One time, in a pug WZ, our only healer downright refused to heal me at all, giving the excuse: "Why bother wasting my time healing a merc when they do crap DPS and are just going to die 5 seconds later anyway? Your class has no place in PvP". It was fairly demoralizing, as I was only level 22 with my Merc, and still fairly new to the game. We lost the WZ, but I managed to top the chart in DPS by at least 50K more points than the rest of my team. Long story short, DPS Mercs are OP (though it wouldn't hurt to have a bit more defensive capabilities; Sentinels always seem to rip right through me ).

Male body type #4 isn't actually fat.

Thanks for the support man! What's really driving me crazy now is that I used to be SOOOO much faster at ability activation as a clicker, but now that I'm learning to keybind, my DPS has dropped significantly. I assume this is because I've still got a lot to learn, but the interesting thing is, clicking never really seemed like a slow way to do it. I mean, in the time it takes for the global CD to resolve, I always have my mouse over top of the next ability in my rotation, and since there is really no way to avoid the global CD, I assumed I was already at maximum speed. Switching to keybindings seemed pointless because I would still have to wait for the global CD before activating my next ability. Clicking also allows me to keep my attention more focused on my surroundings and only have to worry about strafing. What are your thoughts on this? If you're already ahead of the gobal CD as a clicker, is there still something to be gained from switching to keybindings?

Hmm, I see. Well, I guess I have lots of work to do then. I'll still be sticking with Combat spec, since I do love how it plays, but having to switch to keybinding will be a struggle I'm sure. Thanks for all the useful info; much appreciated!

My dream Warzone? Easy: one where everyone on the team actually cooperates towards the common goal, where everyone calls incomings promptly, focuses down the healers first instead of randomly beating on whatever is in their face atm, and there is open communication between players on what strategy to take at turning points in the match. Pretty much impossible right now, but I can dream............

First off, I absolutely LOVE this thread! Ever since I started leveling a Sent some months ago, I have been drawn to the intricacies of the Combat spec, and this guide has helped me quite a bit in improving my play. Anything in PvE is a breeze, but one thing I do still struggle with (and I have a feeling that most people new to PvP also struggle with) is the obscene amount of movement that comes into play. I have the "rotation" down well enough, I have decent gear; but the most obvious difference between PvE and PvP play in my mind is the fact that other players are CONSTANTLY on the move. The NPCs on the other hand barely move at all; they simply stand there shooting; stabbing at you, and it's very easy to keep track of your procs etc. In PvP, things are much different, as players don't just stand there attacking. I have great difficulty with keeping my character moving around, keeping my eye on the guy I'm attacking, the action around me, AND my procs/CDs. It's just all too much to handle at once. When I begin my rotation, not 1 second after it starts, my opponent always seems to have moved and is now behind me attacking, or on my left attacking, or my right. Consequently I myself have to turn to avoid getting an error message stating I must be facing my target to attack it. By the time I do, they have already moved to a different position, all the while continuing to attack me! Now, I understand that a certain amount of movement is required for certain classes, such as Assassins and Scoundrels, but it seems like even the "less mobile" classes like Juggs or Sorcerers are constantly on the move. Is this one of those things that simply requires practice to help with? Or is there another way everyone manages to keep track of everything at once? Keep in mind, I don't have top-of-the-line gaming software/computer, nor do I use keybindings (I use my mouse for abilities). Should that change when I play my Sent? Or is it just "practice makes perfect"?

Can anyone confirm there is a problem with buying CCs? From the Store page (accessed via the tabs at the top of the Homepage screen), I scrolled down to the place where the different quantities and prices of CCs were located, and clicked the "Buy Now" button underneath them. This then took me to a page in the "My Account" section where it listed my previous purchases with CCs, a short paragraph on what CCs are, and another "Buy Now" button that just sent me back to the store page. Normally, when you buy CCs through the Store, you are taken you a secure page where you enter your information etc., but this time the "Buy Now" buttons sent me through a loop of going one page to another without ever getting to confirm my purchase. What is going on here?

Sentinels don't get Force Pull; Shadows do.

I dunno about you guys, but I absolutely hate it whenever Talos says "I still remember SOME of my combat training!" The over-emphasis he puts on the word "some" combined with his accent and sheer casualness with which he says it always gets me. I mean, here you are, this big bad Sith lord shooting lightning around, and next to you is this skinny British dude talking about how he's forgotten most of his fighting skills...............it's so wrong.

I recently switched from Focus on my Sent to Combat, just for a change of pace. First of all, I'm finding it to be exceptional DPS-wise, and i enjoy it a lot more than I ever enjoyed Focus. The thing I especially like about Combat is how incredibly fast you put out attacks; with Focus, I felt more consistent and smooth running through my normal rotation, but Combat is more hectic and rapid in every way. I noticed early on how much I was spamming Zen in this spec for the extra Alacrity, so I decided to go completely overboard and add a bunch of Alacrity mods to my equipment. I am currently sitting at around 10% Alacrity rating, not counting Zen. I know a lot of players prefer to stack Accuracy and Crit over Alacrity, but coming from Focus, I figured Combat would play best as a "quantity over quality" spec, which is why I loaded up on Alacrity in the first place. Is this approach the most efficient way to play Combat, both in PvP and PvE? How much does your DPS suffer when prioritizing Alacrity over other stats? Is there a "recommended" Alacrity rating? Also, how high can you theoretically stack Alacrity when it comes to equipment mods; I don't see many of them available, on the GTN or from vendors.

Space bar ftw!

This works. Additionally, you could try not doing those Dalies and FPs in between story missions. I, for example, have NEVER done a single FP, Daily, Warzone, or Heroic mission on any of the 3 level 50 characters I currently have. Even doing this, I manage to keep up with the story content quite fine, always being at just the right level to have the game be a challenge and not completely easy-mode.

So, after finally getting my Inquisitor to level 50, I decided to roll a Warrior and (just for the hell of it) made him a LS Sith. I was unsure as to how this would play out story-wise, as I had been going full DS with my Inquisitor; but after running with my now-Jugg to level 30, I must say they really did a great job of integrating those LS choices into your character's personality. It feels authentic, in a way, and I'm glad the option is available for those that want to go outside the norm (take THAT, society!). Anyway, I had a few random questions as well: 1. Is there a cap to your natural damage reduction? Right now, at level 30, mine is at 42.06%. How much higher can it get? Can you really end up with 50% or more passive damage reduction at level 50 or something? 2. How does this natural damage reduction stack with abilities such as Saber Ward and Invincible? For example, my damage reduction is 42% now; if I activate Invincible, then take damage from an attack that normally does 100 damage, how much would I take? 18 damage (42% + 40% = 82% total reduction) or 35 (42% of the damage is eliminated first, then 40% of the remainder) damage? Sorry if this should be in the Jugg forum instead. Thanks in advance!

Ok, so I've been playing my way through the game ever since I started a few weeks ago and managed to get my Sith Inquisitor to level 25 with some help from the various tutorials. I feel like I have a good grasp of the game's mechanics (in PvE anyway; I'm not really interested in the PvP environment), but one thing that has been bugging me is how the combat system works. Basically, it is nothing like how real combat is supposed to be at all. I mean, all you do is stand in one spot shooting Force Lightning or whatever at the target while they stand in the same spot shooting their blaster at you, or they run up to you and you both stand still while hitting each other. There is no variety to your attacks! When you click the "saber strike" button, your character makes the same moves no matter how many times you click it. There is no way to adapt your fighting stance to counter the opponent's, or mimic real fighting in any way. The closest thing to what I'd imagine real SW combat to be is the Defense Rating, which never seems to get higher than 10%; and I will bet anyone any kind of money that a real Jedi or Sith who could only deflect attacks 10% of the time would never make it through basic training. Is this game really only about who can click their buttons the fastest? Is there no strategic way to approach combat, or are you forced to fight like zombies all the time?