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Star Trek Bridge Commander
Ships and Stations FAQ
By: Colonel814
Colonel814@hotmail.com
Version 0.1

Table of contents:
Section 1 - Introduction
Section 2 - Version History
Section 3 - About the Game
Section 4 - Weapons
Section 5 - General Tactics
Section 6 - Federation Ships
Section 7 - Klingon Ships
Section 8 - Romulan Ships
Section 9 - Ferengi Ships
Section 10 - Cardassian Ships
Section 11 - Kessok Ships
Section 12 - Stations
Section 13 - Closing/Contact info
Section 14 - Copyrights


Section 1: *Introduction*

This FAQ covers the ships and stations of the game Star Trek Bridge Commander.
While you may be able to find much of the technical information in the manual
of the game, this guide will explain the more "basic" info of the ships. Such
as tactics, basic systems/perks of each ship, and the weapons capabilities of
each ship. Enjoy!
**NOTE**
This game's storyline doesn't allow for commandeering of all of these ships.
You can only control the Galaxy and Soverign in the story mode. You can,
however pilot these ships in the "Quick Battle" and "Multiplayer" modes.
Also, any phaser arrays I talk about on federation ships normally have a 180
degree arc. (this goes to show that any frontal area of a federation ship is
covered)



Section 2: *Version History*

Version 0.1 - This is the first edition of this FAQ.


Section 3: *About the Game*

This game follows the storyline of you, the first officer of the Galaxy Class
ship, the U.S.S. Dauntless. The captain has just been killed in a horrible
solar accident in the Maelstrom, a hazardous and volatile area of the Alpha
Quadrant, and you have just been given his job. In this game, you will have to
face the espionage of the Romulans, the deceit of the Cardassians, and the
dangers of a new and deadly race of aliens.


Section 4: *Weapons*

_Primary Weapons_

-Phasers: The basic weapon for all federation ships and stations. It is fired
in a "beam" format, and requires for the sensor array to be at least partially
functioning, as well as a sensor lock on another ship. They use full "arrays"
which allows for an almost 180 degree firing range. (so the front and half of
the sides are protected in the phaser arrays' range)

-Compression Phaser Beams: These may seem more powerful than the regular
phasers, (due to the name) but to me, they really don't. I consider them a
"dumbed down" version of the phasers. They are availible on all of the
cardassian ships.

-Plasma Energy: This is a quite weak weapon equipped on the Ferengi Marauder.
It isn't really that good, and won't really help you out much.

-Disruptor Beam: This is just about the same thing as the phaser, but maybe a
little more powerful. They typically don't have "arrays", they typically can
just fire forward. (unlike the phasers, that have full arrays) They also need
the sensor array and a lock on another ship to fire. This weapon is on both the
Klingon Vor'Cha cruiser, and the Romulan Warbird.

-Disruptor Cannons: These are powerful cannons that can do a lot of damage.
They burn out pretty fast, but they typically recharge fast. They work better
with a sensor lock (which requires a sensor array) but it doesn't NEED one to
fire. These are on the Klingon Vor'Cha, the B'rel Bird of Prey, and the Romulan
Warbird.

-Positron Beams: These weapons are pretty much VERY powerful phasers, they can
do a lot of damage in a little time. They burn out pretty fast, and don't
recharge as fast as the phasers do. These are on the Kessok ships, and there is
one on the Carassian Hybrid.

_Torpedoes_

-Photons: The basic torpedo, it still does some pretty good damage, but not the
best out there. These are equipped on all of the Federation Ships.

-Advanced Photons: Your basic torpedo, but just a little more powerful. These
are equipped on the Romulan and Klingon ships.

-Quantums: The Quantum torpedoes are going to be your workhorse on the Soverign
Class, considering they are MUCH more powerful than the photons. (there aren't
near as many, so be careful with your aim)

-Positrons: These are a MUCH slower, but tracking kind of torpedo. They are
pretty good, and almost impossible to evade, but too slow to really get a good
bead on the faster ships. (and are worthless if someone warps away) They are
equipped on both Kessok ships.

-Phased: These torpedoes come few and far between, but pack one hell of a
punch. Later in the game, the soverign class ship can hold some of these, but
they can end up "misfiring" and destroying of your torpedo turrets, once in a
while. (it is totally up to chance) They are carried as the standard torpedo on
the Cardassian Hybrid, and there is no risk of the "misfire" problem happening
on this ship.

Section 5: *General Tactics*

I will explain individual tactics in depth, but here are some general helpful
hints that may help you out against any opposition, both AI, and human (for the
online multiplayer)

-Don't cloak when under fire!
When you cloak, your shields drop, and your weapons go off-line, and there is a
light delay between the time you give the cloaking command, and when you
actually disappear off enemy sensors and visual. This leaves PLENTY of room for
HEAVY damage to ship systems, and if they have you in a torpedo lock, you may
very well lose many systems, or even be destroyed.
-If an enemy cloaks, FIRE!
Think of it as the opposite of the last rule: if an enemy cloaks, START
SHOOTING!! You can get in some BIG damage sometimes!
-Keep your enemy in your arc
If you have a phaser array, try to keep the enemy out of the rear section of
your ship's view. This 180 degree area is your phaser's "blind spot", and is
only protected by two torpedo tubes.
-Stay out of your enemies arcs!
If an enemy has a phaser array, stay behind them! If they have disruptor
cannons, stay behind them! I am pretty much telling you to stay out of your
enemies' sights. (it may be common sense, but in the heat of battle, you can
easily forget this simple fact)
-Wait for a good torpedo lock
Don't just haphazardly fire your torpedoes, you have a targeting crosshair, USE
IT! Torpedoes take a while to load, and you have a limited amount of them, in
some ships.
-Use targeting discretion
Is the ship you're fighting running circles around you? Take out his impulse
engines! Is he battering you with his weapons? Take out the sensor array! Do
you need him destroyed, no questions asked? Target the warp core. I could keep
going, but it is fairly simple: just target the system or sub-system that is
giving your enemy the advantage.
-Take power from the systems you don't need, and put more in the systems you DO
need.
You can easily take your sensor power down to 1-5% and still have good,
functioning sensors. This power can go to the shields, weapons, or engines.
Just be careful, if you run out of reserve power in the middle of a battle, it
could make things a LOT harder.


Section 6: *Federation Ships*

For quick reference, this shows what I consider the best ships, in order from
best to worst:

Soverign > Akira > Galaxy > Nebula > Ambassador > Shuttle

Akira Class: This small and nimble ship is one of the best out there, in my
opinion, and in the hands of a good captain, could match the power of a
Soverign Class.
This ship has 8 phaser arrays (4 on top and 4 on the bottom), with 6 torpedo
tubes (four front and two rear). This ship has overall good shielding, but is
just under the Soverign class in power. This ship can carry photons AND quantum
torpedoes, which can make the Akira class ship a powerful and deadly ship.

Ambassador Class: This ship is called a "heavy battleship" by the game and by
the manual, this really isn't the case. It is simply a watered down version of
the Galaxy class. It is slower, with not as many torpedo tubes, and has less
powerful armor and shields. It has a total of four torpedo tubes, with two
being in front and two being rear. The phasers are the same power as the
Galaxy, though. In the end, this ship CAN be good, but really pales in
comparision to it's federation counterparts.

Galaxy Class: This ship is the workhorse of the federation fleet. It has 8
phaser arrays, (4 top 4 bottom) and 6 photon torpedo tubes. (4 front, 2 rear)
It's shielding is very good, and its armor is the most powerful for a
federation ship. It is also the biggest ship, which can present some
manuverability issues. It has some better phasers than most of the other
federation ships. I would say this ship is the third best federation ship out
there, only under the Akira and Soverign class, considering that it has no
quantum torpedoes and has some manuverability issues.

Nebula Class: This ship is above the Ambassador in power, but under the Galaxy.
Its armor isn't as good as the Galaxy, but its shields are about the same.
Weapons-wise, it has the same amount of torpedoes, but has slightly less
powerful phasers. Shield-wise, it is SLIGHTLY under. It is also a bit faster.
Overall, this ship is okay, but not as good as the Galaxy.

Soverign Class: This is my favorite, and the most powerful ship for the
federation. (if not for the game) This ship has the most powerful shields, with
the most powerful phasers, and quantum/photon torpedo tubes. This ship can also
support the phased torpedo, availiable later in the game. This ship is pretty
speedy, with good manuverabilty. This ship does have a flaw though, and it is a
pretty bad power drain. This makes the phasers prone to burning out faster, and
a light shield reduction if power is low. Even with this flaw, power can be
managed, and this can be overlooked.

Shuttle: This ship is only accessable in the multiplayer area, and it doesn't
even have a mention in the manual. You aren't missing much in single-player
mode anyhow, and it's only fun to play around with. The shields and phasers are
horribly weak, there are no torpedo tubes, and the ship only has about 1/2 -
2/5 the maximum speed of the other federation ships.


Section 7: *Klingon Ships*

Vor'Cha = Bird of Prey

(with the manuverability and speed of the BoP, and the power of the Vor'Cha,
these ships are really quite equal)

B'rel Class Bird-of-Prey: This is a VERY good ship, and can be very powerful in
the hands of someone who knows what they're doing. However, if you don't know
what is going on, you will be quickly eliminated in this flying coffin.
This ship has EXCELLENT speed and manuverability, and it's disruptor cannons,
in conjunction with the advanced photon torpedo launcher, can be a match for
almost any other ship. It also has a cloaking device for stealth. You could
easily cloak, wedge yourself in the back of a larger ship's blind spot, and
just hammer away at it. But you HAVE to use stealth and speed if you want to
survive in this ship, considering it's shields and armor is quite weak.

Vor'Cha Class Attack Crusier: This ship is quite powerful and deadly. It has a
cloaking device, a disruptor beam, a pair of disuptor cannons, two front
torpedo tubes, and one rear torpedo tube. Now this may sound like a lot, but
it's shields and manuverability leave a LOT to be desired. The speed is pretty
good though. It also lacks any ability to attack to the sides, and with it's
lack of manuverability, can easily creat a problem.


Section 8: *Romulan Ships*

D'Deridex Class Warbird: This ship has some VERY powerful disruptor cannons, a
pretty good disruptor beam, and some "okay" torpedoes. It's shields seem pretty
sturdy, and it's armor is quite good. Now with a ship this good, there have to
be some flaws, right? Well, it's manuverability is horrid, it's speed is VERY
sluggish, and it's only non-frontal-firing weapon is a single torpedo launcher
in the rear. This ship could easily be taken advantage of from the front or
sides, and it's most powerful weapons are in the front. It does have a cloaking
device, which will help a LOT...


Section 9: *Ferengi Ships*

D'Kora Class Marauder: This ship has some pretty strong shields and armor, but