Tactical Economy
Chresa Jutrem
Chresa Jutrem
Somewhere in between our starter build, which has no Reputation or Fleet gear and a barebones budget, and our full-out Premium builds fit out with Lobi and Lockbox traits, we wanted to fit in an intermediate ground build guaranteed to clobber TFOs on Elite without breaking the bank. When I made a new Klingon Recruit as part of our initiative to create the Cadet Handbook, it was an obvious choice to develop her ground build into something along those lines.
This is my KDF recruit, who is definitely not an Orion pirate.
Thematic Choices
Avoided some of the more fantastical kit modules like Ball Lightning, V'ger Probes, etc. but I still use the Risian Kit
Omega Force 2-piece for faster remodulation. Plus I think the weapon looks and sounds cool.
I don't like re-using DPS Kit Modules across characters. I did use some repeats here but I also branched out a little. There are lots of good kit modules, so if I pigeon-hole myself into the 10 best, I don't get to learn about some of the others.
BHE: 2.44K: (premade)
Ward C Clear of Bird Cage Elite: (solo, deathless) 1.28K
Using the EZRA rubric, this build would cost 9.33 USD to replicate, which is very cheap while being Elite-capable. If the cost still seems expensive, don't worry. Lower-budget alternatives are provided below.
2 Summer Event kit modules, 1 Summer Event kit
1 Lockbox kit module
3 Lockbox ground traits
1 non-standard doffs
September 2026: Posted build
Heavy focus on weapon damage and kit damage with some supportive/theme concepts. Acid spray seems like a good pirate weapon for breaking down doors and barriers.
Notes
The meta skill layout would be to skip Endurance in favor of Improved Weapon Penetration. I just think ground on higher difficulties requires a bit more survivability than that and haven't felt the need to change it.
Notes
The Omega Force set is not meta, but it has three things going for it:
Faster remodulation
A team-wide CrtH/CrtD passive boost
The Autocarbine does a fantastic job of applying Tenavik's Counsel, which is really good on an Antiproton build.
Plus I think the weapon looks and sounds good. If you're looking for ground meta, you're in the wrong place.
I have no idea what the optimal mods are for ground weapons, so I haven't re-engineered any of it.
Budget Notes:
All pretty cheap tbh
Notes:
Cooldowns on everything but the MicroTorp are already on minimum cooldown and the MicroTorp is within 1 second. This is discernible by a horizontal cooldown line rather than a radial cooldown timer and by CDR analysis.
If you wanted more meta Kit Modules, fit Ball Lightning on there. I took Rally Cry over a second Risian kit module for survivability reasons when doing solo Bird Cage testing.
Trajectory Bending is pretty amazing and should be a high priority for Tac Assault builds. Photonic Overcharge is cheap and very effective.
The meta kit modules are probably picking from this pool:
Universal: Ball Lightning, Ba'ul Obelisk Network, Gravity Containment Unit, Mudd's Time Device, Chain Conduit Capacitor, Kuumarke Drones, V'ger Probes, Agony Field Generator, Rapid Lithic Formation
Tac: Trajectory Bending, Graviton Spike, Motivation, Chroniton Micro-Torpedo Spread, Battle Strategies
Eng: Anchor of Gre'thor, Explosive Drone, Chroniton Mines
Sci: Cold Fusion Flash, Exothermic Induction Field, Andorian Summer
If you want to do that on every character, be my guest.
Meta-Focused Tweaks:
These are very solid for what we're doing here.
Budget Tweaks:
Honestly ground traits aren't super expensive on the exchange. Prioritize Upgraded Gear, Ambush Fighter, and Tenavik's Counsel (on an Antiproton weapon build)
Meta-Focused Tweaks:
You'd probably also want to devote all 6 ground doff slots to ground, but that's not how I roll, and I struggle to see what other doffs would make a significant impact there.
I would love to find a Stim/Battery recharge Biochemist, but I have yet to find any for the KDF.
Budget Tweaks:
If low budget, skip the Assault Squad Officer that boosts CrtH/CrtD for another Security Officer
Numbers from record Bug Hunt Elite (BHE).
Antiproton Carbine: 746
Tenavik's Counsel: 352
Graviton Spike: 280
Danube Runabout: 267
Chroniton Micro-Torpedo Spread: 266
Photonic Overcharge: 49
Security Escort: 28
Jackal: 2
Temporal Rebuke: 0.5