[Joey199202]

Hey guys i was wondering if i could get any suggestions on how to spec for this ship because to be honest i suck because i seriously dont know what im doing when it comes to builds

[Christopher Halsey]

Although I am sure you could make a viable Tactical Odyssey build EVERY time I have seen one in PvP they have had their ass kicked. Like most Tacs in Cruisers they just fail to match the damage a Tac in an Escort can produce and don't have the Engineering skills to be able to really tank.

Again I am sure you could make such a build work but so far everyone I have seen hasn't produced the results I think they wanted.

Now, do you want this build to be for PvE or PvP?

If PvE then you should be able to make a pretty good build.
If PvP then could you specify what type of role you want your ship to fill? DPS, Tanking, Support etc, the more info you can give the better.

[Joey199202]

Well i want it for a PvP role and to do DPS

[Christopher Halsey]

If DPS is your primary concern I would probably stick to an Escort to be honnest. You won't be able to make a Cruiser that can match an Escort for DPS and in that ship you are going to have a big target painted on you.

If you do want to stick with the Cruiser though.

Front Weapons

2x Dual Beam
1x Array (or replace for another Dual Beam)
1x Torp

Aft Weapons

3x Beam
1x Torp

Equipment

For me the Aegis set fits it nicely but that is with an Engineer.

Engineering Consoles

You are going to need one or two RCS console(s) if you want to take advantage of the dual beams up front. I would also recommend either one or two Plasma Distribution Manifolds, you can stick lots of power in weapons anyway but since you won't be using canons you will want a bit more. I would also stick in a Neutronium Alloy or two to sure up your hull.

Science Consoles

I don't know what Sci abilities you like but since the ship gives you a good number of stations you might want to take those in to account when looking at your consoles. Personally I would go for a Field Generator to boost your shields and a Shield Emitter Amplifier to boost their regen. For your last console anything that boosts the Sci abilities you actually use OR put a universal console in, the anti-matter spread works wonders when being mobbed by Klingons in PvP usually giving you the time to escape if you have Evasive or Battery Power to Engines ready.

Tactical Consoles

I would go for a pair of Directed Energy Distribution Manifolds or whichever consoles match your energy weapon type, if you go with the Manifolds though you can be flexible and change your weapons without having to change those consoles. Alternatively (and I know this might be contravershal) ditch one of those for a Automated Defense Turret if you have it, I know it does sold all damage but it is helpful if people are lobbing targetable projectiles at you as it means you can keep your focus on your enemy and let the Turret mop them up for you.

Skills

In terms of skills obviously you need to use stuff you are happy with so I won't go in to any real detail here. For the above build you need to have Beam Array Overload. I would also strongly recommend Battery to Engines to help you get out of trouble (because you will get mobbed and need to run quick). I would try to avoid heals that are boosted by auxilary power because you will want all your power in weapons, shields and engines (in that order) so think carefully on what heals you use. I would also perhaps grab Eject Warp Plasma, again will help you when you need to withdraw.

[Joey199202]

alright how about a build for the Multi Vector Assault Escort because if you say i should stick with a Excort i guess ill stick with an escort lol

[Christopher Halsey]

Ultimately any character type can use any ship type but I've never come across a Cruiser that can match a Escort for DPS. That doesn't mean you can't get a good set up that will work for you but in terms of pure DPS you will get better results from an Escort than you will from a Cruiser.

As for a MV Advanced Escort I haven't really experimented with the ship myself (although I am actually planning to tomorrow if I get the chance), I've put together some thoughts but please bear in mind I haven't tried this to see how viable it is and with the limited Engineering and Science console and station support it will really depend on your playstyle.

I would probably get a bit of advice on how people rate the MVAM Console (as you can take it out). Personally whenever I PvP as a KDF against Feds I ALWAYS go after MVAM Escorts as you can disable the AI controlled parts very quickly taking away the advantage they provide. You might want to consider not using the console and putting something else in instead.

Front Weapons

3x Canons
1x Torpedo

Aft Weapons

1x Beam
1x Turret (or another Beam)
1x Torp

Equipment

I would imagine either the Borg or the Aegis set would go quite nicely depending on your skill set up.

Engineering Consoles

You only get 2 Engineering Consoles, I would either look at going with boosting your weapons power with a Plasma Distribution Manifold and I always recommend Neutronium Alloy just to increase your survivabilty or alternatively perhaps just double up on either.

Science Consoles

You've got 3 Science consoles so I would go with wither a Field Generator or a Shiled Emitter Amplifier (possibly both). If you want to use your MVAM I would put that console in one of the Science slots. If you go with Borg equipment then I would stick the Borg Console in here. That might be your 3 all up. If you have either of the earlier Escort Refits you might want to consider the Impulse Capacitor (for helping get out of a tricky situation with the boost to speed and defense) or the Point Defense System (great for keeping heavy torps and mines away).

Tactical Consoles

With 4 Tactical Consoles you could look at getting 3 to boost your energy weapon damage and the 4th for your torpedos, alternatively you could go for a 2/2 split or go all in favour of 1. If you wanted to you could use one of these slots for a Universal Console if you have something else in mind for your Science Console set up.

Skills

For Tactical then Canon volley is a must, torpedo spread is nice especially when Klingons swarm you with thousands of annoying fighters. Obviously you will want some nice attack patterns. For your Science skills I would say it depends on your playstyle do you want to be able to do a bit of self healing (like Science Team) or do you want to have some tricks up your sleeves for fighting (Scramble Sensors perhaps), bear in mind you probably won't have much power in Auxilary so try to avoid skills that need a decent Aux level. As for Engineering, Engineering Team is generally a bit of a staple for most people, Emergency Power to Engines or to Weapons might be a good second skill, depends on whether you would rather get out of trouble when needed or want a bit of extra punch with an alpha strike.

[Joey199202]

well i dont have the borg or ageis set also for cannons do y ou mean normal cannons or heavy cannons

[McClintock]

Thanks for all this Admiral Halsey, really great read and nicely laid out - answered a lot of my nagging questions that I have.
Reckon I'll stick with my 'glass cannon', if only for the DPS.
I still weigh up the options between a cloaked Defiant and a MVAM. Meh.

[Christopher Halsey]

I would go with heavy cannons.

As for the Defiant vs MVAM. I recently switched my Tactical from a Defiant to MVAM.

I didn't find the Defiant's cloak that great for PvP since it isn't a battle cloak you can really only use it for alpha strikes. When fighting Klingons you often end up being chased by dozens of annoying fighters and what not that can keep you at Red Alert and thus stop you using your cloak to move between areas. It certainly is not a bad ship but I don't find the cloak a huge advantage to me.

As for the MVAM I am liking it so far, I did end up using the Impulse Capacitor and my ENG Boff is using Emergency Power to Engines so whilst I can't do much healing (only have Eng Team and Hazard Emitters as heals) if a fight isn't going well my ship can escape anything. In a Capture and Hold PvP the other day I was just inside weapons range of an enemy that was ahead of me and needed to get past them to go and get to a different Capture point, was 30kms behind him before he could even turn his BoP round. I have used the MVAM ability itself a few times, it can be nice for increasing your turning further allowing you to more easily duel BoPs but your other two hull sections are left as pretty vunerable targets (more so I would say than a Galaxy saucer with the experience I have had so far). Can be helpful in PvE.

I did make one mistake though when I mentioned a Field Generator or a Shiled Emitter Amplifier for your Sci Consoles, only one of these is a Sci console.

Oh and Viral Matrix can be a nice ability for your Lt Commander sci slot in the MVAM. Works well to either help you pour on the damage, buy yourself a few seconds of peace and quiet from an attacker or prevent an enemy from making an escape.

[Joey199202]

Well thank you for the advice Admiral i shall do my best to implement those changes as soon as i can