Upgrade Priorities

[Pepin Short]

Hello. I'm new.

Let's talk openings. After playing a measly  20 hours and winning a couple times, I notice some systems give more blue options than others, so I think it is best to upgrade those first.

My upgrade priorities in order

Med Bay L2
Teleporter L1 (L2 on ships that start with it)
Sensors L2

Doors L2 (unless you can handle intruders)

Then it's either Teleporters (and Med Bay) or Weapons depending on my strategy. By sector 2-3 I get Shields up to 4 bars and then focus on Engines and reactor power till the end.

Med Bay yields so much extra loot and a few crew members that it pays for itself quickly.
Teleporter is similar, very good to have. I think most will agree.
Sensors give some blue options but also let you know if you can get away with boarding (if you do not have special crew for that) 

I think there is no point upgrading Oxygen but someone might disagree. Are there any blue options for this system?
I never upgrade Piloting either.
Drones are not necessary, but I think a defense drone and a hull repair drone is the best use of those slots.

This is how I open, but I've only played the Kestrels A and B, the Mantis ships, and Engi A.

What are your openings?

[UltraMantis]

I can't remember doors having any blue options, but sensors and medbay are both cheap and usefull. You can not entirely neglect engines and shields because survival is more important. I also like to have a point in auto pilot, not because i want to use it but to prevent one stray shot from immobilising the ship.

Generally Engines are my main priority followed by whatever the game seems to be tossing at me. Nebulas are more rewarding with sensors. Having either life support or medbay at level 2 can mean a difference between life and death in situations where breaches or stuck doors cause air to leak out. Level 2 life support can pump air into a room with a breach and is cheap at 25 scrap, so it's worth taking it. And the rate at which you regain oxy makes it possible to leave the system off during combat and only power it up for a quick air injection.

The only system i usually ignore is doors, but that depends on the ship.

[MC3craze]

I take a more traditional approach when it comes it upgrades.Typically I get level 2 shields, and afterward save my money until I hit either the exit beacon or a store. If I hit a store, I usually have enough scrap for something cheap, at least some fuel or missiles. If I don't find anything at a store worth buying, I buy an egnine upgrade, level 2 doors, level 2 sensors, and the power to run the engine upgrade.'

I never really thought about the extra blue options from the level 2 medbay, I rarely buy it until the last stand or when I'm boarding. I usually keep enough scrap on hand to upgrade the medbay and cycle crew if the O2 goes completely out.

[Agg Shell]

My ideal 1st sector is
-2 shield bubbles
-3 engine power
-1 extra crew
-lvl 2 doors

after that in sector 2 i focus on engines and save scrap incase i get a sweet weapon, and lvl 3 shields by the end of sector 3 is nice. as for blue options, a lot of times i think like, buying a teleporter for the chance of getting that one event, probably won't give back 75 scrap. Medbay lvl 2 is good for one event in my eyes, if you have engi medbot dispersal. Choose the upgraded medbay then the medbots and you get some gret scrap and a weapon!

[Dontmindme]

Let's use the Kestral as a base (some ships may vary slightly).
1) Shield dot 3 (1st 20 scrap)
2) Shield dot 4 - bubble 2 (next 30 scrap)
3) Power bar - (next 20 scrap)
4) Power bar - (next 20 scrap)
This gets me everything powered except Med Bay (which I can power on from O2 if necessary)

Now, it becomes interesting...I gather at least another 80 scrap before hitting a store.
Flexible priorities:
1) Burst Laser II (can't pass it up if available - really only weapon I'll buy before Teleport)
2) Scrap Recovery Arm
3) Teleporter

If not any of the above I play it by ear but high priorities include:
1) Drone Recovery Arm
2) Cloak
3) Drone Control
4) Long-Range Scanners
5) Ion Blast II
6) Engine upgrades
7) Med Bay 2 (for events)
8) If entering a particular homeworld, upgrades necessary for the special event, be it Sensors for Slugs.

About Sector 4 I look to upgrade Shields to 3 Bubbles; 4 bubbles about Sector 6

I don't prioritize Weapon Preloader and Automated Reloader as high as many, but I will pick them up later in the game if I'm short good augments and are pretty happy with the current state of my ship.

If I feel my weapons are about to become too weak for the sectors to come, I'll try to pick up some low power lasers to supplement. Burst Laser I (2 power - 2 shots); Heavy Laser I (1 power - 1 shot 2 damage); and even Hull Laser I (2 power - 2 shots) are nice bubble popping upgrades.

For drones, I really only use Defense I and maybe Hull Repair (occasionally Sys Repair). I don't like the Anti-Ship drones as I feel they take too much power for what they give. 2 power for I and 4 power for II is a lot of power usage to knock down 1 or 2 shields and randomly do damage. By end game, I'd rather use the power elsewhere like more Engines for Evasion.

By the end I'll throw scrap into cheap upgrades for some damage proofing. I also like doors, sensors and piloting as you gain the minor benefits with no additional power expenditures.

[cuthawolf]

Auto-pilot does have one blue option, though it's rareish. At the second dot it opens up an option to safely pilot through a scrap field in an ion storm to look for stuff. Problem is, like all Nebula stuff, you still have a chance to get nothing, even with the blue option.

[MC3craze]

Auto-pilot does have one blue option, though it's rareish. At the second dot it opens up an option to safely pilot through a scrap field in an ion storm to look for stuff. Problem is, like all Nebula stuff, you still have a chance to get nothing, even with the blue option.

I thought that was pilot skill based.

[UltraMantis]

Auto-pilot does have one blue option, though it's rareish. At the second dot it opens up an option to safely pilot through a scrap field in an ion storm to look for stuff. Problem is, like all Nebula stuff, you still have a chance to get nothing, even with the blue option.

I thought that was pilot skill based.

I think you're right. Not sure what level but it should require a skilled pilot.

[greetingsfromoslo]

Lvl 2 Shield
2 Power bars
Teleport
Lvl 2 Doors

Teleport is my "I Win"-card. The extreme gains in loot provided by not destroying enemy ships means I'm able to reimburses the cost of the teleport and catch up to the lost upgrades within the first sector of use.

[Dralax]

I think you're right. Not sure what level but it should require a skilled pilot.

Wrong. All you need is piloting subsystem upgraded to lvl 2.

As for the topic itself: it's really a stupid question. With the exception of a few very obvious early choices (get 2 shields if possible, upgrade cloak for stealth cruiser, get medbay for Slug B, upgrade TP for Mantis B, etc.) it's all situational.