True, but remember that Force Wave can awaken the target, too. So you can find yourself in a situation where you are surrounded by weak enemies where force wave would really help, but can't without a penalty.

Fairness: I routinely offer to help other people with their missions if they will help me with mine. Even if I've already played the mission they want done, you still get points -- which, in your case, helps with leveling.

I also can't agree with OP. There's a lot of difference between "Where'd he go?" and "Huh, I guess he's gone."

Healer.

Glad to see somebody acknowledge the value of stealth. Thanks. I'll use this build.

I just hit "pass" on loot. A good group will get you tons of credits and experience. Being generous with the loot makes other player happy -- and doesn't hurt getting you picked as a group member, I've found.

I’m an old gamer but a complete noob at MMO. The rush so many people are in is striking to me. This ain’t chess and I get that. Still, I was thunderstruck last night when a healer friend of mine was literally on her way to join our group. The leader couldn’t wait two minutes to get a balanced, strong combo. He invited another shadow who just happened to be standing there as our fourth. I wasn’t mad but wasn't going to leave my friend hanging, either. I apologized to the other group members, dropped out and formed a new group with the healer: No hard feelings if there’s a way to avoid them, I say. I fully understand the powerful desire to level up quickly and get the good loot. However, that was just one example of haste making waste. With a good healer, that group could have beaten the biggest bosses more quickly and with less effort. Two minutes of waiting would have saved a lot of hacking and slashing tough enemies. Other times, I’ve seen people give up and go to other missions when the end goal is not only in sight but easy to achieve if they’d just look things over. True story: I once finished "Trouble Indeed" solo. After three rooms of brutal fighting, the rest of the group looked in the last big room and just gave up. I stayed. I woke up at the med center three times and didn't come close to beating the boss, but I woke up the last time with the deed in my hand. Then there are times when the battle’s won — and group members rush off with security chests sitting there in plan view and not that heavily guarded. So here's my point: Want to level up fast and collect good stuff? Don't leave good experience on the ground. Take a look around. See what you've missed. If what you tried didn't work, don't do it again. My character's name's Chebe, a lvl 20 Jedi Shadow currently on Taris. I'll check the server tonight, but I think it's called Krayliss Dragon. I know it's a PvE. I like to use stealh to wade in to a group of enemies and hit force wave. That's the signal for the rest of the group to attack, while the weaker enemies are scattered and falling. I don't care about loot. I'll clean up the stuff others don't want and sell it for a little cash, but a good group beats loot.

Re: Quality > Quantity Exactly. And the best quality to have is a good group. I'm just a Jedi Shadow noob whose overwhelming first impression of MMO play is that there's entirely too much haste and dependence on brute force. The exceptions, though, have been great. Shadow stealths in and hits force wave. This signals the others to attack while most enemies hit the ground. Healer heals. Simple. I've had plenty of times though when the "group" picked itself up off the floor, healed and went right back to the attack before I could even type "STOP!" It's a new, exciting game. People are eager, I guess. Completely true story: I finished "Trouble Indeed" on Corusant solo. I woke up at the med center three times and didn't come close to killing the boss, but I woke up with the deed in my hand. I had to because the group I was with -- after clearing three rooms by frontal assault -- declared "This is too hard" and left. I was able to find a stealth route to the elevator switch, then get on the elevator without being attacked and finally get to the safe at the upper level. I don't think my experience is unique. For instance, look at the "optimum builds" on posted guides for Shadows. They recommend spending no skill points on the tree for stealth AT ALL. The prevailing assumption is brute-force gameplay.

Tap the small, round screen in the lower left corner. This will summon your companion.

More Detail, now that I'm home and can look it up: Go to "Preferences" Click on User Interface on the left. Scroll down to "Tooltips." Click "Enable Companion Comparative Tooltip."

In preferences, under the UI (user interface) tab.

This really does annoy a lot of people, but a push of the mouse solves it. Just go to one side a little. That's one thing this old single-player sees with MMO types -- you're all in such a hurry.

Best comment on the thread so far was: You have to say, good for what? PvP, (etc.) As an old single-player on his first MMO, I love the build. Fess is a fine companion, and I walk past enemies straight to the goal of each quest. One mission was a trap that left me weakened. No problem. I hit stealth, walked right out, performed a simpler mission while weakened and returned after the bad effect had worn off. In cooperation with other players, I'll stealth up and walk close to the target. Then the smuggler or whatever I'm working with will open ranged fire while I unleash force wave. Half the enemies will be dead before they can land a blow. I worked this tactic out with a total stranger and we never said a word to each other. I simply did it while she was setting up to open fire and it worked so superbly we just picked it up. We cleared several rooms with it.

Help button in the game with topics you can search is the closest I've found. It's getting better, it seems. Some very good intros on the forum, too. Look for stickies. But a formal manual? Not that I know of. I bought my game digitally, so I don't know if there's one in a boxed game.

At the risk of sounding trite, saving money's easier than earning it. You're probably beyond my level, but I'm a lvl 15 and have bought practically nothing. The one large purchase I made (4k+) proved to be a mistake.

Medical droid or any vendor. There's a "repair all" tab at the bottom. After you've been "killed," you can always click medical droid, then get your equipment repaired in the same trip. It's not expensive, either.

Got a very good double-bladed lightsaber by killing a minor gang boss, for instance.

All very valid, especially: To each his own.

There's always Google. For example, type in: commendations site:swtor.com/community

TarristerWelm, I just wanted to say: That is one of the best sigs I've ever seen.

I agree. While people have every right to level up at a fast rate if they want to, I'm quite surprised at how people rush through. It must be a PvP thing, and this is my first MMO. I've found that learning to use the skills my character has already help me through the quest and make me a more valuable player to other people than climbing higher on the level tree.

Much thanks. So there is a special vendor just for those. That clears things up.

I have 27 Corusant commendations but when I go to a special items vendor, I don't seen any items that I can redeem with commendations. What am I missing?

Thanks for that. I looked for something like that last night and couldn't find it. Would you mind giving a step-by-step, "Change Preferences for Dummies" post just to make sure I'm looking in the right place?

I found "Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast" in my game collection and installed it on my Windows 7 machine several days ago. I found out, to my surprise and satisfaction, that it looks great despite all the changes in video cards, operating systems and drivers in the NINE YEARS since the game's release. I had to mess with the video options for a while, quickly finding out that higher resolutions don't automatically mean a better picture, but got it back to looking and playing great. Completed the game. Great title. Still highly recommend it.