BigCheeseX Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 (edited) http://youtu.be/WdaA_-Kpa_k Purpose: To contribute to the SWTOR PvP body of knowledge by demonstrating team coordination to achieve War Zones (WZ) objectives. This video is Vanguard specific; however, all PvPers should be able to gain from this with at least being aware of what their Vanguard teammate can bring to the table. Enjoy. Edited March 3, 2012 by BigCheeseX clarification Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StrykeHard Posted February 28, 2012 Share Posted February 28, 2012 Fantastic video. thanks. the on screen notes are very helpful, but could you make them stay up just a couple seconds more? i never thought of Vanguard as "support specialist" i thought i was the wrecking ball... now, i will play a little bit different. you seem to specialize in keeping people busy and focused on you, meanwhile your teammates drop bombs on them freely. if only i could get my ventrillo to install properly... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigCheeseX Posted February 29, 2012 Author Share Posted February 29, 2012 Strykehard - Thank you for the feedback, I am glad you enjoyed the video. I understand about the notes, i was torn between keeping the pace of the video moving and providing more time to read; I don't know if there is an easy answer. Regarding the wrecking ball, there is no doubt that can be the case and damage can be cumulatively high when the focus is DPS; however, I think there is much more to lend to team dynamics by exerting the control this build offers; using CC's at the right time, taking people out of position, getting in the grill of opponents and giving them a target so that your team can better focus fire, etc. There are specs of other classes that can kill much faster than a vanguard and in some cases they are glass cannon's, they are needed, just as healers are needed, all parties contribute to team success if they can be brought together. I will tell you that the enjoyment of the game is GREATLY enhanced with voice communication between a team, this is much better than solo queing. I recommend finding the right group and getting the communication working. Best wishes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rykke Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 I find that Vanguards are very capable of being the wrecking ball as an Assault one. Having ran the Shield/Assault spec intensely on its mirror the powertech, I find that you'll still put out ample amounts of damage if you do all these things a tank is a supposed to do. Since you're naturally trying to control the battle, your attention is focused on people who matter most in that game, your actions tend to pave way for the objective at hand. One last thing though it's trivial since you are bm geared. Other players who aren't as geared, know that harpoon pulls to the location you activate it at. It'll take a few tries but the most efficient way to pull people into acid is doing one jump in, pull, and jump out. If you pull this off successfully, you should take only one tick of damage from the pit. It also lowers the window of opportunity for someone to stun you over acid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NavLives Posted February 29, 2012 Share Posted February 29, 2012 Hey bud, excellent video. I'd say notes were set at a nice pace, just had to pause when i wanted a read. I'd like to know what you've experienced being in pug warzones with that kinda build and attitude as a "support specialist" - I like that definition too. Also, being in a team with some kind of voice communication does make success skyrocket. Makes a good game a great one Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigCheeseX Posted February 29, 2012 Author Share Posted February 29, 2012 @Rykke - I totally agree about the assault spec (spent some time as full assault), I LOVE the damage output, totally fun smoking people, but for me I just died too much. Too often in WZs I would find that all of a sudden 2-3 people were on me and I was soon in the res area. I have not tried the 21-2-18 shield/assault spec but I know the 4% damage reduction is just something I cannot give up, staying alive is just too valuable to everyone, I don't always have a healer on me. When/if rated arena type competition can be formed I may play around with the 21-2-18 spec to see how it works given my group comp. So yes, I agree with you about the wrecking ball that assault brings, I just find for larger group coordination the Iron Fist works best for my play style; it still does a lot of damage. The 21-2-18 spec should be able to employ the CC techniques in the video, one just has to decide if they want more damage or more durability with a bit more utility. Also great point about the acid pit. @Navlives - I certainly have run plenty of pugs and find that success comes from having others who play heads up. Doing the things demonstrated in the video make small differences that cumulatively can change a game (guard, taunt, peals/CC at the right time, guard a node/door) so when the other pug members are playing well success happens; playing in a team focused manner contributes to this. Check out my signature link to my youtube channel, I have a few other videos there; the one called, "Bring down the Beastman" was in a pug and though we lost the match you will see how for the short time the others in the party played well to support the team we were able to move the ball. So the bottom line is that if you play with a team focus (over perhaps a pure DPS kill everything focus) you are able to contribute in many small ways that lend themselves to success; doing this in a pug can work when others are like minded. When these techniques are employed with a dedicated team in full communication the victories just keep coming. This is demonstrated in a video that is also on my channel, an almost full Hutball match against another PvP guild's premade. ---Thank you both for the feedback and for taking the time to watch the video. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigCheeseX Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 I have slightly tweaked my spec: http://www.torhead.com/skill-calc#801GRGboRroMZMcrrZb.1 Dropped Gut, because of the pending DOT change and picked up Ceramic Plating. I like Ceramic Plating because of the additional absorb and the 30 seconds off of Adrenaline Rush. The result is your survivability is slightly notched up. On a small side note your rotation is also simplified. Some additional thoughts on group play: I premade WZ a lot and this spec really excels in organized group play (it also does well solo). I can't over emphasize taunts, take a few seconds and ensure you know who your top 2-3 opponents are who you will taunt and keep them taunted. Find opportunities to Storm into a group that is bunched up and put down your AOE taunt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
origional Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 (edited) I think you are wasting 2 points in front line defense. Riot strike is arguably the most useless ability we have. Wouldnt it be better in containment tactics to speed up the cryo cooldown? Or better yet, rebraced armour. How anyone can go shield spec then pass up a 16% armour increase.... Other than that, cool video. You play the game very much the same as I do and I believe its the most effective way to play. It works well in pugs and can actually make a huge difference as you can tie up two and sometimes 3 opponents whilst everyone else gets a numbers advantage. Recently we've been lucky enough to have two good vanguards on a regular basis and I think the imps were thoroughly unimpressed with just how hard it was to get by us. Im currently running as http://www.torhead.com/skill-calc#801GRGMbR0oZrsrMo0cZb.1 Edited March 3, 2012 by origional Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kokkos Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 I think you are wasting 2 points in front line defense. Riot strike is arguably the most useless ability we have. Wouldnt it be better in containment tactics to speed up the cryo cooldown? Or better yet, rebraced armour. How anyone can go shield spec then pass up a 16% armour increase.... you actually think interupt is our must useless ability? Cause i kinda disagree with that. Bringing it down to 6 sec cd is the only reason i pick Tactic over Assult. Ironfist spec is really fun and very tanky! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
origional Posted March 3, 2012 Share Posted March 3, 2012 (edited) Sorry I was thinking of Blitz. Similar icons. That said, still not sure id put points in it for a pvp build. I tend to fight at range as much as possible and only do melee for finishing blows or if I have no choice. Its a useful skill against healers but i dont think even with a cooldown its good enough to defeat their healing abilities. Edited March 3, 2012 by origional Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigCheeseX Posted March 3, 2012 Author Share Posted March 3, 2012 For PvP I highly recommend 2 points in front line defense; you will find against healers you can't Riot Strike often enough, even at 6 seconds. Not saying I catch every inturrupt but when you want to do it 6 seconds is golden. I like the two points in Shield Cycler; this gives ammo and is needed to trigger your absorb, in my opinion it is a must have first ability over ceramic plating. The Rebraced Armor is nice to have but we just don't have the points for it imo. Thanks for watching the video and yes I agree Vangards rock! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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