When you play Star Trek Online, you get an option of characters to play at the start. One of the choices is between three different Starfleet factions. This can be confusing, so we’ve broken down what the major differences are and the pros and cons of selecting between them. Differences Between Starfleet, STO and Discovery Not a lot! All three merge into the same continuity after they finish the starting story arc. Here are the major differences: Default Starfleet has access to all races, no unique beam patterns, no unique special ships. It’s regular Starfleet.STO and Discovery are limited to era-relevant races.You get different bridge officers (boffs).Tutorials are different, starting ships are different, a few random extra freebies like TOS gets a free TOS era shuttle craft. DO NOTE! All three end up in the same place. The major differences are literally small – warp/transporter animations, sound effects, flavor text…