Now a Combat Medic

[Aiacos]

On a recent FP, the healer apparently was a trigger-happy kid, and refused to heal us, even after "his mom logged in and turned to connection speed to a crawl"...anyway...I had to improvise some heals on our tank and I seemed to enjoy it. :-) So after a lifetime of exploding things, Major Halcor has decided to specialize in the Combat Medic ways.

 

Can anyone give any tips? Optimal rotation, diff between PvE and PvP,...

 

This will be my first healer, ever. Lvl 52 currently.

 

Thanks!

[SamuelAU]

On a recent FP, the healer apparently was a trigger-happy kid, and refused to heal us, even after "his mom logged in and turned to connection speed to a crawl"...anyway...I had to improvise some heals on our tank and I seemed to enjoy it. :-) So after a lifetime of exploding things, Major Halcor has decided to specialize in the Combat Medic ways.

 

Can anyone give any tips? Optimal rotation, diff between PvE and PvP,...

 

This will be my first healer, ever. Lvl 52 currently.

 

Thanks!

I'm by no means an experienced commando healer but I have a few tips which you might find helpful.

 

• Kolto bomb provides a buff which increases all healing received by targets by 5% for 15 seconds. Keep this buff on the tank at all times.
  
• Never overheal with Bacta Infusion or Advanced Medical Probe.
  
• When there's no urgent immediate healing to be done, refresh trauma probe on the tank.

 

I can't give much guidance on what a good rotation might look like, I often play it by ear myself, but those are just some small things for you.

Edited June 9, 2013 by SamuelAU

[PhatMcMuffins]

PVE healing on the mando is fun. PVP is another story. The mando/merc is doesn't hold its own compared to a sorc or op. There are very good mando/merc healers, but the spec needs some sort of a buff.

 

that being said, heres some things:

 

-Always use Kolto bomb to keep kolto residue on your team.

-If melee dps/tank, put the kolto bomb where they will be standing so they get the puddle heal

-Learn to switch your trauma probe. It is low cost so switch it to whoever is taking the most dmagae.

-Fill in with your hammer shot heal so that you can constantly pop supercharged cells as well as maintain healths

-Don't lag on your big hels since they are channeled. Anticipate damage so you strt channeling before they drop too low

[haksilence]

http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=641844

 

here is all you need to know.

 

wish you well in your en devours commando healing is by far my favorite healing class

[haksilence]

PVE healing on the mando is fun. PVP is another story. The mando/merc is doesn't hold its own compared to a sorc or op. There are very good mando/merc healers, but the spec needs some sort of a buff.

 

that being said, heres some things:

 

-Always use Kolto bomb to keep kolto residue on your team.

-If melee dps/tank, put the kolto bomb where they will be standing so they get the puddle heal

-Learn to switch your trauma probe. It is low cost so switch it to whoever is taking the most dmagae.

-Fill in with your hammer shot heal so that you can constantly pop supercharged cells as well as maintain healths

-Don't lag on your big hels since they are channeled. Anticipate damage so you strt channeling before they drop too low

 

commandos are in a VERY good place right now and arguably have the highest HPS output of all three classed in a 16m raid environment. needs no buff.

[Miallen]

• Never overheal with Bacta Infusion or Advanced Medical Probe.

 

I'm sure others will disagree with me here, but I personally feel the Armor Buff and HoT associated with AMP it makes it worth rolling on your primary tank, even if it may be absorbed into your Overheal. Constantly rolling it on the tank means you are almost always going to have the Cost Reduction up when you do need MP. Rolling AMP with Trama Probe also means you are given the leeway to use MP less often on the tanks, and spot heal with BI and HS.

 

Remember, the goal as a healer is making sure everyone lives and using your Ammo wisely so that you aren't tapped out when you need it the most.

[PhatMcMuffins]

commandos are in a VERY good place right now and arguably have the highest HPS output of all three classed in a 16m raid environment. needs no buff.

 

Check their numbers in wzs. They put out on average 30% less than any op or sorc of equal skill. I clearly said PVE is just fine. PVP on the other hand, they are severely lacking and I am not the first person to say it.

[WooduckAUS]

Check their numbers in wzs. They put out on average 30% less than any op or sorc of equal skill. I clearly said PVE is just fine. PVP on the other hand, they are severely lacking and I am not the first person to say it.

 

What do you consider good numbers for op or sorc in a WZ and what do you see the commando's doing?

 

I'm not talking "OMG WOW, SOMEONE JUST TOLD ME A STORY OF SOMETHING SOMEBODY ELSE SAW 3 WEEKS AGO...."

 

What do you personally see as an average in WZ's, that you get this 30% difference from? I don't pvp very often and am curious of these numbers...?

[npullan]

What do you consider good numbers for op or sorc in a WZ and what do you see the commando's doing?

 

I'm not talking "OMG WOW, SOMEONE JUST TOLD ME A STORY OF SOMETHING SOMEBODY ELSE SAW 3 WEEKS AGO...."

 

What do you personally see as an average in WZ's, that you get this 30% difference from? I don't pvp very often and am curious of these numbers...?

 

My Combat Medic is currently 54 and about to ding 55 so take this with a bolstered grain of salt.

 

I constantly out-heal all other healers in WZs. I break 500K healing easy. When you combine Trauma Probe, Heavy Armour and the fact that we have the best defensive CDs of all the healing classes (Reactive Shield & Adrenaline Rush are phenomenal) I can absorb a huge amount of punishment. My natural survivability usually requires 3 dedicated DPS to bring me down and with a tank actually guarding me, I become close to invulnerable.

 

I think people mistake the Commando's actual contribution due to how easy it is to get massive numbers by dropping Salvation everywhere.

 

If you are going to PVP with your Commando, make sure you throw Kolto Bomb on yourself before you use Concussive Charge. The Kolto Residue will give it a smidge more and also through the melees off you. Also, use Electro-net constantly.

[oaceen]

I'm sure others will disagree with me here, but I personally feel the Armor Buff and HoT associated with AMP it makes it worth rolling on your primary tank, even if it may be absorbed into your Overheal. Constantly rolling it on the tank means you are almost always going to have the Cost Reduction up when you do need MP. Rolling AMP with Trama Probe also means you are given the leeway to use MP less often on the tanks, and spot heal with BI and HS.

 

Remember, the goal as a healer is making sure everyone lives and using your Ammo wisely so that you aren't tapped out when you need it the most.

 

i do this too.

 

during supercharge, i'll cast it on everyone i can provided i have enough ammo because the armor buff and HoT are really good preventative/proactive measures that i think a lot of healers ignore, thinking of healing as more of a reactive class.

[WooduckAUS]

I constantly out-heal all other healers in WZs. I break 500K healing easy. When you combine Trauma Probe, Heavy Armour and the fact that we have the best defensive CDs of all the healing classes (Reactive Shield & Adrenaline Rush are phenomenal) I can absorb a huge amount of punishment. My natural survivability usually requires 3 dedicated DPS to bring me down and with a tank actually guarding me, I become close to invulnerable.

 

I think people mistake the Commando's actual contribution due to how easy it is to get massive numbers by dropping Salvation everywhere.

 

I agree completely and this is why i ask. The few that i have done, its not very often that i get out healed by another healer (on my team or the other). Obviously, if we get ganked by a solid team who now how to play, i get targeted first hard and fast. Making it impossible to put up amazing numbers in this instance, but i'd be suprised for anyone to do so against a solid team.

 

I've never played ranked WZ's, so not sure how different it is in there. I assume its just more intense and organised against healers. At the same time, i would have more help from tanks etc as well..... so it would come down to the better team as a whole. I assume.....

 

I've managed a few 800k+ pvp games and i feel fairly solid. I'm sure there are hardcore pvp'ers from all classes that have done better, but i'd like to hear from the top pvp commando healers to see if they feel they are gimping their team in ranked wz's.

[Aiacos]

Thank you all for the tips, I've learned some very useful stuff here. Now I'm almost 55. I love the new job, I'm still not having a great time on PvP, but seeing some reports here, I guess I must improve my own skills.

 

PvE is a blast, on the other hand. The only time ever a FP (initially) failed was when a tank couldn't hold the aggro, and a sub-boss owned me first, then the other three. Other than that, I'm having a great time.

 

Let me ask one question....anything specifically wrong with "overheal"? I stop healing when friedly gets 100%, but is there any other specific I should know?

[Pizano]

What do you consider good numbers for op or sorc in a WZ and what do you see the commando's doing?

 

I'm not talking "OMG WOW, SOMEONE JUST TOLD ME A STORY OF SOMETHING SOMEBODY ELSE SAW 3 WEEKS AGO...."

 

What do you personally see as an average in WZ's, that you get this 30% difference from? I don't pvp very often and am curious of these numbers...?

 

I would agree with his statement. In a good voidstar match I'll put up 900k-1 mill in healing, while a sorc/sage, or scoundrel would be doing 1.3 mill or so. Top heals in a wz for our guild is a Sage with 1.8 mill heals. I haven't seen a commando healer do more than 1.3 mill or so in a single wz yet. And the one I saw was our guild leader, who is very good at it. I can consistently put up 900k plus if I am in a full WZ with good guarding and such. But our numbers even at max are lower than an equally skilled Sage/Sorc or Scoundrel. I will say I'm not fully augmented or min/maxed yet though. But I do have full partisan with 4 Conqueror pieces so far.

Edited June 14, 2013 by Pizano

[WooduckAUS]

I would agree with his statement. In a good voidstar match I'll put up 900k-1 mill in healing, while a sorc/sage, or scoundrel would be doing 1.3 mill or so. Top heals in a wz for our guild is a Sage with 1.8 mill heals. I haven't seen a commando healer do more than 1.3 mill or so in a single wz yet. And the one I saw was our guild leader, who is very good at it. I can consistently put up 900k plus if I am in a full WZ with good guarding and such. But our numbers even at max are lower than an equally skilled Sage/Sorc or Scoundrel. I will say I'm not fully augmented or min/maxed yet though. But I do have full partisan with 4 Conqueror pieces so far.

 

Thank you for your answer and sorry for hi-jacking the thread....

 

Just playing devils advocate here... Could the reason we get lower numbers out there because we are targeted first? Knowing that we can't vanish (which also means can't heal), can't trap ourselves in a bubble (also means can't heal), are we targeted first leaving all other healers to roam around healing up a storm? More pressure on us, means more up time healing for other classes. I know this is the case for dps mandos being seen as an easy kill, so ganked everytime you walk on the battle field.

 

The reason i ask, is that in a PVE environment with the changes in 2.0, my mando can keep up with other healers in an 8 man environment. In 16man, i haven't found a sage or scoundrel that can keep up but that is irrelevant for pvp as it is only 8 per side. So if our output is fairly balanced, what do the sages and scoundrels have that keeps them alive longer and able to put out more heals?

 

Or in a ranked environment, the whole team steps inside the sages puddle of love and never leaves....? Anything other than voidstar, i can't see this as being a good game plan. Would it be fair to say that in heavy moving/healing pvp matches, that a mando would shine? Is it a case of each healer could bring certain strengths to certain pvp arenas?

 

Either way, given that pvp is objective based, putting up pretty numbers in voidstar is good for say voidstar.... what about the other pvp matches? Do we have a spot or should we all re roll a sage or scoundrel.....

 

I find it hard to believe but for me to see for myself, means i'd have to pvp a lot more.....

[WooduckAUS]

Thank you all for the tips, I've learned some very useful stuff here. Now I'm almost 55. I love the new job, I'm still not having a great time on PvP, but seeing some reports here, I guess I must improve my own skills.

 

PvE is a blast, on the other hand. The only time ever a FP (initially) failed was when a tank couldn't hold the aggro, and a sub-boss owned me first, then the other three. Other than that, I'm having a great time.

 

Let me ask one question....anything specifically wrong with "overheal"? I stop healing when friedly gets 100%, but is there any other specific I should know?

 

"Overhealing" refers to continuing to heal after the target has reached 100%. So not necessarily wrong but completely pointless. It would be considered bad if you were to overheal and blow all your cooldowns and ammo leading to a wipe for no reason.

 

Sometimes i overheal in certain circumstances just to see my healing output as a test for my toons ability. If its not hurting anyone and you're practising for ammo management purposes and max output, i say go for it!! Got to get used to maximising your healing output. Better to try it out when you don't actually need it, so when you do need it, you know what to do!!

 

Not sure if that answers your question, but i hope it helps.

[Pizano]

Oh we can put up good numbers. Many times I will be top healer in my WZ. But against the best players that are playing the other healing classes we will not keep up. I'm not very familiar with a Scoundrels heals so I can't comment, but I know the bubbles, and the salvation from a Sage is huge for them. With 2.0 we have the ability to leave a residue with our kolto bomb, it is almost like a mini salvation. That is our best heal IMO right now. Single target healing we are very good. Mass healing we lack a bit still. That and yes we soak up the damage. I typically take way more damage than the rest of the wz group when I play. The only wz it can get difficult to get good numbers in for healing tends to be huttball. But that is partly due to how huttball works, the fact that some of those matches go very quick, and folks are constantly on the move and accidentally LOSing a lot of your heals. Our long cast times can hurt in that scenario. Any way you cut it we can hang, we are just not going to be tops in pvp environments as it stands now against the best players on those other classes.

[PhatMcMuffins]

What do you consider good numbers for op or sorc in a WZ and what do you see the commando's doing?

 

I'm not talking "OMG WOW, SOMEONE JUST TOLD ME A STORY OF SOMETHING SOMEBODY ELSE SAW 3 WEEKS AGO...."

 

What do you personally see as an average in WZ's, that you get this 30% difference from? I don't pvp very often and am curious of these numbers...?

 

good numbers are 1.1-1.3 mil when I'm on my op. I've yet to see a merc/mando break a mil in a pug (those numbers are from pug games)

 

I'm not hating. I love healing with the mando. Its challenging and fun. They are still very useful but will get outhealed.

 

But one more thing to keep in mind is that a good healer is a good healer regardless. I'll still outheal sages/scoundrels just because they are maximizing their heals. Practice and you will be an asset to your team regardless

 

as far as rateds go, the only mercs and mandos I ever see are arsenal/gunnery. ATM, teams prefer to use sorcs and ops

Edited June 19, 2013 by PhatMcMuffins

[Macroeconomics]

Merc healers can definitely break 1.2 million. They just need a long match. You get a Civil War or Novare match where no one takes mid and it is easy for a Merc/Commando healer to break 1.2 million. Of course these are the same matches where a good Operative healer hits 2 million.

 

Because these total numbers are wildly impacted by the length of the match, a better source of comparison is simply to measure vs. a baseline class in a fixed length match. I tend to use Smash Monkeys as a base line class. They are numerous, they score about in the middle of the pack, and everyone active in pvp should have a good feel for how much they output - in particular a good Smash Monkey will score about 1.2 million in a 15 min Voidstar (score: 0-0) match.

 

Merc/Commando healers should output roughly as much as a Smash Monkey to slightly higher (~10% or so). In other words around 1.35 million in a 15min Voidstar match.

 

Sorc and Operative healers should be pushing about 1.5 million in these kinds of matches.

 

And bringing up the rear, your single target dps subclasses can look at 1 million in output as a reasonable target.

 

Roughly speaking for good skill players....

[SpaniardInfinity]

Thank you for your answer and sorry for hi-jacking the thread....

 

Just playing devils advocate here... Could the reason we get lower numbers out there because we are targeted first? Knowing that we can't vanish (which also means can't heal), can't trap ourselves in a bubble (also means can't heal), are we targeted first leaving all other healers to roam around healing up a storm? More pressure on us, means more up time healing for other classes. I know this is the case for dps mandos being seen as an easy kill, so ganked everytime you walk on the battle field.

 

The reason i ask, is that in a PVE environment with the changes in 2.0, my mando can keep up with other healers in an 8 man environment. In 16man, i haven't found a sage or scoundrel that can keep up but that is irrelevant for pvp as it is only 8 per side. So if our output is fairly balanced, what do the sages and scoundrels have that keeps them alive longer and able to put out more heals?

 

Or in a ranked environment, the whole team steps inside the sages puddle of love and never leaves....? Anything other than voidstar, i can't see this as being a good game plan. Would it be fair to say that in heavy moving/healing pvp matches, that a mando would shine? Is it a case of each healer could bring certain strengths to certain pvp arenas?

 

Either way, given that pvp is objective based, putting up pretty numbers in voidstar is good for say voidstar.... what about the other pvp matches? Do we have a spot or should we all re roll a sage or scoundrel.....

 

I find it hard to believe but for me to see for myself, means i'd have to pvp a lot more.....

 

In my opinion, the other healers get more support. If people think Commandos suck at healing and one is on your team, most people will leave then out to dry instead of assisting them. Fact is, any of the healers will collapse under pressure if unsupported. Yes, all of them can prolong the inevitable with cooldowns, but once those are spent you're done. And in general, Commando is harder to master than the other healers, so chances are they will be a much easier kill than say a Scoundrel or Sage (and since they aren't supported, the odds are stacked against them).

 

In ranked matches, one of two things will happen to a Combat Medic. If they are an easy kill, they will be target numero uno. But if they put up a fight, it's usually best to leave them for last since they are weak at group healing anyway. Trouble is, Commandos are also very good at sustained single target healing with underrated burst healing potential (Medical Probe + Bacta Infusion can easily break 17k healing in 1 GCD if both crit and that's not even considering the Power relic). So if the Commando keeps up with your target swapping, it is going to be very difficult to bring down specific targets while he's alive (the Scoundrel + Commando combination is particularly potent here: the Scoundrel suspends the ally's health at 30% until the Commando can heal them to full).

 

Since 2.0 it seems to work like this. Sages will put up godly numbers if people can stay in the healing puddle without repercussions. This is particularly obvious in Voidstar defense and Novarre Coast. The more your allies group up as a Sage, the better your numbers. Scoundrels have the benefit of being mostly instant based so they can heal on the move. They'll also have running HoTs which means even when they are CC'd they are still healing allies. Commandos are best at sustained healing so the longer they can turret heal the better they perform. Their AoE heal, Kolto Bomb, is the most flexible AoE in the game but is often underrated, overlooked, and underused. It should easily be responsible for 33% or more of your healing in any given match. You'll usually want to look for a group of 2-4 to use it on, but Kolto Bomb is also a very effective single target heal and has burst healing potential (it can break 5K on a crit).

[MackAddy]

Congratulations on your step towards elite healing! The following commentary comes from a PvE background as I have yet to attempt PvP 'Mando healing.

 

My usual rotation:

 

- Trauma Probe just before the fight begins (I usually put them on a tank)

- Strategically placed Kolto Bomb

- Hammer Shot

- Hammer Shot

- Hammer Shot

- Strategically placed Kolto Bomb

- Trauma Probe when stacks are running low/empty

 

Throw in Bacta Infusions and Med Probes as needed in between Kolto Bombs. Suggesting the tanks do their jobs, this will be all you will probably use. With full Black Market armor, earpiece and implants, Dread Guard relics and the Makeb reputation mainhand and no augments, I enjoy a constantly topped off group and about 2800-3100 HPS off of this rotation alone. This also suggests that required movement is minimal and I can hit four people with my Kolto Bombs consistently. Use your Supercharge/Recharge cells and freebie stuff during those "Oh ****" moments.

 

Oh, and always keep those combat support cells topped off at all times.

 

Cliff notes: Abuse the ever-living hell out of Hammer Shot and Kolto Bomb. You'll be a healing god and the envy of all of your guildie sage healers.

[Helig]

I play all healers in PvP and I do confirm that I get lower numbers than on Sage or Operative. However, the strength of the Commando is, perhaps, not being the main healer, but the superb assistant healer.

 

You can render yourself immune to interrupts, roots and physics (to cover for the other healer, or to burstheal them or the team if they're in a tight spot), you can take a lot of direct damage, you can help peel enemies off the other healer who is taking more flak, your kolto bomb gives some nice healing taken bonus and mitigation under overcharge (kind of great for mass fights when kolto bombs go off by cooldown). It all kinda adds up.

 

Commando healer isn't your "main healer" in PvP. But he's the best sidekick healer, or tank+healer roadblock combo healer there is.

[Spacemanbobr]

I find that Commando healers' just have problems in PvP because we have by far the worst resource management in the game, and if I'm not coordinating heals with another healer on someone, if they get focused by 2-3 DPS (and aren't a tank) they're going to die unless I spam heal them with costly big heals with reckless abandon. Then if they survive, I'm left with no energy to heal someone else unless I have recharge cells up, in which case that person is screwed. Operatives and Sorcs, however, just have to worry about themselves getting focused, and can heal with almost reckless abandon and be fine. That's the main thing that sets us back, and it also just feels like we have much lower raw healing capabilities (such as if I heal 500-600k, which is often, in a WZ, a Scound or Sage will heal ~800k-1mil). PvE though, we're definitely fine, as few things actually have the kind of burst that wouldn't allow you to throw in hammer shots to manage energy while you heal.

[szczypaczek]

It's not about the numbers, it's the fact, that Mando/Merc healer are very easy to shut down.

 

Scoundrels have: scamper/evasion on low cd (and can be much lower when u spec right)/ absorb/ invis/ insta heals

 

Mando has nothing: shield on 2 min cd is just laughable, hold the line is ok, but its not the best escape mechanism i could dream of, tech override - long cd/ Bacta Infusion long cd. Situations, which are pice of cake for scoundrels are pretty much death sentence for a mando.

 

and i dont wanna hear that urban legend about heavy armor anymore

Edited June 30, 2013 by szczypaczek

[schooch]

It's not about the numbers, it's the fact, that Mando/Merc healer are very easy to shut down.

 

good luck.

[szczypaczek]

good luck.

 

i can do this any day bro