"Can we all get along?"

[Oldsailor]

Okay listened for a month as folks been "flamethrowing" about companions. Played before and after the nerf. This is my observation of what seems to have folks upset.

 

Companions make the game too easy (prior to 4.0.2)/ companions make the game too hard (after 4.0.2). Reading what had been put out by various sources:

 

Oct. 20, 2015 Talking About Star Fortress Heroics:

The Heroic difficulty mode for a given planet’s Star Fortress is unlocked by completing the planetary resistance Mission arc for that planet. This mode is intended for groups of 2 players (with their respective Companions). That being said, it is possible for a solo player to complete Heroic mode, provided that player has a high-rank Companion, AND has built Influence with their Alliance specialists (as this unlocks access to various usable objects within the Heroic mode that provide powerful buffs and additional abilities).

Matt Pucevich

Designer

 

Oct. 20, 2015 From Dulfy.net SWTOR Star Fortress Guild:

This is a [HEROIC 2+] mission, you can either do this solo if you have good gear (i.e. purple 216 rating or above) or find another player. If you are soloing, you will need strong heals so your companion need to be in heal spec with high Influence ranks or ideally you are in heal spec and have your companion on DPS/tank stance as needed.

 

Nov. 16, 2015 Eric Musco Companion Changes in 4.0.2:

However, in looking at how strong Companions are, we may have gone a bit too far in that direction. Simply put, while playing through much of the game, there are a lot of situations in regular combat where it is practically impossible for you to be killed if you have a healing Companion.

 

So yes they admit they made it too easy. What they were ORIGINALLY aiming for can be seen in the posts of Oct. 20th. Reading the post where folks have been able to complete the heroic, and those that are having problems doing it, I think they have come close with the nerf to companions.

 

Have they taken some of the "fun" out of it? YES Eric says so in his post above. "Although this can be fun for a time, this wasn’t our goal. Companions should be strong, they should fill any role you need, but they should not make your actual gameplay be overshadowed by how strong they are."

 

I don't think anyone will disagree that it is tons of fun playing a game in "god" mode. Prior to planetary level sync, a LOT of us ran around leveling with overleveled/overgeared characters and companions.

 

Doing heroics for gathering lockboxes. I count 140+ heroics on lower level planets. (Makeb and below). I've run them before and after 4.0.2 mostly with level 61/62 and companions with 10 influence. I do get close to getting killed after the nerf, but not if I use all my abilities.

 

The heroics on Star Fortress. I realize that it now is a lot harder to do these, as most end game heroics have been in the past. (For those of you that can remember trying to solo CZ-198, when level cap was 55 or even 60.) And it might take more grinding for gear/influence than what you needed prior to 4.0.2. But again, the original intent was to make it difficult, or at least to be done with 2 people. Is it really that much worse than trying to get Pierce/M1-4X and doing multiple warzones?

 

So yes the game with the nerf is harder and not as fun as it used to be. And for the casual and solo players that feel that it has become too grindy, and want to unsubscribe I understand where you are coming from. But this is the reality of what the game was originally planned to be, and what it now is.

 

So please, let's get rid of the "snarky" remarks from both sides. If you feel that it isn't fun and now too difficult/grindy you can say so and unsubscribe as you wish. If you can do the Star Fortress solo and want to say so, then please list the how, gearing, instance, etc. and help those that can't. And please let's not flame the other side for their opinions. I've always found this community to be a lot more civil than most mmo's and would like it to stay that way.

 

Sincerely,

[Jackosaur]

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