Definitive Guide to All Classes
General Guide Terminology
Talents are ranked using tiered coding. You have a limited number of talent slots (17 on an officer, 18 on the Captain, and just 9 on regular crew) that you’ll get through the game. So, it’s important to maximise the best ones!
Ratings are contextual. I rate them on the assumption you’re picking this class for its strengths, but potentially have access to the alternatives.
S-Tier [S]. These are talents that are just superb. Now, I’m not saying you must take this, but they are absolutely what you want that class for on your ship in the first place. “Saves” are always in this tier (see below).
A-Tier [A]. Highly consider taking this if you’re doing what it’s related to. Other blues, greens and purples might take priority in your talent list though.
B-Tier [B]. It’s solid and useful, but might have some caveats or be less universally used. It can still compete for a spot in your talent list very well if you need that specific type of talent though.
C-Tier [C]. There’s nearly always a niche or a caveat involved in this tier of talent. If you absolutely intend to do a lot of what it’s related to, certainly pick it, but nearly always, a green or blue talent will do you better.
D-Tier [D]. Now, D-Tier is not necessarily bad per se. But this kind of talent is nearly always overshadowed by another option in another class or even this class. Or, it’s one that hardly ever gets used. A talent that is always ready and never going into cooldown or being selected is a talent that’s wasting a slot.
Now, some things will be subjectively higher based on your difficulty and other circumstances. For example, I rarely play on levels above Demanding, so I never see mutinies, but really high difficulties could well see them more often. So, in such circumstances, they may be more valuable than I suggest.
“Splashable”: A term I use to say, you can just dip your toe into this class (getting it to level 1, 2 or 5) on an officer and get good benefits. 2 points is the optimal splash as you get a good wad of dicepools on level 1 and level 2 of a class.
Saves
Whenever you make a dice roll of a certain type, and your dice fuck up, a save talent of that type will pop and you’ll auto-succeed instead.
Whilst the occasional failure isn’t too problematic, it rarely rains when it pours.
In things like Space travel, you’ll often make 20 odd rolls in a single journey between two waypoints; and if you fail even a quarter of those, you’ll arrive on-fire with radiation sickness every time. Saves will literally save you. Even when your pools are bigger and crew competent later down the line, there will always be things that ramp up the roll toughness, so they’ll never be wasted.
Now, ~IF~ you already have a good stock of saves in a certain category and you’ve not seen it fail for some time, then saves drop from [S] to [B] or even [C]. Keep in mind that you can re-train people and reduce the numbers of saves you need as time goes on and your dicepools fill up. A good rule of thumb is having around 2 for each category later on, but 3-4 on a novice crew.
“Initiative Boost” [B]: Shown in game as “On Initiative”, these are talents for ground combat that are not triggerable by you, but instead, at the start of a new combat round, all the Initiative Boosts you have among all your fighting crew are shuffled, and exactly one is selected randomly and applied to its owner. The opponent also does the same if they have them.
So, they tend to be nice buffs, and automatic, but be careful about grabbing too many, because you’ll usually want your best fighters to take advantage first. If you already have a good 1-2 on your team, the rating of these drops like a stone to [C] or even [D] due to competition with others of their kind.
Card Games
Card games cover a lot of activities in Star Traders. The game will draw, and then show you 5 cards based on the local danger level and other factors. Each (in theory) has a 20% chance to be selected if you go ahead with the activity, so you’ve got an advanced preview here.
You then get to decide if you want to manipulate that draw at all with talents (or just leave, if all the results look dodgy and don’t have a mission) before going ahead. What you always want to be looking at is: how dangerous is it for me to proceed? Keep an eye on cards with -4 and -5 modifiers that show up. They tend to be pretty bad, like killing a crew member (or worse, killing off a trusted contact), slapping your ship up, starting a ground combat with Xenos (which WILL get people killed), having a dangerous ship arrive, etc.
Remember that blowing a talent immediately prompts the game to make a selection afterwards (except Re-Draws), so be confident you’re okay with the potential results before you commit.
As for manipulation talents, there are four common types:
Re-Rolls [B] are the least valuable of the card manipulators, because you can re-roll a bad card into a worse card (or even the same card). But they’re better than nothing, and usually by far the easiest to get lots of, with low cooldowns.
Card Deleters [A] are the best card game manipulators, since you’re using them to BOTH kill off an undesirable option, and increase the chance of the other options coming up (since there are now 4 cards, each has a 25% chance to occur). They usually show up only in specialist classes relating to that activity, but are fairly available. You’ll want to pick up a slew for the activities you’re interested in, and don’t go wasting them on hands that have only minor penalties.
Replacers [B]: Basically, a more reliable re-roll in most circumstances. You’ll pick a card and replace it with a (usually) decent card from a limited selection (usually 1 or 2 specified in the talent). There is no guarantee this card will be picked, though, don’t expect it to be; treat it as another way to eliminate a bad thing.
Re-Draws [B] are the top tier manipulators. You ditch all 5 cards and draw again. Sometimes this is useful if the entire selection is garbage, but this doesn’t happen too often, and there’s no guarantee that the new hand will be any better. They’re nearly always only available for very skilled specialists in the field.
Notations on classes
All the below entries will have an entry like this below them:
- (Intimidate++, Evasion, Rifles [Str or Quick 25+])
This shows the dicepools that this class will give you. A ++ indicates alot of that dicepool, a + indicates a good amount, and no notation or a – shows a fairly small amount of dice. In the above case, we’re getting loads of Intimidate dice, and a small amount of Evasion and Rifles.
Also, in [Square Brackets] shows recommended attributes for that job to function at its task well. All ground combat classes will typically have Str or Quick recommended (depending on their weapon: Sniper Rifles, Pistols and Knives attack with Quickness, Assault Rifles, Swords, and Shotguns attack with Strength). Others have some talents that work optimally with Charisma, Wisdom etc.
We’ll look at attributes and what they do below:
About Attributes
Strength: If you are using a STR based melee or ranged weapon, then get as high as you can. You get extra Standard Dice out of the deal. This is not huge, since Standard Dice are unreliable, but every little helps. Basically, think of each point of Strength as +10% chance of an extra success. A difference of 10 means a guaranteed extra success. Hence, it’s safe to say a viable Assault Rifle, Shotgun or Sword user is fine with around 24+.
Captain will also use this with Tactics for violent solutions to mission problems. Double its value is also added to HP, which handily enough, melee users want.
Quickness: The most important Attribute. A ground combat character does not want less than 20, ideally 26+. Because initiative is extremely important; it is literally action points in this game; every 2 points of (Quick+Wis) is adding 1-2 Init. Furthermore, it also covers standard dice for Sniper Rifles, Pistols and Knives in the same way as Strength does for heavier weapons; and can cover both Ranged and Melee bonus defence. This does mean that these weapon users are also less stat-heavy (in theory).
Captain also uses it with Stealth for sneaky solutions to mission problems. It also offers emergency saves with Pilot or Electronics for saves in Spying and Exploring. Crazy.
Fortitude: Basically; either ignore it or max it. If it’s less than 20, it will not have any real impact on HP (it is x3.5 Fort + x2 Strength), but if a character’s total is less than 100, it’s 100 instead. For captains the total is x1.2 both for the above sum, and the minimum is 120. So assuming A stats; and 16 minimum in both; this is 105. For captains, each point is worth 4.2 HP, and Strength is worth 2.4 HP. So, as noted, at 20 FORT, or 23 STR, you notice a difference.
If you have high Strength and are likely to melee, consider putting it higher. With 30 STR, 16 FORT, you hit around 140 HP instead. Adding up to 26 FORT in this case puts you at around 180 HP (around 29% higher).
But the real power of Fort is not in HP, but in SOAK. Before armour, you reduce all damage by your Fortitude/2 (or /4 if it pierces your soak). 8 vs. 15 DR is pretty significant. But naturally, you should increase it in even numbers if you do. Importantly, this soak affects all damage, including Plasma.
Charisma: Unless your Captain is purely a combat build, you want it. It’s not a dump stat.
It can be used with Negotiate for diplomatic solutions, Command for disciplined solutions, and Stealth for certain panache solutions, so very handy in missions. It also increases rewards for Patrol, Black Market, and Blockade card games. ONLY the Captain’s Charisma matters in these cases. It also helps in Explore saves with Command as well.
Wisdom: Almost as important as Quickness, because it also provides Initiative. Since Init is the biggest stat in combat by far, this makes it highly important.
It can be used with Tactics for strategic solutions, and Negotiation for reasoning solutions. It also increases rewards for Spying, Exploring, and Salvaging card games. ONLY the Captain’s Wisdom matters in these cases. It also helps in Explore saves with Electronics, and in Spying saves with Navigation as well.
Resilience: Effectively Mental Fortitude, it provides Morale in the same way as HP. It also covers Death Saves; and provides soak against Energy Damage.
It can be used with Intimidate for Intimidation solutions. It also increases rewards for Spying and Blockading. It also helps in Explore saves with Doctor/Ship Ops, and in Blockade saves with Navigation as well.
Building a Captain: Basic Tips
Somewhat beyond the scope of the guide, but I should cover it. When you make a custom build for a captain to play in Star Traders; you’ll have to prioritise Stats (Attributes), Skills, Contacts, Ship, and Experience from A to E.
Stats: In most captains, you should ALWAYS put Stats (Attributes) up high. Stats almost never change throughout the game; but a huge number of rolls (50%+!) in the game will key off the Captain’s Stats (see above).
So, they should never, never be below B, even on a non-combat captain, and honestly make sure you have a darn good reason to dislodge them from A. Because their stats are high, Captains do make for excellent ground combatants if in combat capable classes. They might also be immortal at lower difficulties.
Skills: These are bonus points in addition to what are earned from classes. Usually, Skills should be from A to C. Pick whichever skills you’ll focus on. This is a permanent bonus to that skill’s dicepool; so, it remains useful for the whole game.
Contacts: By the mid-game, you can get plenty of contact finding talents and also use introductions. But, at the start, having a few people known is very helpful, as if you rank this too low, you’ll basically be stuck doing Faen jobs only to start. I like to keep it at C myself; but B-D is an acceptable range.
Ship: You’ll almost never use your starter for the mid or late game, so unless you are fishing for specific achievements, Ship can usually sit at D to give you a Scout Cutter. It’s fast, economical, and good at running away. A small early crew both trains up quicker and doesn’t cost you much. Starting with a big ship is a huge trap as your costs will be very high but your income will be low. If you must have a slightly meatier ship (with C), then go with Frontier Liner, it’s a nice all-rounder. Ship shouldn’t be at E: The Juror is terrible and should be avoided. The Longbolt is also not great; it is much more costly to run than a Scutter for little benefit.
Experience: There’s almost no reason to not leave XP at E. At D, it barely makes a dent, and you will level up very fast to 3~ish from just doing a handful of journeys and deliveries when you start. Keep in mind, a Level 1 crew will have failures more often in rolls to begin with. But you already read the part about saves, and how you always take them, right?
For specific advice around Captain classes, ~search~ for the class in question.
Without further ado, let’s get this party started.
Assassin
(Stealth++, Evasion, Blades+ [Str/Quick 24+])
As you might imagine, the Assassin is a pure combat class. Technically, it helps with Stealth dice, but that is of debatable utility since it’s not tested too often for most missions in my experience. Though it does boost crit and evasion (when in Stealth armour) in combat when you are stealthed. You should capitalise on the stealth as much as possible to stab people for massive damage. Unlike Sniper, Assassin is really good at this; and can quite easily get 80%~ odd crit chance on their second action as early as level 5.
✯As a Captain✯
A very challenging captain to start with, since they’ll have no useful talents at all at first level for the ship, and no trait bonuses for anything either.
However, with a +3 Initiative bonus AND Captain stats, as well as a mighty buff (and free stealth) if they start a boarding action and an officer shows up, they’ll obviously be an absolute unit in personal combat. Delegate to your officers to run the ship, and go all out on making yourself armed and dangerous.
Naturally, Assassins typically want to be bounty hunting as their primary job, so having a Bounty Hunter Officer is helpful. If you want a helpful synergy class to go with it, consider Blade Dancer and Smuggler, as well as Swordsman.
Obtained: Court Assassin, Blade Dancer and Weapons Dealer contacts.
Level 1
Smoke Bomb [B]: It’s a grenade that deals no damage; but obviously acts as an enabler for you. Pricey for 12 Initiative and it can miss, so Gliding Advance is just better. However, you should probably get it just in case you get stuck in Rank 1.
Hitman Rush [C]: It’s an initiative boost that will only go off on turn 2 or later (except in the case of the captain assassin triggering their trait), so combined with another one that will go off on turn 1, it’s not bad. It’ll raise your crit to about 40%.
First Blood [B]: Similar to Hitman Rush, it’s a turn 2 or later initiative boost. You don’t want both as they’ll compete for your second turn. I’d argue this is better since it’s a more guaranteed effect.
Venomous Blade [B]: Your basic attack. It’s solid. If you’re not stealth focused for whatever reason, pick it, and get used to using it; though for most Assassin related purposes, Fatal Blow is better.
Level 5
Fatal Blow [S]: Speaking of which. This gives you a flat +50% chance to crit (20-60% more damage if it triggers). Even if not stealthed, that’s a good chance, and if you are, it’s basically guaranteed (80-90%). And it removes buffs. The only flaw is the 1.5x Initiative cost. Still, one of the best melee attacks in the game.
Gliding Advance [A]: The other Assassin enabler, and by far the better one. You should start combat in Position 2 to use it, swapping with another Sword or Shotgun user as you do. Just 8 Initiative for +20% more damage and +10% more crit than what Smoke Bomb offers.
Never There [S]: It’s a Stealth Save. Though rarely checked, you usually don’t want to fail it if you do check it, so it’s still a save.
Silent Executioner [B]: If you’re bounty hunting, then getting a high-level edict is a good plan. Unlike military rank, you get a pretty big cash bonus from it (up to 60%!). Rank 3’s can also prevent inspections, so that’s nice.
Level 8
Targeted Killing [D]: Sometimes, this can get lucky and instantly end a space combat for you after boarding, but it’s one of less useful boarding talents overall.
Arterial Slash [D]: Kind of anti-synergistic, reducing initiative but giving bleeding. Since it also ends your Stealth Mode, it’s not very worthwhile even with 8 bleed.
Antidote [C]: Only 6 initiative I suppose, if you’re debuffed and no-one else can help.
Level 11
Death Among Shadows [B]: A pretty big debuff, and one only two ways in the game to bring a target forward. As you hit the front, this tends to be more useful in your hands than for the Bounty Hunter. Excellent for preparing an annoying rifle or pistol user for death.
Dissection [A]: This is what Arterial Slash wishes it was. Hit two targets with massive damage to both (and if you crit, its about +100%!). Just in case they lived, they have a bit of bleeding too. Worth using on your second round of stealth.
Level 15
Gut The Leadership [C]: Allows you to chew through boarders a bit quicker. Guaranteeing an officer death is nice, but there are still better boarding talents to use.
Notes
Assassin should consider going Pistol/Knife. Knives only lose about 15% damage and a bit of piercing (which crits will compensate for), but open up Pistoleer, Spy, Saboteur, and Bodyguard as options for synergy on officers and captains AND it means you can dump strength and purely use QUICKNESS. Fading Shot from Pistoleer or Slashing Retreat from Swordsman are very useful to have, so you can re-use Gliding Advance. They can also be Smugglers really well if you want more utility.
Blade Dancer
(Blades++, Negotiate+, Tactics) [Charisma 25+, Str/Quick 25]
Provides a decent splash opportunity for Blade using officers. BD is a weird but interesting bridge between blades (Assassin, Zealot, Swordsman) and charisma-based classes like Diplomat, Merchant, Smuggler, or Spy. It provides some decent general utility but also gives some combat stuff. The focus here is mostly on AoE attacks, none of which are terribly amazing, but hey, AoE sword.
They are pretty MAD (multi-ability dependant) though. You need the usual combat stat depending on the blade used AND you need Charisma for them to truly shine. Arguably Wisdom as well.
Obtained: Courtesan and Troubador contacts; Spice Festival Rumours.
Level 1
Feint [S]: A decent enough debuff that comes with a bit of damage. The nicest part is the -4 Initiative, whilst only costing 6-9 or so from yourself. Furthermore, it works at Rank 3 and pushes you forwards into Rank 2 for your other talents to work if you’ve been knocked back. Very solid utility. Its innate accuracy also makes it very useful in the hardest difficulties due to everything being harder to hit- if playing at Impossible difficulty, this is easily the best sword talent in the game.
Confrontation Stance [B]: A berserk-type power. A bit risky, but it’s a good buff.
Whisper Dance [B]: The initiative boost version of the above. You can stack them to go full glass cannon if you want.
Blade Walker [B]: Spicing isn’t too expensive usually, but the real deal of this is the big morale bonus from you eating swords or something for entertainment. Will usually reduce the amount of time your crew are snorting lines, so that’s good.
Keen Empath [B]: Funnily enough it’s probably more important to reveal contact traits than it is your own crew, so this has some value. A handful of them are obvious (i.e., this guy is offering Assassin hires) but usually it’s a lot harder to tell. Blade Dancer’s version also cools down at double speed compared to the other classes with this ability, so they’re a good candidate to do this job.
Level 5
Squall of Blades [C]: It hits two enemies. One of the earliest ways to do so, but in exchange, it’s a fairly mediocre attack.
Esteemed Guest [A]: There’s quite a lot of missions that ferry people around, so this is free cash for those. Can’t argue.
Appeal to Honour [S]: Negotiate Save. Good as usual.
Level 8
Murmurs of Renown [C]: There’s usually better talents for finding 0 Rep contacts, but this is okay if you’ve got nothing else to get on your BD.
Dramatic Performance [B]: Speaking of better talents, this is one, right on the same class and level. You go spicing more often than specific missions, and this also reduces your costs.
Welcoming Rights [B]: A recruit talent. You should always have a recruit talent to hand somewhere on the crew when fishing for new staff. BD might have space.
Level 11
Show of Confidence [C]: A 3x debuff remover + morale + small buff. It’s alright, but the BD should probably use their turns stabbing things.
Forbidden Edge [A]: The much better version of the earlier berserk flavoured powers, this only costs 4 Initiative and gives a wide-ranging assault buff; notably, +25% Armour Piercing, +25% Damage is huge (see Swordsman section). You will cause yourself to bleed slightly, however.
Ritualised Retreat [B]: Cargo Lost on Black Market is one of the worst outcomes. This unique save is niche, but you’ll appreciate it when it goes off. Obviously useless if you’re entirely legal and above-board 100% of the time.
Level 15
Thousand Cuts [B]: I believe this is the only Hit-All talent in the game. Individually, it’s not very strong, because you want to focus on cutting down dangerous targets, but it’s an interesting novelty, and the bleed is decent.
Bodyguard
(Tactics-, Evasion+, Pistols+, Blades+ [Quick 24+])
A bridge class for officers, in this case for tying together the Knife and Pistol style. Not all that great as crew member, since they’ll have relatively low dice pools for everything. The talents of bodyguard are all about defence (obviously) and they can also mess up enemy positioning quite well.
Obtained: Magnate, Militant, Judicial, and some High Prince(ss) contacts.
Level 1
One Step Ahead [S]: A Tactics save. These are fairly common among regular crew, so you might not need this on your bodyguard. But hey, it’s still a save.
Protective Instincts [B]: A very decent initiative boost, makes you tougher and faster.
Screening Fire [A]: Excellent Pistol talent. -20% all damage, -10% Accuracy is great for shutting down a hazardous target. You can knock swordsmen away too! Worth the 1.5x Initiative cost (on Pistols that’s not much anyways).
Low Blow [C]: An okay Blade talent. Relying on 25% Stun isn’t going to be great, and it’s a meh de-buff, but you could do worse.
Tactical Shove [B]: Interesting utility. Remove an ally’s debuff and put them into a potentially better position along with a small buff to defence.
Level 5
Hamstring Slice [B]: A good blade talent. Pinning, -10% damage, and -2 Initiative is a good selection. Pinning a foe in a useless position is handy.
Body Shot [A]: Another great pistol talent. Knock back AND pin in the same attack is super handy. You might even stun as well!
Honour Guard [C]: Used to be a cool tanking ability, but now it’s a Defensive Support ability; giving an ally behind the Bodyguard a chance to negate being hit. It’s okay if you’re in a desperate spot, but a bit niche.
Level 8
Inspiring Rally [A]: AoE Debuff removal and Morale restore on the same talent? I’ll take it! Sold!
Defensive Striker [B]: A counterattack setup. Cheapest of its kind due to Initiative rebate, but also the most nondescript.
Preeminent Security [A]: There’s quite a lot of missions that ferry people around, so this is free cash for those. It’s about the only utility this class has, but it’s good.
Level 11
Strategic Reset [B]: If you need to clear debuffs on your frontliners, this is a super-cheap way to do so, effectively just 5 initiative.
Everwatch [B]: Lifesaver talent. Bodyguard isn’t great at it, but still, when the RNG gods hate you and you’re out of card deletion/reroll talents but need to keep going anyway, having 1-2 of these on the crew is helpful.
Bounty Hunter
(Intimidate++, Evasion, Rifles [Str or Quick 25+])
A powerful combat class with a spot of useful utility. Funnily enough, they usually make for a better Sniper than the actual Sniper class (lol), though they can also use Assault Rifles very well too. Very splashable for officers looking for good ground combat skills and scariness. Captains and Officers with BH can combo it nicely with Commander and Exo-Scout/Soldier. BH can also naturally go on your ship’s Quartermaster since its bonus Intimidate.
✯As a Captain✯
However, this is really mediocre. Bounty Hunter itself is a nice class, but the captain bonuses are ~tame~ at best. BH as a whole usually has no problem with Accuracy since they’re usually snipers or back-row, and 2 more initiative isn’t a great deal. Obviously, more cash, rep, and XP from bounties is all well and good if you’re going to focus on that, but they’re also quite small bonuses.
Obtained: Ex-Bounty Hunter, Coalition Liaison contacts. The Arbiter (usually).
Level 1
Steadfast Aim [S]: The reason they’re better snipers than Snipers. You fire a basic shot, but give yourself a massive buff in the process. Giving 20% bonus damage, 20%+ to-hit, and 20% piercing to yourself for 2 turns is HUGE.
Lethal Trap [B]: Far less exciting than Steadfast Aim. It’s a fairly minor debuff, but you may as well use it. The pinning is the main feature.
Unwavering Attention [S]: It’s an Intimidate Save. Scary boi is scary.
Abiding by Death [B]: If you’re bounty hunting, then getting a high-level edict is a good plan. Unlike military rank, you get a pretty big cash bonus from it (up to 60%!). Rank 3’s can also prevent inspections, so that’s nice.
Blood Game [A]: If you have a good ground combat crew, this is fantastic to have, since you can board without closing to range 1 or using an assault shuttle. Before Assault Shuttles existed, this was actually one of the few ways to board at distance.
Level 5
Tireless Pursuit [C]: Since the last thing a BH needs is their bounty getting away, it can be worth nailing a torpedo launcher to your ship and using this on the first turn if you’re heavy on that type of mission. Not important for most other captains, and in general, it is rather rendered obsolete by stuff like Flash Charge.
Hunter’s Challenge [C]: You can draw an enemy forward, out of position with it. Only Assassin and BH can do this. Sadly, it can’t hit slot 4. Pulling a rifle guy out of slot 3 and demoralising them is okay. Not sure if it’s worth 10 initiative though.
Unfaltering Ire [A]: This, however, is VERY worth 10 Initiative. Strip buffs and give -25% Accuracy and Damage debuff to TWO targets? Yes please.
Red Badge [B]: Bounty Hunting always pisses off the bounties faction when you kill them (funny that), but this helps eliminate that problem. It’s just business, right?
Level 8
Sustained Fire [C]: Though Bleed is sort of better than poison (especially if you can hit a pistol guy; its trash on Snipers); DoT’s are never great to wait for in STF.
Resolute Hound [C]: Generally, someone else on the combat team should be removing your debuffs for you, so you can keep damaging things, but in a pinch, this is an alright generic self-heal with an alright buff attached for 8 initiative.
Cold Blooded Threats [B]: As BH has lots of Intimidate, this can mean lots of very demoralised and useless crew after boarding. And the BH should probably on the boarding party and has Blood Game too. So pretty good.
Level 11
Frag Grenade [B]: Grenades are never bad, and this is no exception. Does a good wad of damage, some negative initiative. One of the ways of bleed application that’s actually probably worth it, since its 7 bleed to 2 targets.
Shredding Shots [C]: Possibly okay if there’s a rank 3 pistoleer annoying you, but otherwise, a fairly mediocre attack.
Level 15
Realm’s Justice [B]: Ship tithes and prize possession are usually expensive and I skip by them. BH, however, has one of the best ways to do it with this, as they only pay 50% of the ship value and tend to go ship hunting quite often, which makes it worthwhile if you have a lot of liquid wealth in your pocket.
Combat Medic
(Doctor++, Pistols+ [Quick 20+])
Combat Medic is rather boring class. Obviously, the main benefit is providing on-ground-combat healing, which to be fair, they really excel at.
Having it as a second job on your Doctor means that said doctor can be a one-man wonder in the med-bay from all the Medical skill points you’ll be amassing, and it’s an easy way to give them pistols for combat utility.
But, as I mention in the Doc section, its ~usually~ better to have a few doctors rather than a single uber-doctor, and I would usually recommend having Combat Medic combined with other pistol using classes to maximise its benefit (as you’re lacking Evasion and don’t have much attack variety).
Obtained: Chaesin Researcher and Gestalt Technologist contacts.
Level 1
First Aid [S]: It’s a medical save. It saves lives. So, save it with your points.
Bio-Poison Slugs [B]: A very mediocre attack. Some poison and small debuff. If you have no other pistol support classes, take it anyway as it’s better than a basic shot, but otherwise use something else.
E-Suture [B/A]: The only AOE heal, arguably the class highlight, but it heals a very, very low amount. Even with a lot of doctor ranks, it’s no more than about 15%. Still, it has a lot of utility against late-game and high difficulty fights.
Cleansing Purge [B]: Less heal than Doctor’s Field Surgery, but it also hits morale and clears status effects (which is helpful to get together). Still, quite a low amount.
Level 5
Vaccination Watch [C/A]: If you’re fighting Xeno in ground combat (you absolute madman), then this is good. But, it’s mostly useless for human enemies. In specifically tough fights with lots of plasma and bio-poison, though, it’s great.
Toxin Terror [D]: Hits 2, and strips a bit of morale and initiative. Usually there’s better things you can be doing (like using the below grenade).
Bio-Poison Grenade [A]: Very solid grenade. Comes with excellent debuffs, good damage, poison, initiative stripping. In my opinion, the best thing about CM.
Bio-Agent Bomb [D]: Since you only get to use 2 boarding talents usually, this is not the one you want to pick (lol). Some crew and morale damage. If you’re lucky and hit a low morale ship or are a pirate, it might work, but meh.
Level 8
Lifeline [A]: The best single target heal in the game (you might even heal 40-50%!), and also gives +2 Initiative and 50% debuff resist. Truly, a fantastic ability for ground combats. The only missing part is that it doesn’t remove debuffs, but…
Flatline [A]: This provides AoE Debuff removal, and you even get free morale for your troubles. Flatline: The perfect parallel line to the Lifeline (lol).
Level 11
Snakebite [D]: A pretty bleh ability. The level 1 Pistoleer skill Pinning Shot gives a better debuff. No bonus to hit or damage. The only possible benefit is knocking a melee guy out of position. But… you should be throwing grenades or healing.
Level 15
Flechette Rounds [B]: Introduced in recent patch 320 as a new capstone, it’s lotta dot (lol). Since pistols are fast, this also reduces Deflection, and hopefully your CM has good initiative, this makes a decent Bio-Poison Slug replacer, if you must attack on your CM. DoT’s are still mediocre in Star Traders, but at least this mitigates a lot of the issues, so go wild if you want it.
Commander
(Command++, Intimidate, Tactics, Non-Combat [Cha 25+])
I’m Commander Shephard and this my favourite guide in the Farfallen Rim.
Jokes aside, Commander is all about making your ship go brrrr whilst making your crew happy. With the biggest Command pool gain in the game (strange that), they’re always handy to have in space combat. They also have a handful of Crew Combat buffs, but using them requires your officers to splash in combat classes of course, since the commander is itself lacking in any combat dice. A random crewman commander should not be joining a fight normally.
✯As a Captain✯
Commanders make for good captains, go figure. Your ship is more accurate, dodgier, and slightly resistant to debuffs in battle. You can and should rock 32 Charisma and Wisdom. A captain commander also has the stats to pull off bringing a Commander into a crew combat quite adequately. There are better, more unique captain trait bonuses, but this one is solid across the board. Also; a Captain Commander is one of the few that can possibly fire his Quartermaster if he feels so inclined.
Obtained: Ex-Naval Commander, Starport Commander contacts.
Level 1
Aura of Command [S]: A command save. Need I say anything?
Steady Hands [A]: Crippling effect purge, morale restore, and a good buff all rolled into one. Of course, restore talents are not killing the enemy faster or preventing problems in the first place, but this is one of the best ones due to the buff.
Discerning Glance [A]: A recruit talent. You should always have a recruit talent to hand somewhere on the crew when fishing for new staff. Commander is the only one who can get it at first level, and should probably make the room.
Loyalty Rousing [S]: A fantastic talent. Prevention is the best medicine, and deserters due to low morale are a sickness we don’t need. Popping it after battle kills the problem dead. And Commander really gets work out of it.
Rallying Aura [B]: A global AoE buff for your ground team that everyone appreciates, and gives morale as well. Fairly low power, but still decent.
Level 5
Quell Mutiny [D]: I’ve literally never seen a mutiny. But this is one of the better prevention talents if it does happen. Still niche.
Barked Order [B]: A single target de-buff and knockback rolled into one. A little pricey in initiative, but excellent for nerfing angry swordsmen and Xenos.
Inspiring Squadron [A/D]: The first Strike Craft talent on this list, and it’s a great one. Obviously, if you’re not in a carrier, it’s useless, but if you are, this helps them live.
Level 8
Bolster [B]: Just 6 initiative to clear debuffs and give a big morale boost to a single target. Rallying Aura is better, of course, but use this if just 1 crew is redlining.
Shrewd Dealings [A]: On a Commander with good charisma, this has a very high chance to reveal a contact’s trait. So, it’s useful to have.
Precision Action [A]: Clears BOTH types of cripples. Useful purely due to that!
Level 11
Scorn [A]: -4 Initiative to two enemy targets for 8 of your own is very good. Gives a bit of a strange debuff as well.
Co-Ordinated Fire [S]: Can you say “MASSIVE DAMAGE”? Not ~quite~ as good as Firing Orders, but pretty darn close when you want to shoot suckers down; which considering you’re using this in space combat, is always.
Level 15
Warning Shots [C]: Not good for a capstone. Reduces your own ships damage for a mediocre debuff and ongoing damage. It has some niche use if you’re also a pirate, or you are attempting to conscript on higher difficulties, as it will help keep your prize intact for longer and give a higher chance of lost morale.
Crew Dog
(Ship Ops++, Repair, Gunnery, Non-Combat)
Ain’t nothing but a hound dog. With a spanner. In actual fact, Crew Dogs are often a point of contention in STF players. Should you keep them at all?
Well, personally I think a couple is fine, but many would disagree and feel you can manage perfectly fine with just Mechanics and E-Tech’s to provide the Ship Ops Pool (and Wing Techs if running a Carrier).
Thing is, they still provide a nice generic bevy of dice, two commonly needed saves, and a bunch of card game re-rolls, so I don’t think they’re wasted. Oh, did I mention that they also !!PARTY HARD!! (lol). Obviously, a Crew Dog is not an Officer and should never be promoted though (so much for career prospects!).
Obtained: At literally any planet or station.
Level 1
Safety Protocols [S]: It’s a Ship Ops save. Crew Dog (and Quartermaster) are the only ones who get this at Level 1, and QM should get Intimidate usually.
Failsafe Protocols [C]: The least exciting ship power in the game. Just clears ship cripples. That’s it. But it’s available at level 1, I guess?
Methodical Sweep [A]: Patrol Re-roll. Until you get some Military Officers, this could be your best friend of a talent, and it remains useful. I call this A-tier despite it being a re-roll due to its near-instant availability on start.
Recovery Plan [B]: Salvage re-roll. As above, but with Scavengers. Less useful than Methodical Sweep though, as Salvage is kinda dangerous for a novice crew.
Relaxing Leave [B]: If you have a Dog with good Charisma (20+), grab it. They’ll entertain everyone and reduce the time your guys spend snorting lines.
Level 5
Talk in the Hall [A/B]: Free, reliable rumours. Can’t argue. Much more useful to captains who rely on them for their livelihood, of course (Traders and Scavengers).
Hawkish Siege [B]: Blockade Re-roll. Unless you’re a Bounty Hunter or Pirate, Blockade is the least used orbital type. But it’s here if you need it.
Scrap Procedures [C]: A small bit of extra cash on occasion when Salvaging. Okay.
Level 8
Battle Damage Repair [S]: Among the most useful of the Dog talents. Your Engineer can only fix so much by themselves post battle, and only dogs can help them. Can and will save you a lot of money in the long run.
Transitory Fix [B]: Electronics save. Your E-Tech’s normally have that in hand, but they also have a lot more things they want to spend their talents on, so the dogs can help share the saves burden quite easily.
Engine Lockdown [C]: If your Void Engine is smacked by something nasty, this can be a lifesaver. It bizarrely also boosts rad damage output. But losing 2 reactor points in the process is not a terribly great exchange.
Level 11
Veteran Clarity [C]: Purge crew, get a bit of crit, and a tiny bit of morale protection. Nothing to write home about, but it’s a thing.
Diplomat
(Negotiate++, Intimidate, Non-Combat, [Cha 28+, Wis 25+])
A negotiate bot; a lot of missions can test Negotiate, but ironically, it’s not a natural skill for most captains, so a Diplomat splash or officer is usually very viable. Diplomats also help you get lots of cash and keep your crew (and contacts) happy, so they’re never a bad hire.
Keep in mind that officers and crew are ONLY providing dice-pool support if they happen to be a Diplomat helping with mission related roll: it’s the captain’s stats that matter for most of the important rolls. Even so, it’s still important to have good Charisma and Wisdom on all diplomats to maximise their talents. As sensible captains always have super stats, they make for excellent diplomats.
✯As a Captain✯
Speaking of which, if you actually start with a Diplomatic Captain, you get an absolutely superb bonus of constantly getting more, and losing less reputation. Rep is easy to lose and hard to gain, so it’s a great buff. You can also start with 33 Charisma, so the captain’s Upstaged Success is giving EVEN more rep. Also, you get Warm Invitation for free, constantly (as if you had 5 NEG), so you usually don’t need to take it on anyone else, saving a few skill points.
Obtained: Politician, Emissary and Senate Liaison contacts.
Level 1
Settlement [S]: Negotiate Save. As always, it’s a save, so it’s good.
Winning Compromise [S]: Diplomats have a lot of negotiate (funny that), so this can give you as much as 40% extra cash from missions. Who doesn’t want cash?
Silver Tongue [C]: See Deserving Rank for MO. Mil Rank is nice, but usually not essential unless after specific ships.
Expose Quality [B]: Funnily enough it’s probably more important to reveal contact traits than it is your own crew, so this has some value. A handful of them are obvious (i.e., this guy is offering Assassin hires) but usually it’s a lot harder to tell.
Level 5
Hand That Feeds [A]: Paying your crew always raises morale, but this makes them even happier about it. Maybe you give them golden envelopes or something.
Upstaged Success [S]: Rep is good. You want Rep. And Diplomats need CHA, so this should nearly always be taken for that +20-30% Rep!
Warm Invitation [B]: More useful earlier than later (eventually, your e-techs can find a lot of contacts for free). However, introductions still remain valuable as they come with bonus rep, and from someone who already trusts you, their mate will also trust you a lot automatically and give you better stuff, so it’s still solid.
Adept Mediation [B]: If you’re doing Diplomat transport and dealmaking type missions a lot, this will be invaluable. Not much to say of it.
Level 8
Magnanimous Victory [C]: If you want to let enemy ships go after beating them up, then take it. But unless you’re really trying to save face hard, go for ransom.
Legal Pressure [B]: Speaking of which. Not quite as good on Diplomat as some other options, since your Intimidate might not be as good, but hey, free cash.
Unyielding Force [S]: Intimidate Save. Need I say more?
Vindication Pact [D]: Buying forgiveness is usually obscenely expensive. OBSCENELY. So, this can have crazy value (like 300K+!) but it’s still ultra-super niche. Keep in mind that Estelle Brookstrom can, just once, give you a free forgiveness pass with a faction when you’re in the mid-game. Often that can be all you need, rendering this even less useful.
Level 11
Political Hooks [C]: Now, personally, I don’t tend to get too involved in individual faction conflicts as there usually isn’t much direct benefit to the player if your favourite faction wins: mainly you do it to make certain valuable contacts gain (and not lose) influence. However, if you do get involved, this is useful.
Compelling Conscription [S/C]: Conscription boost talent. I don’t usually feel a need for it myself, but it gets vastly better on higher difficulty levels, because enemy crew will often outlevel yours and you’re more likely to lose guys in battle. For high difficulty levels, it pays to have a free bunk to abuse this, but for regular play at lower levels it is not needed for the most part. Do not conscript without a talent ready regardless; conscripts are awful morale hits without the talent.
Doctor
(Doctor++, Tactics, Command)
The other starting officer. Since they have skills that remain critical through the game, and talents that are always useful (and rare), they’re someone you probably want to keep initially unless their stats are shit. People are always getting sick in space from weird gravity, radiation and parasites and junk.
However, there is no requirement to stay using a Doctor Officer; as long as you’re willing to have a 2-4 medical classes on the crew to boost the medical dicepool, you can happily dump them. This is actually most efficient in the long run, since each one can take saves and assisted care whereas uber-doc officer will only ever have 1-2 saves in total.
Of course, if you feel like you must have a Doctor officer, they naturally synergise with Combat Medic; but that’s also not critical since Doctor is not locked to any weapon. Any officer can take Doctor (bizarrely and hilariously) since it doesn’t key off any stats, just the skill. I’ve had a very successful Sniper Doctor!
Obtained: Chaesin Doctor or Academy Doctor contacts. Academy Graduation Rumours going off on a planet.
Level 1
Medical Staff [S]: It’s a save. For one of the most tested things. Super important!!
Treat Wounded [D]: You probably shouldn’t be using this in space battles. There are more important things to be spending your single talent a turn on, like shooting the enemy ship better! Also, Medical Ward exists (and should be preferred).
Field Medic [B/D]: If your Doctor is getting a combat class and is involved in ground fights, get it. The debuff removal is great, the heal is good. If the doctor is not fighting in ground combats, obviously skip this.
Assisted Care [S]: There’s always crew damage. You will use on-planet healing a lot. A 30% discount on that is NOT to be sniffed at. Just get it. On every Doctor.
Level 5
Medical Ward [A]: Much, much better than using Treat Wounded in the midst of a ship battle. Especially if you’ve got a good medbay. This talent is another argument for multiple doctors, in fact, as they can all use it after battle.
Healers Intuition [C]: 30-50% ish chance to learn traits. As usual, not hugely important (and Captain can find crew traits on their own with CHA) so it’s a luxury talent.
Life Saver [A]: The earliest you can get a lifesaver, and thematic. If your Doc has got the other essentials, go ahead. He’s also better at it than most other classes.
Level 8
Generous in Service [B]: If you have an awesome med-bay, it’s free cash. Full time medical ship is actually a possible strategy some people have tried (lol).
Voice of Reason [D]: See Calming Speech for QM. Mutiny basically never happens in my experience, but this will stop it if it does, and this is one of the better ones.
Professional Respect [S]: It’s a Command save, always helpful.
Level 11
Solace in Battle [D]: As usual, Healing talents in space battles are usually the last resort. But again, this is a decent one if you must use one.
Sawbones Seeker [B]: A card replacer for exploration. Abandoned Lab for sci-data is fine, and you can use it to replace a bad card as usual.
Level 15
Medical Reset [S]: Added in the recent patch 320, this has beaten the heck out of Combat Medic’s old previous best heal setup in the game, by offering a global, whole-team full debuff remove plus a triple power heal of 45+7/doctor skill-rank. At level 15, when you get the skill, that’s 45+98 (143!!!!). Okay, so it’s 20 Initiative, so you won’t do much else in the turn, and maybe get a penalty. But, worth it.
Electronics Tech (E-Tech)
(Electronics++, Ship Ops, Gunnery, Non-Combat)
I call them operators, since these are the guys that you always see at the bridge consoles tapping buttons and relaying reports, right? E-Techs are semi-important crew like Gunners. Obviously, this is another class that should probably never be an officer, though if they turn out with godlike stats, you can consider it (typically adding Spy and Pistoleer as the other classes). Most ships want to run with at least 3 E-Techs. Add +1-3 more if you have no Crew Dogs or use a lot of Electronics dice. They have a lot of REALLY good utility talents.
Obtained: Any Luxury Population, High-Tech Industry, or Orbital Station zone.
Level 1
Hotwire [S]: Electronics Save. What you have these guys for, duh.
Alert Scanner [B]: Free rumours. Less reliable than the Crew Dog one, but also tested somewhat more frequently. Much more useful to captains who rely on them for their livelihood, of course (Traders and Scavengers).
Signature Jammer [A]: At least one E-Tech should take this at 1st level. It can prevent a fair bit of reputation loss from angry ships, so all E-Techs should eventually get it.
Storm Shielding [B]: Most basic of the anti-storm talents, and again, at least a couple of your crew should have them. E-Techs have a lot of other priorities though.
Buzzing Wires [A]: Black Market Card Deleter. Unless you’re a smuggler or explorer, also one of the least used Deleters, but hey, it’s a deleter.
Level 5
Wide Sweep [B]: Spying Re-Roll. Not much to say of it, but it’ll always get used.
Static Talks [D]: Not important: Alert Scanner is likely to go off a lot more.
Weakened System [B]: Salvage cash and intel boost. Free stuff, can be a lot. Good.
Hunt and Seek [B]: Among the most basic of Strike Craft Boosts, but still very helpful to make sure your bombers hit and murder things on a carrier.
Level 8
Vigilant Scanners [S]: One of THE BEST space combat talents in the game, bar none. Just makes you avoid more hits whilst connecting with your own. As it’s also on your E-Techs, it means you can use it a lot without fear too. Get several copies.
Listening Post [A]: Every time you land, you get a 15-40% odd percent chance to find a new contact. Absolutely mental, as it triggers quite often and you can have a few copies of it. The only problem is that, quite often, you’ll end up discovering so many contacts with this that introductions stop working, which is a shame, since they provide nice bonus rep. So, use with care, but it’s still excellent.
ECCM Surge [C]: Not that great, though it helps you shoot down enemy fighters. More value in the late game for spoilery reasons.
Level 11
Boosted Shields [C]: If pirates are getting you down with Burner skid and plasma cannon spam, this is helpful. Rather niche, but helps against crew damage.
Clink of Credits [A]: It’s a Spying Replacer. Again, as E-Tech’s are fairly common on most crews, this is pretty good to have, gets free cash. I up-rank it for that reason.
Level 15
Knock From The Void [A]: Tell those angry bombers to get lost (and they listen!). It’s good to have a couple of copies in case you’re molested by carriers.
Engineer
(Repair++, Electronics+, Non-Combat)
The third officer, if you start the game with a ship that can use 3 officers. I nearly always start with Scout Cutter myself, so I don’t usually get one. I would also say that, whilst a chief engineer is thematic and a sci-fi staple, it’s not actually very optimal to have one in Star Traders, as for Repairs and Electronics, you want to gather as many in your pool as you can and not splash with other classes, which is limiting what your officer can do. After all, Engineers are here to save you money with repairs and parts. Ships break a lot, so they save you a lot. Nuff said.
Also, you don’t want entirely Engineers. 1-3 is enough for most craft, and then you should top up the rest of your Repair needs with Mechanics and Crew Dogs. That’s because you get no Ship Ops dice from these guys: they refuse to carry crates around, that’s what minions are for.
Obtained: Military Commander, Science Officer and Ship Architect contacts. Academy Graduation rumours going off.
Level 1
Attentive Overhaul [S]: Repair save. It’s probably the most called upon type in space travel. Things ARE ALWAYS breaking!
Unrivalled Patch [B]: The best talent for in-battle repair. If something has slapped you up good or you’re about to win, it’s very helpful to pop it. But make sure other talents are up first. Killing and Surviving talents are always the highest priority.
Brace for Impact [C]: Speaking of surviving, here’s a talent for it. It’s not a very great one though, unless you already have obscene Armour Ratings. Most of the time, you want more dice than armour, and ships are built that way, but it’s okay.
Port Maintenance [A]: Saves you money. Sometimes a hell of a lot of it if your engineer picks the Void Engine to fix in his random roll. Not essential, but good.
Level 5
Assisted Installation [A]: Saves money. Though you’ll replace parts less than you repair parts, you’ll still want your Engineers and Mechanics to have this.
Warfare Patch [S]: Saves more money. Engineer will heal 3 parts for up to 40~ish% after battle with this, making it very, very solid. If you’re playing well, this, with your Crew Dog support, will actually often be all the ship repairs you need.
Overclock Reactor [C]: Use this if you ~really~ need to change range in space battles, as you can still fire all your weapons and move. Not an amazing pick, and it damages your crew… but has its uses.
Boarders Demolition [B/D]: A solid boarding talent, giving a general debuff, and allowing you to more easily kill off the enemy. Engineers don’t usually board though, so only pick it if you’re building a Range-1 Interdictor ship or you have an Engineer officer on your boarding crew. Otherwise, useless.
Level 8
Stormhunter [B]: Space storms are very dangerous and add A LOT to the difficulty of rolls you make, and hurt a lot when they hit. So always have a couple of crew with anti-storm talents. Engineer can do it if you like; and his actually gives you a bonus in the process.
Hard Bargain [B]: The ONLY way to get talent discounts on buying new ships. Ships cost a lot of money, so 10% is a lot of saving. As you hardly buy ships more than 2-4 times in a game, it’s niche as all hell, but you want it when you want it.
Conduit Thought [S]: It’s a save for Electronics. Hopefully, your E-Tech’s should have this covered, but hey, the more the merrier.
Astounding Find [B]: If you’re going salvaging, this is an alright replacer.
Contemplative View [B]: If you have the means to gather science (exploring typically), then this is more cash for it. Obviously higher value for Scientist Captain.
Level 11
Perilous Study [D]: Get XP for finding a Xeno ship. Now, you don’t usually ~want~ to find a Xeno ship… but I guess if you’re a Xeno-Hunter captain, go for it.
Unforeseen Discovery [C]: Explore replacer. It’s alright.
Level 15
All The Power [C]: The biggest Escape boost in the game, but not the best talent to use to Escape (that’s Spy’s Bolt). Hopefully, your Navigators have you covered already with Skip Off The Void and Fast Getaway by this point, since this one is damaging. But take it if you like.
Exo-Scout
(Explore+, Evasion, Rifles+ [Str or Quick 25+])
I can see the Xeno’s… think I should run away now.
A Hybrid Soldier and Xeno-Focused Explorer, Exo-Scout is a great combat character splash for an officer, making ground combat against Xeno’s a bit less dangerous and also being quite powerful against human foes whilst getting some Explore. Has some of the best rifle skills (and buffs) in the game, bar none, so even if you’re sensibly avoiding Xeno’s and exploring rarely, they’ll still be handy.
Obtained: Retired Explorer and Gestalt Explorer contacts.
Level 1
Steady Mobility [S]: Just when you thought Steadfast Aim was the best rifle attack in the game, surprise! Now, true, this doesn’t have a to-hit bonus, but it instead comes with more damage and piercing, and some defence and debuff resist. Radical. And it works just as well against humans as it does with Xenos.
Aggressive Advance [S]: But wait… there’s more! This one gives you accuracy, and more piercing, and more debuff resist. With 50% Piercing from these two attacks, one of the big issues of fighting Xenos, their armour carapace, is much less scary.
Bio-Agent Flechette [A]: The least impressive of the trio of dangerous rifle attacks, but obviously you use this when you’ve got the other two buffs up, to debuff the Xeno’s and poison them to death.
Scout’s Intuition [S]: Explore Save. Failing explore is dangerous, so saves are super.
Persistent Search [B]: More cargo from Exploring. As usual, it might not be ~good~ cargo, but no-one’s gonna argue with free stuff.
Level 5
Burrowing Shots [C]: Compared to the already available stuff, this one is a little lacklustre, since it’s limited to Xeno’s and it’s a 1.5x Initiative one. But it acts as a decent opening attack and initiative debuffer, and makes them bleed a fair bit.
Keen Senses [A]: Explore Re-roll. Fairly rare, this, so pick it up if you’ll use it.
Level 8
E-Shock Grenade [A]: Absolutely rocking debuff grenade, possibly the best one.
-25% damage and Accuracy, and chance to Stun, and 20% Deflect Reduction, all in one package with good damage? What’s not to like?
Know Thy Enemy [B]: Another limited to Xeno’s attack, but it’s still a good one with massive debuffs attached if you connect. Obviously use it after buffing yourself.
Level 11
Plas-Charge Slugs [A]: Bang bang motherfucker, you’re on fire. A pretty strong attack with flat, hard to resist plasma. Also removes armour. Not bad.
Artifact Hunter [C]: A replacer, but one with risk/reward. Honestly, even though Exo-Scout is good against Xeno’s you still don’t ~want~ them to appear. And artifacts require you to black market them every time, so meh.
Level 15
Earned Revelations [B]: Another replacer. Not high priority, but somewhat less dangerous than Artifact Hunter.
Explorer
(Explore++, Electronics, Tactics, Non-Combat)
Strangely enough, explorers are good for the Explore card game on Wild Zones. Exploring is usually all about finding Caches of Cargo and Scientific data and selling it on, and Xeno’s (and their artefacts) show up fairly frequently on uninhabited zones, so you’ll want to cover a few bases if you get involved in it.
✯As a Captain✯
Speaking of which, the captain Explorer doubles their chances of finding Xeno artefacts. If you go with one, you’ll absolutely want a Smuggler Officer (and also 1-2 smuggling crew,1-2 other explorer crew, a starting contact with Black Market access, and probably also a Xeno-Hunter) to go with you, because this can and will be your main profit source. You also get a generic travel speed boost and a fuel use decrease, which means you’ll constantly save money on travel and can go a little further. Which is handy, since Wild Zones can sometimes be off the beaten track with no fuel sources nearby. This captain probably has the stats to also take Exo-Scout to be a decent ground combat support.
Obtained: Exodus Researcher, Retired Exo-Scout and Prospector contacts.
Level 1
Gut Instinct [S]: It’s an Explore save. They’re actually rare, so grab that schizz.
Vigilant Search [B]: An Explore re-roll. Again, if you’re here, you probably want it, but in this case, there are a few better talents for your explorer to grab on later levels, so don’t lose sight of that.
Plentiful Rewards [B]: More cargo and intel from Exploring. As usual, it might not be ~good~ cargo, but no-one’s gonna argue with free stuff.
Far Voyager [B]: Hyperspace Cost reducer. You’ll generally want 2-4 of these on your crew. Not as good as the Navigator’s version, but much better than the Pilot one.
Level 5
Unseen Traces [C]: As it doesn’t go off as much as equivalent contact finder talents like the E-Tech’s one, I’d say leave this alone most of the time, but its fine.
Reduced Exposure [A]: An Explore Card deleter. As usual, deleters are the most useful of the card game changing talents.
Artifact Profiteer [A]: Did I mention that Artifacts are one of your main profit sources? Well, this gives you even more money for them (as much as 50% more!)
Makeshift Repairs [A]: Bad cards on explore can batter your ship, and this can help you fix it without having to fly back to a port. Just take off and land again. You can also use Wild Zones as impromptu repair stations in times of crisis. Handy.
Level 8
Dredge Artifacts [B]: If you happen to murder a Xeno in space combat, this gives you even more profit. That’s generally a late game thing when you’ve got a great ship, though. Don’t take it early.
Face The Terror [C]: And this reduces your morale loss. If you are Xeno-Hunting in space, though, you’ll have Xeno-Hunters and they may have you covered.
Legacy Seeker [B]: An interesting card replacer that is a direct flip of a risk card to a random reward card. Still a replacer though, so don’t get too excited.
Level 11
Digging Deeper [A]: A flat out better version of Plentiful Rewards, above. You still want both anyway, so you can overlap cooldowns.
Driven Prospector [B]: If you’re doing Explore missions (and you should be if you have an Explorer) this will usually quicken things. Still a replacer though.
Rarest Find [C]: Yet again, a replacer, and this one can possibly screw up and give you pirates. But, the chance for Rare Trade Goods still makes it usable.
Tag The Beast [D]: If you’re fighting Xeno’s in space again, this is an ok talent, but Xeno Torpedoes are insanely accurate, so you shouldn’t expect much from it. Going for more universally useful ship combat talents is a better idea.
Level 15
Unstoppable Hunt [B]: A full 5 card re-draw for explores. Pick it up if you’re doing them a lot, obviously.
Gundeck Boss / Gunny
(Intimidate+, Gunnery+, Repair, Non-Combat)
A gunnery sergeant or gunny, to use the correct terminology. This is the guy in charge of your batteries, and the class as a whole has a bit of an AA focus (i.e. anti-strike craft). Not critical on smaller ships, but you should consider at least 1 to help deal with enemy carriers as you go on in the game.
Also provides a small bit of Repair to help out your Mechanics, Dogs and Engineers, and a good wad of Intimidate dice to help out your Captain and Quartermaster, some skills for Salvage ops, and a whopping three saves (!), so they’re a decent hire just as an intermediary for those factors.
Obtained: Fleet Commander contacts. Any Zone with 5+ military rating.
Level 1
Strict Orders [B]: Salvage Re-roll. If you’re doing any, you should take it.
Snarling Judgement [S]: Intimidate save. There’s always a need for snarling on my ship. And there probably should be on yours too.
Uncompromising Tear-Down [C]: If you’re going full pirate go ahead, but keep in mind that ripping parts off the guns of a surrendered ship will piss off their faction. I personally usually try to ransom them back unless it’s a hated enemy.
Point Defence [B]: A very solid anti-carrier talent, will whack incoming craft’s accuracy and damage before they hit you. Useful if you can’t stop a bomber.
Dead Eye [S]: Buff your own guns with a much higher chance to intercept enemy strike craft as well as just generically boosting damage. Very nice talent, possibly inching into S-Tier if you fight a lot of fighters (which you often do in late game).
Level 5
Meticulous Checklist [S]: Repair Save, if the mechanics are sleeping on the job.
Overwhelming Pressure [C]: Just flat out tell an enemy strike craft to get lost and land immediately. If you’re not confident you can shoot it down, it’s a helpful talent. Your e-techs can also support with this, though.
Relentless Stare [B]: Jiiiiiiiii. If your QM has no space for the anti-deserter talent, go ahead and get it. It can happen on occasion.
Level 8
Thorough Service [S]: Ship Ops save. The gunny is a super rare case here, since they have no Ship Ops dice, but still have the save. Helpful if your Dogs are slacking.
Deck Discipline [C]: Fixes crew problems and boosts morale. It’s fine.
Vector Assault [C]: Mainly for helping you shoot down evasive fighters, but overall I’d say that Point Defence is better.
Salvage At Will [B]: I always read this as ‘Savage at will’ and imagine dogs. Anyways, it’s more cash and cargo from salvaging. Can’t argue if you’re doing it.
Level 11
Flak Attack [A]: And right here is the best anti-carrier talent. Just prevents enemy launches for three turns or until it gets purged; and also helps you if you’re in a carrier as well.
Meteor Lockdown [C]: Now, normally the gunners themselves should have this covered, but if you have a lot of business around planets racked with meteor storms, go ahead.
Level 15
Take Down [A]: If you really want to kill a bomber right now, this is the talent for it. +50% damage vs. craft can and will murder them.
Gunner
(Gunnery++, Tactics, Ship Ops, Non-Combat)
Obviously, they’re crew for filling up your Gunnery dicepool, and for helping you out with Orbital Operations. The amount you need depends on what sort of guns you have. Many early Gunner talents focus on debuffs. In space combat, debuffs are generally not as good as buffs, as they need to hit first and don’t immediately take effect. But, later on, Gunners get some really excellent talents.
Also, you normally start the game overloaded with gunners and you’ll rarely need to hire new ones unless they die in ship combat. Don’t get rid of your stock straight away, because their initial pools are low, but as they all become experienced, and you strip non-essential guns from your ship (as most ships off the showroom floor have far too many guns as well; you’ll want to pick an optimal engagement range and stick with it), feel free to let a couple go to free up bunks for more needed crew, as long as you still have your 200% dicepool and enough delete talents to carry your orbital ops. 2-4 is usually sufficient.
Obtained: Any zone with a not terrible military rating (5+).
Level 1
Bullseye Certainty [S]: Tactics save. Shared with your Navigators, but they typically have more important things to use their early points on.
Elusive Barrage [A]: Make sure at least 1-2 gunners take this at first level when you start the game. At the start of the game, you are rarely well equipped for space combat, and should always try to avoid or escape it, and this really helps.
Boarding Assault [B]: Board from range 2 or 3. Not quite as good as the Bounty Hunter’s version, but it’s still helpful if you have a boarding ship combat strategy.
Bombardment [B]: Early game, a decent debuff you should use to soften up enemies whilst escaping. Later on, it’s less good, but still helps you avoid damage.
Signature Homing/Raking Fire/Target Lock [C/C/D]: Lower priority than Bombardment or Elusive Barrage, as they don’t protect you at all, but rather, all three of these are similar ‘soften the enemy up’ type talents. Generally, buffs to your firepower are better than debuffing defences, but they’re not horrible. Sig Homing is the best and they’re arranged from most to least useful above. Target Lock is honestly super weedy and almost a waste of a turn.
Loot Armory [C]: A victory repair talent; it’s a lot more niche than the Engineer and Crew Dog’s similar talents; as this requires you to have had your weapons damaged. Gunner normally has much more important things to take. But it’s ok.
Level 5
Meteor Defence [A]: At least 1 gunner should take this. You don’t normally need to land past meteor storms too often, but if you do, you’ll appreciate not having your ship turn into Swiss Cheese in the process from micrometeorites.
Supremacy of Firepower [S]: It’s a deleter for patrol cards. Since you always have gunners, and always want to patrol, this is one of the best talents in the game.
Orbital Guard [A]: Here’s a deleter for salvage card draws too! Obviously less used than patrol, but if you’re doing it at all, it’s great.
Disarming Sabotage [C]: Actually, a great boarding talent. It can flat out disable 2-4 weapons if your gunner is experienced. Problem is, a Gunner is never going to be able to use it unless you promote one to an officer or you’re charging to 1 range (In the former case, it won’t be as effective due to not focusing on gunnery, and in the latter case, it has already lost a lot of its utility since you’ve got past the guns to get there). So, it has a lot of caveats.
Level 8
Twitchy Trigger [A]: Here’s the deleter for blockades. If you’re involved in piracy or bounty hunting work, you’ll obviously get good use out of it.
Prowling the Void [B]: More rep from Salvaging? Great when it’s used and works.
Scattershot [B]: A useful enough talent if you’re running a missile or torpedo boat or are bounty hunting, as it helps you stay at the correct range and stop escapes. Especially has utility in forcing Xeno’s to sit at Range 4 in such cases; which they don’t like doing as they don’t have Missiles.
Lightning Lock [C]: If you’re missing a Gundeck Boss, this can help you fend off angry fighter craft. Not as good as Gundeck Boss’s Deadeye talent though (much longer cooldown, later level, worse damage potential).
Level 11
Firing Orders [S]: The best ship damage buff in the game, since you’re also getting lots of accuracy. All your gunners should get it, unless you’re aiming specifically for captures and surrenders (which is really hard, even for dedicated pirates).
Close-In-Defences [C]: Again, if you have no Gundeck Boss, this is a slightly less good version of their level 1 talent Point Defence.
Mechanic
(Repair++, Ship Ops, Electronics, Non-Combat)
As noted in the Engineer section, ships break a lot. Mechanics are actually your generic engineering staff; they’ll be the guys in your maintenance shafts, rewiring and fixing bits, and fiddling with manual overrides. Because they provide a varied selection of dice, quite often they end up being one of the most common crew members. Don’t think I’ve ever run a ship with less than 3, and you’ll need 2+ extra if you insist on dumping your Crew Dogs.
Obtained: Any zone with Starport 7+.
Level 1
Careful Testing [S]: It’s a Repair save. It’s what your mechanics are here for.
Discounted Repair [A]: Saves you money. No matter what talents your engineer and mechanics have, you will still use spaceport repair services all the time, and this kicks in to save you up to 30~% or so. Just great. All mechanics should get it.
Orchestrated Salvage [S]: Less important at the start of the game, since you’ll rarely be murdering ships, but when you start to, absolutely get this on all your mechanics, it will make lots and lots of profit from sawing the wreck apart. You also heal your own ship in the process. Amazing talent.
Entropic Estimate [C]: Tells you the time limit on remaining salvage ops. If you’re doing full-time scavenging, get 1 copy, but otherwise not too important.
Engine Precision [C]: Now, personally, I rarely use reactor boosting talents, but they can be useful if you must move and fire all your guns in the same turn.
Level 5
Repurposed Parts [B]: A Salvage replacer. Decent if it triggers, but still a replacer.
Engine Reboot [B]: The void engine going down is super-dangerous to you in a space combat: it’s an instant loss. Though using a restore talent is never a great use of a turn, this one might save your life, so I raise it higher than usual.
System Flush [C]: Purges ship cripples and gives a tiny bit of resistance for them. Ok.
Thrown Wrench [S]: By far and away the scariest boarding talent in the game (no really, that wrench man, it’s lethal!). Not only are you doing decent damage to a random part, but you’re also nerfing the enemy reactor and giving them a big swath of ongoing damage. Mechanics never board, of course, but if you find one with mighty good combat potential, it can actually be worth raising one to be a boarding party officer just to throw wrenches!
Level 8
Helpful Hands [A]: Saves money. Though you’ll replace parts less than you repair parts, you’ll still want your Engineers and Mechanics to have this.
Greaser Reaction [S]: A Ship Ops save. Take it if your Crew Dogs are slacking or missing entirely.
Rushed Patches [C]: A less good version of the Engineers Unrivalled Patch, so you should only use this when that’s on cooldown and you must repair or die.
Ordnance Overhaul [C]: It can be helpful to have one copy of this in the off chance several of your weapons take a hit, but like other restores, its low priority.
Level 11
Reactor Surge [D]: It’s a fair bit of potential damage you’ll be taking to the ship to use this, and if you’ve configured your ship right, extra reactor points are usually not needed; but you can build around it if you like.
Level 15
Flawless Reset [A]: Amazing because it specifically purges enemy debuffs (ones applied by talents, rather than cripples, which are applied by standard weapon hits). This is the ONLY talent in the game that can do this, so have a couple of copies of it and it’ll help you when you’ve been locked-on and bombarded.
Peak Reactor Burn [D]: Fairly generic buff for your strike craft. Hopefully more specialised crew will cover this.
Merchant
(Negotiate++, Tactics, Command, Non-Combat, [Cha 28+])
As you might imagine, Merchants are for making profit via trading goods and shifting cargo around and making deliveries. They are very good at it, and since you’ll be constantly moving around anyway, it usually pays to pick up goods when you’re moving between your missions or other jobs to get a bit of profit on the side. Having a merchant on staff makes the whole process easier and more profitable with their excellent spread of dicepools. Capitalism, Ho!
✯As a Captain✯
Makes you into the titular Star Trader of the title. A Merchant Captain gains the poker-face to end all poker faces, automatically reducing hostility of enemies he chats to. Won’t save you from seriously pissed off factions, but it helps. The flat 10% bonus cash from trading is pretty bonkers, and again, you can (and should) think about having 32 Charisma: being fabulous means more sales!
Obtained: Spice Runner, Spice Trader and Trade Czar contacts.
Level 1
Wise Counsel [S]: It’s a Negotiate save. Missions and travel call on them often.
Fuel Bargain [A]: You buy fuel every time you stop, so fuel-saver talents are always appreciated. It saves you a lot in the long run to always have one off-cooldown.
Market Confidant / Friendly Banter [B]: Merchants get contacts super easily if and when they take these talents, as they both trigger off very common actions. As mentioned in e-techs, you may not want too many of these, lest you make introductions worthless because you know everyone in the galaxy. But still good.
Known Trader [B]: Even those not too interested in Trading probably eventually want to pick up at least Spice-Trader permits for every faction, if possible, so this can save you a reasonable amount in the long run, though it’s not critical.
Level 5
Garner Favour [S]: Free rep just for selling things? Absolutely nuts. Just get it.
Cordial Invitation [A]: Bonus rep with contacts from introductions, and it can be a lot. This is the reason to delay too many talents that auto-find contacts.
Generosity [A]: Paying your crew always raises morale, but this makes them even happier about it. Maybe you give them golden envelopes or something.
Jettison Cargo [C/D]: If you specifically plan for its usage, it’s okay, especially in the early game to avoid pirate fights. But if you don’t then it’s awful. Since it selects by type of cargo, you reserve 5 tonnes of space for 1 tonne each of low value items (i.e., 1 tonne of Biomass, 1 tonne of Ration Bars etc.). But the RNG can hate on you and throw away a million credits of Travor Spice Wax, so it’s a risk to use.
Level 8
Righteous Profits [A]: It’s just more money for doing your day job. Get it.
Trader’s Reciprocity [S]: And more contact rep for doing your day job. Even better!
Level 11
Bold Statement [B/C]: If you’re going to risk moving goods around when there are bans and trade wars going on, then get it for sure, but it’s quite niche. If you’re doing smuggling missions on the side, it becomes more valuable.
Lucrative Wholesale [B]: Get more money from your money by grabbing intel. 50K sales are much harder to pull off than the usual 5K threshold though, so you won’t be able to trigger it as often, which reduces its rank a bit.
Military Officer
(Command++, Tactics, Pistols+ [Quick 20+, Cha 25+, Wis 15+])
Has several very useful skills which are hard to replace, as well as giving a good amount of Command dice and being a decent splash choice for ground combat officers. MO’s main problem is that it can (and will) overwhelm other classes needing your skill points if you focus it.
Due to that, like doctors, you might well want to consider having 1-2 on the generic crew. They’re adequate in a ground combat with a pistol as well since Damning Aim is fantastic (though a crew MO might be lacking in Pistol Dice to do their job effectively).
✯As a Captain✯
Excellent bonuses. You’ll want to have the MO captain on your ground team to make use of the extra Quickness, Armour, and Accuracy. Any rep you gain on orbital jobs getting boosted is just a direct time-saver if you’re trying to gain reputation from Patrolling and Spying. And obviously, you’ll be flat out better at Bounty Hunting ships and Smugglers.
Obtained: FDF Commander contacts. Academy Graduation Rumour going off.
Level 1
Expert Planning [S]: It’s a Tactics save. Your gunners and navigators might cover it.
Power Play [A]: Faction Rep is super valuable. If your MO has Charisma, then it’s an auto-pick, though if they have >15 CHA it usually won’t make a difference.
Militant Patrol [A]: Patrols are things you should be doing fairly often when there is nothing more important on your plate, as you can gain Rep. This makes them even more rewarding, so it’s excellent.
Stiff Salute [S]: It’s a get out of jail free card, which is FANTASTIC, especially early game when you don’t want to fight much. Tell those Zealots to get lost!
Tactical Edge [A]: Fantastic ground combat buff, effectively costing 2 Initiative for a 20% damage buff and 10% armour. Can also fix your formation in a pinch. Be careful you don’t move someone out of their optimal range though.
Strict Search [C]: If you’re going around shooting down smugglers, then go ahead, but it’s fairly niche, especially with all the crazy stuff at this level.
Level 5
Damning Aim [S]: Absolutely awesome pistol attack. Removing buffs, initiative, and stripping defences. Usable from 3 positions. Bonkers stuff.
Leader in the Ranks [C]: AoE Debuff removal. Not as good as Combat Medic’s version since Tactics is never a high dicepool, but still fine.
Deserving Rank [C]: Military Rank is fairly low priority unless you’re after faction specific ships, and in that case, you usually only need it for 1 faction.
Commanding Sweep [B]: Patrol card replacer, and a good one.
Recruiters Eye [C]: You should always have a recruit talent to hand somewhere on the crew when fishing for new staff. It really does make a difference. But, the MO has so much to pick up already…
Call for Surrender [B]: The morale loss is pretty good. MO has a lot to take already, unfortunately, but this is one of the better boarding talents if you intend to use them on the attack team.
Level 8
Overriding Discipline [B]: The catch-all ship combat buff. It does basically everything, though none of those things well. Probably one of the best ways to clear crippling crew effects or restore morale, though, since you get more bang for your buck.
Military Discipline [D]: See Calming Speech for QM. This is also a good one (a 20), but here it’s again competing with a lot of stuff; and it’s a mutiny talent, and I have not seen that happen in over 150 hours of play.
Steely Authority [B]: A double whammy defence buff, quite strong for 12 initiative. Also restores a little bit of morale. Not a terrible pick.
Honorable Release [A]: Ransoming surrendered ships back is quite often the best thing to do when they surrender (if you’re not playing Pirate captain, of course) since it has the smallest hit on your reputation. This makes it even more viable.
Level 11
Incite Victory [C]: Similar to Overriding Discipline, with a slightly more offensive bent, but arguably worse since it’s locked to 3-1 range and has no cripple clear.
Boarding Rush [C]: A decent initiative boost; making the MO buff themselves quite decently. One thing to remember, though, is that the more initiative boosts you have, the less likely you are to get the one you want. Typically, the MO is not going to be the most damaging on the party, so consider that.
Guardian Vigil [B]: Patrol missions nearly always lead to ship combat, so if you’re doing that, it’s helpful, giving you a 40+% chance to get it on each card draw.
Level 15
Military Tribunal [D]: Now, personally I don’t bother with ship tithes and prizes, they’re very, very expensive and require lots of military rank. But if you’re super late game, go ahead. This is one of the worst of its kind, though.
Stalwart Loyalist [B]: Re-draw the entire lot of 5 cards during patrols. Sometimes, you can just have a super-crappy hand, and this can help you ditch it. There’s no guarantee it won’t be just as crappy though.
(Navigation++, Command, Tactics, Non-Combat)
No-one likes getting lost in hyperspace, it’s wibbly in there. So, all ships need some professional Hyperwarp Navigators. They are THE ONLY ONES in the game with a Navigation save, so you will always, always have 2-3 on your ship. They also just have a really useful set of talents overall, especially at high levels.
A Navigator with superb stats can become an officer if you like, since they also know Tactics and Command, and have great talents overall; but if you do, make sure you get a replacement as they won’t be able to focus on navigating.
Obtained: Any Zone with Spice Rating of 5+. Merchant or Judge contacts.
Level 1
Read Charts [S]: Navigation Save. Did I mention no-one else can do this!? Get it!
Exacting Design [S/A]: Tactics Save. A lot less important than the above since your Gunners can cover you, but it’s still a save.
Efficient Route [S]: Saves costs and fuel on jumps. The best one of its kind, so again, most, if not all, Navs really should grab it ASAP.
Storm Navigator [B]: A basic anti-storm talent: at least a couple of your crew should have them. Navigators have a lot of other priorities though.
Fast Getaway [A]: Ideally, get this as soon as possible on one Navigator to start, as in the early game you’ll want to run away a lot, and this helps. Technically better than the Gunner’s Elusive Barrage as well, since it’s effective immediately. Not S-tier simply because its usage falls off in the late game.
Level 5
Orderly Drop [C]: Your Pilots should have this covered with a couple of copies of Sure Landfall (which has a very low cooldown), so it’s not a priority: your Navs have better things to do. But, if you only have Pirates for whatever reason, get it.
Perfected Approach [B/C]: Allows you to advance on enemies quite well. Consider it if you have a Grav-Cannon or Boarding heavy strategy, but the Pilot’s Forward Thrusters talent is better for the job most of the time. Though this works at Position 4, whilst Forward Thrusters does not. Useless on missile cruiser builds.
Jammer Warfare [B/D]: Buffs your strike craft with a good defensive bonus. If you’re running a carrier, it’s quite worthwhile, but obviously it’s worthless if not.
Level 8
Distant Commission [A/B/C/D]: The worth of this talent is directly tied to the size of your map (lol). If you generated some micro sector with 10 quadrants, it’s pretty poor, but a sprawling 40 sector map can make this talent super profitable.
Talk of Far Worlds [B]: A slightly less good version of the E-Tech Listening Post talent. The same ideas apply. Have a couple of these; awesome, but not too many.
Level 11
Skip Off The Void [S]: A very unique and valuable talent that just allows you to nope a ship combat before it starts. You should use it sparingly though, as it causes rough damage to your Hyperdrive that can and will take a couple weeks and a bite out of your wallet to repair on landing. Try other means first, but good old Skip can always be relied on if all else fails. Just get it.
Pathfinders Lead [S]: A Command Save. There’s rarely enough of them, so get it.
Level 15
Flash Charge [S/A]: Ultra-valuable if your ship is tailored for boarding, railguns, and grav cannons in combat, as you get to immediately jump into a better range for a slight bit of Hyperdrive damage. It’s also super great if you have to fight Xeno’s; as Xeno Torpedoes are lethal at Range 5.
Pilot
(Pilot++, Navigation, Tactics, Non-Combat)
Your ships not getting far without a bunch of people to control its thrusters, engines and flight pattern. Pilots (or Helmsmen on a bigger ship) are there for Pilot dice and saves, and few can match their utility in that regard. Much like Navigators, they are the ONLY ones with a Pilot Save, so no ship can really be without them. Some might argue that Pirates can substitute for them, but whilst they can provide a similar dice-pool, they have none of the useful talents.
Obtained: Any zone with Starport rating of 4+.
Level 1
Expert Manoeuvre [S]: It’s the save for Piloting. Only Pilots get this. ‘Nuff said.
Sure Landfall [A]: One pilot at the start should get this before the save, and eventually you’ll probably want it on everyone. You land on planets all the time, so you don’t want to waste fuel and time on it.
Evasive Manoeuvres [S]: Optionally, you can also get this on a starting pilot too. This is one of the best defence talents in the game besides Vigilant Scanners and Barrel Roll, so it’ll always get used at least once in most space battles. As a result, it’s a good plan to make sure all Pilots get a copy ASAP.
Sharp Steering [C]: Not quite as good for escape as the equivalent talents on Navs and Gunners, but you might want to grab it eventually. Helps you close too.
Guided Fire [C]: If you’re missing a lot, it can help you out, but there are other better options and Pilot has a lot to take this level.
Level 5
Swift Route [D]: Let the Navigators and Explorers handle hyperwarp cost reduction, as this is by far the worst of its kind (uses Tactics), and Pilot has better things to do.
Broadside Angle [C]: Actually, the best attack boost in the game, but also nerfs your defence quite substantially, so you should only use it if the enemy is already crippled. Rely on your Gunners and Commanders to buff damage in ship fights.
Twitch Surge [S/D]: If you’re flying a ship focused on knife-fighting range, this talent is amazing, as it guarantees closing distance and might even move twice. Obviously, it becomes useless on a missile or torpedo boat, though. Absolutely infuriating when the A.I. uses it to foil your positioning (lol).
Level 8
Swift Sweep [A]: Spying card replacer. Always useful to have.
Devastating Shot [B]: One of the best debuffs; use it when you’re in your optimal range. It’ll help pin the enemy there whilst nerfing their damage against you.
Level 11
Forward Thrusters [A]: If you’re committed to the fight and need to close, this is the best 1st round talent in the game, giving you some decent defences and helping you zoom. It’s a shame it only works at distance 5, but it carries some excellent bonuses. Keep in mind that Flash Charge prevents you from using it!
Wild Flying [B]: Gives a lot of defence, but makes your crew sick in the process (lol) and reducing your aim as well. Still, it can be useful for charging in for boarding.
Level 15
Engage Fighters [B]: Recently added in patch 321, this reduces your damage and accuracy against the enemy ship, but makes all of your attacks much more likely to hit small craft. If, for whatever reason, you’re in the late game without a Gundeck Boss, your Pilots can cover this role using this talent. You can make otherwise inadequate AA weapons hit craft with this, should you desire, so it’s a solid pick, though ideally, you should be trying to destroy the enemy quicker.
Pirate
(Pilot++, Intimidate, Gunnery, Non-Combat)
Yar-Har-Har, Fiddle Di-Dee, Shiver me space timbers, it’s the pirate’s life for me. Feels weird saying ‘non-combat’ to a Pirate. They’re actually a hybrid space pilot and gunner, with a bit of smuggler. They don’t really have a good focus as such, but they do have some unique skills including several ways to boost blockade card games. They actually do get the same amount of Pilot dice as Pilots, but come with none of the talents, and no saves. You can risk replacing Pilots for Pirates, but generally they’re not as good IMHO, due to lost utility.
✯As a Captain✯
Obviously you pick it if you fancy blockading places. Pirate Captains are great blackmailers, extorting double the money out of merchants for “protection” if you try it and it succeeds. Their ships are slightly better at charging in and boarding, with slightly more accuracy. If you’re going this route, you should usually focus on Plasma Cannons and their Radiation Damage to kill off enemy crew, and then mop up the survivors with your boarding team.
Keep in mind that an indiscriminate pirate is a stupid pirate. It serves you best to be a privateer: pick one or two factions to be your enemies and raid only them.
Obtained: Blackheart or Warlord contacts.
Level 1
Icy Stare [S]: Intimidate save. Because pirates be scary, yo.
Rigorous Search [B]: If you’re pirating, you want this. More loot is more loot; but of course, you might not always find smugglers, and this only works on them.
Corsair’s Eye [B]: A Blockade card replacer, and at first level, which helps you hunt for targets to raid a bit easier.
Furious Prodding [C]: Purges you of crew effects and restores morale. As usual for these, use them only if you must.
Unlawful Loot [B]: A Black-Market card re-roll. In case you find illegal goods, a Pirate can do some smuggling in a pinch, though you should hire a Smuggler proper.
Raiders Scrutiny [B]: Identify if a potential fight is worth taking and whether it’s worth blowing it up or trying to take it alive. Shame it’s on a 9-week cooldown.
Level 5
Barrel Roll [S]: Out of Options! Do a Barrel Roll! Very useful for Pirates, actually, giving you a super buff to defences whilst you close to board, and nerfing your standard damage is actually a bonus since you don’t want to wreck your prize. Alot of veteran players swear by this talent as being the best space defence one in the game. IMHO, it’s certainly up there; though Vigilant Scanners is my no 1.
Infamous Presence [A]: Blockading reward booster. Free stuff from piracy, nuff said.
Terrifying Extortion [S]: Easily the best pirate talent. You might find ship combat fun and all, but fighting costs money and blood. If you can extort people without violence, you win harder.
Acrobatic Dive [C]: Fairly nondescript. Helps you hit, helps you close, but not great.
Swooping Marauder [A/D]: A super buff for your assault Shuttle, if you have one. As you get on in your piracy career, you’ll want to consider it, so this is solid.
Level 8
Menacing Demeanour [B]: Remember what I said about indiscriminate pirates? Well, this helps you a bit with that if you must hit outside your usual waters.
Lethal Example [D]: Shoot the leader of the mutiny and it ends. Gives a high morale boost, but obviously you’ll be down a crew member. But mutiny is when?
Blackheart Fraud [C]: Honestly won’t help you too much against Bounty Hunters of hated factions, but unaffiliated ones might think twice. Not a priority.
Nose for Loot [B]: A Salvage card replacer, and a pretty good one, giving rare loot.
Level 11
Disabling Approach [C]: Ensures you hit I guess, but there are better talents.
Burner Skid [S]: Ideally, use this at Range 4; it will boost your plasma cannons by quite a lot as you close to the correct range. Keep in mind you’ll be frying your own crew in the process, so don’t over-use it.
Terror of the Skies [B]: Blockade mission success booster. If you’re doing them, get it.
Looters Instinct [A]: Another talent you want to use a lot with piracy, it makes your marks juicier when it goes off.
Level 15
Murderous Tribute [C]: Probably the cheapest talent for getting prize ships during conflicts. You only pay 40% of the cost. But ships be expensive, you know?
Unbridled Raider [B]: The 5-card full redraw for Blockading.
Pistoleer
(Evasion+, Pistols++ [Quick 24+])
You might already be aware of this; but pistols are FANTASTIC in Star Traders. They’re low initiative and do decent damage; they run off Quickness which also increases Initiative. You can also wield them with a knife to increase parry even if you don’t know blade talents (though you do need at least 1 Skill point in Blades in that case). Hence, don’t sleep on the Pistoleer; they’re a very good class.
They’re also the first of the standard military classes we’ll cover (Swordsman, Soldier and Sniper being the others), and all of these are generic in dice, just giving weapon skill and Evasion. Not that this is a problem; in theory you can still have an above average combat officer just from having a military class as one of their 3. Though if you do, it should be more than just a splash.
Of course, if you want a dedicated combat crew that doesn’t involve officers at all, Pistoleer Crew are good picks to fill slots 1-3; they’ll end up quite powerful!
Obtained: Any zone with a Military rating of 4+.
Level 1
Pinning Shot [A]: Fabulous pistol attack. It pins and gives a significant Defence debuff all in one for just 1x Initiative.
Close-Range Barrage [B]: Now, Pistoleer shouldn’t normally be in Slot 1, but this talent is good enough for them to do it if you want, as it nerfs angry swordsmen quite well and does very good damage.
Fading Shot [B]: The alternative to Close-Range Barrage is getting out of slot 1 whilst buffing your defences and accuracy. It’s fine.
Raining Steel [A]: An Initiative Boost, and worth it if you want it. It’ll give you nearly half an extra attack and a 15% damage boost.
Aimed Focus [A]: A fantastic buff. For the cost of just 6 Initiative, get 25% Accuracy and Damage and even get morale back.
Level 5
Tricky Gunplay [B]: A bit pricey due to 2x Initiative, but it also deletes 6 initiative from the enemy, which makes it useful to use as a late-in-round attack to prevent an enemy from taking another turn (and you can’t kill that enemy).
Duelers Stance [A]: Another fantastic buff. For just 6 initiative, get loads of defence, clear your own debuffs, and resist further ones.
Level 8
Terrifying Accuracy [A]: Your buff removal shot. Not as good as some of its kind, but removing enemy buffs is important and should always be prioritised, so get it if you don’t have another, better, source from another class.
Advancing Front [C]: High crit booster, which is nice, but otherwise a fairly generic shot for moving you forwards. Not usually in demand, though, as you can mostly function in Slots 1, 2, or 3 fine.
Level 11
Rapid Fire [C]: A double hit for double initiative. The attack itself is fairly generic though, so I would prioritise the more powerful single-target abilities.
Exposed Shot [D]: I… don’t really get this one. Sure, it’s accurate, but it’s debuff to the enemy is not so good as to warrant reducing your own defence, IMHO.
Level 15
Confounding Gunplay [A]: Uses 1.5x Initiative for a fairly low power shot. However, a 50% chance of stun on the target along with an accuracy debuff for 3 turns is great to lockdown threatening targets, like Xeno’s. Not a bad capstone.
Quartermaster
(Command, Ship Ops, Intimidate++, Non-Combat)
A starting officer and arguably both the most and least useful. They have a few unique talents. Notably, they have saves for all of their skills at level 1. When unskilled at start, those saves and skillpoints can really help. But if your captain already has a decent Command and/or Intimidate, the QM is left with little to do.
At least it IS very splashable, but it’s definitely ALWAYS best to find NPC Quartermasters with better stats if possible. Sadly, they are very hard to find from contacts, as only Diplomatic Consuls and Prison Wardens offer them and you can’t start with these guys as contacts. They do at least naturally splash into/from Zealots, Xeno-Hunters or Bounty Hunters, though, and all of these CAN BE recruited at start. This is recommended for most captains.
Obtained: Diplomatic Counsil or Prison Warden contacts.
Level 1
Watchful Eye/Stern Leader/Baleful Grimace [S]: Ship Ops, Command, Intimidate saves respectfully. They’re saves, there’s three of them. That’s always good. Pick whichever one(s) your Captain can’t cover as soon as possible. In most cases this is either Intimidate or Command. Ship Ops is less important as Crew Dogs get it.
Perceptive Boss [C]: 30-40% ish chance to learn crew traits. Traits are active even if you don’t know them, so this isn’t too important, but it’s nice to know.
Contract Bargain [B]: Deserters are rare if you’re playing well, but you should have at least one of these in case things go tits up in combat.
Level 5
Reliable Hand [S]: 10-30% extra cash from missions. Who doesn’t want that?
Rallying Cry [B]: It’s super solid, multipurpose. 20% Crew/Morale protection, restore
2-20, purge cripples. Of course, restore talents are not killing the enemy faster or preventing problems in the first place, so QM has other priorities. Okay though.
Calming Speech [D]: I’ve literally never seen a mutiny. But this is one of the better prevention talents if it does happen. Still niche.
Level 8
Welcoming Conscription [S/C]: I personally rarely conscript, but at late game and on the highest difficulties it has some value as NPC ships can have some high levels in there (see Diplomat’s Compelling Conscription for more info).
Call To Arms [B/C]: Xeno’s are scary, so this helps on your underwear laundry costs (lol), but this is quite niche unless you’re planning on antagonising them. Explorer’s one is best, but if you don’t have one (or a Xeno Hunter), this is more valuable.
Level 11
Second Shadow [B]: A lifesaving talent. Hopefully your Doctor(s) have this covered, but if you took QM this far up their tree, you might as well grab it.
Regimented Order [D]: Specifically anti-pirate/anti-plasma talent. Super niche.
Saboteur
(Pistols ++, Evasion+, Stealth, Pilot- [Quick 24+])
I think this is the only class with 4 dicepools, though the Stealth and Pilot are very small quantities. A combat class focused on boarding; it mixes the effects of Pistoleer, Spy and Wing Commando, with Shuttle-Flying, Pistols, and lots of boarding talents. As the most recent class added to STF, I personally think Sab really shows just ~a bit~ of power creep. It’s a SUPER strong class overall; especially on officers that buff Stealth with another class (i.e. Assassin). If you’re not using boarding officers, a Sab can also happily replace a Pistoleer spot too.
Obtained: Ex-Mining Chief, Racketeer and Retired Bodyguard contacts.
Level 1
Wrecking Ball [A]: It’s not a wrench, but it’s a darn good alternative. This boarding talent does a little bit of everything, all of it bad for the enemy.
Raiders Away [S]: There isn’t such thing as a bad assault shuttle flightplan, but this is one of the great ones. Combine it with another boarding talent that reduces reactor points (like Wrecking Ball, the Thrown Wrench, or Engine Disruption) and laugh as your single raid leaves the enemy ship floundering.
Skullshot [S]: Absolutely MENTAL Pistol attack. A Level 1; 1x Initiative buff remover. That alone would be great. But also removes -2 Initiative and gives -25% damage debuff? It’s a serious WTF power. Honestly, any pistol user officer might want to think about going Sab just for this.
Duck And Go [A]: Quack. Equivalent to the Pistoleers Level 5 Buff, Duellers stance, but available even earlier. What’s not to like?
Black-Cat [S]: Meow. It’s a Stealth Save triggered by throwing cats at people (not really, but that ~would~ be kinda funny).
Level 5
Chain Reaction [A]: A pirate wants to hire a Sab purely for this boarding talent; as it simultaneously causes all three types of ongoing damage; helps a lot in captures.
Razor Sharp Tongue [A]: A Black Market card Deleter. Always good.
Deadsights [S]: Hey, you know that level 15 Pistoleer talent that causes 50% stun? No, me neither, I’ll use this at level 5. Oh, and it’s only 1.5x Initiative and strips it too!
Level 8
Afterthought Murder [B]: Finally! I get to put a Green on something! This is a worse version of Soldier’s Crossfire. But still good, will wipe out injured crew quite well.
Ricochet Rain [A]: A double hit for double initiative. Oh, but this one’s great. It strips buffs on two targets and reduces initiative on them.
Smile of Guile [B/C]: Will be fairly garbage on a non-stealth focused officer; but if you also happen to be an Assassin/Saboteur, go for it, its great in that case.
Level 11
Demolition Joy [S]: Bakahatsu, Bakahatsu, Lalala! Anime Jokes about explosions aside, who doesn’t want this? Use three boarding talents! Party hard!
Hull Slicer [C]: And then, quite possibly the least good Assault Shuttle Plan. There’s no reason to use this one over any of the others around, really.
Pre-emptive Assault [B]: Initiative Boost. Make the front-line enemy swordsman or shotgunner have a very, very bad day with this one. Buffs are generally better as initiative boosts, but this one is fine if you want it.
Level 15
Engine Disruption [A]: Sure, the damage kinda sucks unless you’re that Assassin multiclass noted above, but removing 3 reactor points!? I’ll take it.
Scavenger
(Doctor, Repair+, Explore+, Non-Combat)
A curious class. It offers an absolute tonne of card-game bonuses, and some interesting skills in a cheeseboard of categories. As a result, it’s always a good hire for versatility. Getting Doctor and Repair saves on the same class is terrific.
If you intend to go Salvaging or Exploring at all, you’ll also love them and will want to consider the class on the crew or maybe a non-combat officer, because they will save lives and make you stonks of cash.
✯As a Captain✯
At one point, wasn’t a very good captain, but a later patch made them quite good. The free repairs from salvaging ships, and from salvage ops, and quicker mission cards for Salvage ops are nice, as Salvage often damages hull as a negative consequence in card games. The extra salvage rumours whenever anyone in the crew goes spicing is IMMENSELY useful for them (as finding salvage opportunities is always the hardest part of making it a career). The +2 Fort and Wisdom is just saving you some stats at creation.
Obtained: Fixer or Salvage Broker contacts.
Level 1
Artful Solder [S]: A Repair save just means less pressure on your Mechanics.
Depot Sweep [A]: You buy fuel every time you stop, so fuel-saver talents are always appreciated. It saves you a lot in the long run to always have one off-cooldown.
Pick Clean/Diamond in Debris [B]: More stuff from Salvaging/Exploring. Nearly always, this is more cargo, but rarely it can apply to cash. Doesn’t necessarily mean its good cargo though (it could be Biomass lol).
Calculated Search [B]: A Salvage Re-Roll. If you’re in this class, you probably want it, but Careful EVA is just around the corner, so get that first.
Level 5
Careful EVA/Light Foot Tracker [A]: A Salvage/Explore Card Deleter. Deleters are just the best kind of card game bonus; and two at once! You’re spoiling me!
Picky Looters [B]: A Salvage Card Replacer. A good one if it gets picked.
Cascading Destruction [B]: Does quite a lot of damage to a single part. If it picks the Void Engine, it can end the combat instantly, but that very rarely happens, and Scavengers are rarely on the combat team. Not horrible though.
Level 8
Patchwork [B]: An Explore replacer. Fairly average if it gets picked, but hey the bad thing still goes away, right?!
Dogged Treatment [S]: A Doctor Save. Really valuable, as you might imagine.
Redemption Purge [C]: A multi-part-ship combat heal. Nowhere near as good as the engineers one, so Scav should leave it to the Engineers and Mechanics, but might be useful in a pinch, since it also purges cripple effects.
Level 11
Rescue Mission [C]: Obviously, if you’re doing Scavenging missions a lot, take it; but more often than not, you’ll be a free Scavenger rather than a mission runner.
Scrappy Recover [B]: Another Explore Replacer. A little heal is better than a bad card, of course.
Level 15
Master Reclaimation [B]: The full board sweep 5 card re-draw for Salvage.
Scientist
(Explore+, Doctor+, Command, [Wisdom 25+], Non-Combat)
This proper science class got added to the game only very recently. He’s a hybrid Explorer/Doctor, and his main feature is generating special science intel. He’s not an especially good splash (except for the Doctor Save), but with a bit of focus he can serve as a nice combo with Scavengers, Doctors, and Explorers. As an officer, you should ideally focus on getting more medical skill.
✯As a Captain✯
Doubles the chance of gaining Sci-Intel, and gains +15% more profit from it, so it’s obvious that this captain has a specific focus. You can and probably should go with 32 Wisdom as that’s possible. This kind of captain can either double down on intel by going part spy, or go hybrid-explorer or salvager to pick up a wider variety of items from similar activities.
He’ll also support your starting Doctor in the Medbay, or can even fire the usual doctor and be the ship’s doctor themselves, as it’s always beneficial for this captain to get more Doctor and Explore dice. You should still always bring along a couple of crew scientists and explorers to help you out as lab assistants.
Obtained: Court Scientist, Retired Theoretician contacts. Zette Faen (after route).
Level 1
Experimental Treatments [S]: Doctor Save. He turned me into a newt! I’m better now!
Sample Analysis [S]: Absolutely the keystone ability here. Just by landing in the Wild, you might well get Data. Quite a few planets have both Wild Zones and Colonies, so when that’s the case, a crew with a scientist should always just pop next door to see if there are interesting samples when travelling around where possible.
Mitigation Protocols [B]: An explore re-roll. If you’re exploring, get it.
Dissected Scrutiny [B]: More cargo and intel from Exploring. As usual, it might not be ~good~ cargo, but no-one’s gonna argue with free stuff.
Emperical Tell [C]: There are usually better, easier ways of getting rumours.
Level 5
Field Distortion Survey [A]: If you have a Scientist, you should absolutely make them the crew member with the Storm Talents, because theirs generate stuff!
Trace Analysis [B]: A Salvage Replacer. You might even get data out of it. Maybe.
Accurate Predictions [A]: A Salvage Card deleter. Just get it if you’re salvaging.
Level 8
Magnetic Clarity [S]: Command Save. A little late, but hey, it’s a good save.
Amplified Assay [A]: See Field Distortion Survey. Scientist officer or crew members probably have room to host all of the Storm talents for your crew if you have ‘em.
Certain Knowledge [A]: An Explore Card deleter. You’ll almost certainly want it.
Genetic Sequencing [C]: More intel when you stab Xeno. In the worst-case scenario, you can find Xeno whilst exploring, but Xeno ground combat is still usually very dangerous, and you should still avoid it where possible.
Level 11
Signature Recording [B]: One of the more useful Xeno talents, because you get its intel benefit immediately and can still run.
Behavioural Analysis [C]: On the other hand, if you’re confident you can nuke those suckers, go ahead so you can get even more data with this.
Laboratory Triage [A]: A Lifesaver talent. If you took scientist up this far, might as well claim it. If they’re also a Doctor officer, they might have two lifesavers!
Level 15
Value Analysis [S]: If your Wisdom is high (and it should be), this is a very nice capstone, just giving you more cash and rep for doing your day job.
Shock Trooper
(Rifles++, Evasion+, Command [Str/Quick 24+])
Another fairly new class, it focuses on the Shotgun, and also has boarding combat focus, with a minor in command and scavenging. Is based around sitting in the front rank and not moving. Interesting in that it can counterattack with a shotgun blast, which is normally reserved for sword users.
✯As a Captain✯
Much like an Assassin captain, a Trooper Captain is usually picking his ear rather than managing his ship, and delegates that to the crew. However, in this case, he does buff the ship to be quicker at closing for boarding and better at it. He also gains a lot of extra toughness, and a bit of initiative whenever in ground combat, so obviously is wasted in the captain’s chair anyways and should be leading from the front. Personally, I would consider a Shock Trooper + Soldier + Commander, to emphasise your strengths (also giving you a buff removal attack via Roaring Barrels which is actually missing from Shock Trooper by default).
Obtained: Prince contacts (usually).
Level 1
Retaliation [S]: The class keystone, in my opinion, since counterattacking with a shotgun is AWESOME; AND this is one of the best Counterattack skills among those available. Just get it, use it at the start of the round, and mow down the opposition. Make sure to also pick up Braced Fire as Retaliation uses it (below).
Dragonfire Shell [A]: One of those rare times I say bleed is good; because this one applies quite a lot of it simultaneously to three targets. Also hands out an average debuff to those three targets, so you can’t argue really.
Deepstrike Grenade [A]: It’s a… flashbang with shrapnel? Well, whatever it is, it’s good. No damage, but that’s a great stable of debuffs there.
Stand Strong [A]: Make your front-line tougher, and cure their debuffs. Just absolutely solid, and only 8 initiative to boot.
Rapid Bandage [B]: This is doing that thing from PUBG, where you a roll a bandage around your arm and feel better after being headshot with a sniper rifle. Can’t argue with the effects though, it’s a solid self-recovery option for 6 initiative.
Single Minded Strike [B]: Basically used for the Boarding Buff when you’ve made it to one distance. Not essential, but it might help you sabotage better places.
Level 5
Shock And Awe [B]: An initiative boost; gives a very strong defensive buff. Good.
Seamless Co-ordination [S]: Command save. Surprising, but always appreciated.
Braced Fire [A]: Helpful if it’s clear that enemies are sporting formation disruption, but a little niche. However, it has been pointed out to me that it gets used in Retaliation automatically (which isn’t terribly clear), which changes it from being kinda mediocre to pretty excellent as it means you get more accuracy and defence on your counterattacks.
HOTA Core shells [D]: It could be ok. But it’s so, so focused and subjective that I’d rank it among the worst boarding talents in the game.
Level 8
Frag Shell [C]: It’s okay, but Dragonfire Shell is already available for AoE bleeds!
To The Front [B]: A pretty mighty buff for a reasonable cost. Use it on a sword guy.
Unconventional Tactics [A]: Salvage card deleter. Feels out of place, but I’ll take it.
Level 11
Execution Shell [A]: Pin and 50% Stun for 1x Initiative? Give that to me!
Titan Shell [A]: Arguably the most damaging attack in the game; since shotgun has a lot of base damage, and this is giving it more and hitting 2 targets! Very good.
Level 15
Deepstrike Detonator [B]: In a word, niche. It IS incredibly strong if you board a moderately beat-up enemy ship, whilst you yourself are focused on component damage, so a Pirate Shocktrooper is likely to get mileage from it, but the specific need for components to be in the 40-60% damage range already makes it mostly unusable for a first strike.
Smuggler
(Stealth, Negotiate+, Intimidate, Non-Combat, [Cha 25+])
Obviously, if you want to access a black market, you’ll want a Smuggler. Though some classes have some minor talents to help, they have nothing on the skills that a professional can offer. Captains who routinely Explore, Salvage, or engage in Piracy as their main careers will always eventually end up with illegal goods that they need to fence. Even normal merchants might be interested, since Principal Trader permits are usually quite troublesome to keep hold of. Keep in mind that access is still hard without a trusted contact.
✯As a Captain✯
Literally a darker merchant captain, Smuggler captain gains 10% flat extra profit in Black Markets, and should have your 32 Charisma. You also get a very solid flat boost to your defences in space combat, and a slightly easier escape chance, which is great for the earlier game. To maximise a smuggler career, you’ll probably want to mix it with some other work (from an officer) that obtains suspicious goods in the first place (exploring, salvaging, piracy), though actual smuggling missions and normal trading missions help as well.
Obtained: Smuggler/Smuggler Prince and Spicerunner contacts.
Level 1
Cunning Slip [S]: Stealth Save. Great as you’re often on the wrong side of the law.
Hideout [A]: Even legal captains might want to consider smugglers for this talent alone. It stops mission critical items and people being taken on searches, so you can avoid fights that only happened just because there was a hostile zealot around at the wrong time and place.
Backroom Deal [A]: Black Market Replacer. I rate this one higher than usual because its replacing with the card you are looking for in the first place, an access card.
Underground Whispers [B]: Black Market Replacer. Much worse than Backroom Deal, but swapping lost cargo or a death for a rumour is still a good trade.
Illicit Notoriety [S]: Almost certainly a talent you want on all smugglers, it means you don’t need quite such a high trust with your contact to get a good access level.
Dubious Handshake [B]: Any talents that disarm potential space fights are good. Although hostile enemy smugglers usually won’t force fights on you, unlike Zealots and Military Officers, so it’s a little less good than say, Stiff Salute.
Level 5
Bootleg Profits [A]: More money for doing your day job. Obviously get it.
Forged Permit [B]: A universally useful forgery. As usual for these, they won’t save you from pissed off factions, but they help alot with edge cases.
Faked Signature [C]: More niche than Forged Permit, only applies to Bounty Hunters, but if you’re often in unfriendly (not hostile) territory, it can help.
Garbled Identity [C]: Your E-Tech’s should have this covered, but feel free to pick up another signal blocker if you like. It can help if you hit a streak of people who just won’t shut up on the radio.
Slippery Trader [A]: More useful for smugglers than a regular Merchant; as smuggler missions can often get you involved in trade bans, and no-one wants rep loss.
Level 8
Insider Trading [S]: Amazing. Sell at Black Market => get more contact rep => get easier access to black market next time. An auto-pick in my opinion.
Underworld Renown [A]: Black Market Replacer. Basically, a better version of Backroom Deal, as it gives some rep as well. You’ll probably want both.
Underport Bribe [B]: You buy fuel every time you stop, so fuel-saver talents are always appreciated. It saves you a lot in the long run to always have one off-cooldown; but… Smuggler has a lot of other things they need.
Light Fingers [B]: More cargo from salvage. If that’s your source of goods, go for it.
Level 11
Criminal Connections [C]: Although talents that find out new contacts are never bad as such, this one will go off a fair bit less than equivalent ones on other classes.
Unlawful Royalty [B]: Very nice: obviously the more fences you can learn about, the wider your network, and the less far you have to travel to move your goods. Though the 50K trade mark can be hard to hit sometimes.
Level 15
Incorrigible Sneak [B]: The 5-card full redraw for Black Markets.
Sniper
(Stealth+, Evasion, Rifles+ [Quick/Wisdom 24+])
Ah, Sniper. Frankly, it’s a little poor in Star Traders. See, I get the idea behind Sniper Rifles; they pierce really well, so there’s a good chance that they’ll reduce armour soak percentages by around 60%. That can be a lot, especially against heavy armours that could be reducing damage by 50-60%. Fine. For that, they cost a lot of initiative to fire (typically 18). This is less fine… but still fine. Where Sniper as a class has problems is that all but one of its attack powers cost more than 1x Initiative AND require you to get into Stealth mode to use. Whereas Assassin can nearly always Stealth and strike (often twice) in a single round if they have decent stats (and then hit 3+ times a round in the second round), a Sniper will basically get one shot a round EVEN IF THEY have perfect initiative.
Add this on to the fact that Sniper Rifle is still a rifle and can use any rifle skill, you might see why it’s best to take Bounty Hunter, Soldier or Exo-Scout! Still, let’s look…
Obtained: Weapons Smuggler contacts. Erik Faen (after route).
Level 1
Bullet Trace [B]: Now, despite all I said above, Bullet Trace is okay; because it’s the 1x Initiative one. It’s got an extra chance to pierce, and gives an alright de-buff.
Vanishing Act [C]: Your only way to Stealth until L15. Get it, but dump it later, it’s meh.
Dominant Eye [D]: Initiative Boost. Not all that great, because you’ve already got good accuracy and piercing. I’d leave it.
Target Acquired [B]: Initiative Boost. Decent; gives a great Defence reduction to the enemy frontline and reduces their initiative. But it will compete with Trick of the Eye later, so probably won’t get long to shine.
Level 5
Eagle Eyed [B]: Now this is a good buff. Only 6 initiative for all the extra damage related buffs in small quantities. Nothing crazy, but worth your time.
Staggering Hit [D]: Requires Stealth, and 27 Initiative. Ouch. Practically guaranteed to pierce, for sure, and has knockback. Still ludicrously costly for what you get.
Crafty Twist [S]: Stealth Save. Feel free to get it, not much to get here anyway.
Level 8
Unseen Fear [B]: Who needs to shoot? Just leer down the scope (lol). It’s a powerful x2 debuff that will allow your front-liners to smack down theirs easier. Now, if you’re a Captain Sniper with 30+ Initiative, you can combo this into a Bullet Trace; which is a solid combo, but most snipers won’t have that much leeway.
Parting Gift [D]: Sometimes, this can get lucky and instantly end a space combat for you after boarding, but it’s one of less useful boarding talents overall.
Level 11
One-Shot [C]: That you can never afford (lol). This costs 36 Initiative and Stealth. Yeah. Again, you are looking at an 80% crit chance or so; but a crit in STF is not 200% damage, it’s around 140-150%. This may still be enough to indeed one-shot most targets if it also pierces (minus Xenos), to be fair, but is basically guaranteed to throw you into a penalty turn next turn; which is the last thing Sniper needs.
Level 15
Trick of the Eye [B]: Initiative Boost. This can single handily save the class, if you decide to take it this far. Make sure no one else on the team has an initiative boost, and this will give you your stealth and an okay buff for free every turn.
Now part of you is thinking: “But eharper256, who cares I only get one shot a turn if it guarantees a death?”. Well, let’s be charitable:
Let’s say I have a Sniper with Trick of the Eye and One-Shot, the level 11 and 15 talents, so they auto-stealth; and a Bounty Hunter with just their Level 1 talent Steadfast Aim only. They both have 30 Initiative and a Mensin Sniper Rifle (T5).
Sniper fires once for 36 init, dealing max damage (110). They crit for 150%, the attack, One-Shot is innately +10% damage, and they have +10% from Trick of the Eye = (110 x 1.1 x 1.1) x 1.5 = 199 damage.
Bounty Hunter uses Steadfast Aim for 18 init, dealing max damage, and then fires normally for 18 init (36 init). Neither crit, and the second shot gets Steadfast’s Aim’s buff bonus = (110) + (110 x 1.2) = 242 damage.
Obviously, this assumes no armour reduction, soak or piercing, but BH actually has only slightly lower pierce on the first shot, and slightly better pierce on the second.
Additionally, the buff for Steadfast Aim carries over, so next round, BH will actually do two shots for 132 = 264, and can spread those shots over different targets. Finally, with multiple shots, we’re lessening the effect of a single bad dice roll. And BH is also free to use Lethal Trap or Sustained Fire on subsequent shots.
And Exo-Scout is even better; they can double buff themselves with +25% damage, +50% piercing and then fire plasma bullets next round. Eeesh.
Soldier
(Evasion+, Rifles++ [Str/Quick 24+])
Continuing on with our special series of ‘this doesn’t work like you think’, we next cover the Soldier, who shows us how not to use Assault Rifles.
Now, I’ll say this right away: a Soldier is great with a Shotgun. Shock Trooper was not added until quite recently, and until they were, Soldier was the Shotgun Ace without peer. And to be fair, they actually have some okay rifle attacks and can also be snipers (lol). But they have a big trap involved, and that would be their multi-hit abilities. If you ignore these or are careful with them, Soldier is still good.
Of course, if you’re not taking officers or your captain into ground combat, Soldier crew are solid for the job and can go in any position (1-2 Shotguns, 3-4 Assault or Sniper Rifles).
Obtained: Any starport with Military of 4+.
Level 1
Burst Fire [C]: So, we’ll start with the elephant in the room. Burst Fire is meh. It hits two targets, sure, but it won’t hit them well. You can take it for one circumstance, and that’s when two adjacent enemies are both nearly dead. This will kill them.
Suppressing Fire [A]: BUT, if you’re using a Rifle (Assault or Sniper), you SHOULD be taking this one; it’s solid. Bonus Accuracy, great debuff, and knockback all in one!
Roaring Barrels [S]: And if you’re shotgunning, this is AMAZING. Arguably the best Shotgun attack in the game. Removes buffs, pierces armour, loads of damage.
Ferocity [B]: Initiative Boost. Makes a Soldier with a Sniper Rifle pretty good. Instant +30% damage and +15% Crit. I wouldn’t take it on a Shotgunner though, the defensive debuff is kinda bad to have if you’re in the frontlines.
Discipline [B]: Only 6 Initiative for a very solid defensive buff. Worthwhile.
Level 5
Backline Leader [B]: One of the best buffs in the game for your backline sniper Soldier, since it affects everyone. Not massive bonuses but still good.
Covering Fire [C]: Pin and Stun, but also moves you back. Useful if you’re an Assault Rifle user and get stuck in Position 1, but not essential.
Ferocious Crossfire [B]: Pretty good boarding ability, will wipe out injured crew quite well, and injure fresh crew quite a bit. Good if you’re going for an attrition style boarding policy (i.e. you’re a pirate looking to disable a ship).
Blowback [C]: Shotgun knockback ability, but requires you to be in position 1, which you may want to reserve for your Swordsman unless you’re also a Shock Trooper. Can be useful if an enemy swordsman is already in position 2 for whatever reason, as they’ll waste a turn walking back.
Level 8
Full Auto [C]: That other elephant in the room, the white one. It has the same use case as Burst Fire. Now, you can roll lucky here and do a lot of damage with it, but the self-debuff is massive, and the cost prohibitive. If you really want to make use of it, use Discipline straight afterwards to clear the self-debuff. Then it’s okay.
Concussion Grenade [A]: Double 50% stun and -4 Initiative is pretty darn good. It’s no E-Shock Grenade, but go ahead and take it if you like.
Frontline Brave [B]: The inverse of Backline Leader. Very marginally better than its counterpart because the free +2 initiative for the whole team is nice.
Level 11
Fearsome Charge [B]: Excellent to pick up on your Shotgunner, in case you get thrown into position 3; makes you come back angrier.
Shrapnel Shell [C]: Not as good as Roaring Barrels, but it can help your swordsman pal at the front get more damage, I guess. The negative to pierce is kinda bad, since Shotguns already have only average pierce.
Level 15
Still Standing [B]: Added in Patch 321, and nerfed in Patch 322 (lol). Unfortunately, it originally lasted multiple rounds in its first showing, making it into something you could actually build a tank soldier around (and I said it was a great S-Tier for that). However, now, with high initiative cost and only 1 round, it’s only okay. It’s still a very significant buff for your Shotgun Soldier, as the survivability can be helpful if you get into a pinch. If you’re up this far, you might as well get it, but it’s a serious ‘Lo, how the mighty have fallen!’ ability.
Spy
(Electronics++, Stealth++, Pistols [Quick 20+, Wis 25+])
Obviously, a Spy focuses on intel capture and spying as a whole. Selling intel is a great way to make friends quickly. Spies have really useful talents and are a good class overall, with a big wad of pistol stealth combat potential.
A crew Spy, though, will not be too good at fighting as their pistol dice are low, but on officers with some other pistol buffs, this can be used.
✯As a Captain✯
Has excellent buffs. Spy Intel is normally best used for getting Contact Rep, but Spy captain also makes a reasonable cash profit at the same time. They can and should have 32 Wisdom and 31 Charisma. They also get a minor but useful set of buffs for ship combat, leading to easier escapes and more critical hits.
Spy combat talents are actually quite good at later levels, but they have quite a low pistol dicepool, so consider whether you want to also get more pistol talents on them or purely focus them on stealth and electronics and suchlike.
Obtained: Retired Diplomat, Ex-Spy or Spymaster contacts.
Level 1
Sly Moves [S]: Stealth save. Since it’s used in Spying, you probably want it.
Espionage Sweep [A]: A spying card deleter. Straight off the bat! Really nice to have.
Close Observation [B]: Funnily enough it’s probably more important to reveal contact traits than it is your own crews, so this has some value. Some of them are obvious (i.e., this is guy is offering Assassin hires) but usually it’s a lot harder to tell.
Covert Signals [B]: Any talents that disarm potential space fights are good. Spies only tend to be aggressive if from hated factions, though, so it’s not essential.
Disappearing Act [B]: Gives you stealth and a mighty defence buff for 6 initiative. In a threatening fight, might be useful, but Distracting Shots at L5 is even better.
Shadowed Fire [S]: VERY strong pistol attack. Requires Stealth, but on pistols, at 1x Initiative, this is amazing, with great damage and a good crit chance!
Level 5
Deft Control [S]: Electronics save. This is normally covered by your E-Techs and Engineers, so may not be needed, but it’s still a save.
Bolt [A]: Best escape talent in the game. If you have an early spy or two on your crew, they can take this to free up Gunners and Navigators handling escapes.
Distracting Shots [S]: Attack with an above average attack for 1x init whilst going into stealth and moving back!? Honestly, all the other stealth classes would LOVE this!! (If it worked in rank 1, I would actually recommend Assassins to take it!). Anyway, it’s amazing, and you should start combats in rank 2 to switch places with your Shotgunner or Swordsman.
Scouring Search [A]: A spy card replacer, but with a great result attached. Worth it.
Unauthorised Access [A]: A boarding talent that does nothing to the enemy ship or crew, but gives you some intel. Obviously, in a tough fight, focus on the disabling talents, but if you can slip this in somewhere, it’s more cash later.
Stealth Op [B]: Unlike the Saboteur version, you’re very likely to be on this mission type and have a good Stealth dicepool, so it’s pretty good for mitigating lost rep.
Level 8
Data Haul [S]: More cash AND contact rep for doing your day job. Bonkers good.
Counterfeit Identity [C]: Only applies to Bounty Hunters, but if you’re often in unfriendly (not hostile) territory, it can help.
Sneak Attack [B]: Since it ends stealth mode, use it only when you really want to stun a target rather than kill them. Most of the time, Shadowed Fire is better though.
Level 11
High Stakes [A]: Do your spying job better. Just take it.
Secrets Unbound [S]: Do your job… whilst doing none of the work. Literally just get free intel vomited at you from time to time. Amazing.
Cloak and Dagger [A]: For spying missions, it’s a replacer, so useful for your job.
Killers Aim [A]: Just 4 Initiative for a baseline 75-80% crit chance!? YES. Gimme.
Level 15
Rampant Theft [B]: The 5-card full redraw for Spying.
Swordsman
(Evasion+, Swords++ [Str or Quick 24+])
Strangely enough, the pure sword class. Most of their attacks are surprisingly expensive in initiative (1.5x normally); but of course, this is not as terrible for the Swordie as it is the Sniper as their base Initiative cost is 6-9 (nice).
Now, swords are fun, but they have a problem: namely that all easily available ones have garbage Piercing… which is kinda surprising, considering, you know, sharp objects and spacesuits don’t tend to interact well. I guess Star Traders tech is such that they can block ballistics and stabbing with the same armour material. Even basic L1 suits have 100% Deflect Value. Your Level 5 Blade has 18% Pierce. Yeah. So, that’s an 82% chance to have your damage reduced by about 20% each attack. On heavier, higher tier armour, you’re looking at a 130% chance to reduce it by 50%. Before talents come into play.
Assassin gets around this by Stealth Crits, but Swordsman doesn’t have that luxury. The moral of this story is: If you want any decent DPS from your swords; Piercing is hugely important for Swordsmen. Gear and special blades that increase it are very valuable. If you can’t get them, highly consider using a Pistol/Knife combo as you lose little Piercing but attack more often and get mildly more Parry dice.
HOWEVER, the other thing you want Swordsmen for is tanking. They naturally get bonus parry, and don’t lose too much from Heavy Armour (most other fighters will prefer light or stealth armour). If they wear it, then on average they’ll take 25% less damage in return for their low DPS. Furthermore, you have counterattacks available to most frontline classes, so on occasion you’ll get some extra, but this is not too reliable.
Anyway, with these considerations in mind, let’s look…
Obtained: Retired Duelist contact. Any port with Military 6+.
Level 1
Balanced Blade [A]: Gives yourself a very solid defence buff, and a minor offence buff, with good accuracy, so it’s a solid, inoffensive basic attack. Most notably, though, Sharp Counter (and in fact, other sword counters as well) will use Balanced Blade for its counterattack (which isn’t immediately obvious). This makes it a very good choice if you intend to allow your Swordie to Counter, as it ensures those counters remain accurate and also keep your defence up, increasing your tankiness.
Slashing Retreat [A]: Has a good defensive buff attached, and will allow you dance back and forth with this and the Slot 2 charging abilities (Devastating Charge / Skewering Thrust). This is reasonably viable as a strategy.
Sharp Counter [B]: As you’re tanky, this will occasionally increase your DPS a bit. You can’t counter long range attackers though, and it’s fairly common for the state to end after just one counter, which kinda sucks. It does give you even more defence, so there is that. Make sure to also pick up Balanced Blade (see above).
Bravery Line [C]: Initiative Boost. More initiative is nice; but otherwise, this is a fairly tame Initiative booster. Consider anything else if you can.
Rash Courage [A]: Single-Handedly helps boost your DPS to good levels. +30% Damage, +30% Accuracy and +10% Piercing is nuts. -10% Armour is fixed as soon as you use basically any other Swordsman attack. Just 6 Initiative too! Get it!
Level 5
Flash Fury [S]: Bow down, this is your god. Buff remover, +25% Crit, +25% PIERCING! This alone is equivalent to upgrading to most uncommon blades. If happy with your current defence buffs and not doing the 1-2 dance, use this exclusively to deal decent hits and ruin the day of other frontliners.
Strength of Steel [A]: It’s buffs like this that are the reason WHY buff remover attacks are so valuable. SoS is a massive tanking boost, again for just 6 initiative, and even heals its user. If you don’t care for DPS, feel free to abuse it.
Devastating Charge [A]: Only usable in Slot 2; but 50% Stun, stripping Defence and Initiative makes it a superb opener if you start in Slot 2 and then pair it with Slashing Retreat to completely lock down the enemy front.
Level 8
Skewering Thrust [B]: An alternative to Devastating Charge for the 1-2 dance. It hits both front targets; but is a much more generic attack. Use if both foes are stunned already and you want quicker damage.
Bladesman Rally [B]: Removing Debuffs from yourself and your Shotgun/Blade buddy is nice. Getting a bit of morale back is usually just icing, but fine.
Level 11
Blade and Hilt [D]: The tiny buffs you get are not worth the debuffs in this case. Sure, it’s free crit, but pretty much any other combo you can pull off is better. A poor capstone, considering the 1-2 dance and Flash Fury exist.
Secret of Steel [A]: New for Patch 322, you can only use this if on Slot 3-4. This means using Slashing Retreat on slot 2, being knocked back whilst on Slot 2, or deliberately starting on 3 to use it. However, it’s really good, giving +40% (!) Melee Defence, +50% Debuff Resist, healing HP and Morale based on your Blade skill (nice), and pushing you up. Superb for tanking, which is often your main job.
Level 15
Nine-Blade Cut [S]: Also new for Patch 322. Well, Swordsman waited a LONG time, but with this, you finally get a meaningful way to cause front line disruption. This is a super-strong Debuff attack. 75% Stun is huge, but the -5 Initiative is even more huge. The defence down on top really supports the whole team’s DPS. Excellent.
Wing Bomber
(Pilot++, Electronics+, Tactics, Non-Combat)
A fly-boy (or gal) for your bombers on a carrier. Bombers are all about dealing massive damage (funny that). With the top end bomber being flown, they can deal 50% more damage than Large Gravcannons (note: That’s A LOT). Of course, that’s every 4 turns vs. potentially every turn, so if you intend to make them truly effective, you’ll want them on a constant rotation from a proper carrier, and give them fighter escort and debuff support from a Wing Leader.
With Strike Craft in general, don’t expect a cheap ride: this is one of the few things you’ll need high military rank (6) to get the best of, and you absolutely want the highest tier craft you can get your hands on. In Bomber’s case, this means you need to be best mates with Cadar.
Wing Bomber crew also have a few useful support talents if they’re sat in their bomber. Since a very recent patch, they also now contribute to your ship’s piloting and electronics dicepools when idle, so your carriers can get away with slightly fewer Pilots/E-Techs (in theory).
Obtained: Flight Academy Officer and Naval Recruiter contacts or any zone with Military 6+ & Starport 8+.
Level 1
Hull Buster [S]: The key flight plan you should use: +40% Damage (!) means it can DEAL 700+ DAMAGE in the best bomber, which is insane. Doesn’t do much else, but why carry bombers if not to murder enemy ships with prejudice?
Bombing Run [C]: Bombers should focus on blowing stuff up (Fighter Debuffs are generally better). However, this plan does cause -25% accuracy which can help other bombers (and the carrier) survive if you’re low on escorts. It’s okay.
Synchronised Strikes [A]: A key talent; all Bomber Pilots should get it, and you should pop it at the start of turn 3 before they drop. You DO NOT want to miss with your bomb drop, and this vastly increases your chances.
Vanguard Scan [A]: If Synchronised Strikes is up already and a bomb is about to drop, definitely add this into the mix. It’s an extra 25% damage (making that Hull Buster 825 damage!). If you can get both in before the first drop, even better, though make sure your carrier can survive first.
Ensnare [A]: A Blockade Card Deleter. Ideal for your Pirate with a Carrier.
Explosive Screen [C]: Should be on your Gunners; but if you have an especially specialised carrier with no guns, I guess you should grab it to deal with meteors.
Level 5
Shutter Strike Pattern [C]: Decent as a first plan, as you’re softening up for further bombs to hit. But not essential due to the insane raw damage of Hull Buster.
PX Incendiary Payload [A]: The pirate’s bombing plan. If you don’t want to murder things with Hull Buster and are combining bombers with assault shuttles to kill off the crew, use this one instead (ideally with the Plasma-Bomber).
Intimidating Fly Over [B]: 30% extra rep for mission steps is pretty darn good, even with the chance for the -1 to the local faction.
Ruthless Destruction [C]: Your Mechanics will be best assigned to cutting apart wrecks post-battle, not your bomber pilots, but this does apply to rep from Solar Wars as well (which are super rare though). Go ahead if you really feel the need.
Level 8
Deliberate Destruction [C]: Salvage Card Replacer. Well… nuking space stations for fun and profit anyway. Unlike most replacers, I down-rank this one. It’s potential cash, but not much, and it’s not worth pissing off the local faction for it.
Alarming Pass [B]: A little bit more cash from Blockading. Pirates will like it.
Level 11
Havoc Burst Pattern [A]: This plan gives a high chance to crit (75-90% with Syncro-Strikes also active), so it will very likely seriously injure a few crew members. On the Plasma-Bomber, it will be absolutely devastating. Worth considering if you’re going for the disable rather than the big nukage.
Wing Commando
(Blades++, Evasion, Pilot, [Str/Quick 20+])
An Assault Shuttle Pilot, but also a powerful melee combatant on their own, the Wing Commando is an interesting Hybrid class; they can actually function fine as combat crew without a shuttle (though without one, several of their talents will be useless) and in so doing, provide a tiny bit of pilot dice to your main ship. As a result, WC is a very useful combat officer splash, giving a lot of combat potential.
Of course, if paired with a shuttle of their own, they’ll be able to drop your boarding team off and will apply those pilot dice to that. Shuttles allow you to board every 4 turns even if lacking in the Gunner/Bounty Hunter boarding talents (or they are on cooldown or used already). In addition, you will inflict an extra effect after boarding with a shuttle, much like getting a bonus boarding talent. However, they are the easiest craft to hit and shoot down in most cases.
As is the case with all small craft users, the tier of the craft is pretty important, and you should always attempt to get the best possible. These are available from Steel Song (Best and 3rd best, with military rank 6 or 2) and Zenrin (2nd best, with military rank 4), so if you intend to get the best shuttles, be friendly with them.
✯As a Captain✯
Recently added in patch 300, which also allows the Captain to pilot Craft in general, which wasn’t previously possible, the Wing Commando Captain gets a nice buff to Quickness and initiative, though nothing as good as some combat captains get. In recompense, though, they can forgo a Boarding Module on their ship and also rely on a slightly better level of Craft Evasion. The 20% Morale damage protection is alright, though captains that cannot break (full stop) already exist. Overall, as Captain bonuses go, it’s nothing to write home about, but that is perhaps to be expected as Wing Commando is itself an excellent base class if you want to do any boarding.
Obtained: Ex-Special Ops or Warrant Officer contact. Any zones with Military 8+.
Level 1
Whirling Blade [S]: We get to open here with a cracker. This is on par with Flash Fury for the best Sword talent in the game. Not only do you get an above average attack, you buff your defence, AND activate a counterattack stance! All for the low price of 1.5x Initiative. Puts several other sword skills to shame.
Breakneck Assault [B]: This is a decent double hit skill. It’s low damage, but knocking out some defence and some initiative isn’t bad at all.
Breacher’s Assault [B]: The most basic shuttle flight-plan; but in my opinion, the second best, purely because of the accuracy nerf that it applies, which will help out your subsequent shuttle landings a bit.
Trapped Compartments [A]: Pretty similar to Saboteur’s Chain Reaction, this boarding talent is great help if you’re trying to disable the enemy ship. All the ongoing damage at once!
Launchpad Strike [A/D]: Great if you’re boarding a carrier; this one basically shuts them down for a few turns AND damages all the landed craft in their hangar bays. But obviously it’s useless against ships that have no small craft of their own.
Level 5
Scrambled Authorisation [A]: Black Market Card Replacer; and a very good one, guaranteeing access above basic level.
Knife Work [S]: Are you using two melee guys in your 1-2 slots when boarding? Well, this talent makes you want to. Absolutely astonishing buff (+25% Melee damage and Accuracy and 20% Defence!!!) and removes your debuffs as well.
Behind Enemy Lines [S]: After the Thrown Wrench, this is the second-best boarding talent in the game. Just flat out disables an enemy weapon dead and you even get some free ongoing damage as part of the deal.
Level 8
Ripcord [D]: This is a serious “But why?” talent. I guess if everything goes tits up… As of Patch 300 where you can have a Wing Commando Captain, and you’re on a difficulty where Captains die when they are killed, I guess this could prevent a game over. Still a bad talent in general though.
Boarders Storm [B]: A useful boarding talent if you want to soften up the enemy defences a bit for you to go and wreck it.
Long Range Support [B]: Explore card game rewards boost. Not a lot, but it’s fine.
Cull The Chaff [A]: A recruit talent. You should always have a recruit talent to hand somewhere on the crew when fishing for new staff. WC might have space.
Level 11
Predictive Intel [S]: And here’s the best Initiative Boost in the game, no contest. It buffs the entire squad with a decent buff to boot. Absolutely mental.
Grandiose Arrival [A]: Ferrying passengers tend to happen in a lot of missions, and this is free money for doing that, so you may as well get it, especially considering there isn’t too much utility on Wing Commando in general.
Level 15
Hostile Tribunal [D]: Ship tithes and prize possession are usually expensive and I skip by them. This is a 50% cost one, so not the best, but if you like it, go for it.
Wing Leader
(Pilot++, Gunnery+, Electronics, Non-Combat)
A fly-boy (or gal) for your fighters on a carrier. Since they now apply their pools to their parent ship when idle, they also provide a lot of support dice that will help out the carrier’s Pilots, Gunners, and E-Techs (especially the former two), so a carrier can run slightly fewer of them to make up for crew that are lost to wing jobs like this.
Fighters have two job options when launched: defensive flight patterns that shoot down missiles/torpedoes and support other ships; and offensive flight patterns that strafe and harass the enemy ship, and which usually add very nice debuffs. Since a recent patch, they now always go before bombers (good, because defensive flight patterns were a lot less useful before), so both are viable.
As is the case with all craft small users, the tier of the craft is pretty important, and you should always attempt to get the best possible. Fighter choice is a bit more nuanced than the others, though, as what is their best stat depends on whether you’ll be using them for interception, in which case you want high Speed; or assault, in which case you want high Agility (to increase dodge and hit-chance).
Alta Mesa makes top-end fighters for both circumstances (Falcon and Noxburn for interception, Feralight for Assault). But Thulun’s Paentra makes for a decent assault fighter, De Valtos’ Edgelight is a good interceptor, and Cadar’s Crescent Chaser is a well-rounded fighter that is good (if not the best) at both.
Obtained: Flight Academy Provost or Wing Veteran Contacts. Or any zone with Military 6+ & Starport 8+. Or Academy Graduation rumour going off.
Level 1
Aegis Pattern [A]: A defensive plan that protects the parent carrier, allowing it to hit enemy fighters and bombers easier, and providing it with an overall defensive buff whilst the fighter itself shoots down craft and missiles. Obviously, the plan of choice if you have a solo fighter and want the protection.
Strafing Run [A]: You get very, very nice Debuff from this assault plan, and it’s the most powerful fighter attack. Whilst its debuff is active, your bombers and shuttles will be able to act with impunity due to the -60% to hit craft debuff. Very good.
Protective Escort [B]: You pop this when your fighter is out, and it gives an extra, decent defensive and move buff to the parent ship. Ideal to close range with.
Bolstering Flyby [C]: Purges crew cripples. You likely want other jobs to handle this.
Unexpected Swoop [A]: Patrol card game deleter. It’s a patrol deleter, always good!
Level 5
Tip of the Spear [B]: Ironically, given the name, this defensive plan is best activated when your bombers are nearly at their target, this will provide them with more damage, hit and crit. Can also help cover other fighters doing assault runs.
Precise Pursuit [B]: This assault plan primes the enemy ship for boarding and crew death from plasma fire; which of course is ideal for pirate carriers and is a good first turn launch in that case.
Ransom Escort [A]: Ransom is the ideal way to deal with surrendered enemies and this makes it even better. Of course, skip it if you’re a full-on pirate.
Level 8
Extended Vigil [A]: More rewards from Patrol card games. Can’t argue with that.
Long Patrol [A]: Salvage card game deleter. If you do scavenging at all, it’s great.
Level 11
Screening Swarm [A]: Defensive plan that protects all other launched small craft. Giving them +30% evasion is arguably the best option for a dedicated carrier.
Interdiction Swarm [A]: Assault plan that’s ideal for shutting down enemy carriers and softening up tough targets with its de-buff; also removes reactor points!
Wing Tech
(Repair+, Ship-Ops+, Tactics+, Non-Combat)
A specialised hangar mechanic, they’re also able to fill in for a Crew-Dogs and normal Mechanics on a Carrier, as well as giving a small Tactics bonus (allowing you to have fewer or no Gunners). They can also provide saves for all three of these things. Of course, nearly all their other talents are tailored to carrier and fighter-based stuff though, so you don’t want to completely lose the regular classes if you rely on those talents (and you normally will).
On a dedicated carrier, you want 2-3, in all likelihood. Just 1 will suffice if you use a single bay, and obviously they’re a lot less useful if you’ve got no craft at all (though in that case they can still do some repair and anti-craft jobs).
Obtained: Squadron Mechanic Contacts. Any High Tech or Orbital Zones with a Starport rating of 6+. Or Academy Graduation rumor going off.
Level 1
Recovery Pod [A]: Not that you want to lose craft, but it’s even worse losing a skilled pilot; this will act as a Lifesaver talent for them, so you’ll want at least one Wing Tech to install ejector seats! A full carrier should have multiple copies.
Airtight Plan [S]: A Tactics save. A full Carrier may not have as many Gunners to provide these, so Wing Tech’s can pick up the slack if wanted.
Fleet Maintenance [A]: Saves money. This can be applied to both small craft and regular ship repairs on-planet, but keep in mind it can be drained for either.
X12 Interference [A]: Smacking enemy craft with -40% Evasion is a pretty stellar debuff that will really help your AA and fighters shoot them down. Good stuff.
Void-Side Fix [D]: Purges crew effects on Craft. Since Craft auto-remove their effects on landing anyways (I believe) and rarely get effects in the first place, I’d say this is a bit of a waste.
Level 5
Discounted Acquisition [B]: You shouldn’t need to buy new craft often (if you do, your carrier is doing something wrong; and you’ll bleed money), but this will save when you do.
Technical Refit [S]: Ship Ops save. If you’re lacking in Crew Dogs, get it.
Rapid Refurb [A]: Can and will save you a lot of money on craft repairs; as much as 100% if your craft are unlucky enough to be critted a lot. A good idea.
Unerring Calculations [B]: A general craft boost for space combat. It’s decent.
Level 8
Hangar Triage [A]: The wing version of the Engineer and Crew Dog post battle repair talents. Can save you a lot of money on craft, so carrier users need it a lot.
Improvised Patch [S]: Electronics Save. Carriers still need e-techs, so this may well be unneeded. Even so, its an extra save.
Sharp Wing [A]: +40% Evasion and +20% Armour to your craft!? Amazing to help your craft survive and not be shot down.
Weapons Hot [B]: A big accuracy and damage boost. Though keep in mind it will reduce Evasion a bit, so not quite as good as Sharp Wing.
Level 11
Emergency Grounding [C]: Instant Recall of all craft at start of turn. If you’re running, or everything is risking being shot down, it can be useful. Kinda niche though.
Xeno-Hunter
(Intimidate++, Rifles++, Explore [Str/Quick 24+])
The absolute madlad class. Sensible Star Traders should be leaving the Xeno to the Templars and running away. But if you feel like you need a challenge, Xeno Hunter will help you rise to it. And poke it with a stick until it lashes out.
Xeno-Hunter is unique in its dubious ability to get you into MORE trouble with its card game replacers (since it replaces a bad card with a Xeno fight, which is invariably worse in 90% of cases). However, with a high level Xeno-Hunter’s talents, the rewards can be quite high as well.
Xeno-Hunters can be decent combat crew by themselves, but really shine as an officer with other classes focusing on Explore and Intimidate. A Bounty Hunter / Xeno-Hunter / Exo-Scout officer will be one of the most fearsome ground combatants in the game, absolutely elite with rifles and awesomely intimidating.
✯As a Captain✯
A Hunter-Killer Captain will make your trip easier if you want to take the tough road; you’ll get extra rep constantly for splattering aliens into the void, which is great. You’ll want to hire more Exploring and Patrolling related crew, and at least one Smuggler to help fence all the illegal artifacts you’ll be collecting.
However, one thing to keep in mind is that the Hunter-Killer Captain gets a lot of toughness bonuses. Whilst this is never a bad thing (you might as well get 31 Fortitude with Captain stats for massive HP), the actual XH class is a natural backliner, meaning this could be a bit wasted. Rather than the above officer combo, it might be worth considering XH/Shock Trooper/Soldier and being a deadly shotgunner; whilst ignoring the XH rifle talents. Up to you though. Either way, you’ll really want this captain to in on ground combats. Bonus points if you’re called Ahab and are hunting for the Great White Xeno.
Obtained: Retired Xeno-Hunter contacts only.
Level 1
Daunting Presence [S]: Intimidate Save. Will save your QM taking it initially. Nice.
Unflinching Risk [B]: Explore Card game re-roll. If you have space, grab it.
Blooded Lure [A/D]: Explore Card game replacer (with Xeno). Awful if you’re just carrying a XH for coverage, but if it’s your captain’s main job, get it.
We The Hunters [B]: Fewer crew have to wear their brown pants to Xeno space combat. However, the XH is the worst at this talent (ironically), with QM and Explorer generally having more coverage.
Irid-Laced Resolve [A/D]: Initiative Boost, only applying to Xeno fights. If you’re running a hunter crew, this is the best IB in the game. If not, it won’t go off much!
Grenade Launch [B]: A softening grenade, with a minor 25% stun. It knocks away some of the tankiness that Xeno’s have innately, so it’s decent, but focus first on reducing their lethality before their toughness!
Level 5
Here Be Monsters [A/D]: Patrol Card game replacer (with Xeno). See Blooded Lure.
Macabre Harvest [A]: More Artifacts from Xeno ground combat. No other class has this, so you may as well get more bonuses from your dangerous fights.
Unfailing Stand [C]: Very useful if you’re fighting in the front, give yourself a lot of defence and healing and morale, full package. XH is a backliner by default though, so it might be a bit niche.
Puncture Points [B]: A slightly worse version of Exo-Scout’s Plas-Charge Slugs. Fine.
Level 8
Death Haunt [B]: AoE debuff remover and morale restore for back 3. Normally, morale isn’t a huge problem in ground combat, but it is with Xeno’s, so decent.
Plasma Burner [A]: A double hit with bonus plasma damage. Pretty generic, but the hard to resist plasma portion will be helpful vs. Xeno’s. With a Heavy Assault Rifle, this talent can do quite massive damage, however.
Soul Piercer [B]: A recruit talent. You should always have a recruit talent to hand somewhere on the crew when fishing for new staff. XH might have space.
Level 11
Triumphant Predator [A]: Good to use after a Xeno Space Victory, as usually at least some crew are wetting themselves: this stops them thinking of desertion.
Exalted Hunter [S]: The reason even a grizzled hunter-killer captain should have good Charisma (lol). Up to 47% more cash from Xeno hunt missions WHICH STACKS on top of other talents increasing rewards. May as well make the gig worthwhile.
Level 15
Eradication Prize [S]: Lots of bonuses for killing Xeno ships when you salvage. Why you’re here in the first place, and this is a great bonus.
Zealot
(Intimidate++, Command++, Blades [Str 24+])
Zealot is a strange but very effective hybrid class. Part Military Officer, part Quartermaster, but all tuned to fanatical loyalty and rage, with some unique utility talents. Also has some nice blade combat talents, but not much of a dicepool to use them.
As a result, a zealot crew member won’t be a very good combatant with only this class (though you can still consider having 1 on staff for their really handy utility talents). However, it makes for a very fine officer splash if they intend to be a sword user of some kind. Standard combo choices are Bounty Hunter, Commander, Swordsman, and Wing Commando.
✯As a Captain✯
A Zealous Captain is tuned specifically to support an individual faction or small set of allied factions and get involved in as many conflicts as they can. They’ll want to track rumours of them closely and move to support the involved areas either by helping their chosen ones or making a nuisance of themselves in enemy territory. A Zealot should remain focused though; only a Pirate captain will be more disliked if you’re indiscriminate, so try to pick just a couple of factions to antagonise when you can.
With a flat 10% bonus to ground combat damage, +2 Initiative and Captain stats, they should absolutely be joining boarding teams when they can; though keep in mind the risks of being a rank 1 captain if you’re on a difficulty level without immortal captains.
Obtained: Ex-Mercenary contacts. Thulun High Prince (Red Lion).
Level 1
Famous Fury [S]: Intimidate Save. Pure Rage incarnate made into save. Don’t mess.
Righteous Rank [A]: Normally Military Rank isn’t a huge concern for most captains, but here it’s part of your day job to be involved in conflicts, and it actually affects one of your later talents, so go ahead.
Rough Interrogation [A]: A very unique talent. Kick the crap out of a surrendered crew for information (free intel!) before ransoming them back. Zealots don’t really care about the repercussions (you are being selective in targets… right?).
Unbending Law [B]: Deserters are rare if you’re playing well, but you should have at least one of these. If your QM is missing it, go ahead.
Devoted Service [A]: More Faction Rep for doing missions. Awesome.
Unstoppable Force [B]: Self targeted, so not as great as some equivalent talents, but a cheap 6 initiative to get 75% debuff resistance is decent enough.
Incensed Strikes [A]: Very nice sword attack. Strip buffs and 3 Initiative and give a minor defence debuff. If only it had some more piercing… But still great.
Level 5
Fanatical Siege [B]: Blockade card game replacer. Zealots will be blockading from time to time to hunt illegal smugglers, so this is a good replacer for them.
Obsessive Defence [B]: Patrol card game replacer. Normally wouldn’t be very good as you get a pirate if you draw it. But hey, Zealots are here to hunt them, right?
Retribution Justice [A]: The only talent in the game that cares about Military Rank. Gives you more Conflict Score for messing with conflicts. Do your day job better.
Bloodletting Blow [C]: Some bleed and some knockback. If you can kick another swordsman out of slot 2, its not bad, but otherwise fairly generic.
Level 8
Fervour [A]: AoE debuff remover and morale restore for front 3. +2 Initiative to all three targets as well, so it’s actually a zero-sum cost overall. Pretty great!
Summary Execution [D]: Shoot the leader of the mutiny and it ends. Gives a high morale boost, but obviously you’ll be down a crew member. But mutiny is when?
Level 11
Infliction Rage [A]: Initiative Boost. One of the strongest personal IB’s, it’s a great mixed buff. Loads of damage, more initiative, more defence, morale, the lot!
Diehard Defence [C]: Patrol missions nearly always lead to ship combat, so if you’re doing that, it’s helpful, giving you a 40+% chance to get it on each card draw.
Level 15
Fanatical Court [D]: Now, personally I don’t bother with ship tithes and prizes, they’re very, very expensive. Now, this ~is~ the day to day work of a zealot, but oddly this is the worst of this kind of talent, with a 65% cost factor!
Enduring Defender [B]: Re-draw the entire lot of 5 cards during patrols.
And we’re done with classes… but wait, there’s more…
Give Me a Ship, and a Star to Sail Her by
Again, this is not really the purpose of this guide, but I’m also going to cover some stuff about ships, since it’s useful knowledge to have when planning to build one and what classes you’ll need to run the thing.
The first and most important thing you should know is this: you can safely ignore nearly all the information you see about a ship. No, really. All of the stats that are shown when you’re buying one, are, for the most part, simply the sum of the ship’s parts, and you can swap those out (mostly) at whim.
There are just a few things that are unique to a certain design that you should actually pay attention to:
1. The Mass Category. Such as 3.4K, 6K, etc. This determines the base speed and agility, maximum mass, and where its essential parts slot in.
2. The L, M, and S Slots provided. BY FAR THE MOST Important aspect of a hull as this determines what you can customise and where. Slots are precious!
3. The Maximum Crew & Officers. These are specific to the design. Usually, it’s fairly consistent across a mass category, but not always. i.e., both Reach Vindex and Gunhawk Sabre are 2.4K ships, but one has a maximum of 4 officers, 24 crew, and the other has 6 officers, 18 crew.
4. The Basic Superstructure (HP). Though, not hugely important, and it will usually be in the degree of about 1000 for smallest ships going up to about 3000 for the largest ones, with some swing and variance.
5. Visual Design. Sorry, this is the most important thing, obviously you should pick the prettiest visual design (joking, though it is unique and yes, because I’m vain it can be a deciding factor for me).
Golden Rules of Ship Design
The biggest thing you have to get your head around is this:
- A ship has parts (duh). Various parts will give additional Dicepool Capacity.
- For example, a [Defence Pattern Matrix 1] states that it gives +2 Electronics, +2 Pilot, and +2 Ship Ops. This IS NOT giving you +2 dice. It is giving you the ability to use +2 more dice.
- Your crew and officers then must PROVIDE dice from their classes (which is why this section is relevant to the guide, lol) to fill up that capacity.
- You really, really don’t want to run under 100% of your Dicepool Capacity in anything because it nerfs ALL your rolls. None will be rolled as Strong Dice, so they will be worse. Hence, understaffed ships will die very quickly from constantly failing rolls in travel, never mind in combat.
- You ACTUALLY want to hit 200% of your Capacity. When you meet the capacity, your dice are not nerfed, which is good, but if you exceed it, the extra up to 200% is also rolled as less reliable dicerolls. They may be less reliable, but every extra one could be a success.
- Over 200% is wasted though. If you’re going massively over (more than 250% or so), consider firing a staff member that provides it if they’re not doing something else essential, because they’re not really helping.
- There is a VERY USEFUL bar graph on bottom right of your ship status screen that has bars & stats for the major dicepools on a ship. Look at this a lot.
- The mantra is: Better parts have higher capacity, so require better crew, but also perform better as a result.
Mass Categories
As I mentioned above, the Mass Category determines the basic agility and speed stats, though this can be slightly modified by the type of engine.
We’ll discuss engines further below, but the important part to remember here is that if you have more Agility or Speed than an opponent, you’ll get bonuses to everything you do against them, up to +35% if you have triple in excess.
So, Corvettes can fly rings around Cruisers; as you might imagine. However, the extra crew and parts that big ships have helps to mitigate this, especially if elite guys are providing lots of Command and Tactics dice.
Some components are available at different sizes, but some are not. Void Engines are always L-sized, no matter the ship. All ships have one, as well as a Hyperdrive and a Barracks. It’s important to remember that these components; as well as any officer cabins and cargo holds you need, are essential, and fixed, and will never be ‘free’ slots, all you can do is upgrade them. I take this into account when giving you the estimated ‘usable slots’ of some examples later, so something like [0/3/8] implies there are no L slots, 3 M slots, and 8 S slots that can actually be changed around when you mess with the design.
You’ll also have to keep your mass within the maximum for that category. i.e., a 5K Frigate must have exactly equal to, or less than 5000 Tonnes of mass to be a legal design and to function with their Void Engine.
Which brings us to the concept of “Mass Debt”. Various Mass Reducer and Modulator parts exist, using magic antigravity to keep the ship from tearing apart, which is fine. BUT… many base hulls are built with them in mind. A Mass Reducer becomes immovable in many cases, like an essential component, because its mass reduction has become required to make the ship function, and getting rid of them, like financial debt, can be troublesome, since you need to not only account for the mass reduction, but also the mass of the replacement itself.
Which is a problem because, you know, SLOTS are precious!!
Below, I’ll talk about each mass category in detail and good ships from it. Note that I use real-life naval terminology for class sizes. This isn’t actually used in Star Traders, but I find it really fits well, rather than just calling a size ‘a 3.4K’ or suchlike.
Corvettes (2.4k)
27/27 Agility & Speed
With one at 30 if you have a Chaser/Traveller Engine. No nerfs to other stats. Corvette sized ships typically have an S-Sized Bridge (Scout Bridge), an M-Sized Hyperdrive, and an M-Sized Barracks. The most basic starter Corvettes, however, have an M-Sized bridge instead as a direct nerf (i.e., The Scout Cutter, Longbolt, Juror) which is a good incentive to upgrade as soon as you are able.
Now, generally, other than starting in one, there’s usually little purpose in upgrading to a Corvette. You can ~just~ about get the 2x speed advantage vs. a Destroyer with the appropriate engine, and 3x vs. Heavy Cruiser, but the gains and damage over a Heavy Corvette is not very worthwhile for the loss of slots in most cases. If you must use one, be mates with Steel Song and get a Zartar Fang. With some juggling to get rid of one of the mass reducers, you can get [0/2/7] slots with a tough hull for the size; which can be a decent angry captain delivery system. (lol)
Heavy Corvettes (3.4k)
24/24 Agility & Speed
With one at 29 with a Chaser/Traveller Engine. No nerfs to other stats.
A Heavy Corvette is actually a great ship to fly if you want to go with a boarding heavy strategy. You’ll nearly always want a Chaser engine if you’re doing this, but with one, you’ll get a fairly consistent dice bonus of at least 10-15% against anything bigger than you (including Frigates) at close range and boarding.
The highlights of this category include the two sister ships, The Sword Cutter and Wolf Vector. With 19 slots and [0/3/10] customisable, they’re very versatile whilst remaining fast and furious, though do have 400 Tonnes of mass debt. The Cutter has a cool Red & Black paintjob; and requires you to be mates with Cadar. The Cutter used to be a slightly better version of Wolf Vector, but that table turned with a recent patch: now the Wolf is now the only Heavy Corvette to be able to support 6 officers, which is a real super bonus. However, in compensation, it costs considerably more now (2 million!). Probably worth the investment, though.
Also of note is the Victus Interceptor, which has a launch bay (WTF). Effectively has [1/1/10] customisable slots if you’re willing to drop the bay; but having one is absolutely ideal for a pirate to park their Assault Shuttle in. Being the only 3.4K with a spare L slot is very tempting, even if you’re losing 2 M’s.
Frigates (5k)
19/19 Agility & Speed
Chaser: 22 Agility, 18 Speed /// Traveller: 16 Agility, 23 Speed.
Frigates are actually underestimated by a lot of people. Much like their real-life Naval counterparts, they are fabulous when specialised. They do lose out on the Scout Bridge of the Heavy Corvette, so suddenly have to find somewhere to throw officers. However, their Bridge and Hyperdrive are still M sized, meaning you often get a surprising amount of L space (or can load in some BIG guns!), whilst still remaining at a respectable speed. You can buy frigates pre-specialised or buy a cheap one and customise it yourself over time. Both are viable strategies.
Vrax Hauler with [2/3/6] slots, is my personal best pick; good slots, cheap to buy. This assumes 1 medium and 2 small officer cabins for 5 officers. Having potentially 195 Tonnes of Cargo space on a Frigate is pretty mental. Or you can tote double L sized Grav-Cannons and laugh in the face of your foes.
Galtak Heavylift is less versatile [4/1/6] as it loses 2 M slots for 1 extra L slot, but it is immediately tailored for Cargo and Passenger carrying. It’s pretty solid.
Reach Defender is the pick if you want a sort of battle-ready combat frigate straight off the production line, though as usual for these, it has way too many guns to be useful. Requires you to be friends with Cadar, and the main bonus is that it starts with a Battle Bridge which is superb.
Paladin Crusader is a new ship added in patch 347. It has [2/2/6] and is pretty expensive, but it’s a rare 5K with 6 Officer slots, so worth considering.
Destroyers (6k)
15/15 Agility & Speed
Chaser: 18 Agility, 13 Speed /// Traveller: 13 Agility, 19 Speed.
If you’re not fond of a Frigate as your first upgrade from your starter ship (or picked a C or B Ship start on your captain and already have one), then upgrading to a destroyer is also a solid choice. They are the first proper “Capital” type, so both the engine AND bridge now use L slots, whilst the Barracks and Hyperdrive usually remain at M size. They don’t get more L slots than frigates, so will never be as good when specialising, but they get a handful more M and S slots instead as a compensation measure. A well-built Destroyer is a staple for a lot of players through the mid-game if not pursuing a specialised Frigate or Heavy Corvette build, and can serve you well the whole game.
My highlights in the Destroyer category include the no-nonsense Vengeance Class [3/3/8], which, though mediocre off the production line, is cheap and cheerful, and with the right tweaking, has huge battle potential due to its many S sized slots for you to shove various dicepool boosting devices in.
I’m also fond of the Azure Defender, which is like the Vengeance, but taken to its logical extreme with S devices [1/2/10] and in fact comes pre-installed with lots of them at their lowest levels, as well as a combat hyperdrive. You’ll need to be pals with Moklumnue to get it though.
Finally, if you’ve got cash to burn (3 million!), Vark Carrier is likely the best medium sized carrier you can ask for [2/3/7]. It’s bling-gold coloured; and apparently that’s 18-carat armour you’re sporting, because this has loads of HP and tonnes of armour thanks to its Zenrin components. If you have a smaller budget, the Extremis Carrier and Fallen Carrier are basically cheaper, worse models (though with arguably better colour schemes).
Cruisers (7k)
12/12 Agility & Speed
Chaser: 14 Agility, 10 Speed /// Traveller: 12 Agility, 15 Speed.
Starting to punch at the real heavyweight league, Cruisers shift to needing L-sized Hyperdrives as well, so tend to VERY short on L slots. They’re also very expensive for the high-end models (as much as 4 million), typically because said models come with Behemoth engines which are obscenely pricey. I usually don’t recommend investing in those models; if you’ve got that sort of cash to burn, you may as well go straight up to Battlecruiser size. But there are the following:
Let’s start by talking about the Dragoon Cruiser. It’s actually a slow Destroyer masquerading as a Cruiser honestly, with [0/6/7] slots, but has a fair bit of M size slot versatility, a Warhammer engine, and NO mass debt at all. Which is nice, if you want a cheap entry point into this size. But no, that’s not a recommendation to use your A-Rank on ship to get it at the start of the game. A IS FOR STATS. If you must get a higher end combat starter, use B on ship with a Guardian Interceptor.
Leo Battlecruiser. The flying brick [1/5/9]. Personally, I think people overrate this a little bit, but it is very solid, not obscenely expensive (1.8 Million), and loses an extra L slot to get the crew and officer complement of a Battlecruiser. Moreover, though it is 600 Tonnes in mass debt, it comes with Lion Mass Reducers built in, so at least you’re getting dice bonuses for your trouble. It’s also ideal as a multirole medium carrier sic missile cruiser straight off the production line. Obviously requires you to be best mates with Thulun, and to have no aesthetic sense.
Battlecruisers (8k)
9/9 Agility & Speed
Chaser: 10 Agility, 10 Speed /// Traveller: 8 Agility, 15 Speed.
And with the biggest ships, your barracks can now also be L-sized (though you get a guaranteed 42 crew to compensate). BC’s absolutely drown in mass debt which can be a problem, but they also finally get to the point where they have as many spare L-slots as Frigates do (as they usually hit the cap for them). Oddly enough, this makes them best suited to be supercarriers.
Warhammer Class. If you want a battlecruiser, this is the quintessential one. It has [3/8/6] with the option to increase barracks to L sized for [2/9/6] instead. With lots of hull and armour and the space to mount whatever arsenal you like for an almost reasonable price of 1.87 million, it’s a solid pick, and looks cool too.
Aegis Freighter. And if you’re friends with Moklumnue, and you need a super-hauler, this is your ship [4/7/5]. It’s the first ship that can have 4 cargo holds… and thus can finally outmatch the 5k Vrax Hauler for cargo capacity with a 260 Tonne limit, lol. Though honestly, even a dedicated merchant will have issues finding enough cargo to fill that much space up, so it’s an upgrade you’ll only ~need~ if you feel the urge for a tougher ship with more weapons rather than speed for your shipping needs. It does also make for an ideal base if you want to run the meme full time medical ship.
Harbinger Carrier. IMHO, the premium supercarrier [2/6/10]. It’s at a super-reasonable price point (just 1.92 million), has only a small mass debt, and even has a noble white colour scheme. Admittedly, it has budget parts by default, but you can achieve a lot with its spare M slots (including making it into a proper battlecruiser instead of a carrier). It’s an Alta-Mesa exclusive. Its sister ship, the Mortifor Carrier by Javat, is 2.4 million, and has more carrier appropriate parts if you’re wanting to get straight on fleet action though, so that’s also good.
Dreadnaughts (9k)
9/9 Agility & Speed
Identical to 8k.
As you reach the biggest ships, you mostly get the maximum slots you can get in the game. All (3) of them have the same visual design and similar slots as a result, so the difference is fairly small.
Personally, I’d say if you’re going for this sort of whopper level, you may as well go all out with 3.98 million and grab the one actually called the Dreadnaught. It’s [4/7/10] and drowned in about 600T of mass debt, but has the most overall slot versatility.
A recent patch added an alternative Dreadnaught in the Acheron, which removes the M slots for more S slots (more than the UI can handle, actually… you’ll have to use a workaround). Despite this, in its base configuration it’s [4/6/10], so it’s best to jiggle the setup so the Officer Suites use M slots for [4/4/14] if you actually want to take advantage of S devices. It’s also named a “battlecarrier” but has no actual carrier equipment or hangars, lol.
Engine Types (Speed/Agility)
So, above, I’ve constantly mentioned Chaser and Traveller engines and how they change ship Speed and Agility, so here’s a brief rundown of engines and what they do:
- Balanced: What it says on the tin. The Baseline for that mass category.
- Chaser: Usually 1AP less to change range. Better Agility; but nerfs Speed on bigger drives. Also uses less fuel whilst travelling in space, but uses more in combat. More Agility means the ship performs better at ranges 1-3.
- Traveller: Opposite of Chaser, Better Speed, worse Agility. Uses more fuel in travel, less in combat (which is ironic given the name). Usually higher safety factor, so it’s easier for your Mechanics and Engineers to make rolls on it. More Speed means it performs better if you hold at long ranges (4-5).
- Longhaul: Has standard stats or sometimes worse Agility on big ships, but is more fuel efficient, burning less over both space travel and combat. It is also the safest engine type and easier to repair. Since patch 327, it also gives extra fuel on top.
- Dual-Field: Has standard stats, but is light-weight; often being 2/3 the mass. Since Engines are heavy, this can actually be quite significant. It’s usually more dangerous for the engineers to handle.
- Warhammer: Standard stats, but gives +1 more RP in total, and always provides some armour and shielding, but is always much more fuel hungry, and is often quite unsafe for your poor engineering staff. At 7K and higher, they give +2 RP instead. +1 More RP is usually a rounding error but can be handy if you use weapons with a 3 RP cost to fire. The big ships appreciate these drives though, for that +2 RP.
- Behemoth: Is always faction specific. A Behemoth is a Warhammer with an armour and shielding bonus but with a huge jump cost. They’re also obscenely expensive to install (usually 2-2.5x cost). They’re a fairly bad deal compared to actual armour; but it saves slots. Don’t completely dismiss them though as sometimes they have extra abilities over a Warhammer.
So, which should I use, you ask? Well, pick the one with the features most important to you, of course! However, in smaller ships (up to 6k), I would nearly always consider either a Chaser or Traveller, as the bonuses to your favoured ranges can be quite significant. On Cruisers, they get a less good bonus, and getting the extra +2 RP on Warhammer engines makes them appealing. Fuel is usually not so expensive as to warrant getting a Longhaul, but if you’re always going multiple jumps in every trip (or have poor engineering staff; as these are safe engines too), it can be worth considering.
Ship Gun Types
Torpedoes: Poor physical damage, Moderate Void Damage, Accurate, 5 range, high cripple, very low critical, S size is 2RP, M size is 3RP.
Torps allow you to standoff at maximum range and plink targets whilst debuffing them, and the cripples happen fairly reliably, though they’re not great: they give slight defence reductions mostly, with some ongoing damage. You should expect to take ages to kill things. Medium Torpedoes kinda suck and should be avoided (less void damage and 3RP cost for +15% more cripple is not worth it). To optimise them, use a full barrage of small launchers. 4 torpedoes in a single turn can be moderately effective. DO NOT try to fight Xeno’s with Torpedoes; they have insanely accurate and powerful torpedoes themselves, and you will lose.
As of Patch 335, better M slot launchers were introduced, again these arrive in the late game with events. They are extremely expensive but allow 2RP firing. In theory, with these, you can contest Xeno torps, but most other ranges are still going to be better for most fights.
Missiles: Excellent physical damage, Low Rads Damage, Accurate, 4 range, low cripple, good critical hits, always 3RP to fire.
Missiles are the best long-range damage solution; only Gravcannons (and Bombers) deal more damage. They also have a high base chance to crit and deal even more damage. Crew Stun is also an excellent cripple, though it’s hard to pull off since Missile cripple chance is quite low. Not a huge difference between M and S ones; M sized have slightly more damage but S sized are more innately accurate. Put them where you have slots, and try to get a 9RP reactor for maximum efficiency.
Railguns: Medium reliable physical damage, High Void Damage, Accurate, 3 Range, high cripples, medium crits, nearly always 3RP to fire.
Very reliable weapons, they cause a lot of aggro to both the hull and crew. Venting Hull and Distortion Fields are fantastic cripples (especially the latter, which gives -30% Accuracy!), and they’re easy to score with multi-railgun barrages. Railguns excel at softening foes up and dealing damage over time.
M sized railguns have higher crit and accuracy in general than S, but not much more damage. So, unlike most weapons, you may not always want the top-of-the-line railgun; you usually don’t get much more damage, so instead it’s quite wise to be focusing on the highest cripple chances (which is on the Radiance [S] and Helios-X [M] models respectively, until Demon-X is available).
Plasma Blasters: Medium physical damage, High Rads Damage, Semi-Accurate, 3 Range, high cripples, high crits, 2-4 RP to fire.
The king of ship disables; the pirate’s choice. But, also a ‘go big or go home’ kind of weapon, as you want to maximise the things that make it unique, which the smaller ones are less effective at. Engine Failure and System Blackout cripples focus on stunning ships by reducing their RP’s whilst dealing some damage over time. This can stack (!) with various RP reducing boarding talents. You might be able to reduce enemy reactor points to less than 4 in many cases, almost leaving them dead in the water, all the while battering them with radiation damage (which is likely to crit!!) and boarding operations to kill off their crew. In most cases, the Interceder PCX-5 [L] is the best model.
Photon Lances: High physical damage, Low Rads Damage, Inaccurate, 2 Range, high cripples, low crits, 2-3 RP to fire.
Lances are awkward and confused for the most part. The idea is that they are used if you want to both murder enemies and also use the Plasma’s RP reducing debuff effects; but Gravcannons damage better at the same range, Plasma disables better, and Railguns are more reliable with better cripples, so they end up being a jack of all, master of none weapon. If you really want to use them, use M lances, they are better in basically every way than their S sized counterparts, and in this case it’s worth the extra 1RP usually (esp. Thunder XK3)
Grav-Cannons: Highest physical damage only. Inaccurate, 2 Range, high cripples, medium crits, 3-4 RP to fire, only comes in M/L size.
Proper battleship weapons, Gravs are the kings of causing massive hull damage; whilst also causing a range of bad cripples that help you stay close and reduce the enemy to atoms even faster. Although they do not innately deal internal damage, all three of the cripples do some form of ongoing damage instead. Much like Plasma, Gravcannons are a go big or go home weapon. If you can mount two L sized ones, you should. Some 5K frigates can manage this and be utterly fearsome in combat. The Retribution [L] is the premium model for some time, though once the coalition invents L8 weapons, the Coronation replaces it.
Autocannons: Medium physical damage only. Semi-Accurate, 1 Range, high cripples, medium crits, 1-2 RP to fire.
As you might expect of a giant chaingun in space, it’s for low range suppression. It’s very cheap to fire and very likely to stack the rather nice debuffs, which it shares with the Gravcannon. If you feel like pulling off the memes, stacking 6+ small autocannons will absolutely obliterate anything that is foolish enough to pull into knife-fighting range with you. Though, of course, sacrificing all those S slots and needing about ten gunners to run them is not a generally advised shipbuilding strategy. XD
Note:
- Void Damage: Deals some to Hull, 150% to Components/Crew. Doesn’t Crit.
- Rads Damage: Deals little to Hull, 200% to Components/Crew. Does Crit
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