Itemization in 7.0

[Lyriel]

Based on Personal experience on the PTS Conquest greens have the same stats as Vet FP blues of the same ilevel. So take that for what you will.

 

PS: your link doesn't even work btw.

 

I take the word of the devs, even though it's not on their official forums, as definitive.

 

I wonder if you have trouble with the link because it's a discord link. Let me try this: (Edited to try a different link):

Edited November 12, 2021 by Lyriel

[TrixxieTriss]

I take the word of the devs, even though it's not on their official forums, as definitive.

 

I wonder if you have trouble with the link because it's a discord link. Let me try this: ChrisS talking about optimization in Discord.

 

Your link takes us to an Amazon login.

[Eli_Porter]

I take the word of the devs, even though it's not on their official forums, as definitive.

 

 

So to cap it off, if you're a casual player when 7.0 drops:

 

You'll be 4 item rating behind NiM raiders

 

You'll be forced to run KP/EV HM ad nauseum to gear up to the strongest level you can get

 

You'll barely be getting RPM's/OEM's anymore

Edited November 12, 2021 by Eli_Porter

[ZeridanShear]

Hi everyone,

 

This is a follow up post to the OP to answer some of the questions that we've based off of the initial information that was shared. Please see below:

 

Clarification on gear ratings

What is the max gear level?

• In the 7.0 release, players can upgrade up to level 330 via Legacy Master Mode Operations. The max obtainable gear level for all modes will rise over time throughout the expansion.
  

 

Max new gear ratings (7.0 gear upgrade caps):

• 326: This can be obtained by doing anything in game (Conquests).
  
• 322: Story Mode Legacy Operations
  
• 326: Veteran Mode Legacy Operations
  
• 330: Master Mode Legacy Operations
  

 

In the 7.0 release, it is only possible to upgrade to level 330 via Master Mode Operations. Over time, all other game modes will be able to upgrade to level 330 as the ceiling is raised, so essentially, gear progression is built into all modes.

 

What is the PvP experience like with these changes?

• PvP will have a stat floor and ceiling, so players with higher levels of gear will have their gear reduced to the stat ceiling (326). GSF will be awarded akin to the PvP upgrade loop.
  
• GSF will be awarded akin to the PvP upgrade loop.
  
• There are no current plans for Social Achievements for PvP.
  

 

PvP Gear and Accuracy clarification.

• Thyrsian armor, acquired by participating in PvP, will not contain any accuracy
  
• Thyrsian offhands will come in two stat distributions, one with accuracy and one without. Players will be able to choose which version of offhand they desire, or collect both.
  

 

Can I acquire mats to max gear and mods without having to do grouped content?

• Over time, as more patches are released in the expansion, you will be able to upgrade your gear more and more, including unlocking the moddable gear vendor.
  

 

What is happening with Tech Fragments?

• Tech Fragments will remain, and will still be able to be spent on Tacticals, Cosmetics, Augment Components, and Kai Zykken’s offerings.
  

 

Will the achievements currently categorized under "Spoils of War", the Equipment Sets and Tactical Items also be moved to the Feats of Strength category or will they still be achievable in 7.0?

• The Spoils of War equipment sets will no longer drop from content nor be able to be directly purchased from a vendor. As a result, the achievements will be moved to the Feats of Strength category. The sets will still be obtainable via Kai Zykken’s Random Unique Items box.
  

 

What will happen to all the armor sets being sold by vendors in the supplies section of the fleet in exchange for tech fragments and credits?

• They will not be available for direct purchase, but will be available in Kai Zykken’s Random Unique Items Box
  

 

Will the DvL items be available for credits instead of tokens?

• No - DvL items will remain available for tokens. We will add back in the ability to acquire tokens in a future update via the DvL bosses.
  

 

Is the only way we can get moddable gear is if we can clear VM 80 OP? Is there no more min/maxing for players who can't clear the hardest content in game?

• No. Over time, as upgrade ceilings raise with new game updates, moddable gear will be accessible to all players. At 7.0’s launch there will be no moddable gear awarded above level 306
  

 

Are Renown Caches going away?

• Yes as the Renown system is being removed.
  

 

Are individual characters that already have a social level keeping their social level and access to the associated items in 7.0?

• Yes, you will keep your current social level and access to all unlocked rewards.
  

 

How do these changes affect story players in terms of getting rewards toward gearing?

• Story players will still earn materials and gear via Conquests and Story mode missions, Dailies, and Heroics.
  

 

How does this affect crafting?

• Augments and Augmentation Kits are still craftable, and able to be used on all 7.0 gear. We are not raising Crew Skills, Gathering or Crafting levels upon the 7.0 release, but they are a part of our 10-year celebration plans.
  

 

Where is the vendor for command crate shells?

• These will be available for purchase on a vendor with 7.0’s launch for 3,500 Tech Fragments and 500,000 Credits.
  

 

For additional clarification on how gearing works in 7.0, to advance your character’s gear, you’ll want to do the following:

 

1. Play Conquests/Daily Missions regularly - currency from this is used for gear upgrades across all other content, and the gear pool from this alone will upgrade you beyond what's needed for any solo activity. Max gear from this source is 326 at launch, and will increase in future patches - see #4 below.
   
   • All other solo (and most multiplayer) activities for 7.0 and beyond are balanced for 318 gear.
     
   • For comparison, completing the 7.0 storyline rewards gear up to level 320.
     

 

[*]Play Flashpoints, Warzones, and/or Ops as you like - gear drops from those activities will upgrade you regardless of where your currently-equipped gear came from.

[*]For Players with a favorite activity type, currencies and sidegrades from that activity will allow you to upgrade to the max needed for that activity, simply by playing that activity (plus Conquests/Daily missions).

[*]We will introduce higher tiers of gear in future 7.x updates. Even as the max gear rewards go up, the balance target for all solo and most multiplayer activities will remain at 318 for all 7.x content.

• The balance target for new Operations/Lair Bosses/etc (8-player) will increase as new tiers of gear become available in later patches, starting with the R-4 Operation in 7.1. Legacy Operations will remain balanced for 318.
  
• The item rating floor and ceiling for Warzones will also raise over time.
  

I hope this has been helpful!

 

Does this mean the boxes will literally disappear and we should open any/all Renown Crates or they're just disappear? Same with Flashpoint/Ops/Daily/Weekly crates?

[TrixxieTriss]

Does this mean the boxes will literally disappear and we should open any/all Renown Crates or they're just disappear? Same with Flashpoint/Ops/Daily/Weekly crates?

 

I would seriously open all crates of any kind before the expansion launches (besides CM ones). Not doing so could result in losing them all together. Wether that’s on purpose by BioWares design or even from unforeseen bugs.

[TrixxieTriss]

You'll barely be getting RPM's/OEM's anymore

 

That just means you should start stock piling those RPM/OEM’s because prices are about to go up again in a month;)

[Lyriel]

So to cap it off, if you're a casual player when 7.0 drops:

 

You'll be 4 item rating behind NiM raiders

 

You'll be forced to run KP/EV HM ad nauseum to gear up to the strongest level you can get

 

You'll barely be getting RPM's/OEM's anymore

 

No.

 

Not only will casual players be behind in irating, they lose out on optimization. The stat allocations are fixed, and the ones for casual players are the worst - and thanks to the level sync changes also coming, the new casual gear is worse than current 306 gear in ]'legacy' (e.g, under 80) content.

 

As for the rest of your conjecture, many casual players do not do any raid content, much less HM, and barely get OEMs/RPMs now (generally they come from trading in 10k tech fragments). That will go from 'barely' to 'practically none' since the way gear is siloed forces players to concentrate on gearing in a single silo. For casual players that's likely to be Conquest simply because the materials from that are required for all silos.

[Lyriel]

Your link takes us to an Amazon login.

 

Argh. Edited the link to hopefully work for everyone...

[Toraak]

Consider this then. If as I said the green and blue pieces from conquest and FP's have the same stats as I've seen on the PTS, if the stat Allocation is different on Purple gear wouldn't that make both that quote and me correct? I haven't been able to do an Operation on the PTS, so I do not know what the purple gear looks like.

 

It was my observation on the PTS, and everything on it is subject to change at any time by BW of course.

[Lyriel]

Consider this then. If as I said the green and blue pieces from conquest and FP's have the same stats as I've seen on the PTS, if the stat Allocation is different on Purple gear wouldn't that make both that quote and me correct? I haven't been able to do an Operation on the PTS, so I do not know what the purple gear looks like.

 

It was my observation on the PTS, and everything on it is subject to change at any time by BW of course.

 

If the blue FP gear is as bad as the green gear that makes things worse, not better. Both sets will be worse in legacy content than current 306 gear.

[robwettengel]

Hi everyone,

 

This is a follow up post to the OP to answer some of the questions that we've based off of the initial information that was shared. Please see below:

 

Clarification on gear ratings

What is the max gear level?

• In the 7.0 release, players can upgrade up to level 330 via Legacy Master Mode Operations. The max obtainable gear level for all modes will rise over time throughout the expansion.
  

 

Max new gear ratings (7.0 gear upgrade caps):

• 326: This can be obtained by doing anything in game (Conquests).
  
• 322: Story Mode Legacy Operations
  
• 326: Veteran Mode Legacy Operations
  
• 330: Master Mode Legacy Operations
  

 

In the 7.0 release, it is only possible to upgrade to level 330 via Master Mode Operations. Over time, all other game modes will be able to upgrade to level 330 as the ceiling is raised, so essentially, gear progression is built into all modes.

 

What is the PvP experience like with these changes?

• PvP will have a stat floor and ceiling, so players with higher levels of gear will have their gear reduced to the stat ceiling (326). GSF will be awarded akin to the PvP upgrade loop.
  
• GSF will be awarded akin to the PvP upgrade loop.
  
• There are no current plans for Social Achievements for PvP.
  

 

PvP Gear and Accuracy clarification.

• Thyrsian armor, acquired by participating in PvP, will not contain any accuracy
  
• Thyrsian offhands will come in two stat distributions, one with accuracy and one without. Players will be able to choose which version of offhand they desire, or collect both.
  

 

Can I acquire mats to max gear and mods without having to do grouped content?

• Over time, as more patches are released in the expansion, you will be able to upgrade your gear more and more, including unlocking the moddable gear vendor.
  

 

What is happening with Tech Fragments?

• Tech Fragments will remain, and will still be able to be spent on Tacticals, Cosmetics, Augment Components, and Kai Zykken’s offerings.
  

 

Will the achievements currently categorized under "Spoils of War", the Equipment Sets and Tactical Items also be moved to the Feats of Strength category or will they still be achievable in 7.0?

• The Spoils of War equipment sets will no longer drop from content nor be able to be directly purchased from a vendor. As a result, the achievements will be moved to the Feats of Strength category. The sets will still be obtainable via Kai Zykken’s Random Unique Items box.
  

 

What will happen to all the armor sets being sold by vendors in the supplies section of the fleet in exchange for tech fragments and credits?

• They will not be available for direct purchase, but will be available in Kai Zykken’s Random Unique Items Box
  

 

Will the DvL items be available for credits instead of tokens?

• No - DvL items will remain available for tokens. We will add back in the ability to acquire tokens in a future update via the DvL bosses.
  

 

Is the only way we can get moddable gear is if we can clear VM 80 OP? Is there no more min/maxing for players who can't clear the hardest content in game?

• No. Over time, as upgrade ceilings raise with new game updates, moddable gear will be accessible to all players. At 7.0’s launch there will be no moddable gear awarded above level 306
  

 

Are Renown Caches going away?

• Yes as the Renown system is being removed.
  

 

Are individual characters that already have a social level keeping their social level and access to the associated items in 7.0?

• Yes, you will keep your current social level and access to all unlocked rewards.
  

 

How do these changes affect story players in terms of getting rewards toward gearing?

• Story players will still earn materials and gear via Conquests and Story mode missions, Dailies, and Heroics.
  

 

How does this affect crafting?

• Augments and Augmentation Kits are still craftable, and able to be used on all 7.0 gear. We are not raising Crew Skills, Gathering or Crafting levels upon the 7.0 release, but they are a part of our 10-year celebration plans.
  

 

Where is the vendor for command crate shells?

• These will be available for purchase on a vendor with 7.0’s launch for 3,500 Tech Fragments and 500,000 Credits.
  

 

For additional clarification on how gearing works in 7.0, to advance your character’s gear, you’ll want to do the following:

 

1. Play Conquests/Daily Missions regularly - currency from this is used for gear upgrades across all other content, and the gear pool from this alone will upgrade you beyond what's needed for any solo activity. Max gear from this source is 326 at launch, and will increase in future patches - see #4 below.
   
   • All other solo (and most multiplayer) activities for 7.0 and beyond are balanced for 318 gear.
     
   • For comparison, completing the 7.0 storyline rewards gear up to level 320.
     

 

[*]Play Flashpoints, Warzones, and/or Ops as you like - gear drops from those activities will upgrade you regardless of where your currently-equipped gear came from.

[*]For Players with a favorite activity type, currencies and sidegrades from that activity will allow you to upgrade to the max needed for that activity, simply by playing that activity (plus Conquests/Daily missions).

[*]We will introduce higher tiers of gear in future 7.x updates. Even as the max gear rewards go up, the balance target for all solo and most multiplayer activities will remain at 318 for all 7.x content.

• The balance target for new Operations/Lair Bosses/etc (8-player) will increase as new tiers of gear become available in later patches, starting with the R-4 Operation in 7.1. Legacy Operations will remain balanced for 318.
  
• The item rating floor and ceiling for Warzones will also raise over time.
  

I hope this has been helpful!

 

Jackie,

 

Just want to thank you for getting this information to us. Yet, I am concerned about how long it took to get this very basic information about the xpac to us. No one here is asking truly detailed questions about what is coming. For it to have taken several days to gather the brief answers to many questions that only needed brief answers is very puzzling to me. We just want to know how existing things are changing. An answer informs us that tech frags will be staying and will still be obtainable, but without telling us how they will be obtained. This strikes me as a sensible and natural follow-up question to pose re: tech frags.

 

Why is it like pulling teeth getting answers to the simplest of questions?

[robwettengel]

If the blue FP gear is as bad as the green gear that makes things worse, not better. Both sets will be worse in legacy content than current 306 gear.

 

I'm wondering if we even need any of this new gear at all. I solo'd Elom and nearly killed the first boss with 306 BiS and 272 Augs with a lvl 50 comp. If the new gear is so necessary, why was I able to nearly kill a boss on a vet FP that is apparently designed with 318 gear in mind?

Edited November 12, 2021 by robwettengel

[casirabit]

I'm wondering if we even need any of this new gear at all. I solo'd Elom and nearly killed the first boss with 306 BiS and 272 Augs with a lvl 50 comp. If the new gear is no necessary, why was I able to nearly kill a boss on a vet FP that is apparently designed with 318 gear in mind?

 

From all the indications and information around on the forums, I am not upgrading my gear to this new gear. I have 306 and if it still does good then the new gear BW wants to give conquest/solo players can just rot (sorry if this is harsh) for all I care. I will not upgrade to gear that seems to be worse than what I have.

[Exly]

From all the indications and information around on the forums, I am not upgrading my gear to this new gear. I have 306 and if it still does good then the new gear BW wants to give conquest/solo players can just rot (sorry if this is harsh) for all I care. I will not upgrade to gear that seems to be worse than what I have.

 

The system is messed up. I don't know if I will ever equip conquest gear. I hope it sells for enough credits to make it worth my while to get so that at least something good can come out of me using my tokens to buy it.

[ceryxp]

From all the indications and information around on the forums, I am not upgrading my gear to this new gear. I have 306 and if it still does good then the new gear BW wants to give conquest/solo players can just rot (sorry if this is harsh) for all I care. I will not upgrade to gear that seems to be worse than what I have.

 

At this point I am just waiting for them to announce that Legendary items will only be available from Ops to make this fuster cluck complete.

Edited November 13, 2021 by ceryxp

[Akushii]

From all the indications and information around on the forums, I am not upgrading my gear to this new gear. I have 306 and if it still does good then the new gear BW wants to give conquest/solo players can just rot (sorry if this is harsh) for all I care. I will not upgrade to gear that seems to be worse than what I have.

 

One thing to keep in mind is that we don't have the full picture of the gear progression. Currently on the PTS, they have only provided the starter gear for ONLY conquest. We don't have enough resources to upgrade gear. One of the devs mentioned that a main source of gears and gear upgrades would be from a weekly mission that you can complete 3 times. This mission currently does not exist on the PTS.

 

What we have currently is the equivalent of the green 270 shatek gear that we got at the beginning of 6.0 and are trying to compare it to the old 258 gear. If I remember correctly, the 270 gear was much worse then the 258 optimized gear that we had at the beginning of expansion. Once we got the higher levels did we surpass the 258 gear. I would imagine the same would be true in 7.0.

 

We may have to wait for 1-2 more iteration of the PTS to get the full picture. The current version of the PTS seems to be incomplete when it comes to the gearing system. They have introduced the base system, but have not flushed it out yet.

 

I also don't think all the drop rates/cost of items are quite correct. For example, I got a gear drop from Vet FP, which I had the option to upgrade from the PTS vendor. The upgrade costs 325 Decurion Isotope Stabilizer, 75 Aquatic Resource Matrix and 30 Medal of Commendation. Completing one Vet FP earned me only 4 Dercurion Isotope Stabilizer. Completing a Heroic earned me 3 Aquatic Resource Matrix and completing Conquest earned me 200 Medal of Commendation. So the numbers don't quite add up. Otherwise I would have to run ~80 Vet Flashpoints to upgrade one item just once.

 

I'm not too worried yet, as I feel like things will be adjusted and there will be more to come. Just need to be a bit patient and trust things will work out before launch. I am sure the devs are very much aware that the green 320 gear is worse than 306 gear for downscaled content. But I would imagine, somewhere along the gear progression we will be able to acquire gear that will be better than 306 gear, when downscaled.

Edited November 13, 2021 by Akushii

[Toraak]

I noticed something on the PTS, which I put a comment on the PTS forums on this as well.

 

In this build there is a weekly cap of 600 Medals of Commendations (In this build we get 200 per character we complete conquest on)

 

As well as an 800 weekly cap on the new Aquatic Resource Matrix (in this build each daily area gives 100 when you complete the weekly, and each daily gives 3 as well).

 

Both of these caps are legacy wide, not per character, so this will slow down the gearing process. Not to mention give us less of an incentive to do conquest on many of our alt characters.

Edited November 13, 2021 by Toraak

[Pricia]

My issue frankly with no modable gear is if the stats are crap (which it seems is the case with solo gear). If I miss all the time because I can't get 110% accuracy I'm going to be pretty pissed off. I can already imagine having to sacrifice a good legendary implant bonus because it comes on an item with crit...

 

Horrible, horrible design. Higher level gear is supposed to be an upgrade, not a downgrade.

 

About solo players not able to reach the max gear, it's not even about need or want, it's about giving us something to do and a reason to play. Getting max gear earlier just means no reason to play earlier.

[hooty]

I'll admit right off the bat I haven't read the whole thread, so forgive me if this has been covered;

 

SWTOR is a money making business, with a variety of customers who enjoy a variety of products (different types of content). If the new systems of 7.0 are designed to serve a small subset of customers over and above the rest, is that good business? The old saying is "give the customers what they want" for a reason.

 

Telling a customer they don't need something, or worse yet that they don't deserve something, that is a mistake. Letting a small set of customers dictate what you sell to the rest of the customers is a MISTAKE.

[TziganeNZ]

Question for someone who's been on the PTS: It's a really slow process getting up to 306 for a story-based, non-grouping casual player. If I don't have 306 gear, would 272-278 be sufficient to get through the new story line?

 

I know that most of you are already in top level gear so for you, the new stuff is possibly a downgrade. I suspect that it is likely to be an upgrade for me, though (even if it will take a long time to get as they are nerfing Conquest into oblivion).

[Akushii]

My issue frankly with no modable gear is if the stats are crap (which it seems is the case with solo gear). If I miss all the time because I can't get 110% accuracy I'm going to be pretty pissed off. I can already imagine having to sacrifice a good legendary implant bonus because it comes on an item with crit...

 

Horrible, horrible design. Higher level gear is supposed to be an upgrade, not a downgrade.

 

About solo players not able to reach the max gear, it's not even about need or want, it's about giving us something to do and a reason to play. Getting max gear earlier just means no reason to play earlier.

 

• Everyone will have access to moddable gear when they reach 334 gear.
  
• Everyone will be able to reach 334 gear eventually. Depending on the content that you do, it may take longer for some.
  
• No one will have access to moddable gear at launch as most content will give you gear that goes up to 328. Only MM OPs will have access to 330 gear, which isn't moddable.
  

 

As for Legendary implant bonus, I think all the bonuses will come on all the variations of the implants. On the PTS, I saw some of the Legendary implant effect for Operatives on tank implants. Obviously Operatives are not going to be forced to wear tank gear to have access to their Legendary bonus.

 

Like you said, gear chase gives us something to do. I think this slow rollout of gear gives us a gear chase every patch. Unlike the last expansion, where we were able to reach 306 gear in first week and there was literally no gear progression for 2 years.

[robwettengel]

Question for someone who's been on the PTS: It's a really slow process getting up to 306 for a story-based, non-grouping casual player. If I don't have 306 gear, would 272-278 be sufficient to get through the new story line?

 

I know that most of you are already in top level gear so for you, the new stuff is possibly a downgrade. I suspect that it is likely to be an upgrade for me, though (even if it will take a long time to get as they are nerfing Conquest into oblivion).

 

We haven't been able to play through the new storyline. The FP associated with it only dropped on PTS earlier in the week.

[TziganeNZ]

We haven't been able to play through the new storyline. The FP associated with it only dropped on PTS earlier in the week.

 

Ahh, I see. No problem, thank you so much for your reply.

[Toraak]

Ahh, I see. No problem, thank you so much for your reply.

 

They never put the story on the PTS. they don't want to spoil the story for people like that.

[JakRoanin]

• Everyone will have access to moddable gear when they reach 334 gear.
  
• Everyone will be able to reach 334 gear eventually. Depending on the content that you do, it may take longer for some.
  
• No one will have access to moddable gear at launch as most content will give you gear that goes up to 328. Only MM OPs will have access to 330 gear, which isn't moddable.
  

 

As for Legendary implant bonus, I think all the bonuses will come on all the variations of the implants. On the PTS, I saw some of the Legendary implant effect for Operatives on tank implants. Obviously Operatives are not going to be forced to wear tank gear to have access to their Legendary bonus.

 

Like you said, gear chase gives us something to do. I think this slow rollout of gear gives us a gear chase every patch. Unlike the last expansion, where we were able to reach 306 gear in first week and there was literally no gear progression for 2 years.

 

We get it you love the new gearing system and I am truly glad for you. However relegating Conquest players to green gear badly optimized is horrible for some of us. At least they could optimize it for us.