Hey Keith.......got a question for you. You know patch 5.3.....its not long now until July rears its beautiful head and shouts "HEY YOU GUYS!! READY FOR DIS AWESOME PATCH?!". Now we know patch 5.3 is going to include a sprinkling of class changes and i was wondering if, well, you know, the combat team maybe have some more information to share on the other classes aside from Shadow/Assassin? Looking forward to reading your response, amigo

Being rather crude with calcs but I would say the difference between bolster & normal pvp is 5% stats but more importantly it's the difference of around ~400 expertise as you can only get max expertise of 2018 in full pvp gear and war hero crystals. This difference is probably equal to ~20% extra damage and healing. As for the difference between normal and advanced pvp gear, again probably only 5% stats. Now what does make a difference is 5% PLUS the stats from all 14 augments. Due to how expensive augmenting gear is, people generally hold off augmenting gear until they get advanced pvp gear pieces.

Same to TOFN. Log in server seems to be playing up!

I would say that this gear setup is good to use with lightning. With the +5% alacrity from the normal lightning spec rotation you will be able to cast hard and fast and still do fairly good damage. As with both specs, lightning more so, you need a good amount of alacrity to help you put the damage out fast enough around the numerous interrupts, stuns, lifts etc and i believe this gear setup will achieve that. As for skill points, those are purely down to personal preference but i use the following: https://tor.community/VZekNR Explanations: Skillful Sith Defiance: +3% damage reduction. Self explanatory. Empty Body: +10% healing received. Helps in general with both pvp and pve. Sap Strength: -25% damage dealt from target after stun wears off. Generally helps the team out in a small way, especially when used on high burst targets such as AP PT, Rage Jugg and Marks Sniper. Masterful Emersion: I believe this is mandatory for all specs. Nothing worse than being constantly slowed or rooted. Very helpful with gaining some distance from the enemy. Lightning Barrier: +10% barrier absorption. The extra absorb is always nice to have in pvp. Honourable Mention: Electric Bindings: Places a nice root on knock back. Very handy when being focused by melee. Heroic Corrupted Barrier: The healing granted by your barrier and bubble really does add up over time and somewhat becomes "passive" when using barrier on cd. Haunted Dreams: This i think is an awesome talent. Not only does it grant instant whirlwind! it also stuns them for 2 seconds if the whirlwind is broken, two cc's in one! Honourable Mention: Backlash: Nice incapacitate cc on barrier burst. Mostly taken by healers and people who like to use the burst for offensive cc (cancelling the barrier on purpose) Honourable Mention: Force Mobility: This is nice for casting Thundering Blast on the move as lightning but if your going to be stationary the majority of the time casting Lightning Strike (outside of procs) when you might as well stand still and cast TB Honourable Mention: Force Haste: All round good talent for reducing CD times. Honourable Mention: Shifting Silhouette: Nice for those who prefer to use teleport offensively. I don't use this talent as i prefer to use my teleport for defensive over offensive. I hope i have answered your question

I have recently put a madness guide up for pvp from my personal preference of course but your more than welcome to follow it if it will make things easier for you 😀 http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=849891

Hey buddy, with regards to what are you referring? If you asking how I got to what I call my personal preference then yes, I used a lot of credits on various augments and lots of war zone comms on enhancements. I initially tried full versatile augments with stock gear, then I used full power augments with stock gear but with both I found them to be too sluggish with ~3% alacrity. That's when I decided to swap out the accuracy enhancements in chest and hands for alacrity (101% is enough for pvp) giving me ~4.5% alacrity. I still found this to be too sluggish in a fast paced meta so decided to swap half of my power augments for alacrity and eventually I got to ~10% which when I tested I found to be a lot better for me. So now that alacrity was sorted I still wasn't happy with my crit and damage output so I decided to go full ham with crit augments by swapping out versatile ones. By the time I got to weapons I was over 35% crit and 65% surge and I have to say my damage can be pretty nasty now! As for number crunching, no I didn't sit down and calculate anything and that is because I find it easier to adapt and change items in game over number crunching with pen and paper. As for the outputs, I have added links to screenshots to prove it provides what I say it does. I hope this has answered your question 😀

I would say they are both pretty much the same with regards to dps output however from my experience running heroic star fortresses solo, I complete the runs quicker as madness. I think this is very likely due to easy dot spreading through Death Field. Lightning is fun as it looks ****** but it's far easier to kill multiple mobs as madness. If you do choose madness I would recommend aiming for 10% alacrity and rest in crit & power. I have a madness pvp gearing guide within these forums should you need some guidance (pvp perspective of course).

I have played lightning with this setup and it is very tasty if you like to play that spec. You can build +5% alacrity through general rotation giving you 15%. This practically makes you a fairly effective dps cannon. I believe you also get a passive increase to crit and surge although I can't confirm that for you right now (at work).

Hmm I would suspect that your mostly power orientated? Maybe swapped out some alacrity enhancements for critical also?

Well the thing about alacrity is that it affects everything, not just the GCD when spreading DoTs (besides you should be using Death Field to do this as much as possible). Alacrity affects how quickly we can cast a full Force Lighting which then gives us more instant Lightning Strikes over time as our mini burst filler. It also helps us cast heals quicker which in the current meta is important in order to stay alive. I did try going full power and trying varying % of alacrity but I've found ~10% alacrity to give the best all round performance. There is nothing worse when your being focused and your waiting on the GCD to pass so that you can activate your bubble. I would say, if you want a balanced setup then my guide will help. 😀

Your welcome buddy. Hopefully it is clear enough for you to follow. I have to admit, i'm having a blast with it in WZs and frequently hitting 2.0k-2.6k dps average (best was 2.8k dps in 4v4 arena, but i was very lucky with the enemy team stacking). Oh and although we may not be big hitters like AP PT, Rage Jugg or Marks Sniper, we can hit a somewhat tasty 11k crit on Force Leech (i wish it was more like 15k but cant really complain when we are mostly designed to rot the enemy down).

Hey peeps, For a while i had been looking for some sort of guidance on how to gear my madness sorc for pvp but was unable to find anything. With AMR (Ask Mr Robot) no longer supporting SWTOR and many of the other websites no longer up-to-date, i thought i would share my current gear and what i have done to achieve the stats i have. Please note: 1. The setup i am showing is my personal preference and one that i have had the most success with in pvp. 2. If you are just starting out, you will need to purchase the lower tier pvp gear before you can purchase the higher tier. 3. When purchasing the higher tier weapons/offhand that you remove the war hero crystals before hand as pvp gear no longer comes with them. Gear Setup Head - Exemplar Force Master's Headgear (Augment: +73 Alacrity) Chest - Exemplar Force Master's Vestments (Augment: +73 Alacrity)(Note: swap out Advanced Initiative Enhancement (Accuracy/Power) for Advanced Quick Savant (Alacrity/Power). Hands - Exemplar Force Master's Gloves (Augment: +73 Alacrity)(Note: swap enhancement like chest above). Waist - Exemplar Force Master's Sash (Augment: +73 Power) Legs - Exemplar Force Master's Lower Robe (Augment: +73 Power) Feet - Exemplar Force Master's Boots (Augment: +73 Power) Ear - Exemplar Savant Device (Augment: +73 Critical) Implant 1 - Exemplar Savant Package (Augment: +73 Critical) Implant 2 - Exemplar Adept Package (Augment: +73 Critical) Wrists - Exemplar Force Master's Bracers (Augment: +73 Critical) Relic 1 - Exemplar Relic of Focused Retribution (30% Mastery)(Augment: +73 Critical) Relic 2 - Exemplar Relic of Devastating Vengeance (30% Critical)(Augment: +73 Critical) Weapon Main Hand - Exemplar Force Master's Lightsaber (Augment: +73 Mastery) Off Hand - Exemplar Force Master's Focus (Augment: +73 Mastery) Stats I have all but 6 datacrons. Each datacron grants 4 Mastery so if you don't have any it would be worth pursuing in your space time. The stats below are affected by my current collection of datacrons but will give you a rough idea of what you will be granted. Without any buffs or stims the above setup will grant you: Bonus Force Damage: 2125.4 Bonus Healing: 1537.4 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 29.4% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 67805 http://imgur.com/mIQMCLv With player buffs only: Bonus Force Damage: 2276.60 Bonus Healing: 1645.8 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 34.73% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 70550 http://imgur.com/24RKxTw With Blue Stimulant (+188 Mastery & 77 Power) Bonus Force Damage: 2336.6 Bonus Healing: 1688.5 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 35.02% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 70550 http://imgur.com/SJKyayT With Purple Stimulant (+198 Mastery & 81 Power) Bonus Force Damage: 2339.8 Bonus Healing: 1690.8 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 35.04% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 70550 http://imgur.com/xOXVMsr General Insight From my point of view, the above gives a nice balance between critical chance, critical multiplier and alacrity, all key for making sure your dots tick well and your not too stuck waiting for the GCD to clear so you can cast another dot when dot spreading (with death field on CD). What is also nice: 1. With both relics procced i get critical chance of 40.07% and critical multiplier of 70.01% 2. Level 32 passive (Disintegration) grants + 5% critical chance to Force Leech & Lightning Strike. 3. Level 64 passive (Fulminating Current) grants 2% critical chance to DoTs per tick of Force Lightning, stacking up to 4 times. This is pretty much a constant +8% critical chance to the DoTs! Now when you pop your CDs and you have all that plus critical chance.....well you can really burn someone down without DCDs in seconds!. Well i hope that this guild manages to help some of you. If there any questions please don't hesitate to write on here and i will try my best to get back to you. Alternatively you can find me on imps (TOFN). Peace.

Hey peeps, For a while i had been looking for some sort of guidance on how to gear my madness sorc for pvp but was unable to find anything. With AMR (Ask Mr Robot) no longer supporting SWTOR and many of the other websites no longer up-to-date, i thought i would share my current gear and what i have done to achieve the stats i have. Please note: 1. The setup i am showing is my personal preference and one that i have had the most success with in pvp. 2. If you are just starting out, you will need to purchase the lower tier pvp gear before you can purchase the higher tier. 3. When purchasing the higher tier weapons/offhand that you remove the war hero crystals before hand as pvp gear no longer comes with them. Gear Setup Head - Exemplar Force Master's Headgear (Augment: +73 Alacrity) Chest - Exemplar Force Master's Vestments (Augment: +73 Alacrity)(Note: swap out Advanced Initiative Enhancement (Accuracy/Power) for Advanced Quick Savant (Alacrity/Power). Hands - Exemplar Force Master's Gloves (Augment: +73 Alacrity)(Note: swap enhancement like chest above). Waist - Exemplar Force Master's Sash (Augment: +73 Power) Legs - Exemplar Force Master's Lower Robe (Augment: +73 Power) Feet - Exemplar Force Master's Boots (Augment: +73 Power) Ear - Exemplar Savant Device (Augment: +73 Critical) Implant 1 - Exemplar Savant Package (Augment: +73 Critical) Implant 2 - Exemplar Adept Package (Augment: +73 Critical) Wrists - Exemplar Force Master's Bracers (Augment: +73 Critical) Relic 1 - Exemplar Relic of Focused Retribution (30% Mastery)(Augment: +73 Critical) Relic 2 - Exemplar Relic of Devastating Vengeance (30% Critical)(Augment: +73 Critical) Weapon Main Hand - Exemplar Force Master's Lightsaber (Augment: +73 Mastery) Off Hand - Exemplar Force Master's Focus (Augment: +73 Mastery) Stats I have all but 6 datacrons. Each datacron grants 4 Mastery so if you don't have any it would be worth pursuing in your space time. The stats below are affected by my current collection of datacrons but will give you a rough idea of what you will be granted. Without any buffs or stims the above setup will grant you: Bonus Force Damage: 2125.4 Bonus Healing: 1537.4 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 29.4% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 67805 http://imgur.com/mIQMCLv With player buffs only: Bonus Force Damage: 2276.60 Bonus Healing: 1645.8 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 34.73% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 70550 http://imgur.com/24RKxTw With Blue Stimulant (+188 Mastery & 77 Power) Bonus Force Damage: 2336.6 Bonus Healing: 1688.5 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 35.02% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 70550 http://imgur.com/SJKyayT With Purple Stimulant (+198 Mastery & 81 Power) Bonus Force Damage: 2339.8 Bonus Healing: 1690.8 Accuracy: 101% Critical Chance: 35.04% Critical Multiplier: 65.23% Alacrity 10.57% HP: 70550 http://imgur.com/xOXVMsr General Insight From my point of view, the above gives a nice balance between critical chance, critical multiplier and alacrity, all key for making sure your dots tick well and your not too stuck waiting for the GCD to clear so you can cast another dot when dot spreading (with death field on CD). What is also nice: 1. With both relics procced i get critical chance of 40.07% and critical multiplier of 70.01% 2. Level 32 passive (Disintegration) grants + 5% critical chance to Force Leech & Lightning Strike. 3. Level 64 passive (Fulminating Current) grants 2% critical chance to DoTs per tick of Force Lightning, stacking up to 4 times. This is pretty much a constant +8% critical chance to the DoTs! Now when you pop your CDs and you have all that plus critical chance.....well you can really burn someone down without DCDs in seconds!. Well i hope that this guild manages to help some of you. If there any questions please don't hesitate to write on here and i will try my best to get back to you. Alternatively you can find me on imps (TOFN). Peace.

/signed. I always had to balance Dark 1 & 2 to keep the yellow eyes but didn't really like the corruption lines taking over my face! As it stands right now it looks like I have to have vein surgery haha. I would happily pay 100cc to have real dark side eyes without the facial corruption! That way I can select a light side option without worrying about losing my dark side eyes (I use light side if it makes sense, eg why not save someone who will serve you for showing mercy over killing them outright!!)

I've been a pvper wholeheartedly and I agree 100% with your post and to place some emphasis on your last part, where is our PvE bolster for all ops?? I have also considered very seriously about cancelling my sub. There is no incentive for me to grind gear now as all stats are provided for free. I can't understand how an mmo which is driven by time sinks (grinding gear) can totally eliminate that aspect for 1/2 of the game. Dedicated PvPers must be around 40% of the total subscription base, people who thrive on achieving min/max of end gear stats.i can't imagine how they all think about this and how it must affect their attraction to pvp. I constantly try to snap out of this mind set but without a grind and achievement system, what is the point of wasting hours on pvp. Might as well go play BF3 lol. Please BW sort this out.