Sam on Maui

Another quiet week of numbers, it seems. Massively has been doing a nice bit of interviews with Dan Stahl (part one and two ), which has some nice food for thought about the future. I've been working a little on my Romulan character, getting Lockboxes opened up for Lobi, and all has been pretty nice, really. Now, that said, the number seem pretty good to me.

   And we have Romulans! First off, I'd like to welcome anybody who is getting into Star Trek Online with the launch of The Legacy of Romulus. Its a great game, a fun community, and one of the best MMOs out there if you're looking for something different than the norm. Secondly, I'd like to apologize! For whatever reason I didn't log yesterday's data! Eeek! I think I did, but either I forgot to save or my brain stopped working. Regardless, here comes the data!

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.

I've already gone over how to buy Master Keys without spending a dime . But, because there are so many uses for Dilithium and Zen, suppose you don't want to use such a precious resource for buying Master Keys? This is perfectly understandable. So, how else can you buy them? Energy Credits! Many players are more adept at earning Energy Credits than they are anything else. If anything, once you become a Vice Admiral, the need for Energy Credits goes down. You can get most anything you want through enough play and a bit of luck. Moreover, as you go through the end-game content, you will continue to earn drops and other rewards. You will need to make use of the Exchange in order to really earn credits, however. Keeping track of changes in the game will also help you find needs other players may have. This is important, as the more necessary the item is, and the more inconvenient it is to get, the more its potentially worth. Additionally, if things fluctuate in value, k...

I believe it’s a little too soon to figure much out, however, its still interesting to look at. I’m really looking forward to seeing how things chart out for the rest of the quarter. After the holidays, and things have had time to settle down. That said? The November 30th changes brought about the ability open your OMEGA box regardless of OMEGA Reputation level (normally you’d have to wait until Tier III), Also, the ability to take on Dilithium-earning Reputation projects at any level rather than waiting for Tier V. Right now the overall amount being traded is higher than its been in a while, but at the same time the Z:D rate is also lower than I’ve ever seen it. It took a while for prices to come down, so I guess it’ll take a while for them to go back up as well. Certainly the people buying Zen like the current rate, but I’m a little surprised that the volume of people buying Dilithium is so high while at such a unfavorable rate.But, it is the weekend, so that could change on Mo...

First off, its amazing what a few hours can do. I checked back in for lunch, and the Z:D was at 1:115, even touching 1:114 for a few moments. WOW! I'm very curious to see the impact of tomorrow's patch on the game economy as a result. The two notables? Reputation XP projects now reward a small amount of Dilithium upon completion . 340 for the 2000 XP projects 140 for the 800 XP projects Removed Tier requirements on Mark-to-Dilithium conversion projects.  These projects can now be slotted immediately upon reaching level 50 and unlocking the Reputation system. Which is fine by me. I'm enjoying the Romulan content, so chances are I'll be earning a lot of Dilithium off it via XP projects. The Omega stuff? Not so much, so all my marks from that will likely be converted to Dilithium, period. We'll see. Additionally, I managed to get enough Zen for yet another Master Key. As such, I'm now at 104 Lobi, so 1/4 of the way to my goal of 400 Lobi. This is a...

More than a few people have been lamenting the General Recruitment Duty Officer assignment now requires 1,000 Dilithium to complete. While a nice pack of DOFFs, its not the only way to get more Duty Officers. What you're paying for is convenience and relative speed to obtain; the two go hand in hand. Buying Duty Officer Packs in the Zen Store is the fastest (practically instant), but most expensive route. General Recruitment costs 1,000 Dilithium, but takes a day to get the reward. Also has a cooldown. Departmental Recruitment and Cultural Exchange Duty Officer assignments take two days, but are free . There is a cooldown for those as well. If you're not in a rush, you can recruit 11 free Duty Officers at Star Fleet Academy. Should you get a critical success on the Cultural Exchanges, you can get two more per critical. For those on a budget, not interested in spending additional money, or whatever, this represents a great means to get Duty Officers for use on your shi...

At the moment, Season 7 has plans to increase the costs associated with Reassigning Under-performing Officers. This is an area of concern for some players. Those who are looking for improved Duty Officers for the DOFF system are understandably upset, as are those who are actively working on starbase projects (higher tier projects sometimes require Uncommon Duty Officers in large quantities). So, are there any other options? Enter the Recruitment Duty Officer Missions.