With the upcoming "Strongholds" and Guild ships - that would be the perfect place for all these comms. Give different items out for the different comm levels, or just vary the expense of a single item 200 Basic 20 Elite

My ship droid !!!

Well - let me help you with that a bit. You *are* going to screw up on occasion as a healer. And when it happens, likely there will be some 'leet skillz knucklehead' who is going to give you a ration of crap about it. It is going to happen, and likely more than once. Ignore them. Pay attention to the helpful ones who will give you some good tips. So - figure out what you did wrong, and try not to do it the same way twice is all ! I play a Sage healer most times. Some fights are easy, especially if you have a good tank / dps crew. Some are just a 'healer battle' - and those are your chance to shine. So, maybe a good healer is hard to find, but A good healer / tank combo makes for a fun smooth run. p.s. - just got a Shadow tank to 50. Huge respect to those who can tank well. Am learning.

From heals and dps perspective, yes you can use PvP gear. Did until I got enough to get a PvE set of gear. I held up just fine, even when something odd happened (Not taking the walker down on time in Kephess fight) although obviously would not have minded the extra health and such from a PvE set!. So, if all you have is PvP - likely will be starting on the lower difficulty ops. You should be fine. Will let the tank folks speak for the tanks. No experience yet to speak to the new ops, but would think by the time you progress to them, you would have a PvE set anyway, at least a full Verpine set.

Yes, this is normal. As wishihadaname pointed out - As a sage, not only are you relatively easy to kill (compared to some other classes) but if they do not kill you quickly you are either going to bring quite a bit of dps or healing to the fight. Neither of those scenarios end well for the other team. (but is a fun time for you!) So, keep mobile. Several of your skills can be cast on the run, learn which ones, use them often while moving. Find the little nooks you can cast from and not be noticed as much. Center of the fight ball = dead sage. You have a good 30 meter range, you should seek to use at least 20 meters at all times. 28 is even better, if you have suitable targets. High spots as wishihadaname pointed out, should be your habitat. Also, learn to keep track of where the healers are tucked away. Having one of them around (and hammering anyone who touches your healer) nothing aggravates a healer more than trying to save you with heals, as you run AWAY from them. ack ! Be easy for them to heal, and stay around them-paying extra special attention to the smashers and such who try to take them out. Make them pay.

Okay, perhaps I will get flamed on this one. If guarding node, am I the oddball, because I pretype something like "Inc Snow - " so that all I have to do is type a number and get to defense? I see two coming - Hit 2, enter to send, and then get to work on - well - defense? If a third shows up, whatever, at least I got SOME help on the way! (I hope)

Well - will just ignore all the "it ain't no big thing' post above. Nice fights, you two, and good work. enough said there.

NICELY done !! I enjoyed that - start to finish. Great background music, choice of clips and angles. Got into it immediately! Congrats to you on good work!

This +1 If you leave the healers to free cast - they will generate enough heal points to negate two of the opposing team dps numbers PER HEALER. Yes..that is a huge force multiplier. As it should be. Start taking out the healers quickly, so they spend more penalty box time, than heal time - that number will drop significantly, and mainly reflect the healer trying to keep themselves alive. This negates the 2 to 1 force multiplier effect --WHICH IS THE HEALERS REASON FOR BEING THERE !! And do not forget - both factions have healers. So, while you are complaining about "healz is so op, derp derp derp" -- it is likely a healer that is keeping you alive long enough for you to face-roll those huge DPS numbers you epeen about. So - in that I do quite a bit of PvP (esp. prior to 2.x patches) I can post up some ridiculously large heal numbers **if left to free-cast untouched** Start attacking me, making me self-heal, FOCUS ON ONE PLAYER AT A TIME so my heals are less effective -- and those numbers start to mean less and less.

Nice ending - great for a laugh !

Am on the fence still, as a Sage healer. Three WZs I played first day in on 2.0 (still wearing all the WH/EWH gear) I had my three best scores as far as total healing goes. (and yes, even captured some objectives) For anyone wondering, my play style is to heal the pressured folks as much as possible, watch for chance to capture objectives/deny capture with a rock throw. But - absolutely zero worry about force management, even with some seriously good numbers, and 'insta-cast' salvation circles. I just do not live long enough to drain my force down. I know some of it is I am getting marked and focused, but unless I have perfect conditions (guarded, salvation circle, my own heal+armor, mend, a HIGHLY attentive guard who can peel) I just do not stay alive long enough to get help. Isn't a rant thread on that - especially with the crit chances I can get now - leaving one good healer alive to free cast is a horrible idea. Two free-casting - match is about decided right there. Would I say the TTK is lower? Certainly at this point. Do I think that lower TTK is better for PvP? The way the maps are designed it gives a much better chance of objectives getting captured / recaptured. The odds of you getting the entire defending team taken out as you spread your forces to defend more than one point before you can reinforce is much more likely. Calls for incoming are not just a good idea any longer, they are critical. If they are not spot-on, with instant CORRECT reaction - bye bye point. Do I think this is good for PvP - ultimately no. I think this change will/has caused some higher numbers in all categories - heals, damage and protection. So those who are just epeen numbers geeks will have fun crowing how the pwn'ed and won the match. But even with three of the best heal numbers I put up - only two of those were wins. So "numbers" are not everything. I think these changes will promote PvP zergfest matches and face it - the one faction-independent consensus is - no one likes to be the one staring at the pulsing circle waiting for it to open.

Will throw my 2 cents in. Probably all it is going to be worth. Routine play a Sage healer. Yes - if you stand alone, in the open, no guard your chance of staying alive long is near zero, if there is anything decent on the opposing team. The times you just get to stand there and free-cast unmolested are few and far between. 50 level PvP it is even fewer. Chances are, if you GET that chance, you really do not need it - the other team sucks that badly. As others have mentioned - you have to think, and think ahead. Use the map to your advantage, find those 'niche' areas to block yourself from view, but still get a casting area for your team. Learn to use that raid frame to select and monitor your team for heals. Some heals/cleanse - you can cast on the move - so, cast them while moving to a good spot - cast your stationary heals and when your "moveable" heals are ready - MOVE ! Oh - and remember - people rarely look UP. Higher ground is still a pretty good tactical area. Other interesting tactic that can work - if you see a big melee fight. Drop a salvation heal in there...then move into the center of the fight. Believe it or not.....you can get "lost" in there.! Just be sure - don't stay there long. Keep moving. And last - accept one thing - if you are a good healer - you WILL get yourself marked and focused. Not a thing you can do about this, except stay alive as long as you can. Keep moving, keep breaking LoS, use your stuns and cc's best you can. Believe it or not, you can easily be in the 200 to 250k *average* heals per match (some matches can go significantly higher) which if you can do that - you are helping your team.

Look - there are good players in PvP, some OUTSTANDING players - and then there is the elitest-snob-set. Hang with the first group, learn from the second, and tell the last to f' off. Seriously, they annoy me. (and I PvP routinely. I am the first section - usually) These are the same ones who complain at others, telling them what they should do, when, how they suck, etc. and generally - they are the ones that suck. Queue up, don't worry about the epeening snob set, and enjoy the PvP matches that are close and not blow outs.

As mentioned (hacks aside) you need to have a companion out with you. First, and this is all assuming you have them on your bars somewhere - you click the heroic moment. Nice little feature to use if you are on a close fight at your level. Since you have that going, which, should be in some close or harder fight, go ahead and hit "Unity" if you and your companion are losing HP. While that heroic moment is going (your background music, if you listen to it, has changed) you can use the Legacy powers. It is fun to use them, but wouldn't consider them earth shattering. I am sure a couple people wondered how a Bounty Hunter suddenly hit them with a rock, but hey.....all fair in love an war.

My main toon is a pure heal Sage. Whoever throws guard on me moves to the top of the heal priority list. And gets my vote. Will bubble anyone/everyone I can (non-stun variety) but guards are #1 in the heal rotation! Yes, I know where my bread it buttered.

Will add to the vote pool - Mako is my preferred "go to" companion. The only other one I will run and NOT get frustrated with is HK-51. Selection is now down to clearing trash quickly with HK, and can I dps things fast enough I do not die, or....is this a longer quest line, and I need healing? Having HK is much faster to clear the trash and questing, and I seem to use him more on the planet quests. Story line - no question - Mako is it !

Read the whole reputation system thing on the 1.7 update. My puzzlement is this: What does this really add to the game? Now, I read it and thought "Who cares, this isn't going to improve some game experience. It is just something to cause a grind. BW is just trying fast/easy way to cause obsessive people to - well, do what they do naturally" So, am I an odd-ball out here? Would not be the first time, but does this really improve the game experience for someone ?

Yes..more than once on the more "interesting" fights, PvP, or such... Get all caught up on keeping everyone healed / bubbled, and in the correct bubble rotation - check the tank, check the tank, bump up dpser a, dpser b is about to get hammered - bubble? throw some heals, check the tank, tank topped off and bubbled...ranged is hurt, get some AOE heals down, bubbles bubbles bubbles... check the tank...WTH ? Who got that last hit ??? Okay..heal everyone...meditate..... remind group running off that healer LOS = life, force speed to catch up.....lather rinse repeat. Yeah - enjoy that aspect, really.

The fire pit thing sucks *so* bad. Considering the routine victimization roasting I get. Sage rescue pulls to top tier, or across goal line from the side is pretty darn fun though, to make up for the roasting.

Just my perspective on this? You were indeed helping your team even with this 1v1 - sure..your team lost one 'dps' type. However, you completely tied up one healer, (which again, IMHO) is a 'force multiplier' type role. While (s)he had to concentrate solely on keeping alive, while you beat on him/her - you reduced the effectiveness of the *entire* opposing team. (They lost the healing) Your team lost ONE dps person, who can dps only one item at a time. So - good trade, in your case. Yes - I do get the point, the healer was nigh on impossible for you to kill. It was going to be a fight of whoever makes the mistake.

Was hoping to read a bit more "meat" in the article (probably always feel that way) but unfortunately with only a couple days remaining on the free month sub, looks like I will just have to watch these forums to see if 1.3 unborks the 1.2 "improvements". Really hope it does - even some of my more snarky posts aside, am in the camp that wants swtor to be fun / engaging. I enjoyed the game leveling up - first time playing a pure spec healer. Was difficult, felt like I could really 'turn the tide' or give my team a fighting chance with some smart choices and lots of hustle in any WZ or area PvP. Solo play - the story line (sage seemingly to be the 'slowest') was good, so am sure the "top" story lines would be great. meh - "Best of Luck" to us healers? All classes?

... And guess what? We don't worry about our resources getting low now in PvP either. The fast respawn cycle negates the worry. While that was said as serious/snarky - If "too many resources" was the problem, you do not solve that by extending cast times, and reducing effectiveness of powers. You do it by reducing the starting amount of resources, and ways/how fast you can regenerate them. The first choice is a demonstration that critical thinking skills were not employed. While I can certainly commend you for an accurate statement here, step back and see a reality. Let's say that no one cancelled. Instead, we posted one nice tidy thread, that listed only concerns as a group, and left it at that, confident that the dev's management would read, assimilate and disseminate that knowledge, balancing it to a true compromise, and responding the the community either at large, or at least in 'workshop' group on the details of the compromise reached. I seriously do not think if you picked out 10 people that routinely post rational, thought out posts on here (and there are way more than that) that you would get even ONE of those people who wouldn't applaud that style of balancing that must happen, and I dare say, you would probably have 10 volunteers / Community champions for the effort. Sadly - that does not and is not going to happen. Which means, unfortunately, the only way to get Olsen and BW's attention - is to drop the subscription. Otherwise Olsen and crew will sweep everything under the rug and say "See...they are all happy - look at our metrics" Just as sad to say, since I work as a consultant, I have seen this go one of two ways in corporations: 1)They listen, change, become heros. (and richer) 2)They deem the customers wrong, the metrics to be perfect, all is well, and you don't know what you are talking about. (and, in most cases, give $ to competitors that could have easily been in their pockets.) When I seen the forum reactions, and played myself after 1.2 I responded to some of the "everything is fine, L2P" and "WZ leavers should be punished severely" posts. Those responses, some of which were rapidly typed, ranged from attempting to patiently explain why the notions were incorrect, and the e results that were about to happen. More than once - i was told either L2P, etc etc etc. *shrug* Okay. Now...predictably, we have posts on how WZ no longer pop quickly as they did. Populations are dwindling (despite BW's claim that subscriptions numbers are not a factor) That is a downward spiral. Low pop/long waits begets more people finding other things to do....which creates lower pop/longer waits. Next round, instead of posts complaining about WZ pops taking too long, will be posts by well-meaning individuals on "how do we get more people in WZ and PvP", which will be predictably trashed by the L2P crowd, who are rife with caustic comments, very short on demonstrable skills displayed, either in writing or on video. Do I say all this because I am so much more in tune with things than anyone else could possibly be? Of course not. Merely - I look at the other MMO that I like, STO - and am watching the same soap/opera pathway all over again. PvP went the same directions there as PvP here. Now, the lead dev there (Gozer by nickname) is saying they could entirely scrap PvP, and the loss would not be meaningful, because of such low population usage. Or they need to totally revamp it. Think on that. Please. Seriously. Think on it, before you spout out "L2P" at another person, without providing *accurate* *demonstrated* *repeatable* lesson material to that person who is dissatisfied with the state of PvP for some reason. Sure..they may be an idiot to you. Sure..they may not be a hardcore player. Sure...they may even be slow learners. But would you rather have handfuls of them, and reasons to post "This is how you play this warzone" 100x times 'til you want to scream, Or would you rather wait 30 mins + to even see a WZ pop, that mostly is premades, or abandons. (or both) and rarely a good match up? Not sure of the time frame that this will go F2P and micro-transactions, but it will, unless drastic changes are made by BW in both game mechanics and customer communication. While a pre-Christmas time frame would seem probable, I would predict beyond that, due to the seemingly slow pace of changes that BW seems to be able to produce on patch fixes. Thus endth the sermon - sorry for the wall of text. I will go back to wood-working and drinking beer now!

+1 Welcome to the single point of logic for the changes.

Why do you try a bit of reading comprehension yourself, ftw ? YOUR example, which YOU wrote, but obviously have failed to COMPREHEND - if two players cooperate (specifically - a tank and an healer) that one player should be able to dps through that. So....comprehend what you wrote - you are saying that ONE dps playing SOLO should be able to beat TWO cooperating people. Let me help you with your COMPREHENSION a bit more: You stated in your example that 2v1 - the ONE dps should win. It is well understood - you want "godmode" Your dps should be able to play solo, and the healing class should be REQUIRED to have cooperating class of tank in order to play YOUR game. Let me give you a little hint here - another MMO did the same mistake with PvP. It went from a balance design that if a team had good support roles represented - took quite a bit to kill them. And it was a busy PvP - full matches. They decided to fuzzy around with things because the DPS crowd couldn't epeen sufficiently about the massive number of kills they were getting. It went to a system that now today you have the choice of being dps focused, or tank focused (read: bait) Support? Forget it. They left, and have never returned. SWTOR PvP is going the same route - I don't care what "metrics" you want to throw at it. Want proof? Go search this thread, and look for complaints about forever waits on WZ queues, and a subset of that complaining how they face the same people again and again and again and again. That would be a true test of YOUR reading comprehension. Want to figure out which MMO I am talking about? Search a bit - the lead dev on it has considered gutting it from the game completely as it would have little to no impact on player base with it's current level of use. Get that - for your reading comprehension test -- they messed around, much like BW is -- and PvP involvement dropped so low that they could remove it from the game ENTIRELY -- and not significantly affect overall player base. And it has been seriously considered. ftw huh ? Enjoy

Actually, I would be willing to predict the news is going to be MUCH worse. Dannie E. probably retained the numbers for the free month, as well as those who are 'subscribed' but not actually playing (those like RuQu) Remember, this is from the person who recently claimed that the base wasn't dropping at all. It would not surprise me in the least to see the 'active subs" number drop below 1 mil before end of summer.