Cool, thanks guys!

Do you have to buy expansions any more? It looks like all you have to do is pay for a monthly subscription and you have access to everything, but I just want to confirm. I haven't played since right after the first xpac came out and you had to buy that.

I've been buying willpower implants and selling them on the GTN, as Assassins and Sorcs seem to be the most populous, at least on my server. Been getting 1 to 1.5 million for them.

Yeah, I 2 manned this as an assassin tank with an awesome jugger tank (woot for Gabont) but my main (merc) is the one I want to gear up with this and she dosen't get the groups, which is weird since concussion missile is a great CC. Maybe split the difference and make it a 3 man heroic? I'm in a great guild but at the times that I get to play due to my odd work hours, I can rarely find groups.

Sounds good, thanks for the advice!

Just started playing a marauder and I'm wondering what spec to use. Annihilation seems to be better but it dosen't seem like it has many bleeds. Carnage is nice with Ataru form, but I'm not sold on it. Any opinions? Advice?

Locking affection would be nice once it hits 10000. I would also like to see an optional lock for light/dark points once you hit rank V, if only so I could get more than one or two diplomacy missions at a time. Seems like I always have a light gift mission and 4 or 5 dark medical supply missions.

Yeah, cybertech is really just for keeping alts geared. I was going to say it's the only way to get augmented earpieces, but it has been said that soemtime in the near future (1.3 maybe) we will be able to add augment slots to any gear, so that's useless now. It's the alt skill. That's it.

What I don't understand is why no companion on either side has a +crit for artifice. Every other skill does, why not that one? Even if it was just +1 like Blizz with arms, extra crit is extra crit.

All I can speak for is pve arsenal, and yeah, it's not as easy any more, you can't tracer spam.You have to pay more attention to what's going on, but we still do alot of damage. I can tell when in a raid, if the tanks wipe, I'm always the first one the boss comes for.

Haven't gotten many relics, but I'm using the matrix relic and the champion crit relic. As an arsenal merc I need crit. I'm svaing for one of the new black hole relics to see if it's any better, but I don't know yet and none of my guildmates have gotten one yet either.

I don't think it's so much of an armor issue as a dps one. Since our core attack, tracer missile, got nerfed, it takes more attacks overall to kill mobs, so we take more damage for the duration of the fight. My merc seems to take as much damage as before, it just takes longer to kill stuff, hence I take more hits. Nothing Mako can't handle though, unless I take on a champ or something.

Biochem and cybertech are good for any class. For a bounty hunter you might consider armstech for blasters and barrels or armormech for armor. Artifice can craft enhancements, crystals, and off hands (if you are a PT), but the only skill you should stay away from is synthweaving as it makes strength and willpower armor, nothing you or your companions will need.

1. I went merc simply because I wanted to use 2 blasters. I prefer playing dps when solo and since I have odd working hours I'm usually solo. Power tech is fun, but it's more melee than ranged, and I'm a ranged kind of guy. 2. I started with cybertech and that is a very good skill to level with since you can make earpieces (necklace slot if you played WoW) and armoring and mods for moddable armor, which you will get alot of. Orange moddable armor is the best you can get while levelling, IF you keep up with the mods. After I hit 50, I switched to Biochem, for the re-usable stims, medpacs, and adrenals, not to mention it makes implants (ring slot, again for WoW reference). Armormech is good since it makes armor for you and all of your companions (besides the droid) and at 400 you can make some VERY nice armor that is bop. Armstech is ok, it will make weapons for all of your companions plus you, and like armor, has some nice things at the end that is bop. You might use Artifice, but all you would get out of it would be color crystals and enhancements, but those sell very well. It also can make off hand items for your tank companions and yourself if you choose the PT route. Synthweaving has absolutely nothing for you, it is all force user armor. 3. No problem, have fun!

Got armstech on my sniper and I'm REing and making all kinds of knives. Works fine for me.