earpeice=120 armoring/hilt/barrle=8. you also gain armor or damage from just the rating of the item. no brainier get armoring and hilts for you and all your companions. buy an earpiece(by now all stats should be on the AH get one with an augumentation) or get lucky with drops.

played assassin to 20 and operative to 38(atm) you are right our numbers isn't as big. the only time we get the big numbers is with backstab and laceration. it's different but I don't feel underpowered. I know with my assassin I felt my burst damage(maul shock) was much much higher but I had much more weakest attack swinging with all my force gone.

I would like to see all the medals. there might be one for X healing in 1 life. (i know there is something like that for guard) now the pure dps specs have something to say. (i'm the only spec that can get 4 medals 75k damage 300k damage/killing blows/slaying 10 enemies) almost every other class gets 2 of them. Highest I got was 8. this is for more of a healbot spec. but I play a lot more hybrid operative. (level 35 but hots and isnta heals are all the rage)