LvLing as combat, am I doing it wrong?

[OeSan]

I am currently reading that watchman is amazing, DoTs and heals and decent aoe damage but not as much single target burst as combat. Im 24.5 (YAY SPEEDER INCOMMING) and have been using the sentinal to mostly good success except some 1v1 vr champion bosses. I like the feel of having strong burst and fear doing slow dot damage but want your opinions on watchman. Is it realy that much better, or just better vr big bosses thanks to the heals? Is the burst damage that much lower that I will hate fighting lower lvl and easier enemies and only enjoy it for the ease of which i can gfight bosses?

 

Thoughts? And what really is the advantage of the focus tree? Just curious.

 

Last q, howwould YOU spend your talents on a sent at lvl 25 for optimal leveling, and why?

 

Thanks kindly.

[JediLupus]

I can't speak for watchmen, but Combat is just plain rough until 40. On bosses/champions you just have to be prepared and set to hit every cooldown you have as combat and pray.

[Fascion]

To be honest, you are right about the level that both start to look really nice for their own reasons.

 

At 27, Combat will guarantee criticals on Blade Storm, resulting in a substantial increase to your DPS and burst. Shortly after that, you will be able to drastically reduce the focus cost of most of your major attacks, leading to yet more DPS.

 

At 26, Watchman all but trivializes all boss fights with an interruptable mechanic. A couple levels more and you'll have more Centering that you will know what to do with. A couple more, more focus than you'll know what to do with. At 40, you'll know what to do with all that focus and have burst capabilities at least equal to the Combat spec, if not a tad more.

 

At level 32, you'll also get access to Cyclone Slash, a frontal AOE. Two points invested into the Watchman tree reduces the cost of this ability to the point that it becomes just shy of infinitely spammable alongside Zealous Strike. When you are still on your PvE grind, this is invaluable. For Combat, that means -2 skill points out of your tree, which isn't a big deal at 32. For Watchman, it's right in with your primary build anyway.

[lorddakar]

Its really about useing your saber ward, zen, force stasis, cauterize at the right times same with your interrupts. I first force leap in, then use zealous strike, then i pop overload saber, rebuke, and use cauterize than use force stasis, using force stasis will give you free focus while being used once those two stop i use master strike and if you have zen built up use it as much as possible.

[OeSan]

Thanks, still a lot unanswered though. I can figure out my rotations on my own, my worry is that at 25, if i try watchman, i'll have no burst. And also, does anyone ever go focus?

[Powerhowse]

Watchmen has quite a bit of burst as the dots are all 6 secs, unlike normal dots that are in the other classes. Also with juyo stacks I can put out quite a bit of dps without dots with a vicious slash only costing like 2 focus with the 1 refund and ravage.

 

As far as combat, I have no idea as I have only level up as watchmen.

 

Build: Lvl 26

 

Once you get your deadly saber, and get talent points spent into blurred speed and close quarters the class style really starts to open up, as you consistently apply dots to everything. Not to mention with the cheap cost to aoes, taking out close groups of weak mobs with cyclone slash and force sweep is very easy. That option really only opens up at 32 though, but once you get it, wow. The rest of my view point on it can be seen below in another post I made.

 

Not having problems with my watchmen sentinel who is 36 atm. My marauder annihilation I doubt will be any different unless the mobs on the imp side are way tougher, which I doubt.

 

Your right marauders don't have alot of cc's but I have a good amount of debuffs, buffs, and interrupts. Maybe the carnage and rage builds need buffs, but annihilation/watchmen is fine. I can heal off my bleeds, interrupt almost all the bosses abilities, can generate rage off of my 0 meter force leap, battering assault, and my bleeds. I can active my 30 stacks quite quickly too, every 8 spenders, not to mention I do quite a bit of damage with my bleeds.

 

Build

 

Rotation:

Rupture > Force Charge + Deadly Saber > Annihilate > (Ravage) > (Vicious Slash) > Battering Assault > Assault

 

Rupture > Force Charge + Deadly Saber > (Retaliation until I get annihilate)> (Ravage) > (Vicious Slash) > Battering Assault > Assault

 

where everything in brackets is bound to special rules.

Ravage: Only if Rupture, Saber and Annihilate are on CD more than 4,5 Seconds, so you still can build up the core ragepool.

Vicious Slash: as rage dump only if you are on 7 rage or higher, roughly said.

 

Rotation came from: Sithwarrior.com

Edited January 16, 2012 by Powerhowse

[OeSan]

I'll give it a shot, thanks kindly.

[OeSan]

ok, now that I've respecced im confused, what would my rotation be at lvl 25. HALP!

[Powerhowse]

Rotation for 25:

This rotation is listed in priority. Cauterize when off cool-down takes priority over Overload Saber for example. If you don't have enough focus for Cauterize you go down the rotation to your focus building abilities, Zealous Strike and Strike. If Cauterize is on cool-down, but you have focus to spend you go down to the rotation to Overload Saber then Riposte. If that is on cool-down follow this:

• Master Strike: Only if Cauterize, Saber and Merciless Slash are on CD more than 4,5 Seconds, so you still can build up the core focus pool.
  
• Slash: as focus dump only if you are on 7 focus or higher, roughly said.
  

 

Try to keep up around 5 focus up while you abilities are on cool-down so that you can spend the focus once you damage abilities or utility abilities come off cool-down/become available.

 

Opening Rotation: Force Sweep + Overload Saber > Zealous Strike > Cauterize

 

Then you go into the priority rotation: Cauterize > Overload > Riposte> (Master Strike) > (Slash) > Zealous Strike > Strike

 

Once 26:

Once you hit 26 and get the 0 meter force charge rotation your rotation should be:

Cauterize > Force Sweep + Overload Saber > (Riposte until I get Merciless Slash)> (Master Strike) > (Slash) > Zealous Strike > Strike

 

where everything in brackets is bound to special rules.

• Master Strike: Only if Cauterize, Saber and Merciless Slash are on CD more than 4,5 Seconds, so you still can build up the core focus pool.
  
• Slash: as focus dump only if you are on 7 focus or higher, roughly said.
  

 

Generally though once you are 26 you open up with the Force Sweep + Overload Saber, so that you can get to the target quickly. Don't walk up to the mob.

 

After 32, if you see a nice group of weak mobs together use Zealous Strike then Force Sweep then Cyclone Slash. Keep on spamming Cyclone Slash as much as possible till the group is dead. It only costs 1 rage and does a lot of dps to the trash and standard mobs, so you can take out a group quite easily.

Edited January 17, 2012 by Powerhowse

[Jayton]

Here is your problem dude nothing else matters but my post. Your leveling as combat spec.....................................................

[OeSan]

Here is your problem dude nothing else matters but my post. Your leveling as combat spec.....................................................

Useful, intelligent, and lacking any *******ery. Thanks.

[OeSan]

Rotation for 25:

This rotation is listed in priority. Cauterize when off cool-down takes priority over Overload Saber for example. If you don't have enough focus for Cauterize you go down the rotation to your focus building abilities, Zealous Strike and Strike. If Cauterize is on cool-down, but you have focus to spend you go down to the rotation to Overload Saber then Riposte. If that is on cool-down follow this:

• Master Strike: Only if Cauterize, Saber and Merciless Slash are on CD more than 4,5 Seconds, so you still can build up the core focus pool.
  
• Slash: as focus dump only if you are on 7 focus or higher, roughly said.
  

 

Try to keep up around 5 focus up while you abilities are on cool-down so that you can spend the focus once you damage abilities or utility abilities come off cool-down/become available.

 

Opening Rotation: Force Sweep + Overload Saber > Zealous Strike > Cauterize

 

Then you go into the priority rotation: Cauterize > Overload > Riposte> (Master Strike) > (Slash) > Zealous Strike > Strike

 

Once 26:

Once you hit 26 and get the 0 meter force charge rotation your rotation should be:

Cauterize > Force Sweep + Overload Saber > (Riposte until I get Merciless Slash)> (Master Strike) > (Slash) > Zealous Strike > Strike

 

where everything in brackets is bound to special rules.

• Master Strike: Only if Cauterize, Saber and Merciless Slash are on CD more than 4,5 Seconds, so you still can build up the core focus pool.
  
• Slash: as focus dump only if you are on 7 focus or higher, roughly said.
  

 

Generally though once you are 26 you open up with the Force Sweep + Overload Saber, so that you can get to the target quickly. Don't walk up to the mob.

 

After 32, if you see a nice group of weak mobs together use Zealous Strike then Force Sweep then Cyclone Slash. Keep on spamming Cyclone Slash as much as possible till the group is dead. It only costs 1 rage and does a lot of dps to the trash and standard mobs, so you can take out a group quite easily.

Thanks, this helped, I do feel like im doing a lot more damage in the time that my burn damages DoT.