To my fellow pvp mercs

[iPvP]

after getting my merc to 55 i can honestly say...

Arsenal is in a really good spot right now, our survivabity in general is MUCH better and the damage is awsome, currently topping leader boards and finishing with an average of 1300 dps which is fairly good for pvp imho. after dealing with 1.3-1.7 we finnaly have our patch where we demolish people.

/appluad bioware - well done

[Choffware]

Because I played a Merc for so long and was resistent to give it up... I never got on a steady RWZ team. But I finally caved and been using my Marauder for most of 1.6-1.7 and now 2.0. I'm very hesitant to claim we are fine because of that reason. I simply don't have the extensive experience to know. However I've been playing the Bounty Hunter off and on in 2.0 and I dear say they seem great now. If I'm focused by a good tank I have a hard time. But it's seems because I'm out of practice. not because of the class... If PS, HO, KO are all up I have a very good chance of surviving a 1v1 encounter... Getting interrupted isn't such a big factor anymore either... still happens but it's not a game ender as it was.

[Macroeconomics]

Well I played the hell out of Merc dps in 1.7 and 2.0, and IMO, the class still is subpar. What follows is in reference to Merc Arsenal only. Merc Pyro is worthless at this stage trailing behind Merc Arsenal in damage output, burst, survivability and utility.

 

The thing most Merc Arsenal note about 2.0 is that it is easier to set up your big attacks. That's true. But honestly you are still screwed after your initial volley of abilities. And if you are up against a good opponent, that initial volley isn't really going to hurt them. Yet, IMO the big improvement to Merc Arsenal is in survivability. The combination of HO+TorqueBoosters and Energy Rebounder make a big difference. I can now routinely have the lowest amount of deaths for any dps toon in a match. I once took 340k of damge with no deaths and no, I didn't get heals from a healer - at least not much that I can remember.

 

The other card we get to play now is the off-healer card. While just a theoretical possibility in 1.7, in 2.0 you really need to do this to get the maximum level of efficiency out of your Merc Arsenal. I predicted this once they announced the availability of Kolto Missile, but many doubted this. Well, if 15% of your output isn't coming from healing now, you are doing it wrong.

 

And we get a specialty card - we have limited utility that be used in Huttball. A role that the Merc Arsenal can fill is the intermediate ball carrier. Pick up the ball at mid after your tank has just scored. Pop your defensive CDs and HO and use your cc breaker on the first stun - you'll eat another 4 sec of stun after that, but you should have time left to run to the edge of the middle platform and hit JetBoost while throwing the ball to a teammate. The JetBoost makes it hard for nearby enemy players to intercept or pull your receiver and your team then has a nice field position advantage. Sure you'll die a horrible death soon after, but who cares? No receiver in position? Run into the pit and when everyone chases you, throw it away so your team once again has a positional advantage at mid. It's a nice change to actually have some value in Huttball as a Merc dps.

 

But for all the improvement, the reality is that other classes have improved too. Merc Arsenal output still trails Rage/Focus by about 25%. And amongst the single target dps classes, Assassins can do more total damage and have better utility. Snipers can match our dps and again have better survivability. Sorcs have less survivability but now have easily surpassed Merc Arsenal damage output. So yeah, we can hit 1 million total output now in a standard 15 min match. But that's not the benchmark it once was. Not with healers doing 1.7 million in a 15 min match. Even Jugg and Assassin tanks now can do 1.4 million in a 15 min match.

 

In conclusion, Merc Arsenal can now be fun to play again. But that was for an audience of Merc dps players that was starved to near unconsciousness. Maybe that's enough for the Merc player base. Maybe if you beat the dog enough times it is content for a pat on the head. Maybe.

[Soljin]

I just reactivated today and gave Merc a couple hours...Been gone awhile but Merc was the first character I created and always wanted it to pan out....though it wasn't even close after the first wave of nerfs that came prior to everyone even finding their interrupt buttons.....

 

Now that said Merc seems pretty bursty when set up right, and set up is easier sure....Class still feels way to stationary for a ranged class to me....I don't really have enough to do while strafing and feel I have to plant my feet far to often....and this is a problem for me only possibly but we seem to still have an excess of abilities that I don't even have room for and that's after Shift+ bindings on every key I can reach.....

 

I guess what Im saying is after playing other games for awhile I don't think these changes are going to be enough to keep me interested...No loss im sure but Im going to run out the month I subbed and see if I feel better about it...I like the story bits so I will hit 55 and PvP as much as possible before I nail the coffin shut for good. Game deserves that much.

 

Question: What is TTK like at 55 bracket? At 50 it seems pretty rough getting vaporized in seconds and the interface reporting seems to lag....full health then oops...dead.

Edited April 29, 2013 by Soljin

[soldierofheaven]

I know them feels ner vod. The **** winds have finally died down and the merc is back in town. Im kicking *** and taking name's in pvp, and pve is a lot easier.

Attin Vau-Merc

[Brillat]

Merc PvP definitely feels like it's in a much better place.

 

I play Pyro rather than Arsenal and with intelligent use of kiting and cover I can 1v1 most classes and pour out fantastic single target or AoE damage if ignored. Mobility between HO and Degauss is great and Electronet is a great big up-yours to Warriors who try jumping me.

[DarthBloodloss]

Gotta find spots to use kolto missile when possible. Its huge when you switch from attacking to LOSing or flat out running. There will be a 1-3 second period where you are spinning around and/or looking which way to run...and not actually attacking for a second. These are perfect times to squeeze in a kolto missile before you rally and begin to strafe away and resume attacking.

 

Also in huttball, I feel like a fullback now. If I get the ball at mid, I can almost always at LEAST make it to the pit. Of course it requires every single cooldown but thats fine. After I get into the pit and throw a pass, I'm heading back to mid for the next neutral ball.

 

Grab Ball -> Energy Shield -> WZ Adrenal -> Knockback -> Hydraulic Overrides -> Electro Dart -> Kolto Missile -> Stun Breaker -> Power Surge/Rapid Scan -> Degauss -> WZ Medpack -> Kolto Missile -> Kolto Overload....