For progression, I usually allocate my skill points as follows: 36/7/3.

You may reallocate up to two points among the four skills discussed below.

1. Sith Purity improves your cleanse, Expunge.
   
   
2. I recommend this skill for Dread Fortress. With this skill, you can cleanse at least one debuff during four of the five bosses.
   
3. This skill is useful in fewer situations for Terror from Beyond, Scum and Villainy, or Dread Palace.
   

[*]Sith Defiance reduces damage taken. I recommend this skill for progression.

1. A Sorcerer has the least Armor, and unavoidable damage is common in Operations.
   
2. This skill is more valuable in 16-man Operations, because many attacks deal substantially higher damage than in 8-man. In fact, a Sorcerer without this skill could've been globaled despite perfect play in Nightmare 16-man Kephess the Undying or Olok the Shadow.
   

[*]Corrupted Speed increases Force Speed's duration and causes Force Barrier to finish Force Speed’s cooldown. Though not significant for PVE, a skilled healer can leverage it for the occasional clutch play, and less time moving means more time for casted or channeled abilities. Uses included the following.

1. For Dash'Roode, to return faster after being lost in a sandstorm.
   
2. For Titan 6, to reach a distant rock from the corner to which a DPS ran one of the Huge Grenades.
   
3. For Thrasher, to switch between tanks, or to handle Firebug, faster.
   
4. For Writhing Horror, to drop the DOT's puddle in a safe location and return faster.
   
5. For Kephess the Undying, to catch a tank kiting Kephess while giving Energy Distortions a wide berth.
   
6. For Raptus, to be in range of tanks after a challenge for which the healing and tanking doorways are far apart, or to return faster after being ported to the entrance.
   

[*]Reverse Corruptions reduces by 30% the duration of the Force regeneration debuff from using Consumption without Force Surge. It also allows Force Barrier to remove this debuff.

1. At its best, this skill is training wheels for an inexperienced healer or belt and suspenders for an experienced healer. A healer who benefits from this skill has room to improve his Force management.
   
2. At its worst, this skill encourages weak Force management and misuse of Force Barrier.
   

   Rotation

    

    

   As a healer, you have a unique and demanding job: triage. You must determine an order to heal your allies and a rotation that will prevent deaths. A fight that is challenging to heal tests your ability to make quick, accurate decisions that complement your co-healer’s.

    

   Though no rotation is ideal for every situation, your goal is using Resurgence > Innervate on cooldown. As a rotation, this is Resurgence > Innervate > two or three other abilities. Using Innervate on cooldown, and having it consume Force Bending, is the key to Force management and, for healing one ally, provides unrivaled HPS (healing per second) and HPF (healing per Force).

    

    

   Guides adequate for the casual player have sprouted like mushrooms. Most recommend one or more poor techniques regarding rotation. I redress these below.

    

    

   1. Though Revivification usually has the largest share of a Sorcerer’s effective healing in an Operation, using it merely because its cooldown is finished is poor technique. To maximize this ability’s, and your total, effective healing, synchronize Revivification with AOE damage. Using it more often wastes time and Force, and using it early wastes its healing, which is slightly front-loaded and requires good positioning.
       
       
      
   2. Using Force Bending, the buff given by Resurgence, for an ability other than Innervate is almost always poor technique. For example, using this buff to reduce the cost of Revivification reduces not only the HPS that you can sustain but also your ability to regain Force.
       
       
      
   3. Treat Revivification and Overload as alternatives unless using them back-to-back won’t overheal. If Overload is sufficient, use it alone. If Overload is insufficient, and Revivification alone will be sufficient over its 10-second duration, use Revivification alone.
      

    

    

   If you wish to analyze HPS and Force management with rotations, see worksheet “Operation HPS” in my model.

    

   BIS Gear

    

    

   For PVE, this is BIS. See my model for a detailed explanation and supporting calculations. The rule-of-thumb is:

   1. Willpower.
      
   2. Power > Critical. Zero Critical from gear is optimal.
      
   3. Surge between about 250 and 300, and afterwards stack Alacrity.
      
   4. Zero Accuracy is optimal, because abilities used on allies can’t miss.
      

    

    

   Set Bonuses

    

   The Mystic’s 2-piece PVE set, which reduces the cooldown of Innervate by 1.5 seconds, is mandatory.

    

   The Mystic’s 4-piece PVE set, which increases maximum Force by 50 (and, as a result, causes Consumption to restore 4 more Force), isn’t worthless for a fight that’s challenging to heal. It’s decent for a few fights, such as Brontes, with one or more lulls that permit you to top up your Force between periods of intense damage. Despite being lackluster, it’s better than either alternative.

    

    

   • The Master’s 2-piece PVE set, which reduces the cooldown of Polarity Shift by 15 seconds, is worthless unless it ensures that Polarity Shift will be available for one additional period of intense healing during a fight. I’m not aware of any such fight.
      
      
     
   • The Mystic’s 2-piece PVP set, which reduces the cooldown of Static Barrier by 1.5 seconds, is inferior in every respect. The lower stats on PVP Armorings reduce not only non-tank healing, but also tank healing. Even if you were to refresh Static Barrier on a tank on cooldown (which is usually poor technique), your maximum potential healing for this tank falls. In addition, your Armor is lower, increasing your damage taken, and your maximum HP is lower.
     

    

    

   Augments

    

   Use Resolve (Willpower) Augments. Though Overkill (Power) Augments provide roughly equal total output if you have BIS gear and use Static Barrier as often as you should, Willpower increases the likelihood of Force Surge procs.

    

    

   Relics

    

   For relics of the same tier, Focused Retribution = Serendipitous Assault > Boundless Ages. I don’t recommend a Boundless Ages relic, not even for Raptus’s Healing Challenge.

    

    

   Power versus Critical

    

   There is no sound argument for any Critical in BIS gear. (As you upgrade from one tier of gear to the next, however, an item of the higher tier with Critical > an item of the lower tier with Power until you have almost 200 Critical. Please consult my model or contact me with any questions about mixing gear from multiple tiers.)

    

    

   1. The math is straightforward and definitive: zero Critical maximizes tank or non-tank healing. A very low amount of Critical would be optimal if Static Barrier were less than about 10% of your effective healing, but using Static Barrier so sparingly is poor technique for a fight that’s challenging to heal, even with a Sorcerer co-healer.
       
       
      
   2. No benefit from Critical outweighs its cost.
      
      
   3. Guaranteeing that Dark Infusion crits with Recklessness requires nearly 1000 Critical, but so much Critical reduces overall healing about 4%.
      
   4. Critical increases the likelihood of Force Surge procs, but poor rotation is the sole cause of having too few for Consumption. Rather than lessening this one symptom of a poor rotation with Critical, correct your rotation. Mistakes in your rotation have additional penalties, none of which Critical can alleviate.
      

    

    

   [*]Even if all else were equal, healing favors consistency (Power) over RNG (Critical).

    

    

   Surge versus Alacrity

    

   Both metrics of my model (see worksheet "Gear") show that, in Underworld or higher tier gear, BIS gear has 3 items with Surge and the remaining 7 items with Alacrity. The alternative, with almost equal output, has 4 items with Surge and 6 with Alacrity.

    

   There is no sound argument for having more Surge in BIS gear. In fact, the more important of my model’s two metrics, EHPCT Rating, doesn't even capture the following benefits of Alacrity.

    

    

   1. While Alacrity is undesirable for most specializations, because it forces an additional weak ability into your rotation while the cooldown of a proc or strong ability finishes, the opposite is true for a Sorcerer healer. In gear from Arkanian to Dread Master, increasing Alacrity tightens your rotation, maximizing your HPS and stacks of Force Surge by allowing you to activate Innervate sooner after it's off cooldown. To examine this, see worksheet "Operation HPS" in my model.
       
       
      
   2. Alacrity reduces time spent managing Force or cleansing, leaving more time for healing.
      

      Playing Like an Expert

       

       

      1. Heal to prevent deaths, not to top meters.
          
         Meters are a valuable tool and enhance competition, but don’t influence a skilled healer’s decision-making. For example, suppose that 8 DPS are at half health and won’t take damage for another 20 seconds, and, meanwhile, 1 tank is at half health and might die in a few seconds. Triage says Static Barrier or Innervate the tank, but meters say Revivification the DPS.
          
         AOE heals can have high EHPS, but heal slowly. Before choosing an AOE heal, be sure that you’re using your head (triage), not your epeen (meters).
          
          
          
         
      2. Minimize over-healing, especially of non-tanks.
          
         HPS is trivial for a skilled healer. As shown on worksheet “Operation HPS” in my model, in an 8-man Operation, a Sorcerer healer may indefinitely sustain over 7k HPS (8k HPS including Static Barrier’s absorbing), more than twice what any fight requires.
          
         Among Sorcerer healers, a quality that sets an expert apart is efficiency. In particular, efficient use of Revivification is crucial to your EHPS and Force management. In general, rather than using this ability on cooldown or prematurely, use it after AOE damage only if Overload is insufficient.
          
          
          
         
      3. Replenish Force before a period of intense damage, so that you can heal through it without pausing to replenish Force.
          
         Among Sorcerer healers, a quality that sets an expert apart is the ability to leverage his resource pool, which is generous compared to the other healing classes’. For example, since damage can be intense during the first phase of Nightmare Cartel Warlords (Horic), and will be manageable during the second phase (Tu’chuk), I’m willing to heal without pausing to replenish Force during the first phase, even to the point of nearly 0 Force. I can use Consumption during the second phase without risking an ally’s death.
          
          
          
         
      4. Avoid debuffing your rate of Force regeneration.
          
         Among Sorcerer healers, a quality that sets an expert apart is almost never debuffing his rate of Force regeneration. This debuff is perilous; it can start you down a vicious spiral on which you’ll always be Force-starved. Two techniques allow you to replenish Force without debuffing your rate of Force regeneration.
          
         First, until you’ve replenished enough Force to heal through the next period of intense damage, every 7.5 seconds use Resurgence > Innervate followed by Consumption for one or more charges of Force Surge.
          
         Second, don’t hold 3 charges of Force Surge for your next Revivification unless it must be used while moving. When I have 3 charges of Force Surge, I often use Consumption once immediately before Revivification. This offsets most of the cost of Revivification. It also allows me to use my next ability sooner than if Revivification were instant.
          
          
          
         
      5. Use Static Barrier liberally and wisely.
          
         Among Sorcerer healers, a quality that sets an expert apart is liberal and wise use of Static Barrier.
          
         For tanks, it’s usually fine to refresh Static Barrier immediately as Deionized expires. There is, however, an important exception: reserve Static Barrier for immediately before (or after) moments when a tank’s health is likely to be low. For example, time Static Barrier so that you can apply a fresh one to a tank whenever Titan 6 puts a Huge Grenade on him or Brontes’ targets him with Arcing Assault.
          
         For an ally targeted by a damaging mechanic, such as Kephess the Undying’s Dread Bomb, you have only a moment to mitigate damage with Static Barrier. Your awareness and quick action can be the difference between life and death.
          
         For a non-tank likely to take unusual and high damage, such as from adds or an uncleansable DOT like Tyrans’ Affliction, Static Barrier can prevent his health from dipping too low. Preventing such an emergency with Static Barrier can give AOE heals time to top up non-tanks, which, in turn, allows healers to focus on tanks.
          
         See “Tips for Certain Bosses” for a list of the rare circumstances in which spamming Static Barrier is prudent. Otherwise, this is almost always poor technique, because AOE heals provide superior HPCT (healing per cast time) and HPF (healing per Force).
          
          
          
         
      6. It’s very rarely appropriate to use Dark Heal.
          
         Dark Heal has no place in a rotation.
         
         • Static Barrier and Innervate have higher HPS and HPF.
           
         • Dark Infusion usually has comparable HPS and always has higher HPF.
           
         • Though Dark Heal is a small heal, it isn’t for topping up allies. It costs too much Force, and merely snipes your or your co-healer’s HOTs or AOEs.
           

       

      When an ally is about to die, it might be appropriate to use Dark Heal, but only if none of the below abilities is available.

      1. Static Barrier is instant, and it absorbs more than Dark Heal would heal.
         
      2. Innervate has higher HPS than Dark Heal, and its immediate tick and first channeled tick occur before a cast of Dark Heal would finish.
         
      3. Dark Infusion buffed by Recklessness and Polarity Shift is usually more effective than Dark Heal. An ally saved by Dark Heal will remain close to death without further healing; Dark Heal won’t resolved his emergency. Dark Infusion buffed by Recklessness might resolve his emergency, allowing you to heal someone else next.
         

       

      Parsing

       

       

      Running a parser during an Operation helps you refine your technique over several pulls of a challenging boss. I recommend Parsec, which can estimate the amount of damage absorbed by Static Barrier.

       

      Challenging content’s demands on your time and Force require at least 70% effective healing (excluding Static Barrier). Avoid the MOX parser, which encourages poor technique by failing to distinguish effective healing from over-healing.

       

      Tips for Certain Bosses

       

       

      Operation: Terror From Beyond

       

      Dread Guard

      • Use Static Barrier on the tank with Kel’sara’s Leech.
        
      • Force Barrier resists damage from Heirad’s Lightning Field.
        
      • Though Force Barrier doesn’t purge Ciphas’s Doom, it resists the damage that it deals upon expiring.
        
      • Force Barrier purges Kel’sara’s uncleansable DOT, Withering Terror.
        

       

      Kephess the Undying

      • In the first phase, Force Barrier clears any stray Energy Distortion that attaches to you or resists damage from Laser Blast.
        
      • In the second phase, Force Barrier resists damage from Dread Bomb or, if you’re unable to channel a Pylon, purges Corrupted Nanites.
        

       

      Terror from Beyond

      • Use Cloud Mind to lower your threat with each Tentacle during the first phase, and on cooldown during the second phase.
        

       

       

      Operation: Scum and Villainy

       

      Dash’Roode

      • Rejoin your group in record time after being lost in the sandstorm with one point in skill Corrupted Speed rather than two points in Fadeout.
        

       

      Titan 6

      • Force Barrier resists damage from a Huge Grenade.
        
      • Force Barrier resists damage from Launch (Defensive Systems 5) if you’re unable to find a rock with a vacancy.
        
      • During the final phase, spam Static Barrier whenever Revivification, Overload, and Resurgence > Innervate are on cooldown.
        

       

      Thrasher

      • Adds in the stadium’s upper level spawn every 45 seconds, which matches Cloud Mind’s cooldown. Use Cloud Mind just after each group of adds spawns.
        
      • On Nightmare Mode, after Thrasher’s health falls below 50% and more than one pack of Mercenary Snipers spawns, it’s helpful to spam Static Barrier immediately before the knockback to the stadium’s upper level.
        

       

      Operations Chief

      • Use Force Barrier to purge one of his Explosive Probes.
        

       

      Cartel Warlords

      • Though I’ve never done this for any other fight, on Nightmare Mode, it’s helpful to blanket the raid with Static Barrier (and then channel Seethe to replenish your Force) immediately before pulling.
        
      • If you’re unable to heal an ally through Garr’s Stabbing Spree, and he doesn’t have a CC break available, use Extrication to pull him far out of Stabbing Spree’s range.
        

       

      Styrak

      • On Nightmare Mode, to control a Chain Manifestation, I recommend Overload > Force Slow > Electrocute when Force Slow expires. A freeze grenade works, too, but has a 3-minute cooldown.
        
      • Immediately before Styrak divides himself into 4 (or, on 16-man Nightmare Mode, 8) Manifestations, it’s helpful to Static Barrier each ally who’ll likely be closest to a Manifestation.
        

       

      Hateful Entity

      • Use Force Barrier when Hateful Entity will strike you with the next Dread Touch (because your debuff has just expired). Hateful Entity will strike you with Dread Touch though you’re channeling Force Barrier. Dread Touch still knocks you down and stuns you (cancelling your channel of Force Barrier), but Force Barrier resists its damage.
        
      • If you revive an ally while in combat and after everyone has been struck by Dread Touch, it’s imperative that he be topped up immediately. Dread Touch’s debuff doesn’t persist through death, and, therefore, Dread Touch will strike him next.
        

       

       

      Operation: Dread Fortress

       

      Nefra

      • Using Force Barrier to purge the DOT allows you to complete a round of cleanses 4.5 seconds faster.
        

       

      Draxus

      • On Hard or Nightmare Mode, you can’t cleanse a Guardian’s Affliction. Force Barrier purges it from you, and Static Barrier stabilizes another’s health.
        
      • If you tank a Dismantler in your team’s strategy, channel Force Barrier after it begins casting Strong Swipe. Force Barrier resists Strong Swipe’s damage, knockback, and debuff. If you stop channeling Force Barrier immediately after Strong Swipe, you’ll retain aggro on the Dismantler and be able to tank it through its second Strong Swipe.
        
      • On Nightmare Mode, a Bulwark debuffs any player under its shield with Dread Disruption, which prevents healing. This debuff doesn’t diminish damage absorption, such as from Static Barrier, or damage reduction. Cleanse Corrosive Grenade as soon as possible from any player with Dread Disruption.
        

       

      Corruptor Zero

      • Force Barrier neither purges a Concussion Mine nor resists Anti-Gravity Field.
        
      • Force Barrier resists damage from Unified Beam. I don’t recommend relying on it, however, because your allies need healing during this phase on Hard or Nightmare Mode.
        

       

      Brontes

      • An ally with an Orb takes steady, light damage from the Orb before detonating it. Heal him through this damage, reserving Static Barrier for immediately before the detonation.
        
      • Force Barrier isn’t useful if you have an Orb, because your Orb won’t detonate while you’re channeling Force Barrier.
        
      • To prepare for the phase with six Fingers, blanket the raid with Static Barrier while two or three Robots remain. Deionized will expire as the initial rounds of damage during the six-Finger phase have exhausted Static Barrier, allowing you to blanket the raid with Static Barrier a second time. This technique is incredibly effective, maintaining everyone at full health for much, and sometimes most, of this phase.
        

       

       

      Operation: Dread Palace

       

      Tyrans

      • On Hard or Nightmare Mode, you can’t cleanse Tyrans’ Affliction. Force Barrier purges it from you, and Static Barrier stabilizes another’s health.
        
      • On Nightmare Mode, when you have Simplification:
        
        • Before falling, help your co-healer as much as possible. In general, use Revivification > Static Barrier > Static Barrier. (Neither Static Barrier is on yourself; you can heal yourself while falling or moving across Tyrans’ basement.)
          
        • If you stand on the tile that you’ve selected for elimination, Force Barrier prevents fall damage.
          

       

       

      Raptus

      • For each Tanking Challenge, give each tank a fresh Static Barrier. To avoid proccing relics before entering a Healing Challenge, don’t refresh a tank’s Resurgence.
        

       

      Rotation for a Healing Challenge

      1. Triage Adrenal (for one of the two rounds) > Polarity Shift > Revivification with 2 stacks of Force Surge. If you have 3 stacks, use Consumption once while waiting to enter the Healing Challenge.
         
      2. Resurgence > Innervate.
         
      3. Recklessness > Dark Infusion three times.
         
      4. Innervate (without Force Bending).
         
      5. Finish with Dark Infusion > Dark Heal. If this Dark Heal fails, because the Healing Challenge ends while casting it, try replacing the Dark Infusion with Dark Heal. Dark Heal > Dark Heal should outheal one Dark Infusion.
         

       

      On Nightmare Mode, Curse of Enfeeblement must be removed from the Dying Captive, you, and your co-healer as soon as possible.

      • With an Operative co-healer, purge yourself with Force Barrier for the first round, and cleanse yourself with Expunge for the second round. For both rounds, your co-healer cleanses the Dying Captive and purges himself with Evasion.
        
      • With a Mercenary co-healer, your co-healer cleanses only himself each round.
        
        • For the first round, cleanse the Dying Captive and purge yourself with Force Barrier.
          
        • For the second round, replace Steps 1 and 2 above with: Expunge on the Dying Captive > Revivification with 1 or 3 stacks of Force Surge > Resurgence > Polarity Shift > Expunge on yourself > Innervate. You bear the healing loss of Curse of Enfeeblement, because you can setup both of your long-lasting HOTs while cursed.
          

       

      Additional advice for a Healing Challenge

      • If Polarity Shift isn’t active when you begin the channel of Innervate in Step 4, delay Polarity Shift until after Revivification.
        
      • In general, exactly one healer uses a Triage Adrenal during each round. On Nightmare Mode with a Mercenary co-healer, you both use it during the second round.
        
      • Don’t substitute a Boundless Ages relic for a proc relic. The pause in healing before entering a Healing Challenge almost guarantees that both of your proc relics will buff you during each Healing Challenge. This is more valuable than having a Boundless Ages relic for only one round.
        

       

       

      Dread Masters

      • Shortly before triggering the final phase, blanket the raid with Static Barrier. During the final phase, spam Static Barrier on non-tanks whenever Revivification, Overload, and Resurgence > Innervate are on cooldown.
        

       

       

   
   
3. In addition to hastening Consumption, Alacrity increases the amount of Force that you'll regenerate during any moments of downtime.
   
4. Even with skill Sith Purity, Expunge's HPS and HPF are abysmal, so its use is strictly to cleanse.
   

[*]Alacrity increases your APM (actions per minute), a boon for triage. This benefit of Alacrity is especially valuable for a Sorcerer, who has the lowest APM among healers. For example, Alacrity increases the likelihood that you'll be able to preempt damage with Static Barrier.

[*]Increasing Alacrity reduces the likelihood that a cast or channel will be

1. broken, because your target becomes out of range or line-of-sight;
   
2. interrupted, such as by a knockback; or
   
3. cancelled, because you must move or switch immediately to healing another.
   

If you choose to invest 36 points in the healing tree, I recommended the following allocation: 36/7/3.

1. Sith Purity is mandatory for PVP.
   
2. Corrupted Speed is mandatory for a PVP allocation with 36 points in the healing tree.
   
3. I favor three skill points in Penetrating Darkness and none in Corrupted Barrier.
   
   1. 
      
   2. My impression is that Corrupted Barrier hasn’t saved or materially extended my life. While I channel Force Barrier, my resolve wears off, leaving me vulnerable to being stunned and killed the moment that I stop channeling.
      
   3. There are two factors that might change my mind.
      
      1. Corrupted Barrier’s HOT can proc a relic, increasing a proc relic’s uptime.
         
      2. In the brief moments when I’m not the target of the enemy team, and I’m confident that there isn’t a nearby enemy in stealth, I’ve allowed Corrupted Barrier’s HOT to heal me slowly while I heal my allies instead.
         

       

      The alternative, which is usually superior for 4v4 (arena), is “Bubble Stun”: 26/18/2.

   • Pros
     
     • Bubble Stun is wonderful against melee who are attacking you.
       
     • Burst damage is crucial in PVP. The skills in the middle tree allow you to dish some out.
       
     • Force management is easier, for reasons including skills Subversion and Lightning Storm.
       

     [*]Cons

     • Bubble Stun is worthless against ranged who are attacking you.
       
     • You’re trading healing potential for DPS potential. A healer who has 36 points in his healing tree can provide more healing.
       

Though Force Suffusion adds healing to Overload, I don’t invest points in this skill for PVP. I can’t afford to use Overload merely for healing when it’s usually necessary for defending myself or, in Warzones, the cap.

I urge you not to queue for Solo Ranked as a Sorcerer healer. The design of our class prevents us from competing with the other healing classes.

BIS Gear

Basic Advice

Datacrons

Companions

Consumables

[*]Medpac

1. For PVE, Prototype Impeccable Medpac, which restores 5575 to 6800 health immediately and leaves a HOT that restores 2475 health over 15 seconds. This is superior to any reusable Medpac available with Biochem. The cooldown shared by all types of Medpacs usable outside of Warzones is the longer of (a) 90 seconds and (b) the end of combat.
   
2. For PVP, Warzone Medpac, which restores 35% of your total health immediately. This has a 90-second cooldown.
   
3. A Medpac can be used at any time (i.e., it’s off the GCD) and doesn’t use a GCD.
   

[*]Grenades: Reusable grenades are available with Cybertech, and otherwise you may purchase single-use grenades.

1. For PVE, grenades that stun can be useful for trash mobs or boss adds. A freeze grenade will root a Chain Manifestation on Nightmare Mode Styrak.
   
2. For PVP, grenades are very useful.
   
3. The cooldown shared by all types of grenades is 3 minutes. Throwing a grenade uses a GCD.