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  1. #1

    Bounty Hunter: Arsenal Mercenary. Resubmitted for Community Discussion.

    Me:
    My main character is Nakaya, an Arsenal-Specced Bounty Hunter on the Juyo server. I'm level 50. I have completed all of the class quests, and at the time of this writing am sitting at valor rank 31. While my build is focused on PvE, I will be adding in PvP commentary, as I tend to do quite well there.
    I'm not a math genius. I might be wrong. There may be fellows out there that are far better and playing Arsenal than I. Take my opinions as you like.


    Overview:
    Arsenal Mercenaries are high-damage, ranged dps. I use a term called "being a turret". While Arsenal has many abilities you can use on the move, you will do the most damage if you can remain stationary in order to spam some Tracer Missiles.


    Specs:
    The following is the PvE spec which I consider the standard template for Arsenal PvE (there are 3 points unassigned, more on that in a sec.): |Spec|

    You have a few options with the last 2 points, but you do NOT want to put them in Systems Calibrations. Alacrity is bad for us. Terminal Velociaty causes crits with Tracer Missile and Unload to vent 8 heat. However, this can only happen once every 3 seconds. The cast time for Tracer Missile is 1.5 seconds. Shortening it, even a little, can cause us to miss out on Terminal Velocity proccing and venting heat for us, which is extremely bad.

    Suggestions for the last three points:
    Jet Escape: Reduces the cooldown of Jet Boost by 10 seconds and Determination by 30 seconds. Great for PvE and PvP. Using Determination to remove an effect is useful on boss fights as well as PvPing, and Jet boost is amazing to get trash mobs off of a healer.
    Med Tech: Useful if you need to toss some heals, which we do on occasion. Quickens their cast times.
    Empowered Scans: Makes your heals hit for more. It's a toss up, between this and Med Tech. As someone who doesn't heal often, I honestly am guessing here. I'd say this would be better than Med Tech, but could be wrong.
    Integrated Cardio Package: A small bonus to endurance, which doesn't amount to much gain at all. Do not suggest this talent.
    Pinning Fire: Unload will slow a target's movement by 50% for 2 seconds. While it could be helpful, for sure, I personally don't care for this talent over Jet Escape.


    Lower Level Playing (pre-30):
    In the early game, you're not really going to have much in the way of a rotation. Before level 20, you'll be using a lot of Unload and Power Shot. Missile Blast tends to use too much heat to use often.
    Once you hit 20, however, prepare to bend and squat. A lot. This is the level you get Tracer Missile if you talent correctly. This is the ability that you will use more than any other as an Arsenal Merc. Not only does it deal a high amount of damage, it applies a Heat Signature, which reduces the armor of the target by 4% for 15 seconds, stacking up to 5 times. Once you get this, you're free to take Power Shot off of your bars. It not only deals more damage than Power Shot (from where I sit, anyway), it's cast time is the same, and you'll be sure that your heat signatures never fall off.
    You'll be wanting to get five stacks of Heat Signature on any Strong, Elite, or Champion NPC you face. This inclues players in PvP. That means a lot of Tracer Missile spam in the lower levels. Be sure to use Rail Shot when it's up, and as soon as you take Terminal Velocity, you'll only be using High Velocity Gas Cylinder to DPS with.


    Higher Level Playing (post-30):
    With the addition of talents like Tracer Lock, Riddle/Barrage, and Heatseeker Missiles, a steady rotation finally forms. It's quite simple, and this is of course for Single Targets.

    To start:
    Tracer Missile x3 > Heatseeker Missiles > Unload > Tracer Missile x2 > Rail Shot

    The reason for that rotation is as followed: Heatseeker Missiles is a very hard-hitting ability WITH the application of 5 stacks of Heat Signature. With the talent Light Em Up, you only need to use Tracer 3 times to apply all 5 stacks.

    Tracer Lock causes your Tracer Missile to give you stacks of Target Lock, which stacks up to 5 times (this is different from Heat Signature! Do not confuse the two!). For each stack of Target Lock, your Rail Shot damage is increased by 6%. That turns Rail Shot into a cheap, hard-hitting ability, so long as you don't fire it the instant it comes off cooldown, and wait for all five stacks of Target Lock (this is a buff to you, not a debuff to an enemy, like Heat Signature).

    Why is Unload even in the rotation, you might ask? Riddle increases it's damage by 33%, and a Tracer Missile can proc Barrage, which increases the next Unload to do a further 25% damage, and instantly takes it off cooldown.

    After the initial rotation, it becomes a Priority System, that follows a few simple rules.
    1. If Heat Signature is about to fall off the target, use Tracer Missile.
    2. If Heatseeker Missiles is up, and you have 5 stacks of Heat Signature on the target, use Heatseeker Missiles.
    2a. If you do NOT have 5 stacks of Heat Signature on the target, use Tracer Missile.
    3. If Rail Shot is up and you have 5 stacks of Target Lock on yourself, use Rail Shot.
    3a. If Rail Shot is up and you do NOT have 5 stacks of Target Lock on yourself, use Tracer Missile.
    4. If you have 5 Stacks of Heat Signature on the Target, Heetseeker Missile and Rail Shot are not off Cooldown, use Unload.

    **Heat Buildup Rules**
    1. Never go above 40%. Those 4 arrows next to your heat bar? You always want them in there, filled. If one of those arrows disappears, use Rapid Shots.
    2. If a boss is near dead, near enrage, or you just have to do a TON of DPS, don't use Rapid Shots. Instead, use enough heat so that 2 of the small arrows disappear, and then immediately vent. Try to proactively plan your use of Vent Heat for the most DPS at the most critical times, rather than always saving it for an emergency that may not come.


    Abilities that you should avoid and why:
    Missile Blast - This ability costs a whopping 25 heat! It's damage is not worth the cost.
    Power Shot - The Tooltip will tell you this does more damage than Tracer Missile. For me, that's not been the case. While it costs the same heat, it doesn't keep your Heat Signature on the target, nore does it build you stacks of Target Lock to make your Rail Shot hit like a ton of bricks. Also, since it uses both blasters, you can miss, even if your Accuracy is at 100%. (Check your character sheet, under accuracy. Your off-hand isn't even near at 100%, even if your main hand blaster is. I've seen Power Shots fly right by a mob. Maybe it's an animation glitch, though I don't think so.)
    Sweeping Blasters - The heat cost on this ability is simply massive. However, it has it's uses. For example, in the Voidstar Warzone, when a lot of enemies are bunched up on a door, trying to cap. Otherwise, avoid this for other options when possible. It's really only worth it when you can catch at least 4 targets.
    Shoulder Slam - It's free to use, and deals a huge amount of damage to weak targets (moderate to strong and higher/players), but it has two drawbacks. First, you have to get in melee range to use it. Second, the target must be incapacitated. Now, if you hit someone with Electro Dart as you run by, sure.. by all means, pop it. To me? There are better abilities on the bar, and this is very situational.
    Flame Thrower - Alas, poor Flame Thrower, I hardly knew you! This awesome looking ability deals massive damage in a frontal cone, which is only massive IF it's hitting more than one target. Due to it's close range requirement and high-heat cost, I almost never use this ability unless I just want to look badass. It's a personal vice of mine, but really it isn't very good for Arsenal Mercs.


    Area of Effect Rundown:
    First off, you're always going to use Death from Above if it's active. Not only is this, hands down, the coolest looking ability of all time, it also packs a huge punch.
    Explosive Dart - A decent-damage and fun ability, especially useful for dealing with packs.
    Fusion Missile - A powerful, high-heat ability that can deal a massive amount of damage to a group of 4. The initial strike isn't amazing, but the DoT that Fusion Missile applies is quite nasty.


    Abilities I haven't mentioned thus far:
    Rapid Shots - Low-damage, no-heat spam ability that we can use between shots to manage our heat levels. I tend to use it after every 3rd or 4th ability, depending on how things are going.
    Rocket Punch - There are more damaging abilities, but with my spec, Rocket Punch will also knock back a target. I use this liberally in PvP, and quite frankly.. it looks amazing!
    Electro Dart - 4 second stun. Very useful, especially on Elites.
    On The Trail - Refreshes Electro Dart in PvE with a companion out. Awesome for elites, as this gives you a total of 8 seconds in which they're standing there, doing nothing. Also gives a small heal.
    Jet Boost - I use this constantly. It launches targets away from you, slowing them after. With the Afterburner talent (which gives Rocket Punch the knockback), it sends enemies even further away.
    Chaff Flare - Threat Reduction. Use as needed, or when available on boss fights with lots of adds, if you've been AOEing.
    Kolto Overload - 15% heal over time, over 10 seconds. Very useful, especially when paired with...
    Energy Sheild - Reduces all damage taken by 25% for 12 seconds.
    Thermal Sensor Override - This wonderous ability makes your next attack consume NO heat! I most often use this for Heatseeker Missile, but it has other uses I'll describe below.
    Power Surge - This makes your next ability with a cast time fire instantly. That boils down to using it for one of three abilities: Tracer Missile, Fusion Missile or Rapid/Healing Scan.
    Stealth Scan - Pretty self explanatory. It places some little droids in an area to scan for stealthers.
    Vent Heat - One of our most important abilities. Unless you Rapid Shot relgiously, you're going to eventually get behind on building too much heat. With Kolto Vents and Improved Vents, Vent Heat is a godsend that may not only get you back into pouring on the damage, but may also help a healer top you off on heavy AOE fights.


    Gas Cylinders:
    Combustible Gas Cylinder - You'll use this until you get Tracer Missile, afterwhich you'll forever use High Velocity Gas Cylinder.
    High Velocity Gas Cylinder - Increases your armor penetration by 35%. With Heat Signature from Tracer Missiles, this is a no-brainer.
    Combat Support Cylinder - You'll ONLY use this while healing, which should be rare as an Arsenal Merc. It makes your Rapid Shots able to heal others for small amounts. There are talents to make this do more, but that's for another guide. :P


    Healing Info:
    With my spec, my healing potential is very poor. That's not to say I can't throw emergency heals if needed. If a boss is at 10% and you have a healer down, it's in your best interest to swap to Combat Support Cylinder and heal!
    Rapid Shots - Spam this, so that your heat doesn't get high. You can weave it between Healing Scan and Rapid Scan.
    Rapid Scan - It has a longer cast time than healing scan (irony!) and uses more heat, but has no cooldown.
    Healing Scan - Your "quick heal". I still can't get over that the faster heal isn't called Rapid Scan. Has a cooldown.
    Cure - Not a healing spell, per say, but used to clear up to 2 debuffs.


    Actually Healing:
    My healing experiences have been rare, but I've had to do it a time or two. Having NO AoE heals, I focused solely on the tank. I used Healing Scan when it was up, and weaved Rapid Shots in amidst the Rapid Scans. The most important thing is to do ALL YOU CAN to not overheat, while keeping your target alive. If Vent Heat is off cooldown, it's acceptable to spam more Rapid Scans in the case of an emergency to top off your tank/group mates, before venting.


    Cool Ability Combinations:
    Thermal Sensor Override + Power Surge + Fusion Missile. Great for lighting up a group of bunched up Republic scum in a warzone, with no heat cost and no cast time.
    Thermal Sensor Override + Power Surge + Rapid Scan. An instant, no-heat heal can save your life or that of a group mate's.
    Thermal Sensor Override + Power Surge + Fusion Missile + Explosive Dart + Rail Shot. For 24 heat and 2 global cooldowns, you've just delivered a potential of nearly 5000 damage to your main target, and nearly 3500 damage to 3 nearby enemies. C-C-C-COMBO BREAKER!


    Companions:
    Some Bounty Hunters will disagree with me here, so take my opinion with a grain of salt. I used Mako. All the time.

    I REALLY wanted to use Blizz! He's so goddamn cute and awesome. Thing is, he just kept getting tore the hell up. Same with Skadge. Upgrading their gear did help, more so with Skadge than Blizz, but at the end of most fights, both were down to below half Hit Points.

    Torian would jump into the fray and also end up dead, or near dead if there were Strong foes. Elites tore him to shreds before I could steal aggro from him, most times.

    Gault was better than Torian, but worse than Mako. He helped me to kill things faster than using her, but then I would end up missing some HP at the end of most fights.

    Mako, in her Med Watch stance, worked for me to 50 and beyond. My damage is already so damn high that I easily handled everything I went up against, while she was there keeping me topped off. With Mako, I had the lowest downtime of all NPCs. Your miles may vary, of course.


    Gear:
    For Arsenal, it's all about critting right now. Aside from the obvious Aim stat, I tend to gear with Crit and Accuracy as priority. Crits with Missiles (Tracer Missile!) and Unload vent 8 heat, 100% (cannot happen more than once every 3 seconds) due to the Terminal Velocity talent, so stack that crit! Accuracy, as with everything, is always important. Every missed shot is a lot of missed DPS.


    PVP Notes:
    I tend to do a lot of damage in PvP when I can get some distance. Different terrains give different advantages. However, you will die often unless you have a pocket healer. Our turrety, glass-cannon nature leaves us open to getting smashed by lightsaber-weilding maniacs. Just use every respawn as an opportunity to inflict as much hell as possible before you're brought down. Rinse and repeat, until total victory.

    (This is, of course, coming from a guy who's specced for and focuses mainly on PvE. Your miles may vary.)
    -Heatseeker Missiles, Explosive Dart, Rail Shot, and Rapid Shots are great when you're on the move.
    -Rocket Punch/Jet Boost people off of you. Preferably into hazards or over an edge to their deaths, for maximum mayhem!
    -When you can, be a turrent and build Heat Signatures and Target Lock stacks with Tracer Missile. Even Jedi Guardians specced tank will quickly fall under the might of our missiles if we're allowed to use our full roation on them.

    Huttball - Stick to the upper platforms. Rain down Tracer Missiles and follow your rotation, if possible. When those pesky Jedi Knights/Sith Warriors leap up at you, Rocket Punch/Jet Boost their asses right back down. You're not as good at running the ball as other classes. When you get it, pop energy shield if you have baddies nearby. Kolto Overload when you start getting hit. Use an instant heal to save your own ass. Most importantly? PASS THE BALL! Give it to a Juggernaut, Powertech, or Sith Assassin if possible, then support them all the way to the endzone. Bad guys will focus on them, leaving you able to rain down hell in the form of huge missiles!

    Alderaan - If you're guarding mid, get up on the upper tier. Stand next to where the damage buff spawns and rain down hell. When you get people on you, jump off and run out of line of sight. Make them chase you, and kite people around. If you're out in the open, fighting on the road (bad!), or at one of the side points, just try and keep distance and kill your attackers before they can gank you.

    Voidstar - There really isn't a lot to do here, aside from using obstacles to run around. Using Jet Boost or Rocket Punch to knock people to their deaths is jolly good fun, but if you travel alone here, you're going to die quite a bit. Your best bet is to stick with the group, and hope more than two people don't single you out and pound your face. AoE the doors, support team mates who are capping by using Electro Dart or Jet Boost to try and keep enemies at bay.


    In closing:
    Feel free to add your comments. I'm always open to discussion and criticism, as I know I'm not the end-all, be-all of Arsenal Mercs. I hope the info here at least gives you an idea of how to better play your Merc. Have fun killing stuff with missiles!
    There were around 7,000 Greeks in total at the Battle of Thermopylae.
    Not just the Spartans and a few inept imbeciles to play clean up.
    Friends don't let friends listen to Zach Snyder/

  2. #2
    Now that's a guide - rather than just listing out abilities you actually add some value and thought
    Well played.

    One thing, what do you think to using Fusion Missile on a single target enemy? Some number that I saw recently (can't remember the exact post) showed that Fusion Missile is that hardest hitting ability that we have

  3. #3
    Quote Originally Posted by Fannyd View Post
    Now that's a guide - rather than just listing out abilities you actually add some value and thought
    Well played.

    One thing, what do you think to using Fusion Missile on a single target enemy? Some number that I saw recently (can't remember the exact post) showed that Fusion Missile is that hardest hitting ability that we have
    I initially took this guide down, as I posted it like 20 minutes after the guide you're referring to (didn't want to step on any toes).

    Here's my stance: Fusion Missile, imo, is NOT worth casting without using Thermal Sensor Override (TSO) before, unless you're AOEing. Now, if you're using Fusion Missile with TSO, it's viable. However, I tend to save TSO for Heatseeker Missiles in my rotation. Heatseeker Missiles, with 5 stacks of Heat Signature, seems a better use of TSO.

    That other fella had a chart with some of the math, so maybe he's right. However, I see bigger numbers with a Heatseeker Missile crit than than damage + DoT from Fusion Missile all the time.

    Fusion Missile Tooltip: 971-1065 kinetic damage, plus 1240 elemental damage over 6 seconds.
    Heatseeker Missile Tooltip: 1483-1570 kinetic damage. Increased by %5 per Heat Signature.

    Now, by those numbers, it certainly looks viable. However, the only way to make it useful is when paired with Thermal Sensor Override. For more than one mob, the damage output of Fusion Missile increases exponentially beyond your other abilities, and should be used if there's only even one additional target in range. (Though, watch aggro and breaking CCs).

    For single targets, I don't. You can, especially if you pop Power Surge to make it instant cast, and you'll do fine. Just NEVER use it for single target without TSO.
    Last edited by Lord Kristivas; 2012-01-06 at 12:28 PM.
    There were around 7,000 Greeks in total at the Battle of Thermopylae.
    Not just the Spartans and a few inept imbeciles to play clean up.
    Friends don't let friends listen to Zach Snyder/

  4. #4
    TSO and PS have the same CD, so I guess it makes sense to pop them together with a Fusion Missile

    Rolling off max damage, Fusion Missile does ~17.5% damage more than Heatseeker. Plus the over half of the damage from Fusion Missile is elemental, so ignore armour.

    I guess that's a macro for us, when the time comes

  5. #5
    This may be different once i have terminal velocity, but i find that in groups my most efficient use of rapid shots is on allies using combat support cylinder. This allows me to lose some heat while taking a bit of pressure off the healer (and often allows for another DD/offheal hybrid instead of a dedicated healer) and can also be used pre-combat to build up that 30 stack of combat support cylinder count for a flat damage bonus.

    The down side of that is i have to split my attention between enemies and allies, but that seems manageable .

  6. #6
    Quote Originally Posted by Fannyd View Post
    TSO and PS have the same CD, so I guess it makes sense to pop them together with a Fusion Missile

    Rolling off max damage, Fusion Missile does ~17.5% damage more than Heatseeker. Plus the over half of the damage from Fusion Missile is elemental, so ignore armour.

    I guess that's a macro for us, when the time comes
    TSO's CD is 1 min 30 sec, and Power Surge is 2 min. The first strike is the best, but afterward you have to manage those two.

    Power Surge can also be better spent to instantly refresh Heat Signature before it falls off a target, in case you were stunned, out of range, or otherwise unable to keep it applied for a few seconds.

    Quote Originally Posted by Fela View Post
    This may be different once i have terminal velocity, but i find that in groups my most efficient use of rapid shots is on allies using combat support cylinder. This allows me to lose some heat while taking a bit of pressure off the healer (and often allows for another DD/offheal hybrid instead of a dedicated healer) and can also be used pre-combat to build up that 30 stack of combat support cylinder count for a flat damage bonus.

    The down side of that is i have to split my attention between enemies and allies, but that seems manageable .
    That's some hybrid build stuff, and not really my cup of tea. :P The higher level you go, the less useful rapid shots healing is, compared to the incoming damage.
    There were around 7,000 Greeks in total at the Battle of Thermopylae.
    Not just the Spartans and a few inept imbeciles to play clean up.
    Friends don't let friends listen to Zach Snyder/

  7. #7
    Quote Originally Posted by Nakaya_Kilrogg View Post
    TSO's CD is 1 min 30 sec, and Power Surge is 2 min. The first strike is the best, but afterward you have to manage those two.

    Power Surge can also be better spent to instantly refresh Heat Signature before it falls off a target, in case you were stunned, out of range, or otherwise unable to keep it applied for a few seconds.
    In which case TORhead needs updating ^^
    http://www.torhead.com/ability/9dt1Cla
    http://www.torhead.com/ability/gv0OaFW

  8. #8
    Deleted
    Is alacrity really that bad for us? Seems like bad design to make a stat so bad it's actually a dps loss having it in our gear. Especially when we have talents that increase alacrity.

    Quote Originally Posted by Fannyd View Post
    TSO has its CD lowered by a talent.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by Infighter View Post
    Is alacrity really that bad for us? Seems like bad design to make a stat so bad it's actually a dps loss having it in our gear. Especially when we have talents that increase alacrity.
    It's bad for the Arsenal Merc. For a Bodyguard/Healing Merc, it's supposed to be amazing. I don't know about Pyro, as I have virtually no experience playing that spec.
    There were around 7,000 Greeks in total at the Battle of Thermopylae.
    Not just the Spartans and a few inept imbeciles to play clean up.
    Friends don't let friends listen to Zach Snyder/

  10. #10
    Thank you so much for this guide. I started my BH yesterday and I am having a blast. I will definitely go Arsenal since it seems to be the play style I am after.
    I'm still thinking about it...


  11. #11
    Quote Originally Posted by Tuqui-tuqui View Post
    Thank you so much for this guide. I started my BH yesterday and I am having a blast. I will definitely go Arsenal since it seems to be the play style I am after.
    Glad to help.
    There were around 7,000 Greeks in total at the Battle of Thermopylae.
    Not just the Spartans and a few inept imbeciles to play clean up.
    Friends don't let friends listen to Zach Snyder/

  12. #12
    Pit Lord philefluxx's Avatar
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    Well written, I agree with just about everything you have in here.

  13. #13
    Field Marshal Xiorin's Avatar
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    Very nicely written guide, good job!

    My merc is only 17 but I see what I have to look forward to now. Thanks for that.

  14. #14
    Nice guide, you should add more stuff for the new people starting, like a real rotation, and when you add certain talents.

  15. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by Capt Froggy View Post
    Nice guide, you should add more stuff for the new people starting, like a real rotation, and when you add certain talents.
    I added a rotation for the higher level, before it becomes a priority. Adding the talent progression is a good idea, which I'll do tomorrow.

    Rotations for low level are kinda meh. There's not much you can do, aside from Power Shot/Unload when it's off CD, and keep your heat down with weaved Rapid Shots. Explosive dart is also more fun at lower levels, and hell.. I even used Missile Blast pre-20. You can face roll your way to Tracer Missile, in the low levels.

    ---------- Post added 2012-01-07 at 09:00 AM ----------

    Spec Progression, for those who want some guidance for leveling.
    Level 10-14: Ironsights, and Mandalorian Iron Warheads.
    Level 15-19: Upgraded Arsenal, Muzzle Fluting, Stabilizers. (Skip Custom Enviro Suit for now.)
    Level 20-24: Tracer Missile!, Target Tracking, Afterburners. (Skip Power Barrier for now.)
    Level 25-29: Light Em Up, Terminal Velocity, Power Barrier
    Level 30-34: Tracer Lock, Riddle, Kolto Vents, Custom Enviro Suit
    Level 35-39: Barrage, Power Overrides
    Level 40: Heatseeker Missiles

    It really is very easy to spec properly, and before I even played the game, I had this spec picked out with a few minor differences. From there on out, just fill the rest as you like.
    There were around 7,000 Greeks in total at the Battle of Thermopylae.
    Not just the Spartans and a few inept imbeciles to play clean up.
    Friends don't let friends listen to Zach Snyder/

  16. #16
    Deleted
    Great guide Nakaya. /hug

    p.s.: So after +Aim +Endurance, the secondary stats pryority are +Crit and +Acc, right ?
    Last edited by mmoc03b6040c40; 2012-01-09 at 10:07 AM.

  17. #17
    Isn't accuracy with special attacks always 100%? That's what the tooltip says.

    My trooper rolls with crit/surge. Usually will drop a normal mob in 1-2 grav rounds or kill a player with 3 grav rounds + demo round (Using 2 piece PVE set for +15% crit on grav round)

  18. #18
    To Op i wasn't trying to make a guide .. just posting what i had on my own came up with experiment wise and asking others for feedback based on their gameplay (and hopefully input from pyro playing bh's .. (i know there are a few out there) nice write up ..

    as for the companion seciton yep i hear you. Mako is my #1 companion allways. I just gave allmost all my tier 1 gear to Torian (since i'm now head to toe in tier 2) he does allright now .. i can do dailes and he can take the beating but in the end i have to stop and heal him up or just swap to mako . (better off swapping to mako less downtime.

    Your spec is slightly different than mine. in pvp that extra knockback i find just not worth it because most of the time it's a warrior jumping on you and he's going to have a 2nd gap closer so i'd rather just have a few seconds off the cooldown. my keybinds are allready insane and the rocketpunch i just find i don't have enough space on my binds for it (and i use alot of keybinds)


    spec i prefer: http://db.darthhater.com/skill_calc/...11fe2fe3f11ef6

    again the extra distance on knockback i find lacking but i like the idea of a 2nd kockback with rocket punch .. but that's purely a pvp scenario.

    the .5 seconds off the heal is well worth it. infact i'd rather have that than the extra health. and in wierd incidents i've been glad i had it because i had to stop dpsing to help heal while a healer is being combat rezzed (or i'm just pinch healing during situations like Soa where we are dropping down and i'm just helping top off the raid and there is nothing to shoot at)

    again i feel these 2 differences are more personal prefference and those talents raid enviroment wise (pve) is really just filler points.

    as for the huttball positioning .. be carefull. if it's a warrior/jedi type that has the ball he'll be using his charge to get up there and score easier. so be very aware of situation before hanging out on the walkways. Generally with my usuall group i start on the center walkways and then drop down and play midfield (so i can retreive the ball as it spawns and pass it forward to one of the other people to get it to the tank (or tank to run it in).


    got any info on pyro from first hand experience? i'll be respeccing back to arsenal tomorow or tuesday before my raid. while in pvp i can still gain the 300k damage done medal i feel it's mostly from the fire dots. i think ti's going to need some kind of overhaul before it's worth it for a raid spec .. just generates too much heat to be sustained dps.


    ---------- Post added 2012-01-09 at 11:27 AM ----------

    Quote Originally Posted by Gerion View Post
    Isn't accuracy with special attacks always 100%? That's what the tooltip says.

    My trooper rolls with crit/surge. Usually will drop a normal mob in 1-2 grav rounds or kill a player with 3 grav rounds + demo round (Using 2 piece PVE set for +15% crit on grav round)
    i think 2 reasons.. one main one being in raid enviroment i belive the bosses are a few levels higher hence you need to make up the difference with extra hit. also more hit you have it will treat your damage as if the target's defences are lower. i don't avoid extra hit but i don't go out of my way to get it either. (i think i'm sitting on 102 or 103% hit at the moment)

    interesting enough .. at first i was heavy crit/surge. yea it made for nice ooh aaah crits i think at the time my record was 4.4kish. now in (pvp gear wise) full tier 2 with centurion bracers/belt beingthe exeption) my record is 5.1k heat seeker crit. (nice 2 punch hit on low target .. tracermissle with a heatseeker right behind it (then if the target is still alive follow op's combo breaker to finish the job. BE WARNED you'll prob fill your heat bar doing this and you had better have vent heat up for it)

    i've toyed with 2pc pve tier 2 (can't think of the name off the top of my head) and 2 pc tier 2 pvp. the tracer missle crit bonus is certanly nice but now that more players are close to full sets and 10% damage reduction and damage increase i think it's worth it to get as much expertise as you can at the moment.

    something that i think is worth mentioning .. Electric dart. have this on your toolbars. i've found more often than not it's worth having it for pve belive it or not.

    perfect example: pylon boss in EV. while yes those trash adds you get are elites .. they are suceptible to it. i usually on 1st wave use my concusive shot on one .. 2nd wave i'll electric dart 3rd wave concussive shot. it works in a pinch .. and if you're a cybertech you can make unending supply of grenades (vibro i think is the knockdown one) wich also work .. so dart it .. then knock it down with the grenade will buy you enough time to burn 1 down and help kill the 2nd befoe swapping to the cc target.


    great writeup op .. should be sticky .. one for each class type! we need more discussion up in here!
    Last edited by Arteous; 2012-01-09 at 11:42 AM.

  19. #19
    can anyone possible give me an example on what that would suggest as a build at lvl 30

  20. #20
    Quote Originally Posted by Arteous View Post
    Your spec is slightly different than mine. in pvp that extra knockback i find just not worth it because most of the time it's a warrior jumping on you and he's going to have a 2nd gap closer so i'd rather just have a few seconds off the cooldown. my keybinds are allready insane and the rocketpunch i just find i don't have enough space on my binds for it (and i use alot of keybinds)


    spec i prefer: http://db.darthhater.com/skill_calc/...11fe2fe3f11ef6

    again the extra distance on knockback i find lacking but i like the idea of a 2nd kockback with rocket punch .. but that's purely a pvp scenario.
    I use Rocket Punch liberally, and it's been a huge boost to not only knock back adds/players, but also do decent damage. In PvP, it's insane how useful it is after you've used your jet boost to get a JK off of you and they leap back, only to Falcon Punch them right back off the catwalk.

    In PvE, it's also very useful, as it will interrupt casts from Elites and lower. Aside from that, you can knock a mob off of a healer, or away from yourself if you need to get some kiting distance.

    as for the huttball positioning .. be carefull. if it's a warrior/jedi type that has the ball he'll be using his charge to get up there and score easier. so be very aware of situation before hanging out on the walkways. Generally with my usuall group i start on the center walkways and then drop down and play midfield (so i can retreive the ball as it spawns and pass it forward to one of the other people to get it to the tank (or tank to run it in).
    I rarely, if ever, go mid unless I can help it. Generally, I stay on the catwalks. I like to blast/AOE guys fighting mid, and be open to catch the ball. I also habitually knock other people off any time I can.

    got any info on pyro from first hand experience? i'll be respeccing back to arsenal tomorow or tuesday before my raid. while in pvp i can still gain the 300k damage done medal i feel it's mostly from the fire dots. i think ti's going to need some kind of overhaul before it's worth it for a raid spec .. just generates too much heat to be sustained dps.
    Oh man, not even a tiny shred of experience with Pyro. I was going to, but I ended up sticking with Arsenal after hearing about how sub-par Pyro was.

    i think 2 reasons.. one main one being in raid enviroment i belive the bosses are a few levels higher hence you need to make up the difference with extra hit. also more hit you have it will treat your damage as if the target's defences are lower. i don't avoid extra hit but i don't go out of my way to get it either. (i think i'm sitting on 102 or 103% hit at the moment)
    I agree here. We have an offhand blaster, and at 100% accuracy, that offhand's around 65%. Now, if your specials don't take that into account, awesome, but it still lowers the defense of the targets further.

    something that i think is worth mentioning .. Electric dart. have this on your toolbars. i've found more often than not it's worth having it for pve belive it or not.
    Rocket Punch is Q, and Electro Dart is E on my keyboard. It really is useful for just about anything.

    great writeup op .. should be sticky .. one for each class type! we need more discussion up in here!
    Thanks. I'm glad people find it helpful.
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