@JiveDutch Since collections are not currently on my game-play priority list (yes, heresy! LOL) I probably will get rid of her despite her tier 1 rating ... unless I hear of a really good reason not to.
Remember: it's just a game, not a matter of life and death!
@JiveDutch Since collections are not currently on my game-play priority list (yes, heresy! LOL) I probably will get rid of her despite her tier 1 rating ... unless I hear of a really good reason not to.
@JiveDutch Since collections are not currently on my game-play priority list (yes, heresy! LOL) I probably will get rid of her despite her tier 1 rating ... unless I hear of a really good reason not to.
Collections are not everyone's thing (I can take or leave them personally, though I never turn down free stuff) but she is a helpful weekday cadet (being Starfleet, non-human, and female) and leveling her up is fairly trivial. If you have all those missions completed already, feel free to do what you want, but finishing the easy collection pieces means less work in the future if you decide to change your focus, as will likely happen as your roster gets closer to being complete.
When collections came to the game... it really changed play/build style for me ...
I even spent 100 DIl on a crewman Tarses once, just so i had the 25th card i needed to complete the common collection at a time i had a spare crew slot.
Using the DNA i was able to very quickly identify crew which crew and order for leveling i had to take to improve my bonusses .. focussing on 3 collection crew i completed the Common, Uncommon and Rare collections within 2 months and that really gave me a "fun" goal and gameplay boost...
The weird thing is that I have had a tough time leveling her up (along with the rest of the PITA Klingons ) I will give her another shot but I can't promise anything. LOL
Remember: it's just a game, not a matter of life and death!
First of all, freeze every last one of those 2* cards. Right now. There's no sense in keeping them out.
Second, stop leveling your crew to 50-70 and stopping. Each crew gains more power going from level 80 to level 100 than they do going from 1-80. If you level them to 50-70 and stop, you might as well just throw the cards away. Pick a card and focus it until it's finished. Then do another. Then another. Don't worry about how many level 1 cards you pick up between now and then. Just do this. Do it now.
Thirdly, you need to go through your 3* cards and figure out who you do not use on Voyages and freeze them, too. Between this and freezing those 2* cards you should free up tons of crew space to not have to worry about it for a while.
@Odo Marmarosa
"...never airlock a vanity crew if you really don't want to..."
Excuse my ignorance, but what is a "vanity crew"?
Any crew you keep because you like the character, art or episode; especially one with poor stats that you might not otherwise keep.
I strongly disagree with this definition of vanity crew. There's nothing vain about keeping someone you like. On the old forum, I defined vanity crew member as one you don't care about, but represents some kind of "trophy". For me, that was primarily the 4* crew I earned from events whom I would otherwise have 86'd. As a VIP 0 player, those crew were proof of my development as a player, and of my increasing ability to compete. No one else even knew who I had, let alone cared or would have been impressed, but they represented something vain to me. I distinctly remember keeping Captain Proton Paris from the first "They Came From the Holodeck!" replay for that reason, and I know there were others.
Speaking of Klingons: I've sorta been debating throwing 'Injured Torres' out of the airlock. But for some reason she has been given a tier 1 rating. I just can't see it. So I am left with a dilemma of my own. LOL
I don't know much about the tiers, but I do think Injured Torres is valuable. She's an easy one to count toward the Jury Rigger collection. You may not care about collections, but you care about improving your crew and one key to doing that is unlocking bonuses that boost your traits. That's one of the collections that does that. Moreover, she's one of Riker's Angels (non-human woman in Starfleet), making her eligible for all of the weekday cadet challenges. Which leads me to...
First of all, freeze every last one of those 2* cards. Right now. There's no sense in keeping them out.
Uh, this only applies if you have 3-starred every mission. If you haven't done that, then you cannot warp the mission and you very much do need those 2* crew.
@Odo Marmarosa
"...never airlock a vanity crew if you really don't want to..."
Excuse my ignorance, but what is a "vanity crew"?
Any crew you keep because you like the character, art or episode; especially one with poor stats that you might not otherwise keep.
I strongly disagree with this definition of vanity crew. There's nothing vain about keeping someone you like. On the old forum, I defined vanity crew member as one you don't care about, but represents some kind of "trophy". For me, that was primarily the 4* crew I earned from events whom I would otherwise have 86'd. As a VIP 0 player, those crew were proof of my development as a player, and of my increasing ability to compete. No one else even knew who I had, let alone cared or would have been impressed, but they represented something vain to me. I distinctly remember keeping Captain Proton Paris from the first "They Came From the Holodeck!" replay for that reason, and I know there were others.
Huh, I guess I've always used Marmarosa's definition, as well. So if what he described is not a vanity crew, then what term would you suggest for that?
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing. ~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
@Odo Marmarosa
"...never airlock a vanity crew if you really don't want to..."
Excuse my ignorance, but what is a "vanity crew"?
Any crew you keep because you like the character, art or episode; especially one with poor stats that you might not otherwise keep.
I strongly disagree with this definition of vanity crew. There's nothing vain about keeping someone you like. On the old forum, I defined vanity crew member as one you don't care about, but represents some kind of "trophy". For me, that was primarily the 4* crew I earned from events whom I would otherwise have 86'd. As a VIP 0 player, those crew were proof of my development as a player, and of my increasing ability to compete. No one else even knew who I had, let alone cared or would have been impressed, but they represented something vain to me. I distinctly remember keeping Captain Proton Paris from the first "They Came From the Holodeck!" replay for that reason, and I know there were others.
Huh, I guess I've always used Marmarosa's definition, as well. So if what he described is not a vanity crew, then what term would you suggest for that?
Again, there's nothing vain about keeping someone because you like them. That is a perfectly legitimate reason. Ergo, if you like them, then there's no real reason to single them out for a derogatory classification. If you insist, then I would call them indulgences.
The same goes for collections. The ones that add skill bonuses aren't for vanity. The ones that are based on a theme you dig (for me, "Play Ball!" is one) aren't for vanity. It's the ones that are only of interest because they're a way to show off how many 5/5's one owns. (Yes, it counts as showing off even if the only one you're showing to is yourself. In fact, this might be the unhealthiest level of showing off.)
Some crew are just Pokemon crew. You just gotta catch them all. Essentially all 1, 2, and 3 star crew who do not contribute to boost collections or cadet missions are Pokemon crew. Generally speaking, 4* crew might sometime come up for events, so they have value, especially if you can freeze them. For me, vanity crew are the 5* crew who you will never ever cite and who you would only pick in a begoldnif there was no other choice.
Uh, this only applies if you have 3-starred every mission. If you haven't done that, then you cannot warp the mission and you very much do need those 2* crew.
Thanks for that comment ... I was just going to let all that whole mess ride (didn't feel like getting into a big hairy debate this week). If I would have followed that advice right now I would have had no option but to just quit playing! Some folk seem to forget that not everybody has an All Star Lineup of multi-copy 5* crew at their beck and call. At least I don't have ...
Remember: it's just a game, not a matter of life and death!
@Cuttysark, I've had time to review your crew list. I have some suggestions about your 2* crew. The short version is that you should only need the following:
You already have four of them immortalized, so prioritize Ensign Seska.
For the explanation and background, here's why:
The foundation of every game is going to be building and replenishing resources. In Timelines, cadet challenges are a key element. If you prioritize the crew whom you can use to clear and 3* each of those missions, not only will you have access to those resources daily, you'll also be able to safely freeze immortalized crew and free up much needed crew slots. "Riker's Angels"* are central to doing that efficiently. These are the alien Starfleet women, who are therefore eligible to be used in all three weekday challenges and could clear at least one mission on Epic in each challenge. The value here is that you only have to commit resources to a few crew.
My highest recommendation is to dismiss all 1* crew immediately whenever they come your way, and also part ways with all the 2*'s who aren't necessary to help you 3* those missions. Trust me; you'll get plenty chances to collect them later, when you can more easily afford to commit your resources to them.
Ensign Ro met the criteria, but she only has one skill (CMD), which Sito covers. Likewise, Lt. Naomi Wildman also has ENG, but her other skill is DIP, whereas Seska was the only one who had SEC.
Since then, though, we've had several new additions. Today, I would replace Ensign Pazlar with either Festive Jadzia Dax or Science Officer T'Pol, since their SCI is more than sufficient for Epic nodes and their DIP, with sufficient bonuses, ought to squeak by. I favor Jadzia here, for two reasons. One is that she's easier to equip than T'Pol. The other is that she has several more traits that are going to give you node-specific bonuses in missions.
My argument in favor of Ensign Seska over Lt. Naomi Wildman surprisingly still applies. The only other new ENG option is Injured Torres, who is ENG/CMD. Since Sito still covers CMD, Seska remains the only alien woman in Starfleet with SEC.
That still leaves you needing to cover MED, however, and this unfortunately will require that you carry two additional cadets. The best choices are:
CMD Crusher (MWF, Th)
Nurse Kes (Tu, Th)
*I came up with the term as a play on Charlie's Angels, since Admiral Riker is the one overseeing the cadet challenges.
There were nodes on missions that the Angels couldn't crit, which prevented them from 3*ing every mission on Epic difficulty. However, starbase and collection bonuses might have put them over the top. I haven't looked. Just to be sure, though, focus on maxing those five. Go through with this team once you've immortalized Seska and take note of any nodes you still can't crit. Then come back and we'll see who you need. In the interim, definitely freeze:
Away Team Neelix
Commander Chakotay
Commander Riker
Off-Duty Tilly
Ensign Ro
Ensign Sato
Lt. Naomi Wildman
Lt. Tasha Yar
Stop opening packs for the time being. They won't expire, so just let them build up. In the meantime, just focus on the crew you presently have.
Work on no more than two at a time. Have a primary (a 4* or 5*, typically), and then a secondary (a 2* or 3* who you need for a specific purpose, like clearing a cadet mission) that you tinker with after you've done as much as you can on the primary for the day. Once you stop being able to do anything with the secondary, don't start working on anyone else. Continue running shuttles and trying your luck at the Gauntlet. Make sure they aren't likely to need a lot of the same things (i.e., don't work on two Bajorans simultaneously; pick two crew who have different skills). You don't want to hinder your progress on your primary because you're feeding their items to your secondary.
Try to minimize your use of the replicator. It can be tempting, but it will also be costly.
Check the faction center stores for some of the key faction-only items. You probably shouldn't spend credits on them at this point, and definitely never dilithium, but merits are worthwhile. Recommendations:
Augments - 0* Medical Experiments, 2* Science Experiments
Federation - 0* Ancient Films
Klingon-Cardassian Alliance - 2* Bloodwine (only if you're working on Klingons)
Maquis - 2* Encoded Communiques
Section 31 - 0* Holoprograms, 2* Security Codes
Terran Empire - 0* Poisoned Drink (a lesser priority)
I can use some at this point in my game ... some I can't right now. Basically, I am not grabbing any new 4 or 5* crew for now unless it is a 4/4 or 5/5 "freebie" or can be filled through the portal later with no problem with just one fuse (ie: if it's not available through the Portal I don't want it) I've also restricted myself to working on tier 5 and above crew with lower crew destined for the airlock as soon as I can replace them with crew that are better skill-wise. (PS: I am just using the Tier rating as a loose guide not as a bible since a lot of it is based on Gauntlet proficiency and I don't ever plan to do the Gauntlet.) Yet there are some "freezer crew" that I just can't afford to get rid of right now since I use them on an almost daily basis. Sure, they are junk ... but necessary junk right now for voyages and cadet chores. A lot of the 2*s are just going to have to hang around until the Cadet Challenge phase is finished. Everybody starts out the game with "junk" and have to work from there ...
I have even airlocked around 10 crew who were 'substandard' during the last few weeks. Holding off on using 'packs' is no problem since I don't buy them anyways. LOL
So, I do have a system in place. As goofy as it might seem. If one actually looks at the first 2 pages of my personal spreadsheet they might be able to divine it. "Red" is not good! If and when (?) some crew are added to the portal then those "reds" might be open for change but not for now.
Oh, on the latter post: I'm am 100% up to speed with you on that!
Remember: it's just a game, not a matter of life and death!
I can use some at this point in my game ... some I can't right now. Basically, I am not grabbing any new 4 or 5* crew for now unless it is a 4/4 or 5/5 "freebie" or can be filled through the portal later with no problem with just one fuse (ie: if it's not available through the Portal I don't want it) I've also restricted myself to working on tier 5 and above crew with lower crew destined for the airlock as soon as I can replace them with crew that are better skill-wise. (PS: I am just using the Tier rating as a loose guide not as a bible since a lot of it is based on Gauntlet proficiency and I don't ever plan to do the Gauntlet.) Yet there are some "freezer crew" that I just can't afford to get rid of right now since I use them on an almost daily basis. Sure, they are junk ... but necessary junk right now for voyages and cadet chores. A lot of the 2*s are just going to have to hang around until the Cadet Challenge phase is finished. Everybody starts out the game with "junk" and have to work from there ...
I have even airlocked around 10 crew who were 'substandard' during the last few weeks. Holding off on using 'packs' is no problem since I don't buy them anyways. LOL
So, I do have a system in place. As goofy as it might seem. If one actually looks at the first 2 pages of my personal spreadsheet they might be able to divine it. "Red" is not good! If and when (?) some crew are added to the portal then those "reds" might be open for change but not for now.
Oh, on the latter post: I'm am 100% up to speed with you on that!
Nah, your system doesn't seem goofy at all! I would, however, encourage you to play the Gauntlet. You don't have to make it any kind of priority to make it worth playing. For instance, something that often drops from the streak-of-3 loot boxes are items that your crew have open in their equipment table. Any time you don't have to craft something, that's a win. Credits drop regularly. Chronitons drop reasonably often, too. Those add up.
Comments
My Captain Idol's
My DataCore page
My Spreadsheet
https://stt.wiki/wiki/Injured_Torres
Cost : Some trainers and 4 Cadet/Faction items and 500 Honor to Fuse ( relativly cheap & fast )
Reduction bonus to training and replication cost, and Chroniton bank boost ( Uncommon Crew )
Boost Science skills ( Innovator )
Boost Engineering skills ( Jury Rigger )
Arguably the Jury Riggers is one of the hardest collections in the game to complete ...
Collections are not everyone's thing (I can take or leave them personally, though I never turn down free stuff) but she is a helpful weekday cadet (being Starfleet, non-human, and female) and leveling her up is fairly trivial. If you have all those missions completed already, feel free to do what you want, but finishing the easy collection pieces means less work in the future if you decide to change your focus, as will likely happen as your roster gets closer to being complete.
I even spent 100 DIl on a crewman Tarses once, just so i had the 25th card i needed to complete the common collection at a time i had a spare crew slot.
Using the DNA i was able to very quickly identify crew which crew and order for leveling i had to take to improve my bonusses .. focussing on 3 collection crew i completed the Common, Uncommon and Rare collections within 2 months and that really gave me a "fun" goal and gameplay boost...
The weird thing is that I have had a tough time leveling her up (along with the rest of the PITA Klingons
My Captain Idol's
My DataCore page
My Spreadsheet
Second, stop leveling your crew to 50-70 and stopping. Each crew gains more power going from level 80 to level 100 than they do going from 1-80. If you level them to 50-70 and stop, you might as well just throw the cards away. Pick a card and focus it until it's finished. Then do another. Then another. Don't worry about how many level 1 cards you pick up between now and then. Just do this. Do it now.
Thirdly, you need to go through your 3* cards and figure out who you do not use on Voyages and freeze them, too. Between this and freezing those 2* cards you should free up tons of crew space to not have to worry about it for a while.
I strongly disagree with this definition of vanity crew. There's nothing vain about keeping someone you like. On the old forum, I defined vanity crew member as one you don't care about, but represents some kind of "trophy". For me, that was primarily the 4* crew I earned from events whom I would otherwise have 86'd. As a VIP 0 player, those crew were proof of my development as a player, and of my increasing ability to compete. No one else even knew who I had, let alone cared or would have been impressed, but they represented something vain to me. I distinctly remember keeping Captain Proton Paris from the first "They Came From the Holodeck!" replay for that reason, and I know there were others.
I don't know much about the tiers, but I do think Injured Torres is valuable. She's an easy one to count toward the Jury Rigger collection. You may not care about collections, but you care about improving your crew and one key to doing that is unlocking bonuses that boost your traits. That's one of the collections that does that. Moreover, she's one of Riker's Angels (non-human woman in Starfleet), making her eligible for all of the weekday cadet challenges. Which leads me to...
Uh, this only applies if you have 3-starred every mission. If you haven't done that, then you cannot warp the mission and you very much do need those 2* crew.
Huh, I guess I've always used Marmarosa's definition, as well. So if what he described is not a vanity crew, then what term would you suggest for that?
Could you please continue the petty bickering? I find it most intriguing.
~ Data, ST:TNG "Haven"
Again, there's nothing vain about keeping someone because you like them. That is a perfectly legitimate reason. Ergo, if you like them, then there's no real reason to single them out for a derogatory classification. If you insist, then I would call them indulgences.
The same goes for collections. The ones that add skill bonuses aren't for vanity. The ones that are based on a theme you dig (for me, "Play Ball!" is one) aren't for vanity. It's the ones that are only of interest because they're a way to show off how many 5/5's one owns. (Yes, it counts as showing off even if the only one you're showing to is yourself. In fact, this might be the unhealthiest level of showing off.)
Thanks for that comment ... I was just going to let all that whole mess ride (didn't feel like getting into a big hairy debate this week). If I would have followed that advice right now I would have had no option but to just quit playing! Some folk seem to forget that not everybody has an All Star Lineup of multi-copy 5* crew at their beck and call. At least I don't have ...
My Captain Idol's
My DataCore page
My Spreadsheet
Cadet Sito Jaxa (CMD, DIP, SEC)
Festive Jadzia Dax (SCI, DIP)
Ensign Seska (ENG, SEC)
CMO Crusher (MED)
Nurse Kes (MED, DIP)
You already have four of them immortalized, so prioritize Ensign Seska.
For the explanation and background, here's why:
My highest recommendation is to dismiss all 1* crew immediately whenever they come your way, and also part ways with all the 2*'s who aren't necessary to help you 3* those missions. Trust me; you'll get plenty chances to collect them later, when you can more easily afford to commit your resources to them.
The originals were:
Cadet Sito Jaxa (CMD, DIP, SEC)
Ensign Pazlar (SCI, CMD)
Ensign Seska (ENG, SEC)
Ensign Ro met the criteria, but she only has one skill (CMD), which Sito covers. Likewise, Lt. Naomi Wildman also has ENG, but her other skill is DIP, whereas Seska was the only one who had SEC.
Since then, though, we've had several new additions. Today, I would replace Ensign Pazlar with either Festive Jadzia Dax or Science Officer T'Pol, since their SCI is more than sufficient for Epic nodes and their DIP, with sufficient bonuses, ought to squeak by. I favor Jadzia here, for two reasons. One is that she's easier to equip than T'Pol. The other is that she has several more traits that are going to give you node-specific bonuses in missions.
(Screenshot taken from the fantastic STT Crew Cost Finder.)
My argument in favor of Ensign Seska over Lt. Naomi Wildman surprisingly still applies. The only other new ENG option is Injured Torres, who is ENG/CMD. Since Sito still covers CMD, Seska remains the only alien woman in Starfleet with SEC.
That still leaves you needing to cover MED, however, and this unfortunately will require that you carry two additional cadets. The best choices are:
CMD Crusher (MWF, Th)
Nurse Kes (Tu, Th)
*I came up with the term as a play on Charlie's Angels, since Admiral Riker is the one overseeing the cadet challenges.
There were nodes on missions that the Angels couldn't crit, which prevented them from 3*ing every mission on Epic difficulty. However, starbase and collection bonuses might have put them over the top. I haven't looked. Just to be sure, though, focus on maxing those five. Go through with this team once you've immortalized Seska and take note of any nodes you still can't crit. Then come back and we'll see who you need. In the interim, definitely freeze:
Away Team Neelix
Commander Chakotay
Commander Riker
Off-Duty Tilly
Ensign Ro
Ensign Sato
Lt. Naomi Wildman
Lt. Tasha Yar
Stop opening packs for the time being. They won't expire, so just let them build up. In the meantime, just focus on the crew you presently have.
Work on no more than two at a time. Have a primary (a 4* or 5*, typically), and then a secondary (a 2* or 3* who you need for a specific purpose, like clearing a cadet mission) that you tinker with after you've done as much as you can on the primary for the day. Once you stop being able to do anything with the secondary, don't start working on anyone else. Continue running shuttles and trying your luck at the Gauntlet. Make sure they aren't likely to need a lot of the same things (i.e., don't work on two Bajorans simultaneously; pick two crew who have different skills). You don't want to hinder your progress on your primary because you're feeding their items to your secondary.
Try to minimize your use of the replicator. It can be tempting, but it will also be costly.
Check the faction center stores for some of the key faction-only items. You probably shouldn't spend credits on them at this point, and definitely never dilithium, but merits are worthwhile. Recommendations:
Augments - 0* Medical Experiments, 2* Science Experiments
Federation - 0* Ancient Films
Klingon-Cardassian Alliance - 2* Bloodwine (only if you're working on Klingons)
Maquis - 2* Encoded Communiques
Section 31 - 0* Holoprograms, 2* Security Codes
Terran Empire - 0* Poisoned Drink (a lesser priority)
Hope this helps, and good luck!
I can use some at this point in my game ... some I can't right now. Basically, I am not grabbing any new 4 or 5* crew for now unless it is a 4/4 or 5/5 "freebie" or can be filled through the portal later with no problem with just one fuse (ie: if it's not available through the Portal I don't want it) I've also restricted myself to working on tier 5 and above crew with lower crew destined for the airlock as soon as I can replace them with crew that are better skill-wise. (PS: I am just using the Tier rating as a loose guide not as a bible since a lot of it is based on Gauntlet proficiency and I don't ever plan to do the Gauntlet.) Yet there are some "freezer crew" that I just can't afford to get rid of right now since I use them on an almost daily basis. Sure, they are junk ... but necessary junk right now for voyages and cadet chores. A lot of the 2*s are just going to have to hang around until the Cadet Challenge phase is finished. Everybody starts out the game with "junk" and have to work from there ...
I have even airlocked around 10 crew who were 'substandard' during the last few weeks. Holding off on using 'packs' is no problem since I don't buy them anyways. LOL
So, I do have a system in place. As goofy as it might seem.
Oh, on the latter post: I'm am 100% up to speed with you on that!
My Captain Idol's
My DataCore page
My Spreadsheet
Nah, your system doesn't seem goofy at all! I would, however, encourage you to play the Gauntlet. You don't have to make it any kind of priority to make it worth playing. For instance, something that often drops from the streak-of-3 loot boxes are items that your crew have open in their equipment table. Any time you don't have to craft something, that's a win. Credits drop regularly. Chronitons drop reasonably often, too. Those add up.