Fix the Sentinel Please!

[AnotherAgnostic]

The sentinel is too squishy. It's that simple. After level 28 my toon is dying constantly. I'm not the only one noticing there is a problem. So are you going to fix this? I want to have fun again but that's impossible when my favorite class is unplayable.

[Miqunator]

Only thing I noticed about knights was that some of the class quests felt more difficult than other classes'. Forcing you to use Kira for them also made it harder but I actually found it fun having to use all my abilities to stay alive so this isn't a complaint from my side.

 

I have yet to encounter any normal quest that I couldn't do by having T7 offtank stuff while I nuke down one target at a time, the bot can take more beating than you can too

[Dirtylobster]

everything will be fine when you get your healer

[rufix]

sentinel is fine re-roll different character and don't cry at forum

 

95% players can't play with sentinel and u are one of them

[BrysBeddict]

everything will be fine when you get your healer

 

Agree. After getting Doc I breezed through the class missions. Part of that also might have been me being 3-4 levels above my class mission levels due to doing WZs and FPs.

[eeCyaJ]

Here's the thing. I started the Hoth bonus missions last night. It's a level 47 quest chain with champion level bosses. I did this with Rusk. Yes, Rusk. 0 deaths at level 45. My gear is still mostly level 40 PvP gear with a couple of new mods from the quest chain slotted in.

 

PvP, I'm squishy, but my job is to hang back and harass, not force leap into the nearest group of Imps. That's for when I play my tank.

 

Look at the really tough bosses as a gear / skill check. You have the tools at your disposal to take down any PvE story-based mob within 4-5 levels of you, regardless of companion choice. You just have to learn how to use them.

[selectah]

sentinel is fine re-roll different character and don't cry at forum

 

95% players can't play with sentinel and u are one of them

 

As sad as it sound`s but i do actually have to agree to that. Not the 95%, but sent is (by far) the hardest class to play (bad move bioware... Making the flashy ones hard to play...), and if your struggeling at lvl28 already you won`t have much fun for at least the next 12 lvl, and probably even above...

[Darkshadz]

The sentinel is too squishy. It's that simple. After level 28 my toon is dying constantly. I'm not the only one noticing there is a problem. So are you going to fix this? I want to have fun again but that's impossible when my favorite class is unplayable.

 

Upgrade your equipment and make sure your companion's equipment is upgraded too. You're not supposed to struggle at lvl 28 with your sentinel.

Edited February 1, 2012 by Darkshadz

[Outlawe]

Lol I think it is time this forum had a search function.

[DED_ZAXAP]

Take T7, equip him and you will have no problems. And one thing - read primer, it will help you. Our class is very cool, sometimes hard, but I had problems only with elite casting Siths and several other elites. Do not forget to use your defence abilities and everything gonna be ok)

[SteveGarbage]

My biggest piece of advice for success with Sentinel leveling is to stay a couple levels ahead of the content. Having two to five levels can make all the difference. Keep your gear up to date.

 

The Sentinel questline does seem to make a significant jump in difficulty during the Tatooine/Alderaan series, so if you were playing poorly on Coruscant and Taris and Nar Shadaa and getting by, you may find that you won't be able to continue like that.

 

I struggled with Sentinel when I started (my first class, my first major MMO experience), but after I came to the forums and did a lot of reading and study, I've improved greatly. Haven't had a problem since and I'm now 43 and questing through Hoth, even without using Doc (although he admittedly does make everything about 10x easier).

 

The other quick tip I'll give you is - USE FORCE KICK. If you do not use Force Kick frequently and effectively to interrupt skills as a Sentinel you WILL die. A lot. I have it bound to the tilde key next to 1 so it's easy for me to access. It's the most important skill you can use when fighting tougher enemies.

[AnotherAgnostic]

Thanks for all the advice. I'll ignore the one's putting me down for stating the truth. It's all good. I tried many of the things suggested. Beefed up T7 and my armor... worked on my rotation (rotation was fine until mid twenties). Nothing worked. I just feel cheated somehow. This class seemed so awesome and powerful... then all of a sudden it becomes frustrating and weak. I don't know if that was the intent but that's what it is.

 

I really love this game and had super fun... until now. Was planning on years of fun. I cannot be the only one who feels this way but if they don't fix this "issue" then it will probably be put on the shelf with all the other games that are almost fun to play. I know, I know... who cares if I give up on this game. I keep sending support tickets on this issue and all I get back is the standard robo response. Lame!

[KilllerRock]

Thanks for all the advice. I'll ignore the one's putting me down for stating the truth. It's all good. I tried many of the things suggested. Beefed up T7 and my armor... worked on my rotation (rotation was fine until mid twenties). Nothing worked. I just feel cheated somehow. This class seemed so awesome and powerful... then all of a sudden it becomes frustrating and weak. I don't know if that was the intent but that's what it is.

 

I really love this game and had super fun... until now. Was planning on years of fun. I cannot be the only one who feels this way but if they don't fix this "issue" then it will probably be put on the shelf with all the other games that are almost fun to play. I know, I know... who cares if I give up on this game. I keep sending support tickets on this issue and all I get back is the standard robo response. Lame!

 

This class can kill anything. I died a lot lvling me sentinel. but that was because i sometimes slacked off because you fight waves of easy mobs that you tear through, to then hit some champion/elite whatever and some adds and realize its a harder fight than you expect.

 

But you can beat anything as a sentinel. I personally used Kira all the way to 50. kill the weakest adds first. Sometimes my fights were so hard, i had to CC the named gold elite, have kira kill 1 weak add, while i kill another, then i would tank the elite till about 50% health, vanish away, have kira tank until i pulled aggro again, pop shields and health pots, stuns and interrupts. Leveling a sent is no cake walk.

[AnotherAgnostic]

This class can kill anything. I died a lot lvling me sentinel. but that was because i sometimes slacked off because you fight waves of easy mobs that you tear through, to then hit some champion/elite whatever and some adds and realize its a harder fight than you expect.

 

But you can beat anything as a sentinel. I personally used Kira all the way to 50. kill the weakest adds first. Sometimes my fights were so hard, i had to CC the named gold elite, have kira kill 1 weak add, while i kill another, then i would tank the elite till about 50% health, vanish away, have kira tank until i pulled aggro again, pop shields and health pots, stuns and interrupts. Leveling a sent is no cake walk.

 

I pop my shields, health pots and all that... but then some average strong mob has a pretty good chance of taking me down... every fight is chancy. You might have a point about the easy ones setting you up for a giant fail but my point is this... This game is about having fun... at least that was the premise. If I have to work this hard to kill something, where is the fun in that? And if that is the case... then make it hard all the way through... don't give me a false impression and then pull the rug after I have 25 plus levels invested.

[KilllerRock]

I pop my shields, health pots and all that... but then some average strong mob has a pretty good chance of taking me down... every fight is chancy. You might have a point about the easy ones setting you up for a giant fail but my point is this... This game is about having fun... at least that was the premise. If I have to work this hard to kill something, where is the fun in that? And if that is the case... then make it hard all the way through... don't give me a false impression and then pull the rug after I have 25 plus levels invested.

 

every game has boss fights that are harder than your normal fights. If you want the fights to be easier, gain a level doing flashpoints/space missions/ pvp Warzones. You can make any fight easier by just leveling through other means and coming back to it at a higher level. That or accept the challenging fights. Or reroll different class.

[AnotherAgnostic]

every game has boss fights that are harder than your normal fights. If you want the fights to be easier, gain a level doing flashpoints/space missions/ pvp Warzones. You can make any fight easier by just leveling through other means and coming back to it at a higher level. That or accept the challenging fights. Or reroll different class.

 

I've rerolled most of the available toons... but cannot enjoy them because I'm so pissed about my Sentinel. I was really loving it... and now it's a total bummer. I like the sage pretty well... if I can just stop being angry about this. If BW would just tell me they are going to fix this in the future then I could park my sentinel and enjoy the game... instead all they do is avoid the question. I also think the fact we have to out level mobs in order to survive is a prime indicator that something is wrong. I'll just keep sending tickets until they actually reply or kick me out to the game.

[AstralProjection]

The others in this thread have given you great advice and facts about our class. For one this is a tricky class to play as far as MMOs go. This is your first so that's only going to make it seem harder.

 

On top of that, TOR's bosses and lieutenants on average are more challenging than most games, which is a good thing. In other MMOs I rarely had to worry about dying to elites and actually think about my attack chain and skills on more than a basic level.

 

If you're finding EVERY single encounter is hard, even the regular ones, first I'd take a look at your companion choice and your gear. A lot of times it's easy to say that your gear is up to date, when really your mods are about 6 levels back, or you have a blue quality chest, but really a new one hasn't dropped in 7 or 8 levels... Sentinels are very gear dependent, and every point you can keep at max level will benefit you as you level up. Filling in every spot in your gear that you can is the best way you can spend on your character, probably more important than even buying speeders, definitely more important than professions/crafting.

 

Honestly, the biggest thing I think most Sentinels haven't stopped to do is really look at their abilities and learn what ALL of them do. We don't have skill bloat in this game IMO, we have lots of useful skills that we actually NEED for a change.

 

Your hardest task as a Sentinel is going to be remembering 30 or 40 abilities and knowing the right moment to use them instinctively. If you can pull that off, it will really serve you in both PVP and PVE environments, not just leveling up. Honestly, I think a lot of people are just too lazy to learn them, bind them, then use them. If you're not doing those three things with your skills, you're choosing to hold yourself back.

 

As others have said, interrupt when at all possible. Use Pacify on tough mobs. Use Force Stasis to mitigate damage from tough mobs after you've mopped up the weak ones with them. Use Awe on groups of mobs liberally if you're having a hard time with trash packs. Most of all, learn how to optimize your Zen usage depending on your spec.

 

Once you get Doc, for most players your life will get easier. Kill mobs and keep them off Doc, and he keeps you alive. Until then, good luck. There is a gap there that becomes very difficult for most players.

 

Don't be afraid to ask honest questions here either...for all the jerk answers you might get there are a lot of nice, helpful folks that will give you a real answer too.

[SunwindIon]

the thing is, sentinel sucks while levelling and without the healer companion, but if they buff sentinel to cope alone at lower levels, it will make us too OP at higher levels. solution? give us the healer companion sooner. Edited February 3, 2012 by SunwindIon

[Apocalypse-]

We get our healers late while also getting core skills high in trees. The first is unfixable due to story, though you can use your Ship droid as a healer (find a cybertech and beg him for droid parts if they're not on the GTN). The latter is the only way you can get variety with all the skill trees doing DPS. This makes Alderaan and Balmorra rough, though I went through both using Kira. If you've got T7 geared and are letting him tank, your off-healing from Zen should keep him up long enough to down what you need.

 

Hard does NOT equal broken.