The Case for the Star Cruiser
Apparently Steve Ricossa, Executive Producer, asked people in an interview to post on which Tier 6 ships they would like to see.
There are plenty of ships that would deserve a Tier 6 version, of course (Vor'Cha, Sovereign and Rhode Island probably among my favorites), but I want to bring attention to one particular ship that has been in the game for a long time and deserves a Tier 6 place.
![starcruiser02_zpsj8wi5dni.jpg]()
(Gallery: http://s883.photobucket.com/user/Mustrum_Ridcully/library/Star Cruiser)
The original Star Cruiser is the "real" space whale. It was one of the two original endgame Cruisers for the Federation. It's a Cryptic design, not something from canon. It was one of the few ships that had a C-Store costume option before F2P, an option that later became a Fleet ship unlock. It was treated somewhat unfairly over time - it's class name was stolen by the Odyssey Flagship, and the Avenger variant was renamed so the name could be used for the Federation Battlecruiser.
It was the science variant of the endgame cruiser, which used to make it the ultimate healer in PvP (some people might still remember Era's Science Officer in a Star Cruiser keeping them alive through incredible punishment).
I think it deserves a Tier 6 variant since it has a beautiful design that also isn't really found in any of the many new Cruisers.
It might even need a new variant and a bit of a cosmetic overhaul, since it hasn't seen any improvements since the release of the Nomad skin. But there will soon be a console release of Star Trek Online, and it can't hurt to bring old assets like this one up to date - and if you can cross-finance it with a new variant, why not?
Visually, what I would change or improve is the underside of the saucer - it is low in texture or features and can be a bit boring too look at compared to the upper side.
Mechanically, a logical upgrade path might be to raise its Lt.Science to Lt.Cmdr Science, the Ensign Science to Ensign Universal, and the Lt.Cmdr Engineer to an Intel one. As consoles ideas something around improved warp drive / speed / turn rate / defense, intelligence/science vessel like sensor abilities, saucer separation or Captain's Yacht pet (the latter could "explain" a more detailed saucer underside).
Lorewise, the Star Cruiser has to find a niche in a large number of science vessels already in the game. My story idea would be that the Star Cruiser was a project designed before the Klingon and Iconian Wars, and during these violent times ship building efforts had been focused on more aggressive ships. But with the end of the war a more exploration oriented starship for deep space operations became neccessary, and the Star Cruiser was optimized for that purpose - more science labs and intelligence gathering capabilties, improved warp core and warp engine abilities.
![starcruiser19_zpsxt40upfx.jpg]()
What do you think? Is there a case for a Tier 6 Space Whale Star Cruiser?
Apparently Steve Ricossa, Executive Producer, asked people in an interview to post on which Tier 6 ships they would like to see.
There are plenty of ships that would deserve a Tier 6 version, of course (Vor'Cha, Sovereign and Rhode Island probably among my favorites), but I want to bring attention to one particular ship that has been in the game for a long time and deserves a Tier 6 place.
(Gallery: http://s883.photobucket.com/user/Mustrum_Ridcully/library/Star Cruiser)
The original Star Cruiser is the "real" space whale. It was one of the two original endgame Cruisers for the Federation. It's a Cryptic design, not something from canon. It was one of the few ships that had a C-Store costume option before F2P, an option that later became a Fleet ship unlock. It was treated somewhat unfairly over time - it's class name was stolen by the Odyssey Flagship, and the Avenger variant was renamed so the name could be used for the Federation Battlecruiser.
It was the science variant of the endgame cruiser, which used to make it the ultimate healer in PvP (some people might still remember Era's Science Officer in a Star Cruiser keeping them alive through incredible punishment).
I think it deserves a Tier 6 variant since it has a beautiful design that also isn't really found in any of the many new Cruisers.
It might even need a new variant and a bit of a cosmetic overhaul, since it hasn't seen any improvements since the release of the Nomad skin. But there will soon be a console release of Star Trek Online, and it can't hurt to bring old assets like this one up to date - and if you can cross-finance it with a new variant, why not?
Visually, what I would change or improve is the underside of the saucer - it is low in texture or features and can be a bit boring too look at compared to the upper side.
Mechanically, a logical upgrade path might be to raise its Lt.Science to Lt.Cmdr Science, the Ensign Science to Ensign Universal, and the Lt.Cmdr Engineer to an Intel one. As consoles ideas something around improved warp drive / speed / turn rate / defense, intelligence/science vessel like sensor abilities, saucer separation or Captain's Yacht pet (the latter could "explain" a more detailed saucer underside).
Lorewise, the Star Cruiser has to find a niche in a large number of science vessels already in the game. My story idea would be that the Star Cruiser was a project designed before the Klingon and Iconian Wars, and during these violent times ship building efforts had been focused on more aggressive ships. But with the end of the war a more exploration oriented starship for deep space operations became neccessary, and the Star Cruiser was optimized for that purpose - more science labs and intelligence gathering capabilties, improved warp core and warp engine abilities.
What do you think? Is there a case for a Tier 6 Space Whale Star Cruiser?