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Lt. Commander
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 120
# 5
08-19-2011, 07:39 AM
Firstly, you need to define if you're talking about PVE, PVP, solo, group, etc as what is effective changes depending on what gameplay type and style you're playing.

If you're referring to PVE, then do not use full beams. Frankly it is a complete waste of the Vor'Cha.

Those three tactical boff skills are key to you doing high DPS, and restricting yourself to one weapon type bottlenecks your DPS potential because of the shared weapon-type cooldowns.

Likewise torpedoes in a Vor'Cha flown by an Engineer does not offer you enough DPS to warrant it, unless you plan on using a Tricobolt torpedo, in which case you still have to learn how to use it in order for it to be effective. That means you can forget High Yield 1.

So you should be mixing your front weapons, using both Cannons and Beams, and that means two of your three tactical skills should be a damage buff to each weapon. You also need to ensure your weapon power setting is at least 105-110, (which is easy for an Engineer), and that you're using an EPS console. Also never use Nadion Inversion and EPS Transfer at the same time - stagger them.

If you're going to go this route, then you also need to ensure that your target remains within your forward firing arc as often as possible. That means ensuring you have at least 1 RCS console to increase your turn rate and have Vent Warp Plasma to root opponents.

So you need to mix your weapons, therefore using both beams and cannons in your front slot, and if you want to get the highest DPS from those you need to be using at least 1 weapon DPS buff per-weapon. Really that means using Beam Overload and Cannon Rapid Fire.

With those two skills in mind, you should therefore be using:

2x Dual Cannon
2x Beam Array

2x Beam Array
1x Turret (rear mounted)
(I'll leave the 4th weapon blank as it could be anything - 3rd beam array, tricobolt torpedo, mine, etc)

Or, if you want to try and utilise a Tircobolt torpedo;

2x Dual Cannon
1x Dual Beam Bank
1x Tricobolt Torpedo

Same as above

This means you can fire both Beam Overload and Cannon rapid fire at the same time, doing substantial burst DPS. With the above setup in PVE (and often in PVP too) you can drop a target's shields and get their hull to 50% in the first volley - far faster than a cruiser broadsing with full beams.

I use Fire at Will as my 3rd tactical skill, which allows me to stager and rotate it with Beam Overload - that means halfway into Beam Overload and Cannon Rapid Fire charging, I can give off a Fire at Will volley.

I guarantee you that this will do substantialy more DPS than a Vor'Cha broadsing on full beams. If you want to prove it for yourself, try the above on the Transport raid vs full beams. You will see how much more DPS you'll do with the above setup.

Personally I use the tricobolt setup above, and am very successful with it. With my first volley I will have taken out a target's facing shields and reduced their hull to 50% - all in the first volley. I can take their hull down to below 10% with 1 tricobolt, and finish them off with a couple more shots.

Only an Escort can kill a target quicker.