The necessity of companions for questing.

[jvbastel]

Not sure if this was worth its own topic, but I figure other people might have the same questions/concerns.

Now let's get to the point right away.

Could anyone tell me how necessary companions will be for questing, as in, will I need to have one/some with me for all/most/some quests. I would much rather prefer to level solo, since dealing with companions is usually just a hassle for me. I'ld much rather just use them as ways to sell my stuff on the fly or let them train professions than actually keep them with me.

[Jalek]

Not sure if this was worth its own topic, but I figure other people might have the same questions/concerns.

Now let's get to the point right away.

Could anyone tell me how necessary companions will be for questing, as in, will I need to have one/some with me for all/most/some quests. I would much rather prefer to level solo, since dealing with companions is usually just a hassle for me. I'ld much rather just use them as ways to sell my stuff on the fly or let them train professions than actually keep them with me.

Pretty sure it's balanced around the assumption you will have a companion. Some of them heal or tank so you can be dps spec and not get smashed, or you can have them dps if you are a healer/tank. Seems good to me. You can also gear them up.

[jvbastel]

Pretty sure it's balanced around the assumption you will have a companion. Some of them heal or tank so you can be dps spec and not get smashed, or you can have them dps if you are a healer/tank. Seems good to me. You can also gear them up.

thanks, would have preferred to be able to just level solo, the thought of Alesia getting stuck behind a house in GW1 still gives me shivers

[Deleted]

well the good thing is that you can always give yourself a challenge by soloing, if the game seems to easy.

[Gxeternal]

While playing i the last weekend beta, there were quite a few times i would have died if not for my companion being there with me taking some of the brunt of the attacks. Esp the elite mobs.
The droid you get as a jedi warrior pulls a lot of aggro and litterly pulls the mobs to him (one at a time of course) They are a big help at times, but you dont always need them for questing. There were a few times i sent it out on gathering missions while i ran around killing stuff.

[Drihan]

They probably aren't detrimental to the leveling process, but they do make it quite a bit easier. Think of it more as a difficult hunter experience; he doesn't NEED the pet, but it does help against elite mobs.

[Kaniinchen]

They buffed all the mobs in the current build, so they hit pretty hard. Not to mention most mobs come in a pack of 3-4. I found that it just takes longer to kill them, which is a complete waste of time. Also some areas have grey mobs and elite mobs where you absolutely need your companion, unless you have a group full of people.

At first I didn't like the fact that you needed a companion but through the story and dialogue they sort of grow on you .

[Cellery]

Just to possibly set your mind at ease a little... if you choose not to, you don't really need to micromanage your companion at all. Just attack stuff & it'll assist and be halfway smart. If it gets stuck, it kinda teleports to you. No big deal. It's really not as much of a hassle as you would think.

That being said, even in this last build, I was able to solo packs of normal mobs fine. It's just not as fast.

[Jalfrezi]

Yeah you can still solo mobs with no issues. let your companion go off and level your skills... but the rate at which they level, will be much faster than you think. PLUS is costs credits to send your pet off you farm mats. 3-5 minute missions cost at low level sub 20 from 95 to around 300 i think. whilst credits are easy to come by on beta. spamming missions for your companion is a waste. do them when AFK/eating or in a flashpoint, as you cant have you pet their anyway.

BUT, you can also just put your pet on passive, and follow you around. but you can set it so you can click on harvestable items (plants, robots etc) and he/she will go off and harvest them while you continue on.

[jvbastel]

guess I'll take em with me then, it's not that I hate companions or anything, I just prefer solo leveling

[Adeodatus]

I did almost all of my quesing solo, except when I ran into elite mobs. Those could be difficult without a companion.

[Kaniinchen]

Yeah you can still solo mobs with no issues. let your companion go off and level your skills... but the rate at which they level, will be much faster than you think. PLUS is costs credits to send your pet off you farm mats. 3-5 minute missions cost at low level sub 20 from 95 to around 300 i think. whilst credits are easy to come by on beta. spamming missions for your companion is a waste. do them when AFK/eating or in a flashpoint, as you cant have you pet their anyway.

BUT, you can also just put your pet on passive, and follow you around. but you can set it so you can click on harvestable items (plants, robots etc) and he/she will go off and harvest them while you continue on.

Not to mention that the first mount is 40k (from what people in trade told me) and I'm level 18 atm and I have only 17k T_T.

[Jalfrezi]

Not to mention that the first mount is 40k (from what people in trade told me) and I'm level 18 atm and I have only 17k T_T.

mounts ive seen are 8k 90%, 25k 100% and 50k 110%... maybe the riding skill is 40k... not seen that anywhere yet tho. only been testing a lil over a week.

[Gxeternal]

guess I'll take em with me then, it's not that I hate companions or anything, I just prefer solo leveling

Your still solo leveling with the companion, think of it as a hunter pet but wtih different ablities, some are dps, some can heal you and some take the tank role, but your still solo leveling. Unless you want that totaly alone leveling style with absolutly no help from anyone including pets or companions. in that case, i guess just send them on mission and gathering trips, but it can get costly.

[Cellery]

mounts ive seen are 8k 90%, 25k 100% and 50k 110%... maybe the riding skill is 40k... not seen that anywhere yet tho. only been testing a lil over a week.

Riding skill at level 25 was 40k last beta weekend. The mounts THEN were 4k. For those who are feeling low on cash around level 17--don't worry too much. I was sitting right around there and had enough credits at 25 no problem. Well, not really no problem--I was broke afterward, but I still had it.

[Jalfrezi]

Riding skill at level 25

probably why then, not gone past Coruscant. Trying diff classes and AC's.

[TonkaTaru]

I'd rather my character feel sufficient without a companion. Hopefully I can make do without one more often than not.

[Ghosty]

When I played the beta I got up to level 21 as a Jedi Guardian. I was able to solo most stuff with out a companion, except some of the elites. Since I was tank specced I used a DPS companion most of the time to make things go faster. I didn't need the companion it just made things faster and less tedious.

[synthetikv]

they grow on you. i played bh in beta, mostly to check it out as i wanted to marauder to be my main come launch. but between the storyline, mako, and just how fn awesome bh's are i'm sold.

mako did play a big part in my changing my mind on my main though.

she's more engaging than vette right off the bat, vette's not bad but given the way you obtain them i just prefer mako. plus when i was being a dick and killing off people and i would make a decision she didn't agree with i'd be like "awwww sorry gurl", but get super excited when i made a decision she loved.

as far as questing though, i prefer to have my companion with me. i was able to solo some pretty tough elites as a merc with her healing me, and me kiting. when i sent her away it was definately noticable, not impossible but not optimal either.

[Captain Marvel]

I'd rather my character feel sufficient without a companion. Hopefully I can make do without one more often than not.

The thing is, companions are a core mechanic in the solo-ing experience of the game. Bioware has never tried to hide this at all. For the most part, like 85% of the time, there are no issues with companions in combat (as a scoundrel, the range companions are always on target, but from time to time Bowie gets a ADD and pings around).

Without a companion, combat will become a slog (unless I suppose you play a trooper/BH, they might be able to pull it off).