IIRC, the best gear you can get from HMFP's at 55 is level 69 stuff. Certainly not a bad start for raiding in general, but for the current Hard Mode operations, you'll want at least a full augmented set of level 72 gear. You're probably at least geared enough for SM operations, so you can build up your Elite and Ultimate comms and get all your 72/78 mods and enhancements, maybe some Underworld drops from SM DF and DP. As for the time zone, we've got people all over the place. I'm in Ohio (Eastern time), and we've got others in every other US time zone. Alaska's not too far off, and we've generally got at least a handful of people on throughout the day.

You know you posted this in The Bastion subforum, right?

Reflex. Any class with a main stat boost skill in their skill trees should augment for their main stat. The only two that augment Power instead are Sentinels and Shadows, since they don't get any extra main stat from their trees. I haven't done the math personally, but IIRC, the bonus damage and crit chance from main stat works out to be a little more valuable than just the bonus damage from Power when you have that extra 9% Aim.

I won the Corruptor Blade from Corruptor Zero in DF HM on my Commando, but obviously I can't do anything with it on that character. Luckily, the blade is bound to legacy, so I made a new Jedi Guardian to take advantage of it: http://i.imgur.com/k496CX8.jpg The rest of her gear: Luxurious Dress Tiara (headgear hidden) Sensuous Dress Top Covert Hand Energy Armor Darth Sion's Sash Regal Apparel Miniskirt Elegant Dress Shoes Luxurious Dress Cuffs Not too bad for a first female character, I think.

I don't speak any French, sorry, but this forum actually has a French language section further down the main forum index page.

Honestly, I think full Tactics is in a fine place as it is for PVE damage. Assault could use some tweaking, I'll agree with that.

Telaan summed it up nicely. Guardians are at the low end of the DPS rankings right now, but in patch 2.6 we're getting some much-needed help. And even as they are now, they're a fine class in the hands of a skilled player with the right gear.

The hybrid is dead, but full Prototype is doing just fine. Not sure about full Assault, as I don't run that in raids very often.

Didn't notice that the very next thread in this subforum is already about this?

I wish that helmet looked like the icon it uses in the vendor's list, which is another actual Imperial-only Heavy Armor helmet model. But it's the stupid nose-helmet. (Seriously, try and convince me that thing doesn't look like it has a giant schnoz)

I'm pretty much copy+pasting this from my post in the Vanguard subforum. Long story short, a guy on Reddit who likes to data-mine SWTOR patches took apart the most recent Public Test Server patch. In addition to the announced stuff like Bombers being added to GSF, the data has a few other changes that have not yet been announced. Most relevant to us is the following: Troopers/Bounty Hunters: Pulse Generator/Prototype Flame Thrower talent now requires High Energy Cell/High Energy Gas Cylinder So, that pretty much kills the 2/22/22 and 8/22/16 hybrid DPS builds, as Prototype Flamethrower with Combustible Gas Cylinder was a huge part of it. From what I hear, it also kills the AP hybrid tank build, though I'm not familiar with that build. But if it involved Prototype Flamethrower and Ion Gas Cylinder, it seems to be toast. I'm not too happy about it, as the hybrid DPS builds were perfectly viable without being overpowered, and even had a decent rotation. I just hate having fewer options. Obviously this is the PTS, and everything there is subject to change before being released to live servers, but my gut tells me it's going to happen. Source thread:

So, a guy on Reddit who likes to data-mine SWTOR patches took apart the most recent Public Test Server patch. In addition to the announced stuff like Bombers being added to GSF, the data has a few other changes that have not yet been announced. Most relevant to us is the following: Troopers/Bounty Hunters: Pulse Generator/Prototype Flame Thrower talent now requires High Energy Cell/High Energy Gas Cylinder So, that pretty much kills the 2/22/22 and 8/22/16 hybrid DPS builds, as Pulse Generator with Plasma Cell was a huge part of it. From what I hear, it also kills the Tactics hybrid tank build, though I'm not familiar with that build. But if it involved Pulse Generator and Ion Cell, it seems to be toast. I'm not too happy about it, as the hybrid DPS builds were perfectly viable without being overpowered, and even had a decent rotation. I just hate having fewer options. Obviously this is the PTS, and everything there is subject to change before being released to live servers, but my gut tells me it's going to happen. Source:

Healers tend to pull aggro in fights involving large groups, like trash pulls between Operation or Flashpoint bosses. But during boss fights, DPS tend to generate way more threat than healers since they're focusing on a single target. I literally can't even remember ever seeing a healer draw aggro from the tank in a boss fight, but well geared DPS pull all the time. So, in general it's a better idea to keep guard on your highest DPS.

As you say, it depends on your class. Sage/Sorc DPS, for example, can get along just fine without any set bonus, since both bonuses (extra Force energy and Alacrity) are kinda mediocre. Your Merc definitely benefits from the healing set bonuses though; reduced cooldown on Emergency Scan and extra time on whatever the Supercharged Cell equivalent is. Same thing with my Merc DPS; that bonus damage on Railshot is crucial for overall DPS. I'd say if you're choosing between 72 set bonus armorings and 78 non-bonus, I'd keep the 72's and just replace the mods and enhancements with 78's.

He specified Tactics, which is a DPS build. But you're right; tanks shouldn't sacrifice any defensive stats for the sake of Accuracy on their gear.

My Commando: http://imgur.com/a/dSXg4 Vanguard (both DPS and tank sets): http://imgur.com/a/1CHf6 Bonus: my Scoundrel dressed up like a Trooper (he's a Havoc Squad dropout, really): http://imgur.com/a/whE3M My Commando and DPS Vanguard sets are basically identical: old Rakata Combat Medic gear shells + one of the million helmets with that model (the Section Guardian helmet is an adaptive one for pretty cheap). My VG tank set is the CZ-13K Guerilla armor set, minus the helmet which I've replaced with a Rakata Supercommando helmet. The Scoundrel uses the Stalwart Protector set from the Cartel Market + the Section Guardian helmet, so it's all adaptive.

I actually find the opposite to be true. I used to use Arsenal exclusively, but lately I've been using Pyro and getting great numbers with it. The problem with Arsenal is that Barrage (Unload CD reset) doesn't seem to proc as reliably as it should. Railshot and Heatseekers are more reliable since they cool down naturally, but it sucks when you shoot 7 Tracer Missiles in a row and never get that proc. With Pyro, I find that Railshot resets almost perfectly with the internal proc CD and is very consistent, and in dummy parses I tend to do consistently better in Pyro than Arsenal.

My Scoundrel: Captain Crackerjak, the Havoc Squad dropout. Dishonorably discharged after a classified incident involving a "misplaced" shipment of Corellian whiskey and a Twi'lek brothel. http://imgur.com/a/whE3M

Nahash is correct, it is immune to interrupts (i.e. dedicated interrupt skills, or the interrupt from Force Leap, etc.), but you can still be interrupted by CC, stuns, knockbacks, pulls, and anything else that physically moves you.

With all due respect, I kinda have to disagree with almost all of your post. For starters, who are the "plenty of players" who deem Troopers at the bottom of the pack? I would argue that Commandos/Mercs have the best single-target focus healing of any of the three healer classes. Three very powerful heals with short cooldowns or no CD at all, one of which applies a HoT, plus a 4 target AoE with unlimited-target AoE HoT that also buffs all incoming heals on affected targets. Not to mention a preventative heal that you literally fire and forget until it runs out of stacks, and your auto-attack heals for free as well and can be cast on the move. They're not perfect, but they're perfectly capable as long as you know your strengths and weaknesses. Having a Scoundrel or Sage with your raid group to help out with multi-target healing certainly doesn't hurt, though. As for DPS, all specs are capable of solid numbers. If anything, I'd say Gunnery could use a little tweaking on the Curtain of Fire proc, which seems to happen a little less often than it should. But it's still plenty powerful unless your dice rolls really suck. Full Assault works very well for both Commandos and Vanguards. VG's Tactics tree is one of the most powerful AoE builds in the game with 3 stacks of Pulse Generator, and the 2/22/22 Vanguard hybrid is pretty formidable as well once you nail the rotation...slightly less damage from Pulse Cannon, but you also get two burn DoTs from the Assault tree, plus the frequent HIB resets. Overall I think Trooper DPS is in a very good place, for both Commandos and VGs. And again, I have to ask who are these "plenty of players" who allegedly say Vanguards are in last place for tanking? They're very stable when it comes to incoming damage, not nearly as "bursty" as Shadows.

It's not available yet, but you can see it in your Collections menu under Weapons, and it definitely looks...unique. Kyber Assault Cannon: http://dulfy.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/swtor-kyber-assault-cannon-2.jpg

The Bastion has pretty consistently short queues.

Pyrotech has the most "complete" rotation at the earliest level; as soon as you get Prototype Particle Accelerator, you pretty much have everything you need. Prototype is an awesome spec, but it doesn't really shine until you get Prototype Flame Thrower and Immolate. As for tanking, it is viable in PvP if you accept that you won't be doing nearly as much damage as most other players, and remember to keep your Guard up and taunts on cooldown. Plus, as a tank, you're practically guaranteed the quickest queues for Flashpoints. FWIW, I leveled my Vanguard as a tank, didn't even try either of the DPS trees until after 55. With a healer companion, it can be slow going when you have to slog through lots of trash fights, but you'll be almost invincible.

*Also SPOILER ALERT (TROOPER STORY)* The Bastion is the centerpiece of the final Trooper story mission on Corellia, in which you and the rest of Havoc Squad (and other Republic military units) storm the fortress to capture or kill an Imperial officer who's been the major thorn in your side for all of Chapter 3. Anyway, all-Trooper guilds can certainly work from a game mechanics standpoint. Both AC's can do DPS, Vanguards can tank and Commandos can heal. Alpha Company on the Jung Ma RP server is probably the biggest/most successful example of such a guild.

Here's a link to a video showing both the new Republic and Imperial Fleet arrival cinematics: