You are correct and understood my point perfectly.

I'm sorry, but im in the mood to defend higher quality pvp for this game. If people want to listen to someone who has no experience in the highest lvl of pvp in this game at any point in its history, that will be their choice. Anything that he or anyone else says that i consider bad advice, i'll continue to point it out and explain why. Everyone, has a right to their opinion. Him, me, everyone. The quality of pvp for a long time has been quite simply horrific. You can't even get a high quality game in ranked anymore, and that is the queue for people who are supposed to know what they are doing. Hell, just today i had 3 good quality reg games out of like 8 games, who would of figured that.

Hate to point out the obvious, but the reason they are focused first is because they are the best at off-guard with no escape (other than pt/vg). If a good jugg is not focused and he does not off-guard, then hate to say it but in like 98% of those cases it would be a mistake on the jugg's part. You only think about the results, not how you get those results. That is why you will always be an average pvper. You play more than anyone as you said, yet you seem to be unable to ever improve and play at the highest lvl in regards to pvp. If the only reason i got top 5 in solo ranked in each of the 4 seasons i made that my goal as a dps shadow was by off-guarding, Why were most of the others not able to do the same? I mean, it was super easy to do right?

If a team only has 1 dps that can guard and you are having trouble dealing with it, then it is 100% a l2p issue. Having 2 off guards swapping between each other is slower to kill someone, but it is also harder to execute. Dont forget, all the off tanks specs are squishy and dont have many dcds, only jugg/guardians can off guard slightly better imo because they have 2 lives without resetting.

With all the changes comming in 6.0, i want to see how it goes and make adjustments after (and quicker) if necessary.

Kinda ironic, since it is you guys that want to make the game more boring for everyone by removing it I'm all for complexity in pvp and will always advocate for it. Chess > Checkers

I'm proud that you realize this, now take step two and figure out the way to beat it. Most people just don't seem to want to do the thinking for themselves. Everyone agrees that 50% damage transfer is very strong. But when a dps guards someone, it creates a huge weakness which no one seems to want to talk about. I'll let someone else actually think and hopefully point it out.

In general, marauders are extremely strong in solo queue and all 3 specs can be viable. For group ranked, they have always been the best melee dps, especially for hardswap compositions. Carnage is the spec most players use for hard swaps. The best teams run either sorc/op healer, jugg/sin tank paired with sniper as other dps. As for specifics for utilities(talents), i cannot comment as i do not play marauder myself. All in all, they are strong in either format of ranked when played well.

I have always suggested they do small tweaks more frequently. It regards to the current game being as balanced as it could be is a tricky one to answer, even for me. I'm not gonna try and answer it since it would be very complicated, and when that happens, we all know that you read it as incomprehensible babble =p

nah , no point repeating myself with what alex can't learn. I have perspectives from both solos and group ranked (granted g ranked more recently) and since i know alex will say that my solo ranked experience is in the past. Season 9 when mercs were not nerfed and dcds were too strong, i got top 3 as dps shadow in solo ranked during that time period.

1. they got a 25% dr sheild (possibility of 40% at end heal if attacked 10 times during duration) 2. adrenal rush to 60% 3. reflect which only stops anti burst for very short period and is completely useless vs dots and aoe. 4. they can absorb 2 force/tech abilities What is too strong to you? an individual dcd? or the fact they have 3 and a quater of them? Nothing in terms of pvp will ever be "perfect" balance. Everything has an element of rock/paper/scissors. This game just has to include that element with 24 different specs. On top of that, you must include teamwork into that calculation (i'll remind you that this is a team game). Balance is extremely complicated and requires them to take into account ALL the variables to try and get as close as possible to it.

You still having trouble with merc dcds ??? When 5.0 was released those dcds were too strong and they did nerf them to a good and fair point. Merc dcds do not need any additional nerfing, that is obvious to anyone who plays this game at the highest levels.

I definitely believe everyone should play around with their stats for pvp and play enough games to see what feels best for them. I play with 9.24% ishh alacrity on my infiltration shadow. I've tried also playing with the first break point, but it didn't feel right when I played. If you are truly new and have no idea where to start. Feel free to start with the so called "most optimal" breakpoints the number crunchers say to use. But do not be shy to play around after out of fear it won't be the best. If less optimal stat distribution makes you feel like you play better, go for it.

Beliefs has literally nothing to do with facts. In the context of my example, the number is a fact. As I said before numbers dont have sides. You use numbers to help support your opinion, its that simple. The fact that teamwork is required to achieve pvp success is a basic understanding as far as I am concerned when it involves more than 1 person. The quality of pvp in this game suffers so much because people just like you don't understand the very basics of how to pvp works in this game, assuming your goal is to win. How many times do you see tanks who end up having 0 protection at the end of a match. Do you not think that guy doesn't know the basics of the spec he has chosen? How many players who have cleanse never use it to removed ccs of their teammates. I bet 80% of that player base never use it. On top of that you have some people say that there is too much cc in this game? Some specs can cleanse cc's, but as I mentioned most people never remove them even tho they have the option to remove the cc. Look at the the dps specs with taunts who also end up with 0 protection at the end of a match. How about people who defend nodes by themselves and someone tries to sap cap them by first using the 4 second stun (1v1 situation). It takes 6 or 8 seconds to cap a point in hypergate and civil wars respectively. So explain to me why it is a good idea to use your only cc breaker (assuming no pt with rockets or sorcs with bubble breaker are the defenders) for that 4 second stun. If you even try to give a good reason for this alex..... So many issues that I see on the forums are caused not by the game design, but the player base inability to understand the game they are playing. The thing I tell people the most to improve their play in pvp is to THINK when they play. Net is the worst thing for sorcs since they have only 1 individual option to survive. That is to break it since every other dcd/movement abilities cannot be used during net if their don't use their cc break. You need help from your teammates if you want to survive a second net. If you dont get help and you die, good on the other team and bad on yours. As long as you refuse to see this game as a team game and only think of it as solo in regards to pvp, you will never become a top end pvper.

Before they got the defensives buffs (first was over the top, the small nerf after put them in a good place) they definitely had too many weaknesses with no real strength. The fact that they have elements that are poorly designed for pvp as you put it, is an intentional weakness that is taken into account into the overall balance. Again, net roulette with sorcs is once again an individual mindset of the game. You must use your teammates to play the game properly. If you refuse to use your teammates who have the tools to help you, then that is a sign you don't understand how pvp was designed in this game and that is your problem.

You have no idea what a fact is. It was one the first thing I noticed about you very early on. But here is a refresher, Facts no not pick sides, they do not tell you anything if you don't apply a context. Numbers are the best example. If I just hit someone for 200k damage in a single hit. If I asked you is that op or not? Without a context you cannot say it is one or the other. If we then said that the person who got hit had 100 million health, you would probably argue the side that it is not op. If we take swtor as a context, and someone got hit by that. It is a one shot on who ever ,which is why we would then argue that is was op. I am not going to go over again why group ranked is the best place to talk balance, the game is designed around the trinity and for 4 man its 2 dps1 tank 1 healer. the fact that you can't see my example applying to regs or solo ranked is troubling. How can you think increasing the damage of force leap by 30x and it refreshes imparing effects on the target would be good in regs or solo ranked. Answer: its still not a good idea. Numbers are facts. But please continue thinking they aren't.

The relevance is about the balance of the classes within the complexity of the game. Talking about nerfing or buffing abilities that affect combat, does shift the balance of classes. This is a fact. I'll give you a more extreme example to make the relevance so clear for you that im sure it will remain invisible to you. EX: I think force leap is too weak. Why don't we buff it so that if used on a impaired target, it will do 30x more damage and refresh all impairing effects. Everyone can see that this would be broken and op and should not be implemented. But why did I think force leap needed a buff in the first place? Talking about those reasons and using the other classes as comparisons in regards to weaknesses and strengths is important to try to explain your reasoning for wanting a buff or nerf in the first place. You can continue to try and undermine my opinions with your own opinions. Do not expect me to back down and let anything you say that does not make sense without an explanation that also makes sense for why you have that opinion. If I disagree with something, i'll point it out and explain why, that's how discussions go. I look forward for you to finally say something that could make sense but more importantly defend it with something other than your own opinion. Until then, I don't mind explaining every time to everyone why any idea that you suggest which I find bad, i'll explain why and provide examples or facts to defend my reasoning.

You do know the dot does almost nothing if you stop moving, if your worried you are taking too much damage from it, stop moving, maybe use some long range ccs on someone else in that moment, if you can off-heal do that to help survive. The duration needs to be long for it to be as effective as it is especially with the 1m30 cd. Its the best offensive ability in the game. I do not remember the cd of gore, but I believe its 30s? It is shorter in duration, but you can use it more frequently. So if your team is good at creating windows every 30 seconds, gore will be extremely effective since most dcds are on 1min+ cds. The value of frequency here is important and is why the total duration is overall less than the net.

This is how I see the 3 range classes in terms of strengths and weaknesses: Mercs Strengths: Can off heal, good face-tank dcds, can cleanse tech cc (flashbang), unique offense ability--> net, able to dps while moving. Weaknesses: Can get shutdown via chained interrupts. (note: they do still have a lot of insta cast abilities), dcds only good for themselves and are useless once popped and opponents get off you, No team utility ability (defensive), cannot cleanse dots. Sorcs Strenghts: Best off healer, Highest mobility(kiting), can cleanse force cc, teammate pull (team ulitity), Has 2 ways outside of cc break to avoid the vulnerability that stuns create, can dps while moving. Weaknesses: Lowest single target burst damage (no true single target burst spec), very squishy, not good dcds that allows face-tanking, can be somewhat shutdown via chain interrupts, cannot cleanse dots (other than barrier) Snipers Strenghts: CC immunity, cannot be shutdown by interrupts, team shield (team utility), decent face-tank dcds. AoE accuracy debuff (offensive vs snipers and defensive vs all others but also at times including snipers), Is the only counter to other snipers cc immunity, can cleanse dots (dodge). Weaknesses: Cannot off heal, cannot really dps while moving (not in cover), cannot cleanse any cc's. has literally nothing he can do if stunned, hardest hitting ability can be dodged by most classes if not stunned. The reason snipers are the best choice for ranged dps in 4v4 group ranked, is mainly because of the cc immunity. If the other team does not have another sniper on their team, this is a huge advantage because cc is super important to getting people to force dcds and eventually get kills. Every other weakness in the game can be countered in someway by other classes, snipers are the only ones who counter the snipers greatest strength (cc immunity). This is the only issue in terms of balance/game design I feel is in the game. This where I would like to see "Weaker" dot specs have an abilitiy that can single target snipers and knock them out of cover for a short duration (2 seconds) on a like 45 seconds cd. Range classes are not bad in team ranked. They all have strengths and weaknesses that require different moments of teamwork to effectively play. One of my favorite examples in history was during the mara smash meta. People thought it was super op. I forget who it was who came up with the counter for it (I think it was mudclot). They played double tk/lightning into it and worked as a team using the knock back roots and bubble stun to kite as a 4 man unit to beat the double smash maras. The balance in this game is extremely complex. Most people don't think about all the combinations of weaknesses and strengths of all the specs of classes, let alone practice all the combinations. There is an insane amount of teamwork required to play the game at its highest level. I have so much fun thinking about all these aspects and then trying to figure out the best strategy to beat what ever combination I play but also go up against. During the time before every class got so much mobility, one of my favorite strategies to play was double pt (burst), sin tank and op healer. It was my favorite because it was designed to win the round in the opener. We would do a triple pull on a target that could not do anything to buy time. The sin would initiate from stealth. 30m behind him the op would stealth one of the pts for the second pull, and sitting back 30m behind them near out spawn would be the visible pt for the third pull. After the sin would initiate, he would then knock back root the other 3 members, then grenade. Before they would get close enough to save their teammate, he would be dead. This is an example of a unique strategy that i came up with. After doing it once or twice vs good teams, it was very easy to counter and then beat us, but it was super fun to pull off. Anyways, snipers cannot do a lot of the things that both mercs and sorcs can do. Their cc immunity is arguably the most important dcd in the game that can only be exploited by other snipers, that's the reason they are considered the top dog of ranged dps in group ranked. They have weaknesses, they are just harder to exploit.

I do not see how mercs are designed poorly for pvp. The long cast times and weakness while being tunneled are the weaknesses that mercs have had since the beginning of the game. Net is a very strong ability that allows them a small window to do their damage with those long cast times, because if the target was a melee champ, they can rocket out and attack without being interrupted unless the melee champ decides to go and interrupt. In that case he will take more damage from the dot effect while often using an extra dcd to get close enough to interrupt. I'll say it again, this is a team game. People need to learn how to use your teammates to stay alive. Their is a reason why the top teams always cc out the tank/heals and often both at the same time when going for a kill.

Tank disciplines are extremely strong, especially with dps gear because they get the extra dcd from being in the tank spec. This is the part that people have issues with since they become essential another dps spec with more dcds. If you want to encourage more tanks with tank stats and gear, then they just need to increase the passive damageout penalty by a little bit. They can still go dps gear if they want, but their dps output will be less than actual dps classes.

The 6 Dps specs who can guard adds a lot of complexity to teamfights. It can be a huge risk that can cost you, but if done properly you can save teammates with it. With 6.0 a lot of things will be changing which will be extremely refreshing. Removing the guard option from dps specs should not be one of them. The game is team oriented and the more they remove from that aspect and focus on individuals, the less interesting pvp will get, atleast to me.

If they gave back the 30% dr during stuns to both sins and pts, then I would be happy. Sins do not need anything more than that to be viable. I think pts do need something a little more but nothing crazy, maybe something that absorbs the next 3-5 force-tech attacks similar to what mercs have. and definitely make adrenal rush base max% heal to point higher.

The only thing that needs to remain locked when a match starts is the persons spec. The gear they have they can swap out if they think they need to when ever they are not in combat. The only thing I wish to be able to change before a match starts but after you take the pop are your utilities, but as soon as the match actually starts, then those are locked in too.

Thank you for answering the question. You are absolutely right that I often go on the "wrong target" that I tell ppl to go on. I like to force dcds then swap to the secondary target to force dcds that will help later on. For people breaking my cc's , I have no influence on the idiots who do that. CCing is still the correct play to do. Off-guarding should absolutely be available for dps specs who have the option to play tanks. It adds complexity to the game with a greater risk/reward if done properly. It is nice to finally hear your opinion from your observations, because only I know what I am thinking when I play, so to see your perception of events is interesting because I can now compare the two. I never said that you said that I was a bad player, so I dunno why you mention that. In regards to my strategic mind, I do think I understand the game better than most and the decisions I make accordingly when I pvp differs from what I see most people do. One thing I always found strange are shadows/sins who take the 15% movement speed boost or and the lower cd on the vanish. Those to me are horrible utilities for solo ranked and I have never taken them. You keep calling me delusional, having different opinions on how to pvp and how effective you think you are in pvp doesn't make anyone delusional. Just look at my results before calling me delusional. The way I play is very effective for winning which is the only goal in any solo ranked or group ranked match.