won't spoil the story, but it's not bad.  Like some others, I am puzzled over the decision to involve Empress Sela in the final space battle and the outcome.  I suppose we'll find out in a future FE.

Briefly touching on the rewards, I suspect that the tractor mines are not going to be a popular weapon, at least not if you're on the receiving end.  Most people didn't want another Bridge Officer, but I'm geeked that it was a Science Officer.

So, what did you like or dislike about this episode?  What did you think of the series as a whole?  Leave your comments here!

Commentary on "Ask Cryptic, March 2011"

So, the latest "Ask Cryptic" is up, where the Executive Producer for Star Trek Online answers questions from players.

http://www.startrekonline.com/node/2323

I understand he can't answer everybody's questions.  There were over 1000 posts in the question thread!  But I can't help thinking that he really did some cherry picking for short questions that could be answered easily.  Hint for future installments: Make sure your question is only one or two sentences long.

Still, there were a few interesting tidbits in there.

A: We are working closely with the Champions Online team on a big update for interiors that will allow players much more control over what is displayed and available on their ship interior. We don’t have a solid eta for this, but it is something that both of our teams are developing as a cool new feature that will greatly improve ship interiors.

A: We have long term plans to allow Player Run Starbases to be “staffed” by extra officers you have. We are also looking into increasing storage so that you can have more potential candidates in the wings.

A: We have created a system map for each planet in the Sol system, and where appropriate we have also added stations and other sites that are expected to be there such as Utopia Planetia at Mars and Jupiter Station at Jupiter. You will have a navigation option that will ask you which planet you want to visit and it will transfer you there.

Other notable things which were mentioned were that Featured Episode replay is being looked at for March or April, new kits are in the works, and another Science vessel (the Oberth) is planned for April or May.

Which answers interested you the most?  Post your comments here!

Top Ten Features I Want To See In Star Trek Online

Star Trek Online is a great game.  It has caused my inner Trekkie to bloom and rekindled my interest in all of the Star Trek lore.  The game is sure to grow and add new features.  These are the ones I really want to see in the next two years.

1. Romulan Faction

Ok, this one's a no-brainer.  Everybody wants this.  A third Trek faction could potentially alter the dynamic of the entire game, particularly if Territory Control zones are ever added.  Plus Romulans are cool.

2. Exploration Maps Without Inconsistencies

Ever visited an uninhabited planet with colony buildings on it?  I have.  The worst, though, was one where I was told I had to hide from the natives so we wouldn't contaminate their development and the whole freaking landscape had been Borgified.  I don't think the Prime Directive applies.  Plus the buried and otherwise inaccessible data anomalies drive me nuts.

"Lieutenant, hand me a shovel."

3. Diplomatic Exchange Bridge Officers I'd Actually Want

When you diplo-grind your way up to full Ambassador, you are supposed to get your pick of bridge officer candidates from the opposing faction.  What you get to choose from are a bunch of common, average BO's ... nearly all of which are completely inferior to the candidates you have sitting around doing nothing because you can only use so many Tactical officers.  Currently, the only real use for this is to indulge geek fantasies of having an Orion Love Slave ... which I don't.  These DXO's should be Rare with Improved/Superior racial traits and Tier III skills.

4. Personnel Bank for Fleets

Trading and training Bridge Officers is too difficult under the current system.  Fleets especially ought to have the ability to reassign BO's (and later on Duty Officers) with ease.  One way to do this would be to give fleets a special Personnel Bank to facilitate this.

5. Call Me Admiral

When my Vulcan character was a Rear Admiral (Lower Half) it was extremely annoying to have  Non-Player Characters addressing him like "You're our best hope, Rear Admiral, Lower Half G'eek".  I don't think the average Starfleet command officer should talk like an obsessive-compulsive idiot who can't figure out to call him just "Admiral" like in the real world.  In addition to this, I wish we could have more leeway to customize how we're addressed by NPC's in general.  His real name is supposed to be "G'eek, Son of N'erd" but I had to change it.  "Rear Admiral, Lower Half Son of N'erd" was just too much to deal with.

6. Customized Kits Or On-The-Fly Kit Swapping

The only options a Player Captain has on Ground missions are:

• Which two weapons to equip?
• Which four Bridge Officers to take?
• Which kit to equip (for special class-related abilities)?

The kits, unfortunately, tend to have one or two nice abilities and the rest are hardly ever used.  To get the full range of abilities, a Player Captain needs all of the kits in his inventory and can't (easily) swap them out in combat.  It would be very nice if we could roll our own kits, or if we could swap them out more easily (like we do with weapons).

While I'm on the subject of customization, I'd also love to see the ability to customize other equipment abilities as well.

7. Retrofitted Ships

Over the course of a career, your character gets to fly a number of different ships.  But, there's no going back to fly your favorite because it's underpowered for your current rank.  The ability to retrofit your old ships to make them relatively useful again would be a real boon.

8. Exocomp Pets

I want my own Exocomp floating along behind me and using certain Engineering abilities to help me out (regenerate my personal shields, remove mechanical debuffs, etc).

9. In-Game Databank

It's the 23rd century, right?  I'm surrounded by databanks, but they don't tell me a darn thing about the planet I'm on, Klingon customs, etc.  Why can't we have an in-game databank/encyclopedia?  Sure, I can go to http://www.memory-alpha.org/, but a subset of information in-game and at your fingertips would be better.

10. Ship Interior Missions

Because some of the TV episodes that had things going on right there on the Enterprise were the coolest of all.

What do you want to see?  Leave your comments here!

We Are Project Management (A Borgism)

We are Project Management.
You will be assimilated on schedule.
Your resources will be added to our own.
Your technological distinctiveness is irrelevant.
Deviation from the project is futile.