The U.S.S. Defiant is a grade 4 Epic Interceptor with no faction allegiance, and it unlocks at Shipyard level 35. It works as an Armada support ship: its ability reinforces your other ships in Armadas and lifts the rewards you pull from Jem’Hadar Solo Armadas, and it can cloak once you unlock the right refit. For players grinding Solo Armadas, it earns its spot in the dock. Its classic crew is the Deep Space Nine trio of Jadzia Dax, Odo and Julian Bashir, whose abilities all target Solo Armadas.
How to get the U.S.S. Defiant
Building the Defiant takes 100 blueprints and a Shipyard at level 35. The build costs 24,150,000 Tritanium, 2,025,000 Dilithium, 3,840 3★ Common Refined Crystal, and 1,245 3★ Common Refined Gas, and it runs 34d 12h to finish. Blueprint offers rotate through events and stores, so check what is live when you are ready to collect them rather than counting on any one channel.
Tier-ups run on Ablative Armor Parts, Plasma Conduits and one Isolinear Optical Chip per tier, from T2 to T12, on top of Tritanium, Dilithium and refined gas and crystal. Subspace Transceivers unlock the Defiant’s research nodes.
U.S.S. Defiant ability
The Defiant’s ship ability is Resourceful Approach, and like every ship ability it stays on without any input from you. It reinforces your other ships against Armadas based on your Defiant research, raises the Edict rewards you earn while flying the Defiant, and increases the Bajoran Badges and Credits you collect from the Defiant Amplified Claim. It also unlocks buffs that make the ship stronger against Jem’Hadar Solo Armadas. The reward boost starts at 250% at ship level 1 and climbs to 750% at level 60, so the ship pays back more the further you level it. In play, the Defiant is a support and farming ship for Solo Armada players rather than a front-line brawler.
| Ship level | Resourceful Approach Edict reward bonus |
|---|---|
| 1 | 250% |
| 10 | 322% |
| 25 | 442% |
| 30 | 482% |
| 40 | 562% |
| 60 | 750% |
U.S.S. Defiant active ability
The Defiant also carries two abilities you trigger yourself. Ship Cloaking hides the ship from view; the cloak drops when its timer runs out, when you enter combat, when you begin mining, or when you dock at a station. Armada Reinforce sends the Defiant to back up other ships in an Armada, improving their combat performance based on your Defiant research. Both run on cooldowns that shorten as the ship tiers up. Cloaking has to be unlocked through a refit before you can use it, covered in the refits section below. Armada Reinforce is fired with Ablative Amplifiers, the resource the game ties to the Defiant’s active ability.
Stats and tiers
These are base values; research, buffs, and officers raise them in play. The Defiant tops out at tier 12 and level 60.
| Tier | Warp (speed / range) | Impulse | Cargo (protected) | Shield HP | Hull HP | Health (displayed) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4.3 / 50 | 100 | 35,000 (500) | 50,000 | 55,000 | 52,500 |
| 6 | 4.8 / 120 | 100 | 35,000 (500) | 135,813 | 149,395 | 142,604 |
| 12 | 5.4 / 460 | 100 | 35,000 (500) | 599,984 | 659,982 | 629,983 |
Cargo stays small across every tier, which fits its job. This is a combat and Armada ship, not a hauler.
Weapons and firing pattern
Warm-up is the round a weapon first fires; cool-down is how many rounds pass between shots after that. The values below are at max tier 12.
| Weapon | Type | Shots | Warm-up | Cool-down | Damage | Crit chance | Crit damage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phaser Cannons | Energy | 4 | 1 | 2 | 130,906–222,962 | 5% | 125% |
| Phaser Beam Emitter | Energy | 1 | 1 | 1 | 65,453–83,611 | 3% | 115% |
| Torpedo Launcher | Kinetic | 1 | 4 | 4 | 523,622–677,401 | 10% | 150% |
The Phaser Cannons carry the steady damage with four shots a round, while the Torpedo Launcher is the heavy hitter: one slow kinetic shot with the highest crit chance and crit damage on the ship.
Crew slots and officer bonus
The Defiant opens officer slots as it levels, reaching a full seven-officer bridge at ship level 55.
| Ship level | Officer slots |
|---|---|
| 5 | 1 |
| 10 | 2 |
| 20 | 3 |
| 30 | 4 |
| 40 | 5 |
| 45 | 6 |
| 55 | 7 |
The ship also boosts the officers you crew on it. Attack, defense, and health all step up by the same ladder, so the amount below applies to each of the three stats.
| Amount | Bonus |
|---|---|
| 1,500 | 50% |
| 3,000 | 100% |
| 4,875 | 150% |
| 6,750 | 200% |
| 9,000 | 250% |
| 12,000 | 300% |
| 16,500 | 350% |
| 22,500 | 400% |
| 30,000 | 450% |
| 45,000 | 500% |
U.S.S. Defiant refits
The Defiant’s headline refit turns on its cloak. A second refit, Clandestine, raises the rewards from the Defiant Amplified Claim.
| Refit | What it does |
|---|---|
| U.S.S. Defiant Cloaking | Enables cloaking for the Defiant and increases base weapon damage by +350%. Costs 120 shards to unlock. |
| Clandestine | Costs 120 shards to unlock. Increases the contents of the Defiant Amplified Claim bundle by 50%. |
Clandestine stacks with Resourceful Approach, which already raises the Bajoran Badges and Credits from that same claim.
Best crew for the U.S.S. Defiant
Crew the Defiant for its role rather than for raw damage. As an Armada support and Solo Armada ship, it wants a bridge built around Armada performance and the officers tied to your Defiant research, plus whatever survivability keeps it alive through longer Armada fights. Because the best picks shift as new officers arrive, check the Officer Tier List for current recommendations. Crews change with the meta, so treat any single lineup as a starting point.
The dependable classic for the Defiant’s Solo Armada role is its own Deep Space Nine crew, because all three officers have abilities written for Solo Armadas. Jadzia Dax captains: her maneuver raises Shield Piercing, Armor Piercing and Accuracy by a share of officer Health against Solo Armadas, and her officer ability raises Weapon Damage the same way. Odo raises base Armor, Shield Deflection and Dodge against Solo Armadas, and Julian Bashir adds Critical Hit Chance against them.
U.S.S. Defiant crews
Solo Armada crew
Captain: Jadzia Dax
Officer: Odo
Officer: Julian Bashir
Every ability on this bridge applies against Solo Armadas, which is where the Defiant’s Jem’Hadar buffs work too. The Solo Armadas guide covers the targets.
The U.S.S. Defiant in Star Trek
In canon the Defiant (NX-74205) was a small, heavily armed warship the Federation designed after the Battle of Wolf 359 to fight the Borg. The prototype handled so much firepower that it strained its own frame, and the project stalled until the Dominion threat gave it a purpose. Assigned to Deep Space Nine under Captain Benjamin Sisko, the Defiant became the station’s front-line defender and carried a Romulan cloaking device, unusual for a Starfleet vessel. It fought through much of the Dominion War and stood in for a ship far larger than its size suggested.
U.S.S. Defiant build cost by tier
Build and repair costs for every tier. Tier 1 is the initial build; each later row is the cost of upgrading into that tier.
| Tier | Build cost | Repair cost | Build time | Repair time | Cargo | Protected cargo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tier 1 | Tritanium 24.2M Dilithium 2.03M 3★ Common Refined Gas 1,245 3★ Common Refined Crystal 3,840 |
2.13M Tritanium 150K Dilithium |
34d 12h | 23h 20m | Base: 35,000 | Base: 500 |
| Tier 2 | Tritanium 431M Dilithium 3.67M Ablative Armor Parts 13,000 3★ Common Refined Crystal 6,540 3★ Common Refined Gas 1,550 3★ Interceptor Parts 160 Isolinear Optical Chip T2 x 1 |
3.29M Tritanium 214K Dilithium |
8d 8h | 1d 2h 40m | Base: 43,000 | Base: 950 |
| Tier 3 | Tritanium 1.01B Dilithium 10.5M Ablative Armor Parts 27,200 3★ Common Refined Crystal 11,420 3★ Common Refined Gas 2,700 3★ Uncommon Refined Crystal 1,125 3★ Uncommon Refined Gas 385 3★ Interceptor Parts 290 Isolinear Optical Chip T3 x 1 |
4.48M Tritanium 279K Dilithium |
16d 16h | 1d 6h | Base: 51,000 | Base: 1,400 |
| Tier 4 | Tritanium 2.17B Dilithium 19.7M Ablative Armor Parts 48,399 4★ Common Refined Crystal 14,200 Plasma Conduits 6,325 4★ Common Refined Gas 4,285 4★ Common Interceptor Parts 3,870 Isolinear Optical Chip T4 x 1 |
13.2M Tritanium 1.44M Dilithium |
27d 18h 40m | 1d 11h | Base: 59,000 | Base: 1,850 |
| Tier 5 | Tritanium 5.01B Dilithium 75.1M Ablative Armor Parts 79,800 4★ Common Refined Crystal 23,245 Plasma Conduits 16,800 4★ Common Interceptor Parts 7,685 4★ Common Refined Gas 7,200 Isolinear Optical Chip T5 x 1 |
28.1M Tritanium 2.61M Dilithium |
41d 16h | 1d 14h 20m | Base: 67,000 | Base: 2,300 |
| Tier 6 | Tritanium 12.7B Dilithium 214M Ablative Armor Parts 133K 4★ Common Refined Crystal 38,790 Plasma Conduits 31,590 4★ Common Interceptor Parts 13,390 4★ Common Refined Gas 11,785 4★ Uncommon Refined Crystal 10,755 Isolinear Optical Chip T6 x 1 |
47.6M Tritanium 4.48M Dilithium |
55d 13h 20m | 1d 19h 20m | Base: 75,000 | Base: 2,750 |
| Tier 7 | Tritanium 29.5B Dilithium 478M Ablative Armor Parts 211K 4★ Common Refined Crystal 58,830 Plasma Conduits 55,550 4★ Common Interceptor Parts 19,690 4★ Common Refined Gas 17,690 4★ Uncommon Refined Crystal 16,275 4★ Uncommon Interceptor Parts 6,190 4★ Uncommon Refined Gas 4,890 Isolinear Optical Chip T7 x 1 |
101M Tritanium 8.87M Dilithium |
69d 10h 40m | 2d 20m | Base: 83,000 | Base: 3,200 |
| Tier 8 | Tritanium 71.1B Dilithium 1.4B Ablative Armor Parts 338K Plasma Conduits 133K 4★ Common Refined Crystal 87,320 4★ Common Refined Gas 26,410 4★ Uncommon Refined Crystal 24,080 4★ Common Interceptor Parts 17,470 4★ Uncommon Interceptor Parts 9,260 4★ Uncommon Refined Gas 7,280 4★ Rare Refined Crystal 6,880 Isolinear Optical Chip T8 x 1 |
255M Tritanium 14.5M Dilithium |
90d 6h 40m | 2d 5h 20m | Base: 91,000 | Base: 3,650 |
| Tier 9 | Tritanium 167B Dilithium 3.19B Ablative Armor Parts 512K Plasma Conduits 298K 4★ Uncommon Refined Crystal 36,870 4★ Uncommon Refined Gas 11,110 4★ Uncommon Interceptor Parts 10,820 4★ Rare Refined Crystal 10,595 4★ Rare Refined Gas 3,195 4★ Rare Interceptor Parts 2,000 Isolinear Optical Chip T9 x 1 |
539M Tritanium 18.5M Dilithium |
111d 2h 40m | 2d 10h 20m | Base: 99,000 | Base: 4,100 |
| Tier 10 | Tritanium 451B Dilithium 8.78B Ablative Armor Parts 761K Plasma Conduits 442K 5★ Common Refined Crystal 58,220 5★ Common Refined Gas 17,545 5★ Common Interceptor Parts 10,460 Isolinear Optical Chip T10 x 1 |
1.7B Tritanium 63.2M Dilithium |
138d 21h 20m | 2d 15h 20m | Base: 107,000 | Base: 4,550 |
| Tier 11 | Tritanium 862B Dilithium 16.1B Ablative Armor Parts 1.1M Plasma Conduits 718K 5★ Common Refined Crystal 83,600 5★ Uncommon Refined Crystal 25,600 5★ Common Refined Gas 25,190 5★ Common Interceptor Parts 22,630 5★ Uncommon Refined Gas 7,715 5★ Uncommon Interceptor Parts 5,590 Isolinear Optical Chip T11 x 1 |
3.17B Tritanium 88M Dilithium |
180d 13h 20m | 2d 20h 20m | Base: 115,000 | Base: 5,000 |
| Tier 12 | Tritanium 1.6T Dilithium 28.1B Ablative Armor Parts 1.5M Plasma Conduits 1.12M 5★ Uncommon Refined Crystal 34,820 5★ Uncommon Refined Gas 10,490 5★ Uncommon Interceptor Parts 9,320 5★ Rare Refined Crystal 8,840 5★ Rare Refined Gas 2,665 Isolinear Optical Chip T12 x 1 |
5.7B Tritanium 130M Dilithium |
250d | 3d 3h | Base: 123,000 | Base: 5,450 |
Resources to max out the U.S.S. Defiant
- 3,201,430,252,000 Tritanium
- 58,433,190,000 Dilithium
- 5,495 3★ Common Gas
- 385 3★ Uncommon Gas
- 21,800 3★ Common Crystal
- 1,125 3★ Uncommon Crystal
- 67,370 4★ Common Gas
- 23,280 4★ Uncommon Gas
- 3,195 4★ Rare Gas
- 222,385 4★ Common Crystal
- 87,980 4★ Uncommon Crystal
- 17,475 4★ Rare Crystal
- 42,735 5★ Common Gas
- 18,205 5★ Uncommon Gas
- 2,665 5★ Rare Gas
- 141,820 5★ Common Crystal
- 60,420 5★ Uncommon Crystal
- 8,840 5★ Rare Crystal
- 4,725,079 Ablative Armor Parts
- 62,105 4★ Common Interceptor Parts
- 33,090 5★ Common Interceptor Parts
- 26,270 4★ Uncommon Interceptor Parts
- 14,910 5★ Uncommon Interceptor Parts
- 2,000 4★ Rare Interceptor Parts
- 450 3★ Interceptor Parts
Specialized Parts
- 2,818,902 Plasma Conduits
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T2
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T3
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T4
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T5
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T6
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T7
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T8
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T9
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T10
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T11
- 1 Isolinear Optical Chip T12
Total Experience: 169,108,000
U.S.S. Defiant video
USS Defiant Deep Dive | Is it worth investing time/upgrading in Star Trek Fleet Command | Review
Is the U.S.S. Defiant worth it?
For its grade 4 band the Defiant is a specialist. It shines for players who run Jem’Hadar Solo Armadas and want a ship that reinforces the fleet and boosts Armada rewards, and the cloak adds a useful trick once the refit is unlocked. It is not scrappable, so it stays in your dock as a long-term Armada tool rather than a feeder. If Solo Armadas are part of your routine, it is worth the build; if they are not, you can skip it.
U.S.S. Defiant FAQ
Is the Defiant worth it in STFC?
Yes, if you run Jem’Hadar Solo Armadas or want a ship that reinforces your fleet against Armadas and lifts Edict rewards by 250% to 750%. If Armadas are not part of your routine, a combat ship at Shipyard 35 gives you more.
What is the best Defiant crew?
Jadzia Dax as captain with Odo and Julian Bashir. All three have abilities that only apply against Solo Armadas, which is the Defiant’s main job.
How do you unlock the Defiant’s cloak?
With the U.S.S. Defiant Cloaking refit, which costs 120 shards and also raises base weapon damage by 350%.
