Anyone had any luck really pimping out their companions?

[QisaBluevixen]

Since I'm a cybertech and a biochem I can make nearly everything I need to really outfit my companions.

 

I started with Scorpio by:

 

• Buying orange commendation parts from various planets
  
• Filling them up with the top purple (level 50) crafted tanking mods and armor and buying purple enhancements off the GTN
  
• Making purple Veracity (i.e. tanking) earpieces and implants
  
• Buying a purple Veracity techstaff and shield on the GTN
  

 

The only way to make her tougher would be to make operation-level mods which I don't yet have recipes for.

 

But when I take her out to fight, she can't even tank a strong before dying. She's not bad at drawing aggro which allows me to backstab, but she can't take damage.

 

Anyone else had any luck with this?

[chuixupu]

I've got Dr. Lokin geared up in full Columi/rakata. As DPS I never feel that a tanking companion is helpful. When I'm healing, I use Kaliyo who's also wearing a good deal of columi/rakata gear, and she hold up pretty well. Someone in my guild claims to send her off to kill champions without any help, but he's got way too much time on his hands.

[DarthBloodloss]

I have my ranged DPS companion with full columi, a rakata rifle, augmented purple ear / implants / belt / bracers. He still sucks.

 

Also have a melee companion geared exactly the same but with a purple augmented techstaff instead. Same results.

 

My tank companion in full columi, columi pistol, augmented purple ear / implants / belt / bracers. He still dies like a noob.

 

But Mako...my healing companion. Shes wearing only Tionese, and uses an orange pistol. She has purple augmented ear / imaplants / belt / bracers like the others.

 

She is my least geared companion but the one I use the most, and the only one worth using. I chose not to upgrade her to columi because I'm waiting for the extra rakata to start trickling down to her. She pulls her weight with minimal gear.

[Agemnon]

Kaliyo looks great in this armor, the skirt is a moddable heavy armor with the strength mods taken out and aim put in:

 

http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa445/wow176/Screenshot_2012-04-10_18_21_17_508854.jpg

 

http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa445/wow176/Screenshot_2012-04-10_18_21_26_980395.jpg

 

http://i1198.photobucket.com/albums/aa445/wow176/Screenshot_2012-04-10_18_32_04_775875.jpg

[skrill]

Docor Lokin is full Rakata other than Columi Implants.

 

Vector is full Columi

 

Temple is full Columi

 

Kaliyo is full Champ with one or two Rakata

 

Scorpio is cybertech'd up as much as she can be

[VulcanLogic]

I'm a sniper, so no heals, but my Kaliyo is in about columi level gear, has nearly 18k health, 15% defense, 40% shield, and 30% absorb. I've solo'd Freeing the Fallen (Belsavis heroic 2+ daily) with her, and I killed all the droids on the way to Jedi Master Averon, then him. She lives on the three packs, dies on the bigger packs but I can solo what's left by the time she dies. After multiple attempts and deaths, I was also able to solo Poisonous Strategy on Ilum, but I wouldn't recommend trying that. I could never do these things as full MM, but it's pretty easy to do as 2/16/23, as your AoE wastes the silvers right quick.

[Rhaphael]

I started with Scorpio by:

 

• Buying orange commendation parts from various planets
  
• Filling them up with the top purple (level 50) crafted tanking mods and armor and buying purple enhancements off the GTN
  
• Making purple Veracity (i.e. tanking) earpieces and implants
  
• Buying a purple Veracity techstaff and shield on the GTN
  

 

You just wasted a lot of commendations buying her gear she does not need. The moment you get her she is wearing moddable green gear, which acts exactly the same as moddable orange gear, both statistically and visually (since droid appearances don't change with gear). And as a Cybertech you can make moddable green gear for the 1 or 2 slots she's missing.

[QisaBluevixen]

You just wasted a lot of commendations buying her gear she does not need. The moment you get her she is wearing moddable green gear, which acts exactly the same as moddable orange gear, both statistically and visually (since droid appearances don't change with gear). And as a Cybertech you can make moddable green gear for the 1 or 2 slots she's missing.

 

"Wasted" is an overstatement. I had already sold her original parts and replaced them with blue ones I crafted. And the OJ parts I bought used up my planet commendations I would have had no other use for.

 

I wonder if I'm going down the wrong path and should look into some Presence gear instead. Anyone have any links to tests of the effectiveness of Presence? What does Presence do if put on the companion?

[DSafana]

All my companions have Champion gear, except SCORPIO. I pulled CHAMP gear MODS and put them in her gear. Then I used dailies to fit her armor. I'm thinking 1.2 will really deck them out when I can craft my own mods/armor and enhancements from RE'ing War Hero mods.

I know PVE gear would be better, since companions don't get much chance to PVP but the only PVE I do now is the dailies.

[Canis_Anubis]

But when I take her out to fight, she can't even tank a strong before dying. She's not bad at drawing aggro which allows me to backstab, but she can't take damage.

 

How are you running this test? Just letting Scorpio melee the strong while you stand and watch? Companion damage, especially tank companion damage, is really quite poor, as is their mitigation. At a rough estimate, they're about half as tough as a proper tank in equivalent gear. Being a healer, I've had no trouble getting her to tank stuff, however. I can trivially solo Freeing the Fallen by stealthing to the end and having her tank the Jedi at the back, even standing in the AOE throughout.

 

As concealment, I'm afraid you're probably better served by bringing Doctor Lokin than by running with Scorpio.

[Toogeloo]

Considering I am the only Agent in my Raid force, I get all Agent drops. By our raid rules, all Rakata gear is given to players of that class for mods or offspec. All Exotech gear is free roll for companions.

 

Temple is in almost full Rakata Enforcer gear. Lokin is in almost full Rakata Tech gear. I am in almost full Rakata Field Medic Gear. We are all missing Main Hands, Chest, and Legs. I also have 2 more Rakata Helms and Gloves in my Cargo Hold.

 

Kaliyo is in almost full Exotech Powertech gear. Vector and SCORPIO are wearing mostly junk, but I don't use them much anyways (crafting bots).

[VulcanLogic]

As a said earlier, Kaliyo is a beast, but I'm thinking about spending the credits to pimp out SCORPIO. I like her a lot more, and with the ability to pull armorings out of the raid gear, it would be worth it not to have to listen to Kaliyo's yammering.

[Rumblegut]

"Wasted" is an overstatement. I had already sold her original parts and replaced them with blue ones I crafted. And the OJ parts I bought used up my planet commendations I would have had no other use for.

 

I wonder if I'm going down the wrong path and should look into some Presence gear instead. Anyone have any links to tests of the effectiveness of Presence? What does Presence do if put on the companion?

 

Putting + presence gear on the companion doesn't help, I have tried and it by swapping in a + presence aug into an implant and none of the companion stats changed. If the character wears a + presence item it increases the companion's dps and health, but no secondary stats. Which makes +presence the worst stat to have on yourself for a tanking companion if you are a healer. The slight bump to health won't save the companion and the bump to dps isn't very noticable. I do have a set of +presence implants with +presence augs I wear when I have Temple or Vector out though. Wish I was as well equiped as some of the other poster's companions! Ah the disadvantage or working nights.