Research is the permanent upgrade system in Star Trek Fleet Command. Every project you finish in the R&D Department buys a lasting bonus: harder-hitting ships, faster mining, cheaper buildings, more warp range. The full tree now spans 20 branches and more than 2,000 individual projects. This page is the map: what each research tree does, how big it is, which projects players look up most, and a link to the full guide for every tree.
How research works
Research lives in the R&D Department on your station. Each project costs resources and time, and most trees gate their projects behind a building level (usually your R&D Department, sometimes Operations or another building) and one or more prerequisite projects. Once a project finishes, its bonus is permanent and always on. Research times look brutal on paper, but research speed bonuses from buildings, officers, and events cut them heavily in practice.
Not every tree unlocks the same way. The eight core trees open up as your Operations level grows. The specialty trees have their own doors: Territory research runs through the Continuum Consulate, Outlaw research through the Botany Bay, Faction Favors upgrades are bought with faction hull plating, and ship skin research unlocks when you own the skin itself.
The eight core research trees
These are the main branches almost every player works through. Each link goes to a full table of that tree with what every project does, its unlock level, cost to max, and research time.
| Research tree | What it does | Projects |
|---|---|---|
| Kampfforschung | The largest branch. Weapon damage, critical hits, piercing, and defenses: how hard your ships hit and how long they last in any fight. | 369 |
| Raumschiffe Forschung | Ship-specific upgrades. Most projects buff one named ship or ship line rather than your whole fleet. | 242 |
| Station Forschung | Economy and quality of life. Cheaper, faster building and research, plus station defense. It makes your whole base run better. | 209 |
| Territoriale Forschung | Mid-to-late economy and armadas, unlocked through the Continuum Consulate. Refining returns, high-tier mining, and armada power. | 182 |
| Galaxie-Forschung | Economy and mobility. Mining rates, refining efficiency, warp speed and range, cargo size, faction reputation, and officer stats. | 180 |
| Auswärtsmannschaften Forschung | The officer branch. Better away-team assignments and stronger officers, from around Operations 10 into the low 40s. | 111 |
| Outlaw Research | Mid-game faction branch built around the Botany Bay: cost efficiency and staying alive while you mine. | 70 |
| Sternenbasis Forschung | The Cardassian and Assault branch, tied to Deep Space Nine content. Nearly every project targets Cardassian armadas or Assault mode. | 53 |
Faction, event, and specialty trees
The rest of the tree is newer and more specialized. Several of these branches are endgame content with steep unlock requirements, and a few work on completely different rules from the core trees.
| Research tree | What it does | Projects |
|---|---|---|
| Ship Skins Research | Every ship skin’s built-in research bonus. Unlocks by owning the skin, not by Operations level. | 124 |
| Artifact Research | Utility grab bag. Each project is a unique Artifact granting one specific buff, from mining rate to PvP defense. | 111 |
| Mirror Research | Endgame branch from the Mirror Universe arc, unlocked at Operations 40 and heavily focused on PvP defense. | 99 |
| Ascension Research | Catch-up branch for G3-and-up players. Sources ships and blueprints you may have skipped on the way up. | 61 |
| Ex-Borg Research | Endgame branch built around the Borg Cube, unlocked from R&D Department level 28, with a set of all-ship combat boosts. | 55 |
| Aggregation Research | Aggregation-focused projects with their own unlock path. | 33 |
| Faction Favors Research | Hull-plating upgrades for Federation, Romulan, and Klingon faction ships, bought with faction materials instead of standard resources. | 27 |
| Bajoran Research | Projects tied to the Bajoran faction arc. | 25 |
| Section 31 Research | Projects tied to Section 31 favors and content. | 22 |
| Maverick Research | Endgame faction branch for the Maverick faction and Conqueror Borg Solo Armadas, mostly gated at R&D Department 55 and up. | 22 |
| Terran Research | Projects tied to the Terran arc. | 12 |
| Star Path Research | A small branch tied to the Star Path system. | 10 |
What to research first
Early on, split your effort between Combat and Galaxy. Combat basics raise the damage and survivability of every ship you own, and the Galaxy economy lines (mining, refining, warp range) decide how fast everything else moves. A fight bonus you use in every battle beats a niche bonus you use once a week.
Station research is the quiet winner in the mid game. Cheaper and faster construction and research compounds over months, so pick up its cost and speed lines whenever they come into reach. Away Teams research pays off as soon as you are running assignments regularly.
The specialty trees are not optional forever. Territory, Outlaw, Ex-Borg, and Mirror each carry some of the strongest bonuses in the game for their level range. Open each one as soon as you meet its unlock, then prioritize inside it by what you actually do: miners push economy lines, PvP players push defense and damage, armada crews push their target’s tree.
Most searched research projects
A small set of individual projects gets looked up far more than the rest. These have their own detailed pages:
- Abfangjäger vermeiden und Fragile Entdecker (Combat)
- KSG-Schild Milderung und KSG-Autobahn (Combat)
- Abschnitt 31 Superhighway (Combat)
- Prime Syndicate XP und Verbesserte Warpkerne (Galaxy)
- Föderation Hingabe, Tribut der Prime Federationund Primärer romulanischer Tribut (Galaxy)
- Prime 5★ Gasraffination (Galaxy)
- 1★ Isogen Extraction und Prime Damage Vs Spieler (Territory)
Research FAQ
Where do I research in STFC?
In the R&D Department on your station. Open it, pick a tree, and start any project whose requirements you meet. Upgrading the R&D Department raises the research levels available to you.
Are research bonuses permanent?
Yes. Every completed research level is a permanent, always-on bonus. Nothing expires and nothing needs to be re-run.
Why can’t I see a research tree in my game?
You have not met its unlock yet. The core trees appear as your Operations level rises. Specialty trees have their own conditions: Territory runs through the Continuum Consulate, Mirror opens at Operations 40, Outlaw and Ex-Borg need your R&D Department at 19 and 28, and ship skin research only shows skins you own.
How do I speed up research?
Research speed bonuses stack from buildings, officer abilities, exocomps, and alliance help, and research speed-ups finish jobs instantly. Long timers on paper are normal; active players finish most projects far faster than the listed base time.