[STO] Buying Zen with Energy Credits 2/11/13

Last October I posted a blog on buying Zen via Energy Credits. Well, since then the Z:D rate has changed dramatically, and I wasn’t sure how the requisite bits were being priced on the Exchange. Now, both of these factors are constantly in motion, so it was, and is, a snapshot at best. So, time for another snapshot.

	A	B	C
Z:D Rate	Contraband	Prisoner	Prisoner
91	44,000	6,500	6,500
	5 Contra band	10 Prisoners	4 Prisoners
	220,000	65,000	26,000
	Dilithium	Dilithium	Dilithium
	2,000	1,000	500
	Zen	Zen	Zen
	21	10	5
	EC cost per Zen	EC cost per Zen	EC cost per Zen
	10,476	6,500	5,200
	Million EC = Zen	Million EC = Zen	Million EC = Zen
	95	153	192

Now, again, these depend on three particular Duty Officer Missions:

• Assignment: Turn Over Confiscated Contraband – A
• Assignment: Forced Labor Requisition (KDF only) – B
• Consign Prisoners to Labor Battalion (KDF only) – C

Now, the prices on Prisoners and Contraband can change on the Exchange, so always keep that in mind. For instance, these are prices on a Monday morning, whereas previously I had taken prices from a Wednesday. But, for the time being?

Contraband (A) went from 60 Zen per million EC to 95. That’s a nice jump, even if the price this morning was actually higher than the last time I did this. Honestly, if you can get Contraband for free that’s probably the better option – there’s one DOFF mission for searching your crew for Contraband on both sides, but having a Klingon character or two is likely the best route for this.

The Security Officer forced labor DOFF (B) went from being 48 Zen per million EC to 153! That’s rather nice, although again, that’s a snapshot. However, that’s still a pretty good amount of Zen if you’re at the point where EC doesn’t have much value for you. What’s more, you could buy a Master Key from the store for 125 Zen, and sell it for 1.2-1.4 million EC. This would not only recoup your initial investment, but give you a tidy profit and still leave you with a nice bit of Zen left over.

The Consign Prisoners to Labor Battalion found out in space (C) went from 60 Zen per million EC to a very high 192. There’s a bit of a trade off here, since you will have to go looking for these missions in sector space, unlike the Security Officer version. But, like anything else, convenience has its price, so the more you’re willing to do, the better the results you can expect. Again, buying Master Keys to sell for EC will net you a profit in EC and still have Zen to spare.

As always, a little research and ingenuity is the friend of any player. Whether you want a new ship or want to kick your Fleet’s base to the next level, there’s definitely ways to get the assets you need and want.