D’Vana Tendi in Star Trek Fleet Command
D’Vana Tendi is an epic Science officer pulled from Star Trek: Lower Decks. In Star Trek Fleet Command she sits with the rest of the Lower Decks cast, and her value comes entirely from her officer ability, which raises the health of every officer on the ship.
One thing to know up front: Tendi has no working captain ability. Her captain slot does nothing, so she belongs in one of the two officer seats and never in the center chair. Treat that as a planning note before you build a crew around her.
This guide covers who she is in canon, what she does in the game, where she fits on a bridge, and how to think about ranking her up.
Who D’Vana Tendi is in Star Trek
Tendi is an Orion officer in Starfleet’s sciences division, one of the four main ensigns aboard the USS Cerritos in Star Trek: Lower Decks. She is relentlessly enthusiastic and optimistic, the kind of crew member who treats even dull assignments as a chance to learn something.
Her past is more complicated than her cheer lets on. She was born into House Tendi, once one of the largest families in the Orion Syndicate. As a teenager she trained as a “prime,” a Syndicate assassin, and was in line to inherit the title Mistress of the Winter Constellations. She walked away from that life to join Starfleet, which earned plenty of resentment from her family’s criminal world and left Tendi sensitive about Orion stereotypes. She wants to be seen as a science officer first, not a thief or a pirate.
On the Cerritos she started as a medic under Doctor T’Ana before her aptitude pushed her into senior science officer training. She has a genuine gift for genetics, once building an artificial dog by hand-editing its DNA for fun. Her closest friends are Sam Rutherford, Beckett Mariner, and Brad Boimler, and that friend group is the thread that ties the Lower Decks roster together in the game. Later in the show she even returns to her Orion roots for a stretch before settling back into Starfleet and eventually rising to captain.
Tendi’s role in STFC
Tendi is a support officer. She does not deal damage or boost mining on her own, and she cannot anchor a crew from the captain’s chair. What she offers is a boost to officer health for everyone stationed on the ship, so you slot her in to keep the rest of your bridge effective rather than to headline the crew.
Because her contribution is an officer ability, she only works while she is on the bridge in one of the two officer seats. Picture her as a complement to officers whose own abilities matter most when their health holds up. On her own she is quiet; next to the right partners she earns her seat.
Captain ability and officer ability
Captain ability: Unfit To Lead
Tendi’s captain ability, Unfit To Lead, is exactly what the name says. She has no captain maneuver, and putting her in the captain’s chair gives no bonus at all. This is intended behavior, not a missing stat, and it is the single most important thing to remember when you crew her. Always run her in an officer seat.
Officer ability: Yay, Friends!
Her officer ability, Yay, Friends!, increases the health of all officers on the ship. The bonus grows each time you promote her and reaches its full value at her top rank (as of the latest data). Higher officer health keeps your crew’s officers in the fight longer, which protects the abilities and presence they bring to the bridge.
Like every officer ability, it only fires when Tendi is assigned to one of the bridge officer seats, so there is no benefit to leaving her below decks if you want this effect.
Where D’Vana Tendi shines
Tendi fits best in two situations. The first is any crew built around the other Lower Decks officers, where she rounds out a themed bridge alongside characters she shares a synergy group with. The second is a support slot on a crew where keeping officer health high carries real weight, since propping up the officers beside her is the whole of her job.
She is a friendly pickup for newer players who land her through an event, mostly because she is simple to understand and asks nothing complicated of your roster. For mid and late-game crews, treat her as a situational support officer rather than a fixture. How far she goes depends on how much you value officer health in the specific crew you are running, so let the crew decide her place rather than forcing her in.
How to get D’Vana Tendi
Tendi is recruited with officer shards, the same as any other officer. Lower Decks characters usually arrive through limited events and special recruitment offers rather than the standard faction stores, so her availability moves around. Check the current event calendar and store rotations to see how she is offered right now.
Taking her from recruitment through her top rank costs 1,800 shards in total (as of the latest data), spread across her five ranks:
| Rank | Shards to promote |
|---|---|
| 1 | 120 |
| 2 | 120 |
| 3 | 240 |
| 4 | 360 |
| 5 | 960 |
The cost climbs sharply at the final rank, so that last promotion is the one to plan and save for.
Synergy officers and crews
Tendi belongs to the Lower Decks synergy group. The officers she shares that group with are Beckett Mariner, Brad Boimler, Badgey, Sam Rutherford, Carol Freeman, Doctor T’Ana, and Alonzo Freeman. If you are chasing a full Lower Decks bridge, those are the names to collect alongside her.
Her in-game class-synergy bonus does not show meaningful values right now, so there is no class percentage worth quoting. Build around her by pairing her officer-health boost with officers whose abilities you want to keep alive, and lean on the Lower Decks group when you want a themed crew. Past that, keep crew choices tied to the job in front of you rather than wedging her into a slot she does not suit.
Frequently asked questions
Is D’Vana Tendi any good?
She is a useful support officer in the right crew and a weak choice in the wrong one. Her officer-health boost helps crews that depend on their officers staying alive, but she brings nothing from the captain’s chair and no offense of her own. Judge her by the crew you want to put her in.
Can you use Tendi as a captain?
No. Her captain ability gives no benefit, so she should always go in an officer seat. Putting her in the captain’s chair wastes the slot.
Where do you get D’Vana Tendi shards?
From officer shards tied to events and special recruitment around the Lower Decks crew. Exact availability changes often, so check the current store and event rotations.
Is Tendi worth ranking up?
Rank her up if she has a steady home in a crew you actually run, since her ability scales with promotion. The final rank costs far more shards than the earlier ones, so weigh that last push against whatever else you could spend shards on.
What does Yay, Friends! do?
It raises the health of all officers stationed on the ship, and the bonus increases as you promote her toward her top rank.
Should you chase D’Vana Tendi?
Tendi is for players who like building themed Lower Decks crews or who have a specific spot where extra officer health pays off. If that is you, she is an easy officer to slot in and rank as you go. If you are hunting for a heavy hitter or a captain to anchor a crew, look elsewhere and grab Tendi when she comes around.
