Crafting Revamp up on tribble

[CDR Hunter]

http://forums.startrekonline.com/showthread.php?t=191020

Sounds pretty sweet.

[xivim]

wow that looks like a big improvement. I cant wait to try it out. The old Item-Upgrade system (lets be honest, it wasnt crafting) was very flawed, so im happy to see them improve upon it.

[Anton Mercer]

this is the post Mr. Hunter linked just easier to read here im so there!!
Season 3 - Upcoming Memory Alpha Changes
The Research and Development crafting system is receiving an update in Season 3 and I wanted to give some details as to what has changed and what to expect in the upcoming update. There have been a ton of great suggestions on how to improve memory alpha, and many ideas such as choosing your own bonuses are features that will come in time, but first we need to take another baby step and improve the usefulness of the system asap.

First off we’ve taken care of an obvious problem by allowing the KDF complete access to the R&D Crafting stations and have setup some in Qo’nos for the KDF to use. In addition, we’re opening up the Pi Canis sector and adding new patrol missions to allow KDF players to gather data in a more Empire-like way. We’re also starting to turn on anomalies in systems and missions so that eventually all accessible maps have equal access to crafting resources. In addition, the FED and KDF research trees are slightly different in that the KDF has a focus on Disruptor technology while the Feds have a focus on Phasers. But that is only a minor issue compared to making R&D more useful.

Crafting in STO has never been much of a system and to date has only allowed the crafting of uncommon and rare items up to Mark 10. This made crafting an interesting hobby but paled in comparison to other loot that could be found in game through other means. In addition the items that could be crafted where very few and random at best. Most of the time as you played you ended up feeling behind the curve in that by the time you could make Mk II items, you were already using Mk IV.

As part of Season 3, we are making some significant improvements to address the issues above. We are adding nearly 100 new items to memory alpha and further specializing the different research trees so that they have a focus. Here’s a breakdown of each tree:


Energy Field research now has a slant towards Engineers with Beam Arrays, Assault Weapons, Impulse Engines, Engineering Consoles, and Engineering Kits as the primary focus.

Physical Science research now has a slant towards Science Officers with Dual Beam Banks, Pistols, Deflectors, Science Consoles, and Science Kits as the primary focus.

Technology R&D now has a slant towards Tactical Officers with Dual Heavy Cannons, Rifles, Shield Arrays, Tactical Consoles, and Tactical Kits as the primary focus.

General Research now has a maximum level of 860 and has a focus on secondary weapon systems such as Torpedo and Mine Launchers, Single/Dual Cannons, and Turrets.

One of the other cumbersome aspects of R&D was the need to purchase a base level item in order to craft a new one. While interesting in theory, it was just a money sink for no reward and has been nuked. Instead of having to purchase a copy of an item, you can now craft Schematics with basic resources which can be used to fabricate any mark level of the item. So for example, to craft a Mk IV torpedo launcher, you need a Schematic: Torpedo Launcher and the appropriate amount of data. It is a subtle difference but one that makes more sense.

Another thing that has always bothered me was the fact that there seemed to be a complete randomness to how many anomalies of any given flavor you needed to make an item. This has been completely streamlined. Each research tree now uses specific anomalies at each tier (while general uses them all). In addition, any very rare item now requires specific particle traces which are also now exclusive to each tree. Here’s how they break down.

Energy Fields
Mk II – Radiation Samples
Mk IV – Antimatter Samples
Mk VI – Tetryon Particles
Mk VIII – Methogenic Particles
Mk X – Tachyon Wave Signatures
Mk XI – Chronometric Wave Signatures
Unique Particles – Anyon, Methogenic, Chronometric

Physical Science
Mk II – Mineral Samples
Mk IV – Biological Samples
Mk VI – Plasma Sample
MK VIII – DNA Sequence
MK X – Exobiological Data
MK XI – Unidentified Substance
Unique Particles – Dekyon, Trianium, Metreon

Technology R&D
Mk II – Alien Artifact
Mk IV – Unknown Alloy
Mk VI – Encoded Data
Mk VIII – Genetic Sequence
Mk X – Photonic Technology
MK XI – Technical Schematic
Unique Particles – Duderon, Betatachyon, Antithoron

General R&D
Uses all samples plus the Unique Particle - Vertion

To further streamline, the amount of each particle needed to make a particular item has been standardized. Common quality is 10 samples, Uncommon, 20 Samples, Rare 30 Samples, and Very Rare 30 samples + a varying amount of Unique Particles. This allows me to tell you without needing to look it up that a Rare Mk X Dual Beam Bank will set you back 30 Exobiological Data plus 10 Mineral Samples (for the common Schematic). (ok I looked it up anyway but I was right!)

So as you can see there has been a change to how much each item requires to make, and there has also been a change to how much each recipe will grant in Research Skill. This too has been standardized. Making common items grants 10 skill, uncommon – 20 skill, rare – 30 skill, and very rare – 50 skill. The slower pace is compensated for by the fact that all recipes require schematics which will always grant 10 skill.

To help with gathering resources, we’ve also taken a closer look at what levels anomalies are given out at. This turned out to be pretty random as well and as such has been focused to make it much more likely you’ll get anomaly data that is closer to your Captain’s level (although it is still based on the level of the mission in many cases). We’ve also adjusted each star cluster to ensure that the anomalies that are prevalent are more likely to be closer to the level of the sector. For example B’Tran Lvl 51 will now primarily give Mk X and Mk XI sample data (whereas previously it would give as low as MK VIII)

So lots of changes are on their way (including the ability to resize the crafting window). This is just a step towards the future, but a much needed one. You can look forward to more Crafting updates in the future as we begin to dig deeper into the system and provide more exciting opportunities for those who enjoy crafting to be able to make unique and interesting items. The first of these, our Crafting Set is scheduled to go live soon – so stay tuned.

I’m certain you’ll have questions – so please post them and I’ll respond when I can. No there are no Mk XII items craftable yet, but they are not available via the Emblem store either. They will be available in a future update.

Feel free to check it out when the changes hit Tribble and tell me what you think!

-dstahl

p.s. its worth a footnote to say - your existing crafting skill is not being touched. You will retain all your existing skill level.