Low Level PVP Tiers (Brackets)

[farfignugen]

I've leveled a few characters when the level cap was still 50 from level 10 to 50 solely in pvp. It took awhile but I enjoyed it, and that is why I play games.

 

Since the level cap has been increased queuing for lowbie pvp for levels 30-59 for me is not unplayable, but definitely lost its edge of competitiveness. When leveling I avoid queuing for about 20 levels after I ding 30 until I'm in the 50s, before I start queuing again.

 

I'm curious how many people feel the same, and are avoiding pvp while they're in the 30s from mid to high 40s because level 50+ wreck face. If a new tier was added how would that be perceived?

 

Tier 1: Levels 10-29

Tier 2: Levels 30-49

Tier 3: Levels 50-64 - new tier

 

 

I recently just read the latest PvP Economy and Ranked Rewards Restructure for Game Update 3.3. I'm excited about what I read, and thankful but they didn't mention anything about lowbies. I don't spend most of my time playing lowbie pvp, which I assume is like most people, and there's a good chance that is why focus is on the top pvp tier. End content is important, but if they keep increasing the level cap a new tier needs to be added sooner than later.

[Volthammer]

I think it sounds like a good idea as well, but most of the objections to it seem to be concerns that the queue pop times will drop dramatically. Somehow I don't personally think they will. Seems like a 30 to 40 bracket would be very nice. Like you, exactly like you, I just speed level to the mid 40's before re-joining PvP. Otherwise the 50-59's just wreckface you.

[Loomi]

The 55-59 range is not OP. Hasn't been since they fixed the Bolster disparity for mids. If anything it is worse to be above 55 because you don't get Bolstered to 2018 expertise with SoR gear. In fact, you lose ~1/6th of your expertise, which is not easily made up for in stats (damage reduction and damage increases through expertise are always better than pure stat increases, which tend to be >2:1 in favor of expertise, point for point)

 

Breaking up the bracket into a third tier would do nothing but lengthen queue times for each bracket. By the time you reach 30 you have most of your defensive and offensive skills, and all the other skills past 30 are ones that would break the 10-29 bracket, and they are spaced farther apart, i.e.: Force Camo at 30, Hydraulic Overrides at 46, Exfiltrate at 51, Force Shroud at 36. Intimidating Roar at 32, etc... To say higher levels have a distinct advantage is just ludicrous when talking about mids.

 

However the advantage very much favors higher levels in the 10-29 bracket. Unless you are 16 or higher, you don't have much of your Discipline skills, little to no defensive cooldowns, and only one Utility. As an avid 29 twinker, it pains me to see level 10s and level 11s in lowbie warzones, as they are generally dead weight and pop like zits.

 

By that fact, the minimum warzone level for lowbies should be increased 15, and at least one defensive cooldown moved to before 15 or at 15. That would make those players too ignorant to wait until they can actually contribute to their team in a meaningful way.

Edited July 8, 2015 by Loomi

[RooRider]

 

Tier 1: Levels 10-29

Tier 2: Levels 30-49

Tier 3: Levels 50-64 - new tier

 

At a guess I would say this is the most likely outcome with 4.0. If the T2 bracket was 30-64, that would be lazy and poorly thought through on their part.

[ForceWelder]

My take on this ...

 

Some servers (like POT5) simply can't support more bracket levels. They just don't have the repub population. And until the devs can figure out a way to move accounts without losing everything (legacy storage, guild assets, strongholds, etc) I really don't see this potentially changing anytime soon.

 

Do we need bracket changes?

 

Yes we do. Being a teen with missing slots fighting a higher level 20s in practically full gear is about as effective as being in your 30s facing players +55. Either scenario is going to be an act of pure futility.

 

But to be honest, I just don't think they have the resources or desire to either do mega server pvp or shut down servers and completely move accounts. If they had a way to move accounts lot, stock, and barrel they would have already offered this to us on the CM.

[Lhancelot]

IMO what would be better is below. There would still only 3 total brackets, so queues wouldn't be longer.

 

 

Tier 1: Levels 10-40

Tier 2: Levels 41-64

Tier 3: Levels 65

 

 

Tier 1. Sure, lvl 10s would get smashed by the higher lvls, but you know what? Lvl 10s get smashed now. Also, they level out of these low lvls very quickly, and with XP being increased for warzones it will be an even faster ascent out of the lowbie lvls in Tier 1.

 

Tier 2. At lvl 41, all classes get a class defining powerful ability, they would enter this tier at least having that to give them some bite when entering this new tier out of lowbies/Tier1. By lvl 41, most classes are fairly evolved and I would think they could work against even the higher lvls in this tier.

[Technohic]

Tier 1: Level 35-49

Tier 2: Level 50-64

Then level 65

 

 

No more splits to slow qs even more just to have a worthless low bracket where classes are all so short on abilities to begin with.

Edited July 8, 2015 by Technohic

[AlrikFassbauer]

Tier 1: Level 35-49

Tier 2: Level 50-64

Then level 65

 

 

No more splits to slow qs even more just to have a worthless low bracket where classes are all so short on abilities to begin with.

 

I'm against fast pops that make players more and more frustrated until they quit. THEN you'll get even slower pops.

[Technohic]

I'm against fast pops that make players more and more frustrated until they quit. THEN you'll get even slower pops.

 

None of that is in what I suggest. Level range in what I have thrre is significantly smaller than now.

[Tamanous]

I think it sounds like a good idea as well, but most of the objections to it seem to be concerns that the queue pop times will drop dramatically. Somehow I don't personally think they will. Seems like a 30 to 40 bracket would be very nice. Like you, exactly like you, I just speed level to the mid 40's before re-joining PvP. Otherwise the 50-59's just wreckface you.

 

Sadly what you state is likely the main reason why the queues are what they are. Bioware appears to not have the ability or inclination to make global queues (or at least far larger server pools). This killed ranked warzones too ... and why we got ranked arena out of the blue without many really wanting it (and thus 4 man pvp balancing has been killing pve balance ever since and required entire reshaping of classes not designed for arena). Pvp issues will remain until larger queue pools can be created. Remember that Mythic was brought in to construct and balance warzone pvp (with all of WAR's failings their battle grounds and systems were hella fun) ... classes were NOT balanced for arena from the very start.

 

 

Can you imagine being able to queue instantly into pvp at nearly any time? Oh what a difference that would make and low pop servers would have a hell of a lot more fun.

Edited July 8, 2015 by Tamanous

[Obviousenuendo]

The 55-59 range is not OP. Hasn't been since they fixed the Bolster disparity for mids. If anything it is worse to be above 55 because you don't get Bolstered to 2018 expertise with SoR gear. In fact, you lose ~1/6th of your expertise, which is not easily made up for in stats (damage reduction and damage increases through expertise are always better than pure stat increases, which tend to be >2:1 in favor of expertise, point for point).

 

who says we wear any of that crap gear?

 

I stay with my mid 107-130 level mods sell any SOR gear, wait until 57, get two level 55 relics with the comms I've saved. then become pvp hero. ez. every single toon.

 

now im waiting until 3.3 so I can level my toons to 60 and get them geared. properly (I never wear pve gear in this game, pvp gear does everything I need)

[ForceWelder]

who says we wear any of that crap gear?

 

I stay with my mid 107-130 level mods sell any SOR gear, wait until 57, get two level 55 relics with the comms I've saved. then become pvp hero. ez. every single toon.

 

now im waiting until 3.3 so I can level my toons to 60 and get them geared. properly (I never wear pve gear in this game, pvp gear does everything I need)

 

Couldn't agree more. Do pvp at +55 when the comms fall like rain for you. Lord knows we can now stock pile enough. The fact 12 XP ends at 55 is an all but too subtle a hint that the devs actually semi expect you to go this route to gain them. Then you just wait for 3.3 to hit and reap the rewards.

[Tamanous]

Couldn't agree more. Do pvp at +55 when the comms fall like rain for you. Lord knows we can now stock pile enough. The fact 12 XP ends at 55 is an all but too subtle a hint that the devs actually semi expect you to go this route to gain them. Then you just wait for 3.3 to hit and reap the rewards.

 

 

Biggest new change I have seen since coming back is the ability to stock pile effectively unlimited comms gained through pvp at low levels. It was incredibly restrictive prior not being able to stockpile much in order to buy pvp gear when you were appropriate level.

 

As mentioned though, it some what disheartening the band-aid approach Bioware takes at fixing a broken system. I'll gladly accept these band-aids over nothing though.

[Loomi]

who says we wear any of that crap gear?

 

I stay with my mid 107-130 level mods sell any SOR gear, wait until 57, get two level 55 relics with the comms I've saved. then become pvp hero. ez. every single toon.

 

now im waiting until 3.3 so I can level my toons to 60 and get them geared. properly (I never wear pve gear in this game, pvp gear does everything I need)

 

And? Instead of losing out on expertise, all you are doing is losing out on pure stats. It's a wash, which is exactly the point. Bolster evens the playing field, and with the disparity fixed, lower levels are bolstered to 60, as intended. The difference between your so-called optimization and a level 40 with every slot filled is not all that much. Mids are not broken.

[Loomi]

Biggest new change I have seen since coming back is the ability to stock pile effectively unlimited comms gained through pvp at low levels. It was incredibly restrictive prior not being able to stockpile much in order to buy pvp gear when you were appropriate level.

 

As mentioned though, it some what disheartening the band-aid approach Bioware takes at fixing a broken system. I'll gladly accept these band-aids over nothing though.

 

Read 3.3 patch notes. The comm limit change was just preparation for it.

[Sylvarine]

As a returning player, the current pvp is a utter joke in lower brackets. I'd say I'm surprised that Bioware has done nothing with the 30-59 bracket but hey, this is Bioware. Unless you're 50+.. more so 55+ from what I've been hearing, you're just fodder for all the 55+s running rampant in this que. You can definitely tell very few people sub 55 que in this bracket.

 

I've done probably 30ish matches since hitting 30, only 40 and it's kinda lol seeing what the bracket has become. Generally 5 or 6 of the 8 in each match are 55+ with the remaining couple sub 55. Unless the player you are going up against is just a complete failure at life, you cannot compete with them at all.

 

I definitely feel sorry more so for melee that are sub 55 in this bracket as they are just destroyed literally instantly. At least ranged can run or try when focused hah.

 

That being said, it is rather humorous seeing some people rage in this bracket. which is what's kept me plowing through it. Little entertainment for you.

 

So being a 39 lightning sorc, 1v1 against anyone 55+.. lol won't happen. Not what a sorc excels at anyways. So I do the only sensible thing in this bracket, stick with the masses, but at range or los;ing etc. This 56 maurader attacks one of our guys in huttball, I help < at range > to kill him. He rages a bit in ":say" about people not 1v1'ing him.

 

Few mins later, rinse/repeat.. he just happens to jump at me up top. I knock him back < with the root talent via overload >, sprint away to another team-mate.. he follows, I los him again.. he dies again. He rages again in /say " wow big surprise, won't 1v1 mean again". This kinda makes me chuckle as why on god's earth at my level would I hah.

 

Anyways, round 3. Actually skip ahead to about round 7 cause he kept coming back for me and I kept doing the same thing. Kite/bring to team-mates that are near.. he dies. He loses his marbles on the last death in say< You F#$K'ING NEWB B#$CH! WON'T 1v1 me.. YOU SUCK"..

 

So it's things like this that absolutely make my day and make the 55 bracket bareable, at least for me as much as it does suck atm )

[AlrikFassbauer]

The bracket until level 30 is still fine & fun, imho.

At least unless you meet an über-coordinated [voice chat ? premade ?] group ...

Edited July 12, 2015 by AlrikFassbauer

[Raansu]

I've leveled a few characters when the level cap was still 50 from level 10 to 50 solely in pvp. It took awhile but I enjoyed it, and that is why I play games.

 

Since the level cap has been increased queuing for lowbie pvp for levels 30-59 for me is not unplayable, but definitely lost its edge of competitiveness. When leveling I avoid queuing for about 20 levels after I ding 30 until I'm in the 50s, before I start queuing again.

 

I'm curious how many people feel the same, and are avoiding pvp while they're in the 30s from mid to high 40s because level 50+ wreck face. If a new tier was added how would that be perceived?

 

Tier 1: Levels 10-29

Tier 2: Levels 30-49

Tier 3: Levels 50-64 - new tier

 

 

I recently just read the latest PvP Economy and Ranked Rewards Restructure for Game Update 3.3. I'm excited about what I read, and thankful but they didn't mention anything about lowbies. I don't spend most of my time playing lowbie pvp, which I assume is like most people, and there's a good chance that is why focus is on the top pvp tier. End content is important, but if they keep increasing the level cap a new tier needs to be added sooner than later.

 

I do just as well in the 30s as I do in the 50s. Bolster works fine now and its not an issue at all. I rarely if ever pay attention to the levels.

[AlphaDetGunner]

I do just as well in the 30s as I do in the 50s. Bolster works fine now and its not an issue at all. I rarely if ever pay attention to the levels.

 

 

I started PvP on my sniper at 20 and once he hit 30, moved into the new level bracket, and started doing wz with higher levels, I hardly noticed a difference as well. Even with all the cool stuff classes pick up at the higher end of the bracket, I've still been able to contribute and pull high marks on the scoreboard. I don't see an issue with the current brackets.

[Jake_Chambers]

No matter what the tiers are you're still going to have those who refuse (are terrified) to lvl out of a bracket when they're near advancing to the next. they should increase the xp gained the closer you get to the next bracket.

[Jake_Chambers]

The bracket until level 30 is still fine & fun, imho.

At least unless you meet an über-coordinated [voice chat ? premade ?] group ...

 

Those people most likely have terrible self esteem, though, and are absolutely scared of anything resembling competition.

[Raansu]

No matter what the tiers are you're still going to have those who refuse (are terrified) to lvl out of a bracket when they're near advancing to the next. they should increase the xp gained the closer you get to the next bracket.

 

Or maybe they just like to pvp?

[Lundorff]

10 - 65

 

May the "best" team win

[Jake_Chambers]

Or maybe they just like to pvp?

 

In lowbies? Lol okay

[Raansu]

In lowbies? Lol okay

 

What does that have to do with anything? I pvp in lowbies all the time when leveling alts. News flash, people who queue for pvp, regardless of level tend to enjoy pvp.