Welcome to our ground section! A few words upfront: our ground expertise is new and incomplete. This site was principally founded to focus on space PvE and we're primarily shipbuilders, not groundpounders. Our derivations into the mechanics of ground combat are new and incomplete. That said, there is merit in having a good ground setup in STO, as many ground TFOs are very efficient in terms of investment required to do well compared to the rewards. Also, there are endeavors and fleet events and story missions to consider.
Since we've apparently been around enough to do decently well on ground, our setups are posted here (after much asking and cajoling). Our builds are generally set up to do a few things:
Run a variety of maps capably on Elite, including Borg TFOs, Bug Hunt, Trans-dimensional Tactics, Miner Instabilities, and Colony Defense, with minimal gear changes.
Do so fairly cheaply (at least relative to space)
Do at least 1.5K DPS on Bug Hunt Elite, except for support builds.
Do so without sacrificing space performance. This mostly goes towards doffs as specializations are easy to swap in and out of, but when in doubt we're set up for space.
Things we can't promise our content will cover:
If you're looking to smash the ceiling of Bug Hunt Elite's DPS records, you won't find much here. We generally make 1-size-fits-all builds good for generic Elite play rather than specialized builds. We're comfortably between top 50 - top 100 on BHE thus far but if you have higher ambitions, you'll find our content lacking.
If you're chasing triple-digit waves on Arena of Sompek, our builds will likely not get you very far.
The optimal choices/the ground meta. We know what works for us. Mathematical derivations of best ground choices are outside of our interest. Ground, even on Elite, requires less concessions to the meta than space does, so "thematic and fun" will often take the cake over "ruthless devotion to DPS."
Quick Build Glossary
Quick Build Glossary
Ground builds, as far as we can tell, don't have easy classifications like space builds do for things like CSV, Exotic, etc. While we're woefully unqualified to do so, we had to come up with some kind of classification page to name our pages so it wasn't just "Tac 1, Tac 2, Eng 1, Eng 2, Eng 3...".
Assault builds are focused more weapons and weapon-based effects.
Fabricator builds are focused around constructs and/or drones. Stereotypical "bunker builds" fall into this category for engineers.
Mage builds are focused heavily around offensive/control-based kits
Support builds emphasize buffing the team, debuffing enemies, or healing allies.
Hybrid builds are a mixture of the above
Melee builds focused on close-range hand-to-hand combat. We do not currently have any of these.
Alen, the Tactical Mage
Alen, the Tactical Mage
For the electrical aficionados out there, this build leverages a high-voltage combination of buffs and lightning-based kits to let the sparks fly for seemingly unlimited power
DPS: 3.47K
Author: Eph289
Keywords: Mage, Tactical, Electrical, Lightning
Last Updated: July 2023
Joshua, the Science Mage
Joshua, the Science Mage
What happens when you mix cold-based and temporal-based kits? You get a Temporal Agent who can freeze time! Puns aside, this kit-based build is a highly-capable example of the "make-a-pile, punch-the-pile" strategy that also works so very well in space.
DPS: 2.11K
Author: Eph289
Keywords: Mage, Science, Polaron, Cold, Temporal
Last Updated: July 2023
Joshua, the Science Support
Joshua, the Science Support
The "blue" support used on many of our record-setting DPS runs, this build leverages the science captain's unique abilities and a mix of universal and science kit modules to elevate and enhance other captain's damage.
DPS/PBA: 0.2K, 6 PBA
Author: Eph289
See AlsoSTO BETTER - Ground DPS BasicsKeywords: Support, Science, Disruptor
Last Updated: July 2023
Joresh, the Engineer Assault
Joresh, the Engineer Assault
When making ground builds for Engineers, weapon and weapon-triggered damage is not typically what people gravitate towards, but by leveraging some unique kit and weapon synergies, this Jem'Hadar warrior is a force to be reckoned with on the battlefield with little more than a rifle and a Covert Assault Drone.
DPS: 2.07K
Author: Eph289
Keywords: Assault, Engineer, Phaser
Last Updated: July 2023
Juslaw, the Tactical Support
Juslaw, the Tactical Support
The "red" support used on many of our record-setting DPS runs, this build leverages the tactical captain's unique abilities and a mix of universal and science kit modules to elevate and enhance other captain's damage and has been highly successful in doing so.
DPS/PBA: 0.4K, 12 PBA
Author: Eph289
Keywords: Support, Tactical, Disruptor
Last Updated: July 2023
Laura, the Engineer Fabricator
Laura, the Engineer Fabricator
A more traditional Engineer build, loaded with mines, turrets, generators, a mortar and anything else you'd need for a sunny day at the (Dranuur) beach.
DPS: 1.97K
Author: Eph289
Keywords: Fabricator, Engineer, Turret, Mine, Plasma
Last Updated: July 2023
Laura, the Engineer Hybrid
Laura, the Engineer Hybrid
A modernized offensive build for the Engineer on the go, swapping out kit modules for a combination of direct damage, drones, and fabrications.
DPS: 2.26K
Author: Eph289
Keywords: Hybrid, Engineer, Drone, Mage, Fabricator, Plasma
Last Updated: July 2023
Michael, the Tactical Hybrid
Michael, the Tactical Hybrid
A combination of weapon and kit damage that steers clear of the flashier, more fantastical kit modules while still delivering excellent damage on a Tactical character
DPS: 2.52K
Author: Eph289
Keywords: Hybrid, Tactical, Antiproton
Last Updated: July 2023
Teryh, the Tactical Hybrid
Teryh, the Tactical Hybrid
Sorry, on the ground, and get my boots dirty? Sounds awesome!
DPS: 3.13K
Author: Jayiie
Keywords: Hybrid, Tactical
Last Updated: July 2023
