Beginner questions

[ordolyrae]

I recently picked up this game on mobile to have something to play around with. I did not realize quite how in depth the game is, not that I'm complaining, it was a pleasant surprise. However my rather haphazard start to the game has revealed some mistakes I made early on and revealed I needed to plan more. I have dived into the wiki and think I have gleaned enough to come up with a reasonable plan for my captain and officers. What I am going for here is a crew that can handle most mission types well, handle combat (primarily via boarding), and take on some late game xeno when I hopefully get there. So I typed up a doc with the information and figured I would get what feedback others are kind enough to offer.

Captain: Zealot 16/Blade Dancer 16/Swordsman 16 [Blade: 30; Command: 8; Intimidate: 10; Tactics: 5; Negotiate: 8; Evasion: 9] (Devoted Service 1, Famous Fury 1, Unstoppable Force 1, Sharp Counter 1, Keen Empath 1, Balanced Blade 1, Fanatical Siege 5, Obsessive Defense 5, Squall of Blades 5, Esteemed Guest 5, Strength of Steel 5, Murmurs of Renown 8, Welcoming Rites 8, Infliction Rage 11, Diehard Defense 11, Show of Confidence 11, Fanatical Court 15)
A: Experience
B: Attributes (Advice?)
C: Ship (Paladin Cruiser) [to be upgraded to a Vengeance Class as soon as possible)
D: Skills (Evasion or Blades 4? Something else?)
E: Contacts (?)

Officers: (* indicates a combat officer for the Boarding team)
*Medical Officer: Doctor14/Combat Medic15/Military Officer 15 [Doctor: 27; Command: 14; Tactics: 8; Pistols: 15](Expert Planning 1, Medical Staff 1, First Aid 1, Bio-Poison Slugs 1, Cleansing Purge 1, Stiff Salute 1, Tactical Edge 1, Healer’s Intuition 1, Bio-Agent Bomb 5, Recruiter’s Eye 5, Commanding Sweep 5, Medical Ward 5, Lifeline 8, Overriding Discipline 8, Honorable Release 8, Incite Victory 11, Guardian Vigil 11)

Operations Officer: Quartermaster 14/Merchant 15/Diplomat 15 [Intimidate:19; Command: 12; Ship Ops:4; Negotiate: 24; Tactics: 5] (Baleful Grimace 1, Watchful Eye 1, Stern Leader 1, Wise Counsel 1, Settlement 1, Winning Compromise 1, Friendly Banter 1, Generosity 5, Calming Speech 5, Cordial Invitation 5, Adept Mediation 5, Upstaged Success 5, Magnanimous Victory 8, Legal Pressure 8, Call to Arms 8, Political Hooks 11)

Nav Officer: Hyperwarp Navigator15/Explorer14/Commander 15 [Navigation: 14; Tactics: 12; Command 15; Explore: 10; Electronics 6; Intimidate:7] (Aura of Command 1, Read Charts 1, Exacting Design 1, Gut Instinct 1, Discerning Glance 1, Vigilant Search 1, Loyalty Rousing 1, Efficient Route 1, Steady Hands 1, Perfected Approach 5, Reduced Exposure 5, Unseen traces 5, Face The Terror 8, Precision Action 8, Driven Prospector 11, Tag the Beast 11, Warning Shots 15)

*Security Officer: Soldier 15/Bounty Hunter 15/Shock Trooper 14 [Rifles: 31; Evasion: 19; Command: 3; Intimidate: 10] (Blood Game 1, Steadfast Aim 1, Roaring Barrels 1, Single Minded Strike 1, Dragon Fire Shell 1, Unfaltering Ire 5, Blowback 5, Ferocious Crossfire 5, Shock and Awe 5, Braced Fire 5, Frontline Brave 8, Frag Shell 8, To the Front 8, Frag Grenade 11, Shredding Shots 11, Fearsome Charge 11, Realm’s Justice 15)

*Covert Operations Officer: Spy 15/Saboteur 14/Combat Medic 15 [Pistols: 20, Stealth: 11; Electronics: 9; Evasion: 6; Pilot: 1; Doctor: 14] (First Aid 1, Cleansing Purge 1, Bio-Poison Slugs 1, Black Cat 1, Espionage Sweep 1, Skull Shot 1, Duck and Go 1, Vaccination Watch 5, Bio Agent Bomb 5, Chain Reaction 5, Deadesights 5, Scouring Search 5, Stealth Op 5, Lifeline 8, Demolition Joy 11, Cloak and Dagger 11, 1 more?)

*Xeno-Encounters Officer: Soldier 14/Exo Scout 15/Xeno Hunter 15 [Rifles: 31; Evasion:12; Explore: 13; Intimidate: 8] (Suppressing Fire 1, Bio-Agent Flechette 1, Daunting Presence 1, We The Hunters 1, Steady Mobility 1, Scout’s Intuition 1, Irid -Laced Resolve 1, Grenade Launch 1, Backline Leader 5, Burrowing Shot 5, Puncture Points 5, Know Thy Enemy 8, Plasma Burner 8, Plas Charge Slugs 11, 3 More?)


Officer Skills (at Max level):
Command: 52
Intimidate: 54
Doctor: 41
Negotiate: 32
Tactics: 30
Explore: 23
Electronics: 15
Navigation: 14
Stealth: 11
Ship Ops: 4
Pilot: 1



Skill Saves:
Intimidate: 2
Doctor: 3
Command: 2
Negotiate: 2
Ship Ops: 1
Stealth: 1
Navigation: 1
Explore: 2
Tactics: 2

Ship Maneuvers:
Overriding Discipline
Perfected Approach
Precision Action
Warning Shots
Single Minded Strike

What do people think? have I got the right talents? Do my officer builds make sense? do I have the right skills? Let me know if I am missing something.

[CatkingPlumpkin]

Just a few comments
Looks like you are building a combat captain w/4 combat officers. That’s one combat too many. Either your captain or one of those officers should probable be repurposed. Your officers are interesting… they are directionally correct, but in my experience a combat doctor needs to have a LOT of doctor in order to be better than someone who just hits like a truck. YMMV. The one officer I might disagree with is the Nav officer. I mostly leave skills like navigation for my crew. I don’t see quartermaster which is pretty dang useful (and has the literal best mutiny beating skill).
Other general ideas:
More command is never bad.
Don’t underestimate the power of either patrol or spying. Pay attention to faction conflicts and try to help your faction win… particularly with a zealot start. It is technically possible to have every faction like you, but the effort it takes can put you behind in other key areas of the game so be careful. You still have to favor some factions over others in order to keep certain sets of contacts viable.
Having tons of contacts with high influence who love you gives you options.
Lots of options allow you to make money which honestly should be your entire focus. Money is the key metric in this game (efficient gain, efficient use, while not generating too much risk).
Upgrading ships early and often until they are maxed is a low risk strategy. Attempting to make lots of money and directly buying a better ship so you skip the cost of upgrading your beginning ship is a high risk high reward strategy (which has cost me many many games).
Your captain has the wrong starting priorities for combat. Because skills and attributes are so valuable and you can’t gain them throughout the game (unlike contacts, experience, ship) most captains prioritize them in A&B. Charisma and Wisdom effect your initiative stat which gives you your combat turns (boarding and planetside) so you will commonly see a captain that has 10 blades, 10 evasion +whatever with maxed charisma and wisdom, remainder in fortitude. There’s some guides floating around that will give you info about combat captains (just search combat captains star traders in google).

I’m not going to go too far into skills other than to say don’t be afraid to load up on skill saves in the early game and feel free to reskill characters later (including your captain). Every skill has a purpose and for me the fun of this game is pretending I’m a real space captain making the crucial decisions to keep my great great great grandfather’s legacy humming. Every space captain before me kept their ship out in space, flew the void between the stars, and eventually… found their way home. Unfortunately, as my recent post reveals, they’ve put their legacy in the hands of Leeroy Jenkins. I’m going to blow this ship up… no part of my clan will ever see a dime out of my truly ridiculous voyages. If there are any stories told it will be about a likable captain (I love patrolling) who explored when he shouldn’t, couldn’t stay away from dangerous orbitals, and forgot to carry cargo or upgrade his ship. He disappeared with all hands around level 12 (whatever that means). Seems like this new generation just isn’t as careful as they used to be.

[Catkingplumpkin]

Oh I see Quartermaster now. I’d maybe put that job under the explorer / commander (or move military officer down there). Honestly blade weaver pairs really well with merchant / diplomat.

[Cory Trese]

You can also get a lot of feedback posting on the Steam forums (just don't tell them you're playing on mobile)

steamcommunity.com/app/335620/discussions/

Are you using the Talent Manifest to balance your Crew?

[fallen]

Jan 10, 2022 10:38:33 GMT -5 Cory Trese said:

(just don't tell them you're playing on mobile)

Lol they are very friendly and don't bite. He's kidding.

Or join our Discord
discord.gg/tresebrothers