Tuskenkiller Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Hello there fellow Swtor players. My main is a guardian (tank build) and i wanted to reroll a new class,grouped today with a Vanguard and i have to say it looked pretty good. Would like to know how does it play? what i mean is Vanguard a close range combatant or does he stand and shoot like a commando does? Is it more like a mix and max? What also atracts me to that class is that i havent seen many around,is it because they are not that viable to level up or just because people prefer other classes? Would love to hear some replies from other Vanguard players with dps spec. Thanks in advance for the replies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
banehammer Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 I agree, you don't see many around. It's very similar to a guardian in that there is a mix of 10m and 4m abilities. So you can hit fairly hard from 10m range but to use all your abilities you need to go toe to toe. Besides a channeled ability there are no cast times for vanguard DPS. I found levelling quite easy. You have enough tools to control baddies (not as many as guardians) and have some decent defensive cooldowns. As far as an interesting DPS rotation goes, I find tactics ok. I get a little tired of it, but building 3 stacks before blasting out an uninterruptable plasma cannon with >dmg is fun. Also, shoulder cannon is awesome. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMagee Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 (edited) Hello there fellow Swtor players. My main is a guardian (tank build) and i wanted to reroll a new class,grouped today with a Vanguard and i have to say it looked pretty good. Would like to know how does it play? what i mean is Vanguard a close range combatant or does he stand and shoot like a commando does? Is it more like a mix and max? What also atracts me to that class is that i havent seen many around,is it because they are not that viable to level up or just because people prefer other classes? Would love to hear some replies from other Vanguard players with dps spec. Thanks in advance for the replies. I main as a 4/6/36 Assault VG, and here are my thoughts regarding your questions. Vanguard is sort of a melee hybrid. It have several abilities that's are 10m range: Assault Plastique, Ion (Fire) Pulse, Incendiary Round etc. A few that are 30m: Hammer Shot, High Impact Bolt. And one 4m range ability that sort of throws a wrench into the non-melee DPS: Stock Strike. And Gut if you spec tactics. Stock Strike has important roles in each tree. In Shield Specialist: Static Shield allows you to reset the cooldown of SS by sucessfully shielding an attack. As well as a few abilities that buff it's damage. It's a very useful damage ability to help keep threat while tanking. In Tactics, Battering Ram and Combat Tactics both buff SS. Using Fire Pulse procs a free SS, and using that SS makes your next High Impact Bolt an auto crit. In Assault Stock Strike is now the go-to method for applying your Plasma Cell DoT. It has a 100% chance to apply the DoT through the talent Ionized Ignition. The talent Ionized Accelerator also give SS a 60% chance to reset the CD of HiB, which is a huge source of damage in Assault. So even though it's only a single melee ability, Stock Strike is crucial for optimal play in all 36pt specs, so for argument's sake, we'll consider it a melee DPS. As for the popularity of the VG...my guess is the first wave of people who roled troopers specced Commando, just because of the large cannon and the 30m range. And originally shadow tanks were the OP tanking class, so a lot of people roled them if they wanted to tank. And lately, guardians have been the popular tanking class and DPS Vanguards have some negative stigma associated with them. The damage output isn't as high as Gunslingers/Sentinels and their raid utility consists mainly of the ability to taunt. So I think a lot of the reason you don't see many DPS VGs around is: 1. Melee is hugely more disadvantaged in current end games OPs than ranged. 2. Why bring a VG if you can just bring a sentinel, do increased damage and gain Inspiration as well. 3. This is advanced nitpicking, but aside from Hold the Line, VGs are slow, have no means to make up ground quickly (not talking about harpoon but more like leap/guardian leap/scamper etc.) cannot self cleanse and as mentioned earlier, provide the raid group with only the ability to taunt. Prior to 2.0 DPS VGs were super-OP. The Plasma Cell DoT did ~2x the damage it does now, HiB had higher armor penetration and you could parse huge numbers by only pressing 2 buttons (or so the haters said, j/k LYMI). Since then it's been sort of a slow recovery/re-shaping of what they want the DPS VG to be. The distance range of attacks have also been altered throughout the lifetime of the game. That all being said...I really enjoy my VG. Assault is one of the premier instant cast/always able to be on the move specs in the game. The amount of AoE damage that a VG can do is super useful in clearing trash/fights with adds. Hope this helps Edited November 6, 2013 by JMagee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Assassin Posted November 6, 2013 Share Posted November 6, 2013 That all being said...I really enjoy my VG. Assault is one of the premier instant cast/always able to be on the move specs in the game. The amount of AoE damage that a VG can do is super useful in clearing trash/fights with adds. What dat dude said I also love my VG, altho I spec 8-8-30, and never use SS...so, I'm a 10m spec, which gives me a bit more wiggle room in positioning. I parse quite well (I'd put myself top 5 VG/PT), but, that is still not really competitive versus snipers/'slinger, sentinel/marauder, or merc/'mando. i.e. ~5%. I do very well in OPs and FP's, and being an intelligent player, I do not bring the team down. But, I play VG because I have fun, and really enjoy the class. And that's what the game is for If you're looking to set records, this is not the class for you. But, if you like the play style, have fun, and play smartly, you will do just fine in ANY aspect of the game. I have a hard time playing my Merc/Pyro now because I enjoy the mobility of VG so much!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tuskenkiller Posted November 6, 2013 Author Share Posted November 6, 2013 Thanks to everyone for their replies,i think i have enough info to roll a new vanguard and give it a try and see how it goes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paowee Posted November 19, 2013 Share Posted November 19, 2013 (edited) Hello there fellow Swtor players. My main is a guardian (tank build) and i wanted to reroll a new class,grouped today with a Vanguard and i have to say it looked pretty good. Would like to know how does it play? what i mean is Vanguard a close range combatant or does he stand and shoot like a commando does? Is it more like a mix and max? What also atracts me to that class is that i havent seen many around,is it because they are not that viable to level up or just because people prefer other classes? Would love to hear some replies from other Vanguard players with dps spec. Thanks in advance for the replies. People prefer the easier playstyle of ranged classes (snipers lol) who don't have to worry about certain mechanics that melee classes need to take into account in a raid. Playstyle of Vanguard DPS in definitely close to mid range. If you go Tactics, you will rely on a 3 second channel (Pulse Cannon) for your main DPS ability and most of the time follow a rotation. If you run Assault Specialist the spec revolves around procs and using Ion Pulse to proc and reset your High Impact Bolt. Assault is more spammy (Ion Pulse) and is DoT oriented (your 31-pt talent, Incendiary Missile and your stance are all / have damage over time components. Tactics is definitely a more AoE oriented spec due to Pulse Cannon, while Assault Specialist is more single target Damage over time oriented due to stance / Cell If you run Hybrid spec it is one of the top parsing DPS specs at the moment as you can see in this 16-man Hard Mode Dread Fortress and Dread Palace leaderboards http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=691926 Edited November 19, 2013 by paowee Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
T-Assassin Posted November 20, 2013 Share Posted November 20, 2013 (edited) Tactics is definitely a more AoE oriented spec due to Pulse Cannon, while Assault Specialist is more single target Damage over time oriented due to stance / Cell If you run Hybrid spec it is one of the top parsing DPS specs at the moment as you can see in this 16-man Hard Mode Dread Fortress and Dread Palace leaderboards http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=691926 I've been doing pretty well with AOE lately: MV > SG > HiB > ES > PC > IP > IP > HiB > ES Assault is no slouch in AOE fights. And I prefer the 10m MOBILE play style. I'm not stuck in AOE garbage graphics, staring at the boss's feet, and never lose DPS during moving phases. My 1st PvE main was sniper (pre 1.2). Nice seeing big numbers, but it gets boring sitting still. Next, I mained a Merc/Pyro, loved it, but having to move mid powershot is annoying! Switched to VG/Assault as main, cannot even play my Merc now Also, ran my Shadow (inf) through all zones last week. What a workout keeping max DPS, watching procs, and chasing mobs Definitely my PvP toon!! Was very challenging and fun, but I'm so much more productive on my VG. Play style just suits me...and I believe I play it VERY well But, I'm a Story Mode hero... Edited November 20, 2013 by T-Assassin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kaos_KidSWTOR Posted November 20, 2013 Share Posted November 20, 2013 I have a lot of fun with my Pyro PT and Tactics VG. They are both a slightly clunky class to play. but when you learn to play them they are REALLY fun. Especially Pyro PT, since it has fire. and fire is always fun. In PvE, Vanguard/Powertech doesn't parse very well unless you are really good. I think though that Pyro/Assault parses higher than Tactics/Advanced Prototype. Though, Pyro/Assault has really good defences, like 30% damage reduction while Adrenaline Rush is active and healing you, 25% defence chance for 6 seconds after using Chaff Flare/Diversion, and Flame Shield/Ion Shield which makes your Reactive Shield ability act like Rebuke/Cloak Of Pain for it's entire duration. and a raw 2% Melee and Ranged defence from a stealth scan based talent. So, Pyro has some nice defences and offences. Let's look at Tactics/AP now. 2% raw damage reduction universal, though typically not taken. 15% Move speed in general, which is a nice commodity for getting yourself placed well. 4 extra seconds on Hydraulic Overrides, which is REALLY nice. 30% Less AOE Damage (which stacks with our already nice AOE damage taken heal.) coupled with 30% damage taken reduced while stunned. and Energy Redoubt, which makes our Reactive Shield a pretty useful CD, though I think that Energy Redoubt should be our level 50 ability, or an ability gotten at level 55. that would be nice. In PvP, if you go with PT/VG, you will be god in pixel form, almost literally. Vanguards/Powertechs DOMINATE in PvP if played well. especially as Pyro/Assault. Pyro and Assault can really gimp people with DoT's, Slows with our instant cast AOE and single target attack (Flame Burst and Flame Sweep) The bonus stealth detection is a decent thing, along with 15% less DoT damage taken, though it's only useful when going against something like a Madness Sorc, Pyro PT, Leth Sniper/Op, etc. and Automated Defences, which is your lifesaver almost always, If you are on the verge of death, pop your Kolto Overload/Adrenaline Rush, and you will not die for the entire duration, unless something drastic happens like your focused by the entire team. In terms of Difficulty, Pyro/Assault can be a bit difficult in the beginning, when your new to the class, but ive learned 1 thing about Pyro/Assault, you cant let your Regen on Heat/Cells dip below 2/4. What I mean by that is, the little >>>> next to your Heat/Cells is your recource regen rate. if you let it get to >> you will NEED to use Vent Heat/Recharge Cells, in order to continue dealing decent DPS, too keep it above >> you need to use your Prototype Particle Accelerator/Ionic Accelerator at >>> recource regen or anything above 30 Heat (I tend to talk in BH terms because I play more of my PT than my vanguard). Advanced Prototype/Tactics is pretty strict on the rotation, but the rotation is pretty easy. so if you want easy to play, but slightly lower DPS, go AP/Tactics, if you feel you are up to the challenge of Pyro/Assault, go for it! I went Pyro on my Merc and Powertech, and will never go back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TACeMossie Posted November 25, 2013 Share Posted November 25, 2013 If you run Hybrid spec it is one of the top parsing DPS specs at the moment as you can see in this 16-man Hard Mode Dread Fortress and Dread Palace leaderboards http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=691926 Wow C-Tor is insane - topping 4/10 of the new bosses and hitting upwards of 3.7k dps Wish I could pull that off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gorstram Posted November 25, 2013 Share Posted November 25, 2013 Is C-Tor still running 2/22/22? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TACeMossie Posted November 26, 2013 Share Posted November 26, 2013 Is C-Tor still running 2/22/22? 8/22/16 http://swtorboard.org/2013/11/15/vanguard-powertech-dps/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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