I know this is probably asked a lot and I've tried all 3 with a boost and I was gonna start from level 1 to just work with companions and stuff, I don't really have a preference because they all look pretty fun.

 

I was wondering what is more needed in pve as a healer? I've heard all 3 are really needed but I see people saying an overabundance of sage / sorc.

 

Merc / Ops both look cool but I haven't heard much about them, anyways what do you guys think? If I find all 3 fun and don't prefer one to another, what would be the best way to go for pve mainly with the goal of HM / NM ops in the future?

What should you level depends on what you enjoy and feel more comfortable playing. What is more needed depends on you guild because having different classes can offer a synergy of sorts.

 

The only answers you'll get here are either personal favorites or sorc or even operative for higher hps but every class does well once a player understands the mechanics. I've healed on all and my fave is the one I started healing on from the start.

ops are masters of aoe heals right now, but their single target is somewhat weak. mercs used to be single target champions, but it has been so long since i played it, i'm not sure if that is still true. sorcs are by far the best overall heals right now, but i think will probably get nerfed at some point due to all the pvp QQ.

I'm playing a sorc as my main healer because of my personal preference to wield a lightsaber over rifle.

 

Some of the posts are right in saying there is an abundance of sorc when you get to PvP/Ops. Just as there's an abundance of Mara & Juggs. In my personal pov, sorc has good amount of single heals, boosts, and AoE heals; I just like playing with my sorc and the idea of using Sith sorcery.

 

It really has to do with personal preference, and what really matters is how you spec your healer.

Sorccerer

I'd say go with what you enjoy. I use to main an operative prior to 3.0. Coming back post 4.0 I've geared both my sage/sorc and my scoundrel/operative up and I enjoy healing on both. For my group composition of NiM Progression we already have a scoundrel so I decided to go with sage to bring some variety to the group.

 

In honesty though if you're going for higher endgame content such as NiM I feel sage/sorc brings a lot to the table, specifically with wandering mend / roaming mend for insanely high burst heals plus bubbling the group and the DPS it has in comparison though I know Merc/Mando can bring some decent heals dps too but throwing your instant 18 second dot and your cast timer dot brings help to the table for DPS checks on downtime where there is no healing needed. It's also not that hard to learn how to play sage/sorc and it takes almost half the effort of the other 2 healers to manage energy. My final thoughts on scoundrel/operative heals is that Bioware having done away orbital strike/flyby and explosive probe to scoundrels/operatives the off dps you can do feels gimped only having some stabs/corrosive dart sadly.

 

I can't speak for Merc/Mando heals though at high level. However having played doing tactical's when leveling it as a healer role It felt clunky and had too many cast times sadly but I feel if I played with it enough I could probably get good at it and enjoy it but that's another toon I have to spend time on gearing up.

Edited March 5, 2016 by Lil_Fusion

I love my scroundrel healer. This was my first class and I always seem to play her more than the rest. I also have an operative and a commando and bounty hunter healer.

 

My sorcerer and sage I made into dps as I love the lightening on my sorcerer and for my sorcerer being a healer actually doesn't fit her personality lol.

 

With my guild and my boyfriend he doesn't care which one I use. I used the one that I want and hell with what other people say but that just me. I play to have fun not to fit someone's else preferences.

Edited March 5, 2016 by casirabit

In PVE it truly depends on what you enjoy (and possibly on group composition ). I have every healer except a merc (I do have a commando though). Personally, I tend to run my sage pub side and my operative imp side. You didn't ask about it lol but PVP wise, it's almost always my sage/sorc. They are just crazy good in pvp. The only thing I personally don't like about my commando is the lack of sustained healing. I know people that manage to be absolute gods on mandos/mercs though so it's probably a me thing.

I don't really have any hard numbers to back it up, so of course I may be wrong in saying but oh well.

 

Sage/Sorc far outstrips any of the other healers in the game, so much so that as-is I'm legitimately struggling to find a reason not to re-roll my OP and Merc into DPS.

For pve all 3 healers are perfectly viable and what is great is that mixing different class healers works best. I have healed a fair amount on operative and sage and they are very different. I feel much more comfortable on my operative vs wide spread group sustained damage but less comfortable with dealing with burst damage especially when I don't already have 2 hots on target. The opposite I feel on my sage. I have healed very little on my merc but I feel more like a sage than an operative.

 

Bottom line play what you like, all 3 are great at the moment for pve. If you are planning to play with a raid team then see what class the other healer is and play a complimentary class

Sage/Sorc far outstrips any of the other healers in the game, so much so that as-is I'm legitimately struggling to find a reason not to re-roll my OP and Merc into DPS.

 

I will say the only healer I'd really want to run 2 of in the same raid is a sage/sorc (i.e. double sage healers). And in PVP, yeah no competition at all haha sage/sorc have like 3 lives.

 

Double operatives means no spike and I dunno whenever I've done runs with double mandos/mercs it's been a struggle. (Note this has only happened when I'm tanking, not when I'm on my mando)

 

Our main raid team has an operative and a merc though, and they do awesome (I run my Jugg tank in this group haha).

 

That being said, I personally enjoy healing most on my operative imp side. That really comes down to my personal playstyle though. sage/sorc is undoubtedly the easiest healer to perform well on, nice combination of sustained + spike, bubbles for preventing damage, a very nice self heal, energy management is a joke, it all comes together. Plus the invincibility bubble is like godly in PVP, like almost too much so

I have fun with all three healing classes. The scoundrel was my first ever character and I still love her most, but sage and merc (I like the merc better than the soldier, the soldier story was extreemly boring for me - I'm a scoundrel at heart - and the merc is therefore the natural choice for me) are great and fun too. And since I played the scoundrel that long through buffs and nerfs, I have no problem with her. And the class balance will probably change again, it always does.

It basically comes down to what most of the others said: play the class, that is most fun for you.