Infiltration Rotation/Priority for 2.0

[Eugee]

So having Force Breach off a cooldown was kind of jarring for me; pre-2.0 I typically just burned down my Force in a burst, then things kind of naturally worked out. I would either use CS because I didn't have enough Force for anything else, or else a proc would make Project or Shadow Strike cheaper than Clairvoyant Strike and I would use them then. I just used Force Break on cooldown. It meant I didn't need to stare at the buffs the whole time.

 

So now it's definitely weird. It seems like the priority now for 2.0 Infiltration is:

 

1. Force Breach @ 3 Binding Shadows

2. Project @ 2 Circling Shadows

3. Shadow Strike @ Infiltration Tactics

5. Clairvoyant Strike

6. Double Strike

 

Waiting for Breach@3 will save some GCDs, and be more efficient with your Force. Project will basically be used on cooldown since so many attacks give Circling, and once we get down to under 30 force, Shadow Strike will only light up with the Tactics proc. If you get to the point that Breach and Project are not ready, a Low Slash will give you a proc for Shadow Strike, as well. Otherwise I'm filling with Clairvoyant & Double until <30%.

 

This seem right? Force Breach without a cooldown is so jarring to how I've been playing--right now I still tend to just push it when Project & Shadow Strike aren't ready. Seems like I'm usually at 2-3 Binding Shadows, at least.

[Farstrider]

I am still looking at rotations - but am finding the following works:

 

Force Potency>Clairvoyant Strike x2>Project>Force Breach(if 2/3 stacks) or if Breach below 2 stacks & Infiltration Tactics up Shadowstrike (Force Stun first if soloing or Low Slash>Force Breach

 

Contrived I know, as I said I am still playing around, and am only 52. I really think that a Shadowstrike from Force Stealth should be buffed as an alpha strike ability, given auto-crit or somesuch. Stacking Force Breaches before using it seems awkward and differs based on proc...

 

I have to say I don't like it at the moment, but that can and probably will change. Overall the changes make me feel like my Shadow's DPS is unreliable.

 

If anyone has anything firmly tested or better I would love to see it.

 

Edited April 10, 2013 by Farstrider

[KingpinDragon]

I am still looking at rotations - but am finding the following works:

 

Force Potency>Clairvoyant Strike x2>Project>Force Breach(if 2/3 stacks) or if Breach below 2 stacks & Infiltration Tactics up Shadowstrike (Force Stun first if soloing or Low Slash>Force Breach

 

Contrived I know, as I said I am still playing around, and am only 52. I really think that a Shadowstrike from Force Stealth should be buffed as an alpha strike ability, given auto-crit or somesuch. Stacking Force Breaches before using it seems awkward and differs based on proc...

 

I have to say I don't like it at the moment, but that can and probably will change. Overall the changes make me feel like my Shadow's DPS is unreliable.

 

If anyone has anything firmly tested or better I would love to see it.

 

 

Force Potency gives 3 stacks of binding shadows instantly, if spec'd. so it's best to use Force Breach before you use project as not to waste the (w/ 50/100%) binding shadows proc.

Edited April 10, 2013 by KingpinDragon

[Nieky]

Force Potency gives 3 stacks of binding shadows instantly, if spec'd. so it's best to use Force Breach before you use project w/ 50/100% binding shadows proc.

 

^This.

 

I'm still playing around with it as well and ran only Ops last night and was using the following:

 

This is what I was using on Elite Trash Mobs, Boss rotatation varied.

 

From Stealth:

Blackout>Shadow Strike>CSx2>Project>Force Breach (usually at 3)> CSx2>Project>Force Breach (at least 2)>Spinning Strike>Force Potency> Force Breach>Spinning Strike> Project

 

Still messing around with it. Feels like Potency Should be used earlier but maybe its best to be saved for when energy is running low and stacks are harder to build.

 

I did find myself pretty much looking at my "buffs" a heck of a lot more than previous to 2.0.

Edited April 10, 2013 by Nieky

[Eugee]

For your opener I'm pretty sure that Spinning Kick opener also grants Tactics for your first Shadow Strike. I'm guilty of just dumping Force inefficiently till I get below 30 though, because I'm loathe to watch my buffs closely.

 

Once you get down to sub-30, Shadow Strike won't light up till you have Tactics, anyway. Project will have 2 stacks built before it's off cooldown, and so all I'm really watching for is my Binding Shadows stacks to Breach. Even then, I mostly just have a feel for when to use it, as opposed to watching for the buff. I'm lazy.

 

My hotkeys (1-4) are:

1 - Project

2 - Shadow Strike

3 - Clairvoyant Strike

4 - Force Breach

 

Then I basically just push whatever is lit up the farthest to the left. I'm sure my initial opener is probably not perfect, but once my Force is down to sub-30, it works pretty well. I wish Force Breach still had a cooldown, because then I would be comfortable that I'll have at least 2 stacks before the next use of Breach. As it stands, I just pop Breach after my Tactics-Shadow Strike.

 

Don't be lazy like me. Get better eyesight. (What I would LOVE is if we could have a highlight on the Breach button when we hit 3 stacks.)

[Nieky]

For your opener I'm pretty sure that Spinning Kick opener also grants Tactics for your first Shadow Strike. I'm guilty of just dumping Force inefficiently till I get below 30 though, because I'm loathe to watch my buffs closely.

 

Once you get down to sub-30, Shadow Strike won't light up till you have Tactics, anyway. Project will have 2 stacks built before it's off cooldown, and so all I'm really watching for is my Binding Shadows stacks to Breach. Even then, I mostly just have a feel for when to use it, as opposed to watching for the buff. I'm lazy.

 

My hotkeys (1-4) are:

1 - Project

2 - Shadow Strike

3 - Clairvoyant Strike

4 - Force Breach

 

Then I basically just push whatever is lit up the farthest to the left. I'm sure my initial opener is probably not perfect, but once my Force is down to sub-30, it works pretty well. I wish Force Breach still had a cooldown, because then I would be comfortable that I'll have at least 2 stacks before the next use of Breach. As it stands, I just pop Breach after my Tactics-Shadow Strike.

 

Don't be lazy like me. Get better eyesight. (What I would LOVE is if we could have a highlight on the Breach button when we hit 3 stacks.)

 

I also thought I read somewhere that a UI feature was coming that would let us increase the size of the buffs icons. Makes it easier for healers to cleanse when in groups, and easier for us to see what's available for use.

Edited April 10, 2013 by Nieky

[stephenalandavie]

Force potency > Spinning kick > Shadow strike > force breach > CS > project > low slash > shadow strike > cloak > repeat

[ProphetABK]

It seems important to note that opening up with two Clairvoyant strikes is going to increase your passive damage from your shadow technique, which is now an important thing to take into consideration. Project still does a fair amount of damage in conjunction with the bonus damage from the shadow technique as its put on a separate timer.

 

It seems the rotation is similar to the pre-2.0, however you know have two abilities that will proc shadow-strike on a separate timer. You are relying less on the damage from project, so utilizing low-strike to get behind the mob is important if you have the aggro (won't happen on a boss fight, but you get the idea).

 

CS x 2 > Project > (Force breach if x3, shadow strike if proc) > (The opposite of what you just used) > Low-slash > shadow strike > project ((Note: I still have extra 50 force from the force-mystic set, so hopefully 110 is enough to pull this off))

 

Using your buffs tactically is now required to do decent DPS. So if you don't have them on cooldown, you can pop potency and readiness after your first 2 CS's, and use Force breach, then project, then continue with your basic rotation.

 

Alacrity will now be a stat that will be worth investing in, I have yet to have an opportunity to see how big of an impact it will make on the speed of the rotation. More than likely this will be a stat priority after Critical and Surge.

[Przemo_No]

to be true i am still confused what works best and currently it is pretty much trying this or that combination.

 

I tend to think that Force Breach now can be used as Saber Strike previously. Just as a filler. ( I am still VERY unhappy for such a huge nerf to one of my favorite attacks).

Nevertheless 2 CS as opener seems rightful, however I think it takes too long to apply all three steps 2x CS+ 1 project, (i.e. in WZ that is pretty much always too long and you get stunned in meantime)

 

Also I would need a magnifying glass to actually SEE when the proc for FB pops up, so it becomes actually effective.

 

On a good side, the shortened cooldown on Force Potency is a great thing.

 

But the phase walk...geez, only useful in Warzones and only on those where you need to guard the node.

 

Well, still testing... we will see...

[Liryc]

Force potency > Spinning kick > Shadow strike > force breach > CS > project > low slash > shadow strike > cloak > repeat

 

I like where you are going with the whole stealth & repeat, but spinning kick's CD is too high to repeat that exact sequence with another spinning kick unfortunately. Also you'd have to hit force pot the 2nd time after coming back out of stealth (i believe) as the CD on force pot doesnt reset until you come out of stealth. I could be wrong on that, but i'm pretty sure thats the case....need to confirm.

[Leafy_Bug]

Force potency > Spinning kick > Shadow strike > force breach > CS > project > low slash > shadow strike > cloak > repeat

 

Pretty much WIN button right there. 10k shadow strikes have never been more beautiful. Snipers. sorcs, PT's dying everywhere. Just like in the past, with a nice twist from phasewalk, you can kill 2-3 people guarding a node.

[Bronaimeth]

First thing, you shouldn't use potency before your knockdown, as you'll lose a charge for a 1k hit lol.

 

Spinning kick > shadow strike > potency > breach(at this point honestly you're in execute range, or have a shadow strike proc again) CSx2 > project.

[ArchangelLBC]

First thing, you shouldn't use potency before your knockdown, as you'll lose a charge for a 1k hit lol.

 

Spinning kick > shadow strike > potency > breach(at this point honestly you're in execute range, or have a shadow strike proc again) CSx2 > project.

 

 

You don't use potency for the charges. You use it for the Breaching Shadow stacks for a fully buffed Force Breach. Unless I'm having a total brain fart and force breach resets on stealth and not exiting stealth, but in that case you find a quick place to hide, unstealth, use Force Potency, and then restealth.

 

Either way, the point is you Open with spinning kick > Shadow Strike > Breach > Low Slash > Potency > Breach > Shadow Strike > > Project > Execute > Dead, or something along those lines (I haven't gotten a chance to play my shadow yet in 2.0).

[VigDiath]

Anyone found a useful Infiltration build yet. I've got one I've been using in PvP that does well but wasn't sure of some of the talents I should be using.

 

Actually, I believe this is the build I'm using right now. I'm not at home to check.

http://www.swtor-spy.com/skill-tree-calculator/jedi-shadow/20/?build=002300000000000000000000000000000320230221112030221022000211001000000000000000000000000000000000&ver=20

 

Anyway, I did a few matches in this spec and loved it. I'm still a level 50 (will be leveling Makeb Sunday) but so far my numbers have been outstanding. I tried balance which was the spec I used for almost a year and was disappointed. Anyway, loving the new build in 2.0 I just want to know if I can better results.

[RankorSSGS]

Potency resets as soon as you exit combat. Stealth has nothing to do with it.

 

EDIT: Throwing in my opinion on full Infiltration as it is now, I absolutely love it. For the first time since rolling the class back in 1.2 I actually do not feel like I'm gimping myself by playing the spec. It was a passable spec from 1.4-1.7, but there was still always the nagging sense that if I was a responsible player, I would be playing a tank hybrid or Wakajinn. Now, I feel like full Infil is fully viable at least in regs. I actually think it will outperform a Wakajinn 2.0 spec in most cases. The key to 2.0 Infil is not overlapping procs (Infiltration Tactics, Breaching Shadows etc) and trying to maximize your chances for Potency resets. I've adopted what I call a "light combat" playstyle. What I mean by this is trying to engage the least amount of opponents possible. Rather than charging in and going after everything, which I did with 1.4 Infil, now I try to pick a target, open on him, and between the 2 SS procs, Potency, and the buff to our execute phase, normally kill them. If the only target I was in combat with dies, I leave combat, which means a Potency reset. Then pick another single target, and repeat. There have been games where I've been able to get a dozen or so Potency charges within a single minute just by playing like this. Of course, this is not always possible, you need to be using your aoe taunts off cd still, and you will have to swap targets if someone else is capping your node or door or w/e. But I find that for the most part, being conservative with entering combat leads to the best results.

 

Now, I think that a big advantage full Infiltration has over a Wakajinn 2.0 build is that all of it is single target damage. FiB is aoe, and its radius, and maximum target number was buffed with 2.0. With the light combat playstyle, nothing is worse than trying to kill your single opponent, and then FiB puts you in combat with 3 more enemies. This hurts your chances of Potency resets, which in turn greatly reduces the amount of fully charged Force Breaches you can dish out. Losing Clairvoyant Strike means Breaching Shadows are incredibly few and far between. Also, a big advantage of Wakajinn used to be that the addition of FiB meant another hard hitting ability added to your burst phase, but I'm finding that in 2.0, its overkill. I have zero problem taking someone from 100% to 0 as full Infil. The extra SS proc and our execute buff so far has proven to be all the damage I need. And we no longer need 2x CS as setup for burst, another huge boost to full Infil.

 

How I spec: http://www.swtor-spy.com/skill-tree-calculator/jedi-shadow/20/?build=002300000000000000000000000000000322230221102030221022000210001003020000000000000000000000000000&ver=20

Edited April 12, 2013 by RankorSSGS

[VigDiath]

Potency resets as soon as you exit combat. Stealth has nothing to do with it.

 

EDIT: Throwing in my opinion on full Infiltration as it is now, I absolutely love it. For the first time since rolling the class back in 1.2 I actually do not feel like I'm gimping myself by playing the spec. It was a passable spec from 1.4-1.7, but there was still always the nagging sense that if I was a responsible player, I would be playing a tank hybrid or Wakajinn. Now, I feel like full Infil is fully viable at least in regs. I actually think it will outperform a Wakajinn 2.0 spec in most cases. The key to 2.0 Infil is not overlapping procs (Infiltration Tactics, Breaching Shadows etc) and trying to maximize your chances for Potency resets. I've adopted what I call a "light combat" playstyle. What I mean by this is trying to engage the least amount of opponents possible. Rather than charging in and going after everything, which I did with 1.4 Infil, now I try to pick a target, open on him, and between the 2 SS procs, Potency, and the buff to our execute phase, normally kill them. If the only target I was in combat with dies, I leave combat, which means a Potency reset. Then pick another single target, and repeat. There have been games where I've been able to get a dozen or so Potency charges within a single minute just by playing like this. Of course, this is not always possible, you need to be using your aoe taunts off cd still, and you will have to swap targets if someone else is capping your node or door or w/e. But I find that for the most part, being conservative with entering combat leads to the best results.

 

Now, I think that a big advantage full Infiltration has over a Wakajinn 2.0 build is that all of it is single target damage. FiB is aoe, and its radius, and maximum target number was buffed with 2.0. With the light combat playstyle, nothing is worse than trying to kill your single opponent, and then FiB puts you in combat with 3 more enemies. This hurts your chances of Potency resets, which in turn greatly reduces the amount of fully charged Force Breaches you can dish out. Losing Clairvoyant Strike means Breaching Shadows are incredibly few and far between. Also, a big advantage of Wakajinn used to be that the addition of FiB meant another hard hitting ability added to your burst phase, but I'm finding that in 2.0, its overkill. I have zero problem taking someone from 100% to 0 as full Infil. The extra SS proc and our execute buff so far has proven to be all the damage I need. And we no longer need 2x CS as setup for burst, another huge boost to full Infil.

 

How I spec: http://www.swtor-spy.com/skill-tree-calculator/jedi-shadow/20/?build=002300000000000000000000000000000322230221102030221022000210001003020000000000000000000000000000&ver=20

 

I'll try that out when I get home.

[IInox]

See mmo-mechanics.com consular section

[DerekDrake]

You don't use potency for the charges. You use it for the Breaching Shadow stacks for a fully buffed Force Breach. Unless I'm having a total brain fart and force breach resets on stealth and not exiting stealth, but in that case you find a quick place to hide, unstealth, use Force Potency, and then restealth.

 

Either way, the point is you Open with spinning kick > Shadow Strike > Breach > Low Slash > Potency > Breach > Shadow Strike > > Project > Execute > Dead, or something along those lines (I haven't gotten a chance to play my shadow yet in 2.0).

 

The problem with your opening is Spinning kick and Low Slash shared a 10-second cooldown on proccing Infiltration Tactics so you may have to do a whole rotation before you use low slash for maximizing SS damage output.

 

SS is really terrifying when you follow up with Force Potency to critical-hit Force Breach and Project. If all 3 crits, that's almost 20k damage to any class other than tank within 10 seconds window. I found it very effective in solo fight.

 

I usually save FP to sneak up and stab healer in teamfight, fail to do so will most likely see my team wiped from the node >__>