Gaila is a Common Federation Engineering officer in Star Trek Fleet Command, based on the green-skinned Orion cadet from the 2009 Star Trek film. As captain, her Parsteel Hunter maneuver adds 25% to Parsteel rewards from Hostiles. On the bridge, Critical Avoidance cuts the critical damage you take from Hostiles of level 70 and under by 10% at rank 1, rising to 50% at rank 5.
Gaila at a glance
| Detail | Gaila |
|---|---|
| Rarity | Common |
| Faction | Federation |
| Class | Engineering |
| Synergy group | Starfleet Academy |
| Captain ability | Parsteel Hunter: +25% Parsteel rewards from Hostiles |
| Officer ability | Critical Avoidance: -10% to -50% critical damage from Hostiles of level 70 and under |
| Below-decks ability | None |
| Shards to rank 5 | 240 |
Why Gaila matters in STFC
Gaila is a Common-rarity Federation officer in Star Trek Fleet Command, part of the Starfleet Academy group. She is most useful for two very different jobs: a low-cost Parsteel-farming captain in the early game, and a niche bridge officer who softens critical hits from Hostiles. Her Officer Ability, Critical Avoidance, is the reason she keeps a spot in some crews long after most other Common officers are retired.
If you are new to the game, Gaila is worth ranking up because she is cheap and her Captain Maneuver gives you a real Parsteel boost while hunting Hostiles. Later, she still finds use in a specific Rogue Armada setup focused on canceling critical damage.
Gaila in Star Trek: background
The STFC version of Gaila uses the alternate-reality (Kelvin timeline) identity introduced in the 2009 film Star Trek. She is an Orion cadet at Starfleet Academy, played on screen by Rachel Nichols. In the film, Gaila is Cadet Nyota Uhura’s roommate, and her scene with Cadet Kirk in the dorm room is the moment that connects Kirk’s academy life to the long-range sensor lab that triggers his promotion arc.
This Gaila should not be confused with the Ferengi character of the same name from Deep Space Nine, who is Quark’s cousin. The in-game flavor text and art match the Orion cadet from the 2009 film, including the reference to Orion pheromones working better on non-human crew, which is consistent with how the canon film depicts her species.
Gaila’s role in STFC
Gaila is an Engineering-class officer in the Starfleet Academy synergy group. Her two abilities point her at PvE Hostile content rather than PvP or station defense. The Captain Maneuver adds a flat Parsteel reward bonus to Hostile kills, which is most valuable when you are still climbing the early Parsteel cost curve for station upgrades. The Officer Ability sits on the bridge of any ship and reduces incoming critical hit damage from Hostiles, with a stated cap of Hostile level 70 and under.
She is a Common officer, so the rank-up cost is low and you can often pull her shards out of Starfleet Academy recruitment rather than chasing event currency. That makes her one of the few Commons that are still worth bringing to higher Operations levels for a specific job.
Captain ability and officer ability
Captain Maneuver: Parsteel Hunter
When Gaila is the ship’s captain, she increases Parsteel rewards from defeating Hostiles by 25% (as of the latest data). Parsteel is the bulk station-building resource you need at almost every step of the early and mid game, so an extra 25% on Hostile drops compounds quickly during a focused farming session. She is one of the simplest Parsteel-farming captains in the game because there is nothing conditional to manage; you just kill Hostiles and bank more.
The Captain Maneuver does not scale up cleanly across her own ranks, so the rank-1 value is the safe number to plan around. If you are building a Parsteel run, ranking her up further does not change the bonus much; what matters more is keeping her in the captain seat on the right ship for the Hostile grade you are farming.
Officer ability: Critical Avoidance
Critical Avoidance triggers when Gaila is assigned to the bridge of a ship and the opponent is a Hostile. It reduces the damage that the Hostile deals on its critical hits. The bonus is gated to Hostiles of level 70 and under, so it stops working against higher-level hostiles and against armada targets above that band. Lower-level armadas at level 70 and under still count.
The per-rank scaling on Critical Avoidance is straightforward and has been steady across multiple references. Current as of the latest update:
| Rank | Critical Avoidance |
|---|---|
| 1 | 10% |
| 2 | 20% |
| 3 | 30% |
| 4 | 40% |
| 5 | 50% |
At rank 5, Gaila takes 50% off the critical damage of every critical hit a qualifying Hostile lands on her ship. That is large enough to matter in fights where critical damage is the main thing chewing through your hull, which is exactly the situation a coordinated Rogue Armada team is built to exploit.
Where Gaila shines
There are three situations where Gaila earns her spot:
- Early-game Parsteel farming. Slot her as captain on whichever ship handles your current Hostile grade, hunt in a system with the right Hostile type, and bank the extra Parsteel toward station upgrades.
- Rogue Armadas focused on canceling critical hits. In a coordinated team built around Christopher Pike as captain and Marlena Moreau as a bridge officer, Gaila’s Critical Avoidance is the third piece. Pike’s captain maneuver raises the effectiveness of officer abilities that activate in combat, so it amplifies Gaila’s critical damage cut on your own ship. The target has to be at level 70 or under for her part to work.
- Solo Hostile content where crit damage is the bottleneck. If you are losing too much hull to lucky critical hits while grinding a specific Hostile under level 70, dropping Gaila into the bridge is a cheap way to smooth out the damage.
She is less useful for general PvP, station defense, mining, faction reputation grinds outside Hostile drops, or anything involving Armada Hostiles above level 70. The armada locations guide lists armada targets by level if you want to see which ones fall under her cap.
How to get Gaila
Gaila is a Common Federation officer in the Starfleet Academy group, and her shards come through the game’s recruitment, store and event rotations like any other Common officer. Check the current store and event rotations in your game for the cheapest source on the day you are farming. Because she is Common, rank-ups are inexpensive, and most players hit rank 5 well before they would for an Uncommon or Rare officer.
She does not require Officer Badges to rank up at any tier, which is part of why the Starfleet Academy group is popular as a beginner’s project. If you are early enough that Officer Badges feel scarce, getting Gaila and the rest of the Academy crew to rank 5 is a low-friction way to pad out your officer roster and unlock synergy bonuses for Federation crews.
Current as of the latest update, the full climb from recruitment to rank 5 costs 240 shards, 155,500 Officer XP and 1,150 Federation Credits.
| Rank | Shards to promote | Officer XP | Federation Credits | Max level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 2 | 12 | 500 | 0 | 10 |
| 3 | 30 | 5,000 | 0 | 15 |
| 4 | 72 | 50,000 | 0 | 20 |
| 5 | 120 | 100,000 | 1,150 | 30 |
Synergies and crew building
Gaila’s synergy group is Starfleet Academy. The original Academy crew is T’Laan, Grace Chen, Shev Akria, Vel K’Bentayr, and Lucia Gonzales, and the group has since grown to include Academy Doctor, Caleb Mir, Genesis Lythe, Chancellor Ake and Deidamia. Putting Academy officers together gives the captain seat extra class-synergy bonuses; her group’s published synergy line is Command 10%, Engineering 5%, Science 10%, weighted in favor of Command and Science partners.
The most talked-about pairing for Gaila is the Rogue Armada anti-crit crew with Christopher Pike as captain and Marlena Moreau on the bridge. Pike’s maneuver boosts the officer abilities of the whole bridge, while Moreau lowers Hostile penetration and Gaila cuts Hostile critical damage, so the trio stacks defensive layers against armada targets at level 70 and under.
Outside of that niche, Gaila works fine as a captain on any Hostile-hunting ship in the early game. Her Captain Maneuver does not require a specific synergy to pay off; it is a flat Parsteel bonus on the Hostile kill. For Critical Avoidance crews, you want her on the bridge with a captain whose maneuver scales the damage of your ship, since Gaila is there to reduce the damage you take rather than the damage you deal.
Frequently asked questions
Is Gaila any good in STFC?
Yes, for two specific roles. As an early-game Parsteel-farming captain she is a strong cheap pick, and as a bridge officer in a Rogue Armada anti-crit setup she keeps earning her seat even at higher Operations levels. Outside those roles she is a Common with limited use compared to Uncommon and Rare officers.
Where do you get Gaila shards?
From the game’s recruitment, store and event rotations that include Common Starfleet Academy officers. Because rotations change, check the in-game stores at the time you are farming rather than committing to a single source.
What ship is Gaila best on?
For Parsteel farming, put her on whichever ship is your current best Hostile grinder for your level. For Critical Avoidance work, the ship matters less than the crew composition; pair her bridge slot with a captain who increases your ship’s offensive output, and use Gaila to soften the Hostile’s critical damage back at you.
Who is Gaila in Star Trek?
Gaila is an Orion Starfleet Academy cadet in the 2009 film Star Trek, played by Rachel Nichols. She is Nyota Uhura’s roommate and has a brief romance with James T. Kirk during his Academy years. The Ferengi Gaila from Deep Space Nine is a different character with the same name.
Is Gaila worth ranking up to rank 5?
For most players, yes. She is Common, so the shard costs and resource costs are low compared to higher-rarity officers, and the jump from 10% to 50% Critical Avoidance is the kind of upgrade you actually feel against Hostiles that lean on critical hits. The Parsteel Hunter Captain Maneuver does not scale meaningfully with her ranks, so the rank-up payoff is almost entirely on the Officer Ability side.
Does Gaila work against Armada targets?
Her Critical Avoidance is capped at Hostiles of level 70 and under. In practice the ability helps against armada targets at level 70 and under and does nothing against anything above that level. Bring her for the anti-crit Rogue Armada combo with Pike and Marlena Moreau; do not expect her to do work against higher-level Formation Armadas or Borg armadas.
Should you chase Gaila?
If you are early in the game, the answer is straightforward: pick up Gaila as part of the broader Starfleet Academy project, get her to rank 5, and use her Captain Maneuver while Parsteel costs are still meaningful for your station. If you are deeper into the game, the only real reason to keep her on the bench is the Rogue Armada anti-crit combo, and that crew only pays off against armada targets at level 70 and under.
