Thanks for the clarification. So the core of it is utilizing soresu and some tank gear to be able to protect your team and not be all too easy to burn down, without sacrificing all that much damage?

Just why is it cheesy? I mean, compared to a stealth class using stealth or a class with heals healing?

So the entire benefit comes from soresu, shield and guard? I know guard is useful on others, but how much does soresu and a shield really help in vengeance spec if you're getting focused?

So can you explain like I'm 5 what the big win with shanking is? It's essentially tank spec, (mostly) dps gear and soresu, or did I miss something? What's the significant payoff that enrages opponents so much compared to being "just" dps or "just" tank?

Ja tack, gärna.

That kind of follows logically though. The people who find a game lacking are a lot more likely to quit than the ones who find it awesome.

You're missing a part of the point, it's not only about being able to stomp*, but also about challenge: solo challenge. Taking on 4-man heroics and flashpoints by yourself, before you outlevel them more than a handful of levels, provides all sorts of great gameplay that you don't need to find a cooperative group in order to enjoy. If you can, name any other parts of the game that allows for the following: - Can be done solo. - Requires you to properly gear your character and your companion. - Often requires you to get familiar with attacks/abilities of your opponent, as well as plan/time usage of your own abilities. - Often requires you to use everything you have in your arsenal in order to prevail. Stims, adrenals, medpacks, legacy abilities, direct control of companion abilities, etc. Currently, all game content that I can think of that presents this kind of challenge is designed for more than one player, which I always found odd. Taking it on solo may not have been intended, but it's certanly been possible, and it's certainly been a lot of fun. * = though I do feel level scaling takes away from immersion, as mentioned. If the Korriban wastes are as difficult to survive at level 60 as at level 5, it just serves to negate any feeling of character growth.

Maybe not for the challenge, but soloing flashpoints that you outlevel for a certain piece of equipment or decoration is common practice.

Perceived problem: Your character automatically getting scaled to the intended level for flashpoints and worlds he visits. Consequences: - You can no longer consistently solo flashpoints, heroics and champion-class creatures in the world. For people who prefer to play solo, this has some consequences in turn: - One of the game's few challenging gameplay elements for solo players gets taken out. Currently, gearing your character and companion to be able to solo 4+ heroics and flashpoints before you outlevel them completely is quite challenging. Removing this will basically leave the kingpin bounty bosses. - You can't really play in a completionist fashion (like wanting to complete heroics and flashpoints before leaving the planet/outleveling them) without being dependant on finding groups, which isn't at all always reliable. - It ruins immersion and the sense of your character growing in power as he levels up. If you return to Dromund Kaas as a sith lord, say, is it realistic that you're still as challenged by the jungle beasts and droids as you were while still an apprentice? There is a planned solo mode to circumvent part of this, but if current solo mode is anything to go by, this will leave flashpoints at a very low difficulty level, on par with the story content. Therefore players will have to choose between a very easy solo mode, or a challenging mode that will require a group, which as per what I mentioned above removes the challenge for people who like to defeat challenging encounters on their own.

http://www.swtor.com/user/ce/fh80o

Yeah, I too agree that the smuggler plays best as being consistently reluctant and accidental/improbable in that kind of position; though also determined to get it done as there doesn't seem to be anyone else who could do it, like you say.

This. Really, the idea of "just wanting credits" for the smuggler and BH starts to make less and less sense as early as after act 1. By that time those classes are extremely well off: their adventures are no longer just about a paycheck, and failure to realize that fact for as far as to level 50 and even beyond not only serves to make the characters one-dimensional and less interesting, but indeed puts them out of joint with the ongoing storyline where the stakes are about far more than getting rich. As for whether the non-force using classes are capable/powerful enough to be pivotal in KotFE, that depends a whole lot on how you imagine them. The way I see it, by that time in the storyline those classes could well be considered as individuals who by far surpassed the limits of their species and, though arguably not traditionally force sensitive, demonstrate a skillset and capacity to make correct decisions to a point where for all intents and purposes they could be, just without the traditional training.

This is true for simply following the class/planet stories, but for players who enjoy more challenging content (soloing 4+ heroics, flashpoints and champion-level mobs without massively outleveling them), factors like gear, utility build, companion balance vs own role, crew skills and legacy abilities all come into play. Soloing some 4+ heroics before they go grey can be a lot of fun and forces you to use everything in your arsenal.

By the looks of it, this is exactly what I will do once I've finished the story content of the classes I find interesting. Not trying to sound jaded but I've spent a fair amount of time with other MMOs, and the traditional endgame approach of doing group content like ops repeatedly and slowly grind out better and better gear just isn't appealing anymore. The same goes for building a stronghold or a guild flagship - they feel like temporary diversions at best, but nothing like the feeling of a personal storyline.

I'd settle for being able to reset my characters' levels to 1, along with all quests (story and world), but keeping inventory, datacron gains, achievements, codex entries and crew skills so I wouldn't have to repeat all of those.

Signed. The class stories and personal connections you get to your characters/crew are the only thing making this game stand out in an ocean of grindy, repetitive and achievement-oriented MMO:s.