sounds like your game installation is corrupt for those packets etc; I used to have the same issue when doing Esseles FP - right at the beginning after killing the first 2 droids, as soon as I turned the corner to run to the elevator my game would freeze and I would have to re-load. I finally just reinstalled the game from DVD and that fixed the issue.

My suggestion is as follows: When you ding 50 - pick up the Recruit v2 gear for free - it will get you through some basic ops, dailies etc with no problems. As you run those, you'll pick up columi and get your gear there. honestly, with the changes they just made to the number of BH comms that drop from the different ops, you shouldn't even be in Rakata very long before you are in BH gear. I mean, it is like you can get 60-80 comms/week now with no problems once you're in columi gear; that is nuts.

As said above, if you are going to heal at all, spec into Healing - the abilities you get in that tree are invaluable to your success. Salvation, healing trance etc are staples. The new self-heal you get now as sage only helps you anyways. As far as DPS sage - our Guild uses a few of them in our different ops groups, and they are all spec'd as Tele'K - their DPS output is actually pretty good. Now, they aren't as good as our Sentinels/Slingers or Commandos, but they do very well still and are definitely viable. Balance spec is a little easier to play, the mobility is nice for some situations - I suggest you try both and see what you like better - both are viable.

Yea - your level difference is the main issue there - although, if he was rage hunting you, he probably wasn't benefiting his team much tbh and probably was just looking for easy kills. At his level, (assuming he is pure DPS scoundrel) - and this is off the top of my head - he gets 2 stuns, 1 root, 2 backblast attacks (one from stealth), 1 punch/pistol whip that triggers additional punches, not too mention the grenades and DOT he can push out. - all those above skills have a very quick cool down too, and if managed correctly, he can push them out in a continuous cycle. The biggest difference is level gap, that is all; he is in the prime of his tool availability, you have not receieved any of yours yet. My Operative is lvl 37 now - i'm still missing 1 major attack, but I can now go toe to toe with lvl 40+ operatives/scounderels as it really just comes down to skill in our encounters - timing of stabs/stuns, use of medpacks, availability and use of additional attacks etc- it is pretty fun actually. I used to think that there was something broken with Operatives vs Scoundrel because there were so many stab attacks - but now i'm realizing the scoundrel has all the same abilities, they are just split up as pistol whips, punches, back blasts - where the operatives are all some type of blade attack - so they all look the same pretty much. As far as going against a sniper now - if the sniper is in the mid 40's, I don't have a chance (if he knows anything about his abilities). If they are low to mid 30's, I can take them out usually without a problem. The 40 + snipers though suck, I hate going against them.

This is spot on - Technically, the best tank in the game is Shadow/Assassin IMO - but there are also more BAD shadow/assassin tanks out there than other classes; and on the other side, sometimes people don't like guardian/juggernaut tanks for PVE but one of the best tanks i've ever played with is a Guardian; Play what you like/enjoy, and learn to play it well. Getting into groups, guilds and being "successful" in end game content will follow.

As the poster above said - go Assault until about 40, then tactics IMO. I loved leveling my vanguard DPS (changed him to a tank at 50 though out of necessity for guild) but Vanguard deals plenty of damage if played right. In fact, once you hit 40, you should almost be unstoppable in PvP matches where assaults are being done (civil war, voidstar, navarr coast etc). Huttball is a totally different animal. You can do really well in there, don't get me wrong, but the objectives are a little different. I would argue that Vanguard DPS sub 50 PvP is a little Overpowered. but i'm not complaining.

My sage (healing spec) had close to 2500 Willpower a couple weeks ago (buffed) and I started tweaking my augments to see if really willpower was giving me the bang for my buck that I wanted. As I started procuring the DG gear, I noticed the mods and such were very high in willpower compared to power. All I have seen over time are the calculations from people showing "stack willpower, it gives you the best bang for your buck" but as I started tweaking, I noticed this isn't the case; at least for my healing results. I have swapped out my high willpwr/low pwr mods with lower willpower/higher pwr mods - and my stats are now buffed around 2200 willpower and ~1100 pwr if I remember right. my incredibly foolproof scientific method of checking out my salvation procs shows i've increased my standard proc by about 20hp/tick and my crit ticks by about 20-30 hp/tick. My crit ticks were higher, but I also played around with my surge rating and alacrity some, so that accounted for some of the dip in my high end crit numbers. Right now my salvation heals me (yes, I know it is different for everyone because of additional spec'd buffs) for 511 normal ticks and 900 crit ticks. when I started this process my normal ticks were around 485 and my crits were in the 870's. again, i'm not claiming to know it all - but I've noticed that power is giving me a bit more bang for my buck over willpower as i've fine tuned things.

This is such a hard question to answer because flavor of the month changes often in this game, and from update to update. I wouldn't necessarily level a class just to be "in demand"; I would level a class to have fun and enjoy the game. The "in demand" will follow, and once you hit 50, there is generally a spec you can specialize in to find a niche end game. My break down on classes from a PVE perspective: - Guardian/juggernaut - both tank and DPS is viable - Sentinel/Marauder - viable and usually desired at least 1 per Ops Group - Scoundrel/Operative - DPS isn't really desired end game IMO, but healer spec is very viable. DPS spec can work, but if I'm putting a HM run together, I'd rather fill that spot with another DPS class. - Gunslinger/Sniper - very viable end game PVE as ranged DPS - Sage/Sorcerer - viable as ranged DPS and heals. I personally prefer to have at least 1 sage in my Ops Group as a healer for the higher end runs (HM Denova, HM TfB etc) - Shadow/Assassin - viable as melee DPS and very viable as tank - Commando/Mercenary - very viable as ranged DPS and Healer - Vangard/Powertech - viable as melee DPS (I classify them as melee because they require close-quarters for most of their damage) and very viable as tank. As you can see, most classes will work for any of the content; people have different flavors they like as far as party makeup, or classes they like to have, but you should be able to find a place in a group no matter what class you level. My advice? - Find out what you enjoy playing, and play that.

When looking at your gear, there are a few things that stand out - and most likely you have just picked up stuff that has dropped while you're leveling, which is totally understandable. What I generally do while leveling through planet progressions is take planet comms as my reward - always (unless I get a really nice orange gear option). When you do this, you can use those comms to upgrade your orange gear from the comm modifications vendor (located near the crafting area on each planet). The mods and enhancements cost 2 comms each, so those are the way to go. If you get the option of armorings, those are nice to get since they cost 7 comms each. I make my own armoring with my cybertech, but I always purchase mods and enhancements from the mod vendor. as a marauder, you will want to have Might hilts, Might armorings etc. Higher STR than END stats. Then, you will want mainly power as your enhancement option, so usually the Rage enhancement works well (for your given level). I would go with Power crystals for your lightsabers, the faster you kill stuff, the less damage you will take. Crit and surge are nice, but wait until 50 to tweak those to get to your 35%/75% ranges, don't bother killing yourself over changing gear for those pre-50. Also, let your companion get hate - unless you are using your healer (and sometimes even then). I generally attack a group first with my companion, then I jump in and clean up everything quickly.

I am going to throw out a few things that I totally missed on with my very first character - don't laugh, but sometimes basics are needed. Firstly, you referenced your character as a Sith warrior - lvl 16. Generally by now you should have chosen an advanced class - either Marauder or Juggernaut. Along with this choice comes a gear pack (2nd lightsaber for marauder, shield/focus for juggernaut) and also additional abilities available at each level from your trainer. Secondly, have you trained all abilities for your character? When you go to the trainer, you have 2 tabs worth of abilities, one is general abilities and one is for your specific advanced class. make sure you are taking abilities from both (I didin't notice there were sage specific abilities until lvl 21, and I was struggling). thirdly, don't get discouraged. You will find as you play that fights will be tough and will require a couple attempts - this is normal. Learn what the foe is doing (abilities) and learn how to avoid them - moving from an area of effect move, stunning a move, let your companion get hate first - and then move in and kill everything etc. Fourthly - Gear helps, don't get me wrong - but at lvl 16 gear most likely isn't your biggest issue. I would look towards what offensive attacks you are making and in what order. Certain attacks go better in certain orders to achieve maximum benefit. there should be posts stickied all over these boards with that info. Look to those.

I have not noticed any issues with my combat medic healing abilities - whether in PvP or PvE. I healed TfB last night with no issues and didn't have issues with PvP healing either. i'm not sure what is causing your issues.

I think the dev team did more than enough to compensate for the reduction in force stun range by making force speed a root breaking/ CC immune ability. It is a little OP now IMO, so I don't complain at all. I really have not noticed the range of Force Stun being an issue;

Sever Force is even nicer now with the new Terror Op - especially the Kephess fight; not to throw any spoilers out there, but it is nice to have instant casts for damage; the more, the better IMO

Firstly, when you say you have some Black Hole, what BH do you have currently? seems strange you have BH and no rakata at all. I would suggest dailies and getting at least rakata implants and ear piece (unless those were the BH you have). Get into some HM EV and KP runs to get yourself some Rakata Secondly, I would suggest getting the matrix datacron and augmenting it. That will give you a great boost up front, and the BBB datacron pieces are pretty easy to get.

as said above, your group member's companions health bar will be below their health bar; you can target by hitting the icon next to the small health bar and heal them.