Ask Cryptic! Episode 6

[jsutich]

Hey everyone!

This is the new Ask Cryptic thread for our sixth installment! Please ask questions you have about Star Trek Online in this thread and they will be collected and forwarded to the Development Team. Answers will be posted to the official site at a later date. Remember, if you had previously asked a question and it did not get answered, please feel free to submit it again.

Please only post questions in this thread. Ready, set, ask!

[Varrangian]

1. Can you tell us more about how species attributes will be assigned during character creation? Will only custom species be able to select attributes or will "pre-defined" species have some choices as well?

2. Can you give us more details on the skill/level system? How about ranks?

3. Can you give us a minimum number of bridge crew we will have and possibly the maximum?

4. The starting ship mentioned in the Game Informer article is said to be about the size of a runabout. Is this for the tutorial portion of the game or will these be our first ship upon completion of the tutorial?

5. It has been said that we can choose to upgrade our ship to a new "bigger better ship" or choose to enhance the capabilities of the one we have. Can we have more details about this?

6. What are your development cycle plans as STO seems like a game that lends itself to multiple updates and expansions do have ideas for when we might see new factions, ships and species?

Thanks for taking these questions, I have to say I've been very pleased with this process and the level of interaction we have with the dev team on new information.

[TruthSeer]

Any news on whether or not STO will come out for the PS3?

Will both sides have a carrier class or just Klingons?

How will carriers be controlled? Anything like Mastermind's in CoV or something different?

Through upgrading could we keep a ship that that maybe isn't as powerful as some of the higher up ships and not be out classed? I guess I'm asking, will ships be an equivalent of gear and we will eventually "out level" them and have to upgrade it? ex frigate to destroyer to battlecruiser? Or through upgrading will we be able to stay with a ship we like and still have a fighting chance?

[Dext]

1: Will there be clocking in the game?
2: if so how will it work?

[Hagon]

Could you please give some more info on the PvP systems that will be involved.

[Kahn773]

Will you be able to have multiple characters? i.e. one Federation and one Klingon?

[LordNoctis]

Two things.

1.How will the borg work in this game, can they adapt to your weapons? Or could they assimilate your crew, or maybe even you?

2.How big a role will time travel play? And how will it work?

[cavilier210]

can we get more information on the ships, and how they're customized?

[WarpVis]

1. How much interaction will be allowable with the NPCs representing new life found on strange new worlds? Will it be a case of clobber everybody then a text message providing a clue to the next step (like CoH/CoV), a series of dialogue selections (Interplay's Star Trek 25th Anniversery and Judgement Rites), or something completely different.

2. Will we actually be required to seek out objects/clues using tricorders or will objects be a large glowing, pulsating, humming object like in CoH/CoV?

3. Will there be shipboard adventures/missions like TOS "Journey to Babel" which took place entirely on board the ship or will missions be in the form of starship combat and planet side away missions?

[Kahn773]

Will Cryptic release their character builder for STO before the game, so that we can play with it and build our crews? Much like Spore did or is it different for an mmpog?

[voyagerexplorer111]

i have got a lot of questions that are in great detail what you can do in the game:
1.would fleets be able to build stations and ships like in star trek armada 2?
2.Is there going to more ship controls like deflector array when you sort of come to a puzzle like use the deflector array to give feedback etc or would that be optional from your engineers expierence then just click to do the completed action?
3.Also would you be able to steal technology from the borg then use it with your ship?
4.As you are introducing the 25th century in the game would there be very new and important high tech like mobile emitter technology that we haven't seen in the television series?
5. in the game could you be able to control your person and ship movements with a joystick?

[jayrelo]

are customizations of NPC pets set in stone, or can we edit certain aspects later?

[Sckullzy]

I guess this is a prime directive question,

In the original series Kirk would beam down to a preindustrial planet, kick the crap out of whoever they had been worshiping as God, knock down a few of their fundamental beliefs, score with a local and take off, but by Next Generation they usually wouldn’t even go to a pre warp civilization without disguising themselves as locals.

When we’re out finding new worlds what will the rules be when it comes to preindustrial/prewarp planets?

[Kernec]

1. Is it all races can be in both factions?
2. Can Klingon Learn To Us Phasers?
3. Will The Bird Of Pray Have Clocking?
4. If A Klingon Boards A Federation Ship Can They Capture The Ship And Visa Versa?
5. Are You Going To Add More Planets As The Years Go On And Higher Levels?
6. Can You Customize Everything On Your Ship?
7. Is There Free Roam On Your Ship?
8. Is There Gonna Be People Able To Make Different Items Like A Phaser?

[rygar]

Exploration is obviously a big part of Star Trek. If players warp system to system by using an in game star map, will there be a way for them to just set off in an uncharted direction and see what's out there?

[Varrangian]

1. Is it all races can be in both factions?

There is an answer to this question. No.

Feds - Humans, Vulcans, Bajorans, Andorians, Ferengi and Tellarites.
Klingons - Gorn, Orions, and Nausicaans.

Both factions can make custom species.

[Ensign.Ricky]

One of the things I like the most about exploration and meeting new species was heavy background. Cryptic has stated they have a system that will recreate new races and planets so they will be diverse. My question is will the culture and history of each species be as in depth and unique as much as the species generator? Species were easily identified by their physical characteristics but their cultures and beliefs are what really defined them.

[iceman22503]

MMO's today lack playability and realism. They do not allow you to fully flesh out your characters. If I feel like commandeering a romulan warbird to take their cloak and disassemble their warp drive, as long as I am powerful enough to do so, I should be able to. If I am in a crappy mood one day and feel like beaming my bridge crew out ito space to see them pop, I should be able to with an RPG. Will STO allow that type of realism to exist?

[TruthSeer]

Will there me item/weapon customization? Both cosmetic and functional? Like if I like a certain type of tricorder or want to have one that has a specialized function? Or with phasers if I want to customize one to have a pistol grip instead of the standard look?

[LordDave]

There has been discussion on the art direction. Can you tell us why you chose to design your characters and environments with bright, solid shade colors(for lack of a better word "Cartoony") rather then a more realism style like say... Oblivion or Age of Conan?

[Manx]

How much autonomy will our NPC bridge crew members have on away missions? Will they just do their own thing according to their specialization, or will we be giving them orders? If orders, will they be general 'set and forget' orders like 'follow me' and 'attack all enemies', or will it be a more like a squad based tactical system where we must actually manage our away team as we go?

Will new ships come as a specific class, which can then be customized using available parts, or will we start out with the 'bits box' and kitbash our own designs (which we can just make look like a particular class if we wish)? If specific classes are in the game, is there a list we could take a peek at (pretty please)?

What bridge crew positions will there be? Will we have a full set from the start or will some only be available on larger ships?

Can you tell us anything about the kinds of competitive PvE that will be in the game?


Thats all I got for now. As always, thanks for reading Cryptic :D

[Silverspar]

1. Would like to know how the skill/rankings ystem will work.

2. How does ship upgrading work? Do you get a choice fo starships, or a generic package that you can choose established ships or create your own design?

3. What will the racial choices be? Tails, haunched feet, animalistic ears? Anything of that nature? Will we have an option to go barefoot?

4. How will PvP be handled? Will it be basic free for all, or will there be scenario type instances with real objectives and goals?

5. How will upgrading work? Will players get generic list from NPCs as they rank up, with the potential to get better items from R&D crafting work or will all equipment come from R&D?

6. How is the economy set up? Will there be an auction house type system?

7. Will there be things like WARs Public Quest system?

8. How do the shields work? Are they just one lump some of points, will there be two point pools for shields, foreward and back, or will they be the six axis shield grid set up, with various points in them that we can distribute based on needs?

9. Will there be ways to help distinguish our characters, besides base appearance, from everyone else? Will we get a trophy like system that we can apply to our uniforms to signify accomplishments and other such things?

10. How much of the customization of a starship is at our disposal?

[THORN74]

2 questions



1: would you be able to supply us with a "out of game" map of the STO universe? I would like to see a full galactic map showing the spheres or influence for each faction, plus the boarders of known space durring the games current time frame. it could be 3D or 2D, i would prefer it to be user editable (so we can add the worlds/materials we find durring exploration). i feel this would help many players plan out an over all stratagy for their exploration/fleet movements.


2: what kind of Physics are governing the movement of ships? Will the physics engine be realistic with the "correct" mass and thrust ratios for each ship. i would like to see this as much as your physics tech allows, so we may enjoy authentic movements durring space flight.

[Tranchera]

1. Will it take a lot of effort to get to the really big ships, or will we see 5,000 Sovereigns cruising around a week after launch?

2. What are the missions going to be like? Are they going to be more varied that WoW's "kill x brigands, collect y item" type quests?

3. If I want three nacelles on my Nova class, can I has it? And will textures be procedurally generated on the ships like in Spore so when I do shove a nacelle on top, it blends in well and looks like it belongs there?

[Angelphoenix12]

Can we use the red shirt part of the crew of away missions?
Will be be able to get or use a wells class star ship?

thank you for letting us ask you many questions. ive been please with the amount of info you have giving. and i can not wait til the launch of this game. :)

[BreachAndClear]

1. Will my custom species be one-of-a-kind or will the species be taken and seeded on other planets for other players to encounter?

2. Will there be any sort of barrier preventing a person from simply recreating a human or klingon using there respective parts while customizing a race and then tweaking their stats to make them "super human?" Or recreate a human and then play them on the Klingon side?

3. Can you improve or sour your relations with your bridge crew and affect their performance?

4. Will races ever jump sides? I.E. I've heard about the possibility for an ever changing story, so sometime post-launch will a player that is playing as a Ferengi ever log in one day to find out that the Ferengi have allied with the Klingons, etc.?

[Frost-Storm]

Has the function of the captains log been decided yet? If so what is it?

Whats the maximum amount of bridge crew we can have? Will we start with the maximum?

What are some of the bridge crew positions on the ship?

Can we have some more info on the rank/skill/lvl system?

Can we mix our professions, like a poor points in command and tactical skills?

[vp21ct]

How extensive will our vessel customization be, and will we be able to customize anything at the start of the game? Also, has it been decided yet on the type of ship that we will be starting with (runabout, nova sized, etc.)?

[JPJappic]

1. Will players be able to choose a first and last name for their character? Will there be an option to select whether or not your character just has 1 name or both the first and last name. (Eg. Vulcans seem to only have one name. Spock, Valeris, Tuvok, T'Pol). And obviously human characters as well as others have both a first and last name.

2. Will there be a measurement system for feet and inches when creating the height for your character?

[Tiberius0311]

Is there a way to keep a ship you like and be able to upgrade it to be the equivalent to your avatar's level? Like say I want to stay with a Defiant class but my character is at Sovereign class level. Is there a way I can get it to hang with thte bigger ships?

[secure111]

Will there be advanced weaponary like in Star Trek Armada 1?

For Example
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3ID9UdGtFc

Thanks,
Just another Star Trek Gamer

[Haegemon]

Simply and plain:

1.Talk a bit about faction play.
2. The way it's expected to be used to avoid having stupid names around, if there is one.
3. If keeping on side the unresolved events, will be present the known facts the kind of that the max warp speed was limited to 5 due the risk of degrading the warp capability.

[PattonJ007]

Will starships be able to use specific abilities, for example ... Will the Galaxy Class or Prometheus Class be able to separate? If a ship has the capability to land on a planet surface will it be able to do so in the game?

[resurgent]

How will the alert conditions be handled? Yellow and red. Will the lights dim on the bridge as in canon? Will the audible alert cease after 5 seconds? Will the red lights continue to flash silently? When going to yellow alert will the shields automatically go up? Will weapons power up with shields on red alert?

[Trekkie]

I know that it is probably too early to be thinking about this, but I was just curious as to whether or not there will be some kind of in-game incentive for players that choose to pre-order the game or not. If so, will such an item be more of a novelty or will it actually be useful?

[Haegemon]

Two more:

1. There will be chat but how it will be? using text bubbles over characters? using a window?
2. Would exist the case of a server for role-players and another for gammers?

[STO_NPG]

Will there be a weapon ranges overlay window in game, like the one in TNG : The Wounded?

Pic from Memory Alpha (http://images2.wikia.nocookie.net/memoryalpha/en/images/d/d0/Weapon_ranges_overlay.jpg)

[Captain_Intrepid]

Would players be able to properly sit/fit on chairs? With CoH/V (and possibly CO), it was considered not a big deal, but with most bridge crew would have to sit down at their stations, sitting's a bigger issue with STO.

Would Klingons be able to use Pain Sticks in combat, or will it be limited to special ceremonies?

Will there be more troubles with Tribbles in this era of Star Trek?

Would players be able to have pets, such as dogs, targs, tribbles (oh, oh, better not invite Klingons for a diplomatic dinner with them around...), etc.?

For the Captain's Ready Room, would captains be able to have a wide variety of momentos, souveniers, or other items that'd help with not only customizing such a room, but to give visitors an glimpse into the life of the player's character?

Could non-Bridge Crew NPCs supplement/boost the skills of the Bridge Crew? (i.e. an Archaeology specialist was to be beamed down to help the Chief Science Officer with a particularly puzzling ancient artifact, or a couple resident doctors who are given orders to assist the Chief Medical Officer with finding a cure to a new-found virus).

[Father_Origin]

2 questions

1. will we be able to create 'cat like' races?, with tails? Kzinti or Catians ect..

2. will we be able to create dramatically different 'looking' ships? example: if I am part
of the Klingon empire, can I "at least on the exterior" create a Kzinti style ship? or any other
'odd minor race' style.

[BreachAndClear]

Will members of your crew have their own ethical codes and refuse to obey orders/carry them out depending on their sense of morality?

[jayrelo]

Will members of your crew have their own ethical codes and refuse to obey orders/carry them out depending on their sense of morality?

how would you get stuff done if your pets started a revolt? just wondering...

[jiMaryG]

Can you give us any idea of what an ideal fleet size will be. We are growing quickly and do not have any idea what size fleet would work best.

BODG of the Knights Templer Fleet

[Valkyre]

Will there be more troubles with Tribbles in this era of Star Trek?

<-- (above) Question 1

/signed ! :D Would love to see at least a mission with the little *******s ;-) ... maybe while visting K-7?


<-- Question 2
How do you plan to solve the problems of too many people, overcrowding the starting areas?

these were my most important ones


I have many other questions like

3) Do you plan to use the Warp Engines in a sector while using the planned Transwarp Gates for Intersector Journeys? (e.g. travvling in Alpha needs to be done with Warp Engines, while Travelling from Alpha to Delta will be shortened by Transwarp Gates?

4) Do you think about Instancing sectors or regions (e.G. Starting Areas?)

5) Does the physical endurance depend on which missions aboard and on new planets you can take part?

6) While generating new content with player explorations, how will this expansion of the universe be saved and will it be possible for other players to visit exactly the same planet, some time later?

7) In many episodes of the various series we saw the crew finding and old ship, restoring it and flying it... is it planned to allow the players to rescue and keep ships?
(e.G. an Old TOS Shuttle was found on a planet, will it be possible to store it in the hangar like....some kind of achievementtoy or exclusive sunday welcome travel method? (even if the speed might be very low ;) )
Maybe this gives the possibility to quickly give some lucky players success in missions, when they randomly find a new runabout or something.

8) Will you be capable of beaming or transferring usable parts of ship wrecks or shortly before destroyed ships as repair parts for your own?

9) Will Q disturb the peace of players explorations? :eek:

10) When are the next releases of further ship informations, data and pictures planned?

according to 10:
11) Do you release a list of shps and/or ship classes featured in the game? Especially the already known classes, which will still be on duty in the game? (e.G. Excelsior, Intrepid, Akira, or whatever you thought of to be still alive ;-) maybe even an old Constitution-Ship, stolen from a museum? :eek: )

12) Will the Terrarn Empire in the Mirror Universe come to new strength? Will we be able to play or see character during the story line?

[Tranchera]

4. You should make the moderators be able to play as Q's.

[auion]

how will the game be saved and where will the ship be while the player is off line, while the ship be put in a safe area? thanks

[relativeorigin]

With the ability to shift power from one system to another will we be able to group commonly used settings into a single command?

Example, with one click on the "Defensive setting 1" command it takes power from the weapons and propulsion then diverts it to shields without micromanaging the power distribution.

[willriker09]

Our captain appears like it will be our main "character" or "avatar", will we be able to select from several choices of backstory options "a la Mass Effect" for our captain, or will it simply be something that we type up and can be viewed by other players and doesn't feature in the actual gameplay at all? What about for our other command officers aboard our ships?

If we can select from backstory options, will we see those elements in our gameplay? For example, if my backstory says that my character's parents were murdered by a particular Cardassian Gul is it possible for my character to come across that Gul in gameplay and decide to forgive him or exact vengeance?

MMO's seem to lack this sort of character complexity that was showcased more in offline games like Mass Effect. STO could benefit from following this example.

[Samodelkin]

There will be [...] the ability to create new items or improve existing ones.

What is implied by "the ability to create new items" here? Do you mean players would be able to manufacture certain equipment as an economic alternative to purchasing it, like in Runescape, World of Warcraft, and Star Wars Galaxies, the typical crafting system? Or, do you mean players would be given the ability to create items with original functionality of their own design from technologies they possess, a never-before-seen crafting system distantly similar to that of Second Life?

[Vicelance]

1. Will we be able to keep our original bridge crew throughout the game or will we need to swap them out to remain competitive in later levels?

2. How will the building of starbases by players be handled? Will it be placed in an instance or will we see sectors of starbases huddled together like the towns in Star Wars Galaxies?

[Whodeydiesel]

Here are some of my biggest questions and I am sorry if someone has addressed them already....

1.) I was wondering if our ships will be able to emit certain "Star Trek" related beams like Anti-Proton beams, Tachyon beams or even an Inverse Tachyon Pulse to have the kinds of effects we are all familiar with from our favorite episodes?

2.) Will we be able to divert all power to our deflector dishes to emit a huge weapon beam like the enterprise tried against the Borg in "Best of both worlds part 2"?

[jagerbolt]

If these were already posted then I apologize.

1. How will character & ship naming be handled? Do we choose from a large list of possibilities or create our own that must go thru a filter?

2. Any chances of a character or ship creator to download in the future for fans to experiment with? It doesn't even need to include all the options. 1 class design with, we'll say half it's customizable options, would be fantastic! :D

[loyaltrekie]

I personally would like to know for certainty if there is going to be console version release to accompany the PC version. Almost all of the "in production" MMO's seem to be hinting at simultaneous console releases. with ST:O probably releasing next year, think its about time to shed some light on it other then "Well we discussed it but we haven't decided anything". Pretty sure you've decided one way or another by now. Thanks in advance~

P.S. The subject of if a console actually watters down PC material etc has been beat to death keep it out of this thread please.

[BreachAndClear]

how would you get stuff done if your pets started a revolt? just wondering...

They wouldn't. They might just sit a mission out or receive a performance penalty, etc. accompanied by the occasional objectionable line of dialogue.

[Haegemon]

1. Is Cisco still living within the wormhole? Returned to live with his son and girlfriend as he promissed?
2. If there is the Akira-class will act as designed by Alex Jaeger as a "gunship/battlecruiser/aircraft carrier" ?


<-- (above) Question 1
3) Do you plan to use the Warp Engines in a sector while using the planned Transwarp Gates for Intersector Journeys? (e.g. travvling in Alpha needs to be done with Warp Engines, while Travelling from Alpha to Delta will be shortened by Transwarp Gates?


Gamma quadrant still have the wormhole. Transwarp conduits are borg technology and need of borg suplies to work (transwarp borg coils) cos starfllet main technology is not enough as stated: " In 2374, Seven of Nine attempted unsuccessfully to modify Voyager to create a transwarp conduit. (TNG: "Descent"; VOY: "Dark Frontier", "Day of Honor")

Quantum slipstream drive is more promissing as stated too:

The quantum slipstream drive is an advanced form of interstellar propulsion that achieved and exceeded what failed Federation attempts using transwarp were meant to do: exceed the warp speed barrier. Originally developed by an advanced species native to the Delta Quadrant, the technology was obtained by the USS Voyager in 2374 and used for an aborted test in early 2375 that nearly destroyed the ship. The calculations involved are too complicated for 24th century Starfleet technology, and the time available is too short before the vessel out-paces the tunnel, collapsing the slipstream.

[Valkyre]

1. Is Cisco still living within the wormhole? Returned to live with his son and girlfriend as he promissed?





Gamma quadrant still have the wormhole. Transwarp conduits are borg technology and need of borg suplies to work (transwarp borg coils) cos starfllet main technology is not enough as stated: " In 2374, Seven of Nine attempted unsuccessfully to modify Voyager to create a transwarp conduit. (TNG: "Descent"; VOY: "Dark Frontier", "Day of Honor")

Quantum slipstream drive is more promissing as stated too:

The quantum slipstream drive is an advanced form of interstellar propulsion that achieved and exceeded what failed Federation attempts using transwarp were meant to do: exceed the warp speed barrier. Originally developed by an advanced species native to the Delta Quadrant, the technology was obtained by the USS Voyager in 2374 and used for an aborted test in early 2375 that nearly destroyed the ship. The calculations involved are too complicated for 24th century Starfleet technology, and the time available is too short before the vessel out-paces the tunnel, collapsing the slipstream.



no doubt you have some astonishing points, but in fact i do not intend to ask for the storyline but to make sure the kind of moving ability in space we'll have according to journeys. :-)

[Seru1]

Awesome I finally remembered to get in on one of these!


1. Can you Tell us more about what races will be on what side?


2. Why did you decide to make races Side Specific? Is there a chance that could change?


3.Will the Race Creator Have Templates?


4. Can you tell us more about the Race Creator? And the Racial Abilities?


5. What Kind of Jam do you prefer. Blackberry, Strawberry, or Grape?

[TruthSeer]

how would you get stuff done if your pets started a revolt? just wondering...

You tell them to go wash the airlock and then..... woops.

[Toaster87]

Trying to think of simple questions that havent been asked yet ... :s

Will there be set evasive maneuvers for helm such as beta 5, aplha 1 etc etc?

if my gran is home alone and she falls.....does she make a sound?

will your crew do stuff automatically or will you have to give orders for every single thing?

if a crew member is killed on an away mission, can you call your ship for a replacment?

[Stronin]

You tell them to go wash the airlock and then..... woops.

Remind me to use the transporters next time I visit your ship O_O

[Admiral_Perseus]

What are the expected system requirements for the game? Will I have to ditch my laptop in favor of a powerful desktop computer?
Also,
What are the character interface controls going to be? For instance, will we move using the arrow keys, will we just click on the portion of floor that we want to walk to, or will it be an instantaneous sort of " I want to go here, CLICK!"

[Lenstur]

When will it be ready to play?

[ToadMonkey]

Not sure if this question has been offered....

1.What if a person wants to create characters on both side of the conflict?
Would I be able to join multiple Fleets/guilds/factions?
Reasoning for question:
I see people currently creating guilds based on Klingons and some based on Star Fleet

2. Will "all" characters created be recognized/seen by the guild I belong to?
Or Will only the one character I sign up with them be recognized?

[indigowhale345]

I have some questions.

1. Will there be tacos?

2. Will we be able to explore planets and find any or all of the following: taco trees/bushes; sentient taco lifeforms; symbiotic/parasitic tacos which control the mind of the host who eats them; taco based weaponry which has devastated civilizations; pre-warp civilizations with taco-based economies; and/or finally evil civilizations that have banned tacos entirely and will thusly be a major threat to the galaxy?

3. Will we be able to encounter strange taco anomalies in space; including but not limited to taco freighters from new civilizations; taco trading space stations; derelict taco shaped ships; eccentric taco chefs that will join our crew; taco debris orbiting a star; or possibly gigantic taco monsters that routinely cut a swath through space, filling the hard shell with planets and stars before disappearing into a cosmic rift?

4. How many tacos does it take to feed everyone at Cryptic?

5. Does Craig's goat like tacos?

[auion]

how will the game be saved, will the ship orbit a moon or something like it, when the player is offline

[THORN74]

are you guys play testing this game with an Xbox controller of with PC keyboard and mouse? or both?

[Arachnidus]

What will the starting ship be like? Based on concept art, I've seen designs that look like the Delta Flyer, and that seems like a good starting ship, not a shuttle, not a full blown cruiser.

[Debaser]

I thought I'd give you guys a break from all the gameplay mechanics questions and such and focus more on the social...

1. Will there be in-game holidays and coinciding events, such as Christmas, New Years, April Fool's, etc? Sure it may not exactly fit within the time frame of the game, but it should serve to remind us that it is in fact a game. And besides, whether it's playing a prank or getting together with loved ones, celebration should never be looked on negatively.

2. Post-launch, will there be ongoing contests on the official site? Examples could include screenshot or video of the week/month. character/fleet focus, fan-art (comics, background art, ship design, etc) And most importantly, will those contests have sweet prizes?:D

3. Will gameplay recording programs such as fraps work with STO?

4. Admit it, sooner or later we're all going to come across a goats head nebula!:eek:

[Captain_Intrepid]

Regardless if we can actually pilot shuttlecrafts or not, can we name/customize the shuttles that we have on board our ships? Where a visitor can look at a shuttle and see the name emblazoned on the sides like the Galieo.

Would we be able to have emotes for our characters to do while sitting down? Such as looking at a datapad, drinking tea (or other beverage), read a book (do they still have them/make them anymore?), prop up legs in a reclining position at a desk, etc.?

When going on covert missions or getting ready to establish first contact with new civilizations, would our characters be able to get 'altered' by the medical officer(s) to appear as other species, like in the TV series?

A question about the Gorn and the Klingons. If they are allies, would a player character Gorn be able to captain be able to have a choice of a Gorn or Klingon ship? Or any other starship designed by other allies of the Klingons?

[Merius]

Few Questions (Try to keep them simple)

1. Will you allow us to walk the path of Sisko or the path of Picard?

Meaning: Will you allow us to captain a spacebarge (spacestation) or a starship?

Meaning the progression of space stations might be:
1. Small Outpost
2. Upgraded Outpost
3. Small station
4. Upgraded Station
5. Large station

The Path of Sisko might Involve
Rank 1: Small Outpost + Runabout (we get a runabout anyway) + officer
Rank 2: Upgraded Outpost + Runabout + new officer
Rank 3: Upgraded outpost + 2 Runabouts + 3 officers.
Rank 4: Small Station + 2 Runabouts + 4 officers
Rank 5: Upgraded station + 3 runabouts + 5 officers.
Rank 6: (captain) large station + small ship + 3 runabouts + 6 officers
Etc.


Path of Pichard might Involve
Rank 1: Runabout + officer
Rank 2: Small Ship + new officer
Rank 3: Upgraded small ship + 3 officers
Rank 4: Upgraded small ship + 4 officers
Rank 5: ship + 5 officers.
Rank 6: (captain) large ship + 6 officers
Rank 7: (commodore?) large ship + 8 officers?
Rank 8: (admiral?) Large Ship + 10 officers + small outpost?
Etc.

A little discrepancy there, but I’m sure cryptic can figure it out.



So the question is – can we decide to go with a space station, or a ship?

[Ezmarii]

The latest interview at skewed and reviewed the word 'currency' was mentioned. This may be the most dreaded word to hear in a Star Trek MMO.

Can you give us any details on the economic and/or crafting system in place or in development still? Is it true there will be a form of currency that has no physical basis? (much like how the US goverment has a fort knox, is there a plan to base currency on physical items still?) Or if there is no significant currency in place, how do you plan to accomplish a functional MMO economy and trade(supports supply and demand needs of players) without a currency?

[Merius]

Crew types – bodies and crew personality from that body.
Question 1
1. How will crew complement be handled?

Meaning: My ship holds 100 people not including senior staff and captain.
I have the following positions available
Engineering
Medical
Science
Tactical
Command
Civilian

1a. Can I choose to staff my crew in the following order?
Engineering 20%
Medical 20%
Science 20%
Tactical 10%
Command 10%
Civilian 20%
(and can we edit during time of staffing the crew at starbase, like +/- 10% based on our captains experiance, available cadets, and what our ship requires as far as crew compliment?)


1b. Can I shift the staff sizes of my crew – will this base the effects on my crews moral? IE: with more civilians, my crew is happier and will go on longer extended voyages. With more tactical members my crew can wage war better.

1c. How will the senior staff “bridge crew” effect the crew bodies?

1d. If I am in battle, and my ship is “defeated” – will my crew die? Do I need to restaff them?

1e. As a captain, am I given options to choose 20 new cadets that are tacticle and use them to restaff my crew – is their experience a problem, if I’m a higher ranked captain can I choose higher ranked cadets?

1f. Am I allocated cadets when I need them – meaning if I’m a rank 4 captain, I can gain 200 new cadets from a starbase only, at experience zero. Where if I’m rank 4 I can choose to get 20 new cadets from a starbase only, with the experience of +100?

1g. How will this effect players with large ships or small ships (IE: klingons with a crew of 20, they could be a highly experienced captain and get the finest warriors from starbases all the time, even if they are constantly loosing warriors, because their rank allows them to get the best – but not a lot.)












2. How will the briefing room be handled?


3. Can we start calling “bridge crew” – senior staff?


4. Can we have personal profiles that we as players can edit for RP reasons? & Can other players click and view these profiles so they can see what we have written in them?


Thanks!!!

[Deyvid]

1) nuqDaq yuch Dapol? **

2) Will players be able to have more than one character, such as a "main" and then one or more additional "alts"? If we can have alts, will be able to have one character of each faction, or will additional characters be limited to the same faction as the initial "main" character?

3) nuqDaq 'oH puchpa''e'? ***

4) Will the LCARS-based controls be tied to a physical console in-game, or will the LCARS-themed UI be "floating" on screen over the view of the game world? Will the UI be "floating" on screen over space when we view our ship exterior?


5) In the interview with Skewed and Reviewed, it was said that we will be able to board ships, as well as perform tasks aboard our own ships. Will boarding other ships be limited to combat missions, or can I beam aboard my friend's bridge just to hang out (not be a part of their bridge crew)? And can you elaborate on performing tasks aboard our own ship? Will that be only in our bridge, or will those tasks be performed in other parts of our ship such as engineering, sick bay, etc.?



** "Where do you keep the chocolate?"

*** "Where is the bathroom?"

[Telekill]

Reading through the 8 pages of questions... there have been a lot of really good ones asked.

1. PS3 Version?
- I know that it was asked a couple times already, but I'm asking again to put emphasis on it. I really dont like to play games on the PC as I prefer the PS controller over a keyboard and mouse. If there is any news on which, if any consoles, you're developing the game for, please let us know as I'll preorder a PS3 version in a heartbeat.

2. PC Specs Needed?
- In the event that a PS3 version is not going to be made, what will the PC specs be? I'm planning on buying a new PC sometime in 2009 to replace my 7 year old PC now. Given that this would probably be the only PC game I play on it, I'd like to know in advance.

3. Ship Free-roam / Exploration?
- Some of the most fun I've had in a Trek game was wandering Voyager and the Enterprise in the ST Elite series. Given that so much of the shows are based on the ship, getting to know the ship and ship battles, I think it would be important to include free-roam of the ships in the game, be it your own, or a friends ship that you transport over too.

4. Race Capabilities?
- This is a two fold question. First, someone tried listing the Federation races, but I noticed they didn't mention Trill... however one of the new screenshots clearly shows a Trill. Just to double check, what races will be available for the Federation? Second, will the Borg ever be a playable race? I know that at first it will be Federation or Klingon, but possibly in an expansion will the Borg be added as playable?

Thanks for listening and taking the questions.

[Loekii]

1) Will there be some sort of muliple layer faction System, where players need to improve relations with various Races/Factions/Groups/Plants before they may accomplish some tasks (ie The EQ1 Racial Factioning KOS/Hated/Neuttral/friendly/ally) and where actions with one group might damage relations with another group?


2) Will Neutral Zones and Outer Areas (PvP Oriented) also have rich PvE Content, or will it be more open areas for just PvP?


3) What is the Targeted level of Difficulty? Will Quests/Missions in STO present some challenge and Puzzles (Find the Source of the Dampening Field using Clues), or will it be the standard obvious solution type Missions (Go to Point X, then go to point Y)?


4) I can understand the Federation perspective, but how will the Klingon perspective be fleshed out? Are they just Warmongers (aka the Bad guys), or will they be presented in a way that they look like the Good guys from a Klingon perspective (be it propoganda, or just a unique viewpoint on things)?



Here are some other Posters' questions I also wanted to agree with:
Could you please give some more info on the PvP systems that will be involved.

2 questions

1. will we be able to create 'cat like' races?, with tails? Kzinti or Catians ect..


Thank you.

[Keldaria]

Can you please discribe the crafting system that you intend to put into STO?

[levithan]

Right my question,

I was wondering if there would be seperate Servers,realms,Worlds or whatever you would call them in STO as i would prefer to play on a RP realm as i would prefer it rather than ahving one giagantic realm which is everything so my question Will there be multiple realms or is it a 1 realm thing were its all everything at once. thanks for my time.

[Captain-Picard]

How will the Mirror Universe work into the game? Will we be able to do a few missions in the Mirror Universe?

[SoongType]

Thanx for another Ask Cryptic.

In charactor creation will markings like the Klingon forehead ridge and the Trills dots be fully customiable?

Will ally ships be able to extend their sheilds to aid other ships?

Will Life Suport be one of the ships systems that a player can derive power too or from?

Will there be odes and homage seen in game for things non Star Trek related<like a cameo from Hans Olo>??

Thanx for the opportunity to get more info!:)

[helldiver]

On NPC Crew members:

How involved will we be able to get with the NPC crew?
-Will it be Mass Effect level of involvement?
-Will it be simple quests and missions given by them?
-Will they be automatons that grant specific bonuses and act as bots during Away Missions, with nothing other than a simple background (either written by the player or pre-scripted).
-Any form of relationships with them? (i.e. Torres-Paris, Riker-Troi, Seven-Chokotay)

Death of NPC principal crew members?
-Will their death have any secondary effects?

Morale, will morale be modeled?

Will NPC crew object/encourage some of our actions?
-Will they have personalities?
-Can such personalities be chosen, or are they randomly predetermined?

[Qnaz]

There's been mention that there might be simulated training excercises/war games. Will these be instanced with 1 ship vs 1 ship or can we have small squadron vs small squadron?

[Haegemon]

I have a test type questions with a little of hummor for razor :D

How do you supervise the forums?

1. I have a robot to do the job 24 hours a day for 365 days a year.
2. I read everything every morning with a coffe on the table.
3. Interesting comments get my atention, and fights too.

How do you pick questions from this thread and inspiration from the unresolved history lines without get crazy due the enormous ammount of text we're all writting?

1. You pick the most asked.
2. Devs come to you and pick some recommended ones.
3. You pass all info and someone else picks.

How devs seek inspiration?

1. Taking a deep breath and thinking they're alone in a Mawi beach (may include Bikini Girls add-on).
2. Seeing every Startrek movie, mag, game, TV series and doing the "Trek life" thing.
3. Waitting till inspiration comes while visiting razor's desktop for some fan support.

Thanks for the patience from the STO community.

[elitolu]

1). How many basis are there for starship classes.

2). To what extent will we be able to name our ships.

3). How different will Klingon starship making from Fed?

[callsign11b]

bridge controls.
will the developement team design working interactive control stations with visuals displays
example working interactive helm with displays, ops, tactical, science comm's and navagation as well as capt over view display and view screen.
so you can play the game in that view if you want to. instead of just a 3rd person view??
and change the view depending on events to players preference.

[ParkerHayden]

1)Will there be neutral starbases, cities, or entire planets that players can go to and not be allowed to kill each other?

2) Will we be able to equip Slipstream drives to our ship, or will we stick with warp drive and the transwarp conduits?

[callsign11b]

object sizes
are the dev. going to try to put a real size difference in ships and stations planets and other space objects.
so players can see the difference as a say defiant class gets near a sov.class or see and have the feeling of small when tou dock with say a space station.

[Michell]

what will Michael Henry be focusing on with his music for the game? can the devs tell us that maybe? will it be classic star trek songs or more modernized ones. will he use techno or an orchestra or both? what era of trek will he focus on for the music or is he starting a new tradition? i love game music and wonder what can i expect?
i also wonder how his music with blend with the constant hum of the ship in the back round:). also will he do extra songs that we may play in game? such as original and/or remakes of classic ST songs. will there be classical songs that we may choose from, like Beethoven or Bach even some jazz or other forms of music?

[Rapace]

1) Will we be able to name our own ships and name everyone in our crew.

2) How are the servers going to be? Is there going to be pvp servers, role play etc.

3) I am a playstation 3 owner, and would love to see this game on there (with keyboard and mouse play). Will there be a playstation 3 version of this game?

Thanks :)

[THORN74]

have u guys at cryptic planned out a story arch with an ending? or is there no really endgame?

will it be 1 story? or several (like 1 per quarter or 1 per year) stories?

if there is a endgame, will the whole world/server reset once it has been acheived?

[Merius]

Klingon Faction

1. Will only Klingons be able to fly Klingon Vessels? Where Klingons might be able to take over a Orion Vessel loosely for a short time, but wouldn't want to?


Will the Klingon Allies only be able to fly their own racial ships? (I vote yes on this)

Meaning if I choose a Gorn - do I get a list of Gorn vessels to choose from and fly - never having a Klingon Vessel as an opprotuitity - (I use never loosely)

How will the different factions be split up in the Klingon Alliance?



2. How will the different Klingon Vessels vs Allied Klingon Races be different. Will the Klingon Vessels be all around "better" militarily - cloak/weapons/sheilding etc.

Will the Gorn Vessels specialize in firepower or giantness - what will their edge be?

What of the Orion vessels - how will they be different, whats their edge, are they easyer to disable but faster, with good transporters?

Nausicaans - no idea, never seen a ship from this race! Would be interesting, maybe they specialize in something that the klingons, gorn and orions don't.


3: Does this look like a good klingon allies outline?

Klingon Empire
X number of different types of ships
Military Balanced/Attack/Defence/Tech
Relies on Klingon Solder/Warrior crew


Nausicaan Alliance
X number of different types of ships
Focus on Attack/Speed
Relies on Nausicaan Warrior/Fighter


Gorn Aliiance
X number of different types of ships
Focus on Size/Weapons
Reles on Slave Crew


Orion Alliance
X number of different types of ships
Focus on Tech/Speed
Relies on Slave Crew

[cenglandjr]

I am interested in a few things...

1. Will this game force players to PvP?

2. Will this game handle PvE and PvP differrently when it comes to gaming mechanics?
(I am not a fan of PvP... and don't enjoy the daily "I can kill you and your mother" mentality that 12 year olds have) COH handled this by allowing 2 builds per character Due to the differences with PvE and PvP. I would like to see both PvP and PvE work the same.

3. What is the Min/Max crew size.

4. Will your NPC bridge crew be able to be cross trained?

5. How will emergency and non emergency repairs be handled?

6. What will a Fleet Size be. Min/Max?

7. Will Fleets be able to intercoalition to help one another? What is the max size of the coalition?

8. What permissions and tools will be given to fleet leaders? Rank settings, Kick Piolicies, Blocking of unwelcomed players.

The final question is one that is a touchy subject in my own guild. We have a "Blacklist". And we handle it through global backtraces upon a players global. If we match a players Global to a toon, we simply do not allow it in. Will STO offer a "Global Name" associated with the account? or will it be handled differently. The global system helps a ton, but it is not without flaw. I would like to be able to have in the fleet settings the following....

A. Global Banning (This is to keep regular members from inviting unwelcomed or possibly harmful players into our fleet, and helps enfoce security for peace of mind amung admins)
B. Auto Kick Policy
C. Ability for Fleet "Founder" Never to be kicked from guild (But can self remove themselves)
D. The ability for a rank structure that allows for 7+ Ranks
E. A petition system for any flaws in the fleet settings go they can be altered at a later date.
F. Channels for Members, Officers, Leaders.
G. Community Channels for intercoalitioned fleets (Coalition channels)

My biggest fear of this game is that the administrative settings of the fleets will not be substantial enough to handle a quality fleet. Members want rank, stature and attention. If you dont have enough ranks that can not be accomplished. If you do not have enough security, you can not ensure your fleets survival.

All in all there has not been enough of "this is what we have" and too much "we want this". So this time please give us some kind of answers.

[oogamar]

Will we be able to have warp fights (i.e. torpedoes) and will we be able to alter the warp factor were traveling at (depending on the engine we have installed). in other words will we be able to put our foot down to outrun the pursuing vessel?

[Captain-Picard]

In your ship can you eject the warp core?

[jayrelo]

when editing your npc bridge crew, can you also customize and create their names and back stories?

[SoongType]

Will there be other "pets" to have onboard your ship besides NPC crewman?

What will be the player charactor and ship namming rules for STO?

Will you be able to "run away" from any threat you might bump into,like space PvP or chance enemy encounters.Once engaged in battle will you be stuck in combat or is it possible to flee?

Will it be assumed that all of your NPC crew,no matter what race will behave well with each other?

[Merius]

When we board our first ship - can you have an NPC officer give our captain a tour of the ship. or is that the tacticle officers job?

[Debaser]

Please excuse me if this has already been posted:

Will we be able to customize the "energy colors" on our starships? For example, if I wanted a ship with nacelles that glowed green instead of the standard blue, bllue phasers and purple photon torpedoes, is that going to be a possibility?

[Elanel]

Apologies if these have already been asked/answered previously.


Will there be opportunities to socialise on space stations like Deep Space Nine?
Is shore leave possible in the game, for example, can you visit "pleasure planets" like Risa? This bridges onto another question. Will you and your NPC crew require shore leave/R&R after periods of time?
How do you plan on tackling the submission of official and personal logs of Player Captains. Will they be required or optional?
Can you, as an option, warp to a far away location instead of using 'jump points/transwarp conduits' in order to satisfy the realism factor? Perhaps an offline function that continues your journey for the number of hours/days/weeks you're offline?
(Note: I'm not a "purist." I'm well aware that travelling from one end of Fed space to the other would take weeks of gametime at maximum warp and I'm not likely to do that. Just wondering if that function is/will be possible for players.)

[Father_Origin]

good question, how do you pick which 6-8 questions to answer out of the hundreds you get each batch?

[jayrelo]

good question, how do you pick which 6-8 questions to answer out of the hundreds you get each batch?

you disregard the ones with 80 questions in a post. :p

[Hagon]

Will we be able to toggle between an individual colour scheme and fleet colour scheme for our ships? Or will we be locked into one or the other until we go into, say, a drydock and change it?

[tPring33]

Just wondering when this game will be ready to play?
Is there going to be a beta test?

[jsutich]

Hey everyone!

Thank you for your question submissions for this round of Ask Cryptic! I'm going to close this thread and start compiling the list of questions to forward to the Dev Team. Look for the answers at a later date!