Star Wars: The Old Republic: Episode II

[The Winged Shadow]

The game is starting to get boring at the moment on my lvl 29 Smuggler. Every planet its the same damn (class) story. I can forgive the side quests being similar and mostly boring. But the class story seems to be a copy paste for every planet I've been in (on Tatooine atm). Everyone says it picks up after chapter 1...so I guess I will wait and see.

On the other hand, rolled a Bounty Hunter (lvl 8) on another server (the Aussie infested The Harbringer) and its been pretty great. The animations of the attacks alone keeps me interested. Jet pack powered upper-cut FTW! It looks so much like Street Fighter "Shoryuken" :lol:

Thinking about putting the smuggler on hold and checkling out Sith Inquisitor since it seems to be everyone's favourite. Starting to regret going Smuggler :worried:

[Solmyr]

Spent some time and developed an excel model which measures accurately(i think) the impact of adding critical rating, power or surge rating to your stats. As each of these stats has the same budget value, most people think they are equally good for their dmg increase and their choice should be based solely on preference: do I like more steady numbers, do I want more crits or do I like bigger crits.

Furthermore, there seems to be a common misconception about Surge rating, protruded by the complicated diminishing formula of this stat (won't be discussed in this post, if someone wants more info PM me), which leads many people to believe surge rating scales extremely well, when in fact it scales horribly.

To spare you all the math bullshit, Power wins by a fair amount over crit and crit wins by a modest amount over surge. It is important to know that surge is as good or even slightly better than power until you reach a 60% multiplier (~54 surge rating), after that the stat becomes progressively worthless.

If anyone wants more info or to see the model itself, send me a PM. The model is developed based on Sniper's dmg abilities, but the formulas are applicable for all dmg or healing abilities in the game. It is not necessary to alter the model to see proof that one stat is better than another, however, if you add your current stats into the model you will see how much exactly each stat over that base will benefit you.

I'd like to expand the model to include alacrity and accuracy ratings, but there are too many unknowns about these stats atm and I dare not risk producing false information. I am yet uncertain by how much (if anything) alacrity reduces the global cooldown of abilities. As for accuracy, there is no information within the game by how much it reduces the enemy's defense (or armor?) nor do we know what is the base defense of the average lvl50 boss. Without any calculations, you may assume that, like in WoW, until you cap accuracy so you don't miss with your special abilities, accuracy is worth it. After that it's value is questionable. From experience alacrity doesn't seem to reduce GCD enough to matter, furthermore some classes are held back by resource so extra haste cannot really be capitalized upon. I deem it worthless (or on par with surge at 85%+ multiplier).

P.S. To complete the formula about surge rating I need geometric interpolation, but I've only studied linear. If somebody is up to the task, I can provide him with the data necessary.

[Shryke]

Considering the resource system classes are working with in this game (and that's ignoring the issue with animations and response delay), alarcity just doesn't seem like a stat that makes sense to me.

I guess maybe enough in something like crit could lead to talent interaction that leaves you with resources that benefit from extra GCDs, but that seems like it'd take alot to me.

[burnt hound]

Juggling a Jedi Consular on Red Eclipse, and a Sith Warrior and a Bounty Hunter on Bao-Dur. Haven't got so far yet, only a level 26 with the Sith Warrior. I really don't have time for this, yet I will not stop. SWTOR is GOTY for me :thumbsup:

[Nathanael]

Are you basing that on pure damage output for a single ability, or doing a fully specced character? The reason I ask is because talent interactions might significantly drive up the value of crit. For example, a lightning sorc has talents like Lightning Barrage (affliction crits boost force lightning) and Lightning Effusion (force attack crits halve the resource cost of the next two attacks).

Also, how does surge work with crit-damage boosting talents like Reverberating Force (three abilities' crits are 50% stronger)? Is it multiplicative (say at 60% surge on a 100 damage ability, 100 x 1.5 x 1.6 = 240) or additive (100 x (1.5 +.6) = 210)?

[Kosciuszko]

As I understand it, you want to get 110% Accuracy and before you start worrying about pretty much anything else. Kinda like WoW and hit-rating.

And yeah, the power/crit/surge comparison will be class by class. Some classes want a lot of crit so they can gain additional benefits on other attacks. Some classes will want surge as they have abilities that allow their best attacks to almost always crit (though power will also drive the crits; point by point here I'm not sure how it'll work out, once you get rid of the rarity of crits).

ETA: Also hit level 50 and joined a casual raid guild. I seem to be the only Marauder :D

[burnt hound]

I've started getting the 9000 issue, where I'm kicked off the server now and again. Any solutions? I have checked out the forum at SWTOR, but they didn't seem to have an all-fix solution. It's really annoying, when I can play for a day without interuptions, then the next day I cannot even spend 10 minutes playing before gettting the boot.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

I've started getting the 9000 issue, where I'm kicked off the server now and again. Any solutions? I have checked out the forum at SWTOR, but they didn't seem to have an all-fix solution. It's really annoying, when I can play for a day without interuptions, then the next day I cannot even spend 10 minutes playing before gettting the boot.

That happens to me from time to time. Saturday morning I got booted 4 or 5 times, then played the rest of the weekend without incident. I don't think there's any sort of fix just yet, but Bioware does know about the issue so hopefully they'll have a fix before long.

Got my Marauder up to 41 last night. Once again, the class questline has its hooks in me and won't let go. I had meant to stop playing at around 9:00 local time, but upon finishing Hoth got caught up in that class quest sequence and ended up playing til Midnight so I could see it through. Hugely fun and although it's obvious where this storyline is headed, the anticipation is continuing to build nicely. Class performance has smoothed out to a very enjoyable equilibrium after that rough patch of Alderaan/early Taris. My Maurauder is starting to feel genuinely powerful, especially now that I have Annihilation in the toolkit. Now that I'm comfortable managing all my cooldowns, elites are no problem unless in packs. Very nearly solo'd a 2 man heroic on Hoth (only needing help on the last boss) at lvl 40. The only remaining bugaboo is those damn animation quirks, which seem if anything to be getting worse, especially when I'm grouped. Oh well, if that's the only complaint then I'll count myself fortunate.

Also managed to get my Consular (healer) and Guardian (tank) each up to 20 over the weekend as well. A particular nifty quest I found on Republic side, on Taris - you get a quest to poke around inside the crashed remnants of the Endar Spire, the starship from the first KOTOR game! What's more, when the quest action really starts to heat up, KOTOR's main theme plays in the background as you're fendnig off waves of attackers. I'm a sucker for nods to gamer nostalgia and this was a slam dunk for Bioware IMO.

[Kouran]

Sadly I have found my merc feels way more powerful at 43 than my juggernaught does at 20. Regardless of the level difference I can take on an equal level elite two strongs and two normals on my merc but 2 strongs and two normals is death on my juggernaught. Both are fairly equally geared, all orange pieces with blue level appropriate mods, armors and enhancements.

My merc just has more tools, survivability and does more damage. Maybe it's just a question of the level difference but my merc has always felt powerful.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

Sadly I have found my merc feels way more powerful at 43 than my juggernaught does at 20. Regardless of the level difference I can take on an equal level elite two strongs and two normals on my merc but 2 strongs and two normals is death on my juggernaught. Both are fairly equally geared, all orange pieces with blue level appropriate mods, armors and enhancements.

My merc just has more tools, survivability and does more damage. Maybe it's just a question of the level difference but my merc has always felt powerful.

With the way mobs in this game tend to be grouped together, BH and Trooper classes have a built-in advantage due to the AOE both bring to the table. That said - stick with the Jugg and I bet things will even out for you at least somewhat. SWs get a ton of utilities in their 20s and 30s that help with survivability and damage output. Yesterday I quested for a couple of hours on my Marauder with a same-level Merc and was at least his equal in DPS (Death from Above notwithstanding; as undeniably cool as that ability is, it does seem OP and could probably use a nerf).

[Kosciuszko]

With the way mobs in this game tend to be grouped together, BH and Trooper classes have a built-in advantage due to the AOE both bring to the table. That said - stick with the Jugg and I bet things will even out for you at least somewhat. SWs get a ton of utilities in their 20s and 30s that help with survivability and damage output. Yesterday I quested for a couple of hours on my Marauder with a same-level Merc and was at least his equal in DPS (Death from Above notwithstanding; as undeniably cool as that ability is, it does seem OP and could probably use a nerf).

Basically this. While soloing, no Sith Warrior class will ever be the equal of most (if not all) of the other choices available. You gain some benefits in the late 20s and early 30s, but other classes will still be a bit better at this. Agent might be in the same boat, I've not checked, but Sith Warrior isn't really made to solo stuff.

To compensate, I actually out-DPSed a Mercenary six levels higher than me when I was 35. It was pretty awesome. Marauder, at least, can tear shit up to make up for the lack of survivability. I don't know about Juggernaught benefits compared to other stuff though.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

Basically this. While soloing, no Sith Warrior class will ever be the equal of most (if not all) of the other choices available. You gain some benefits in the late 20s and early 30s, but other classes will still be a bit better at this. Agent might be in the same boat, I've not checked, but Sith Warrior isn't really made to solo stuff.

To compensate, I actually out-DPSed a Mercenary six levels higher than me when I was 35. It was pretty awesome. Marauder, at least, can tear shit up to make up for the lack of survivability. I don't know about Juggernaught benefits compared to other stuff though.

Also, I'll bet Kouran doesn't have Quinn yet. He helps survivability immensely, as has already been pointed out here.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

Haven't had a lot of time to play this week as work has been busy, but managed to hit 44 last night and advance my story along a bit more. Nearly finished with Belsavis now, a planet I was apathetic about until last night when quests began to chain together near the end in a most satisfying manner. Turning in 6 quests at once is a great way to end a play session.

Decided to go Carnage for my last 10 points due to the offhand saber damage and extra fury & rage generation.

Random note - love how easy it is to make money in this game, although I'm not sure what effect that will have on the economy. Last night I made 100k credits just from 4 hours of questing (and I don't even have slicing on this character). Items listed on the GTN still seem remarkably cheap to me given how smoothly the credits flow.

[Relic]

Random note - love how easy it is to make money in this game, although I'm not sure what effect that will have on the economy. Last night I made 100k credits just from 4 hours of questing (and I don't even have slicing on this character). Items listed on the GTN still seem remarkably cheap to me given how smoothly the credits flow.

At some point the prices on the AH will have to go up. How can you have an economy based on free money? Crazy inflation.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

At some point the prices on the AH will have to go up. How can you have an economy based on free money? Crazy inflation.

Agreed. I figured it would've already happened by now, though. In fairness, prices on crafting mats seem to be on an upward trend toward something more reasonable, so maybe there was some saturation that's beginning to subside. The market has to find its equilibrium eventually.

[Tobin]

I am late to this thread - took a break from the board for a while.

I'm playing a Sith Sorcerer and liking it.

I'm sure her spec is gimped, but I'm relatively evenly split between heals and madness. She's just short of 35 right now and boffing the socks off my pirate pet (It's Spike Spiegel, of course I'm going to nail him).

I have to say that playing is making me paranoid - I'm suspicious of everyone and everything ("Bet that secretary droid next to the King is bugged/hacked, it's the best place to hear everything.")

I'm a little irritated that my character is apparently an idiot half the time. ("Really, you don't see that her face has turned all...withery and zombie-like? Are you really surprised that she wants to suck the life out of you?")

My pets don't understand the concept of sarcasm or necessary deception ("I encourage and appreciate honesty in your conversations with me. However, I'm not going to walk up and tell lvl 50 Darth Thanator he's a scheming bitch who needs to die in all kinds of horrible ways. At least not to his face.")

My server is pretty underpopulated at the moment, I think the most I saw was 45 people and that was on a D'Kaas (could also be that I don't play except for late at night). I've only actually grouped with someone once and that was only for a little while - some interesting mechanics and responsibilities there. I haven't tried any of the PVP yet, but watched a video about Huttball.

I started up a long global discussion about Dragon Age on Alderaan one night and ended up on a few friends lists - so that was nice.

I love pegging the voice actors ("That's Sten!") and have laughed quite a few times at some of the inside jokes. There is a quest on Alderaan that's a ripoff from Aliens and the Sgt who sends you out yells "Kill them with fire!"

ok, that's enough randomness from me today.

And if you're interested, I'm on the Col. Tobin server (of course, :cool4: )

[Ferrum Aeternum]

My pets don't understand the concept of sarcasm or necessary deception ("I encourage and appreciate honesty in your conversations with me. However, I'm not going to walk up and tell lvl 50 Darth Thanator he's a scheming bitch who needs to die in all kinds of horrible ways. At least not to his face.")

Some companions do. It was Vette's main selling point for me. I wish she healed...Quinn has no sense of humor whatsoever. :frown5:

My server is pretty underpopulated at the moment, I think the most I saw was 45 people and that was on a D'Kaas (could also be that I don't play except for late at night).

45 does seem low for Dromand Kaas, but then I normally play during prime time hours so that may skew my perception a bit. Populations do thin out drastically in the higher level planets. Average on Taris, Hoth or Belsavis was around 25-35.

[HP Loveshaft]

Just got this. My friends are all playing Republic (boooooo) on so I started up a Smuggler and Trooper. I like the smuggler's cover mechanics and it seems like a fun class to play, but I've heard the story isn't too great.

Trooper's story seems more interesting already, plus it's COMMANDER SHEPHERD. Jennifer Hale is the best and I pretty much have to play as her. I'm leaning towards her as my Republic main.

I tried Jedi Consular during a beta weekend. Not bad but the Jedi are just such asses. I'll find another server so I can play as an Imperial, every Imperial class/story seems cool.

Any recommendations? I might consider Consular again if the story gets better. In the Beta the story was "You have the most useless Jedi Master ever".

[Tobin]

I just got to Taris last night and there was 2: myself and one of the guys I had /friended from the DA discussion.

It was kinda uncanny.

[Ferrum Aeternum]

Trooper's story seems more interesting already, plus it's COMMANDER SHEPHERD. Jennifer Hale is the best and I pretty much have to play as her. I'm leaning towards her as my Republic main.

Fuckyeah Femshep! I have a 20 Commando that I need to play some this weekend. I'd play him more often if not for his annoying companion as I really enjoy the mechanics and feel of the class. I started him out as DPS but I'm thinking of going Combat Medic eventually, just because the idea of a healer who totes around a gigantic laser cannon is great fun. :D

I tried Jedi Consular during a beta weekend. Not bad but the Jedi are just such asses. I'll find another server so I can play as an Imperial, every Imperial class/story seems cool.

I really like the playstyle of my Consular (also lvl 20) but the story was kinda meh at the beginning. Things got a little more interesting once I quested through Coruscant, so I'm hopeful it'll continue to improve. At any rate it's better than JK...I've barely even noticed the story with that one through lvl 22.

Any recommendations?

Speaking from a story perspective, general consensus is that the Sith stories are better overall. My Sith Warrior's story has been a lot of fun and has kept me engaged throughout. I hear the Inquisitor's is even better.