It's worth dying once just to do the jail break

 

QFT. We could use more of that in other parts of the game.

Edited January 14, 2021 by mike_carton

The Heroic version might present some additional challenges to a Sniper, especially in the final boss fight. As you already know from doing it on other Disciplines, mobility helps in that fight.

 

I'm also terrible at micromanaging my comp, so playing a sniper in SF is not funny lol

It has been mentioned in the thread but it possibly got buried: Heroic version is group content. It is not meant to be done solo. There are Solo versions of each Star Fortress that are significantly easier and are meant to be done solo. What's more, despite what anybody claims, Star Fortress (either Solo or Heroic mode) does not impact story progress; there's no story component in them in any meaningful way.

 

No story component? I thought they were part of the story, that you had to do them... and do I gather there are certain companions you can't get if you don't do them?

No story component?

That's right, no story component. Especially in Heroic version as compared to the Story version. No story component in either, actually.

I thought they were part of the story, that you had to do them

No. Categorically, no.

and do I gather there are certain companions you can't get if you don't do them?

The "companions" you gain don't have any relationship to you. They don't have any special conversations or life story or companion missions or romance or anything else with you that makes them companions. The only one that is effective in some capacity is Veeroa Denz but is not significantly better than other companions you get; unlike others, at least she has a personality and kicks ***. The only reason to get them would be to get the Companions achievements done.

 

I do have all of the Heroics done, all of the associated companions, and their achievements. So, talking from experience.

No story component? I thought they were part of the story, that you had to do them... and do I gather there are certain companions you can't get if you don't do them?

 

Technically, if you complete (meaning destroy) the Voss one,

That is the only Chapter directly influenced by a Star Fortress.

 

Each planet's Resistance leader can join you as a companion, but there isn't a ton that distinguishes them, except for three things:

-- The two that are dual-wielders are useful, Hemdil Tre (Hoth) and Veeroa Denz (Nar Shadaa), but that's because all dual wielding companions are useful to have ( http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=677289 ). Tre is ranged and Denz is melee.

-- I just noticed today that the Hoth Star Fortress is an independent, daily repeated conquest objective for the Relics of the Gree Conquest week. I haven't noticed if other Star Fortresses are individually highlighted in other conquest weeks before this one. Assuming that some other Conquest weeks have similar "highlighted" Star Fortresses, there is an independent reason to unlock them all. Note that "unlocking" them just means doing the initial steps of the quest where you board a [sOLO] star fortress and fight the EPHEMERIS droid.

-- Because of their "optional" nature, these companions are unlikely to be "taken away" from players for story reasons. Other companions are, I won't list them all, but since these are considered "mission rewards" they haven't so far, and likely never will, be taken from the player.

 

That's right, no story component. Especially in Heroic version as compared to the Story version. No story component in either, actually.

 

No. Categorically, no.

Star Fortresses aren't any less a part of the game's story than the Dread Masters arc that involves the operations KP through DP and the two daily areas Section X and Oricon. Arguably they are more so. Furthermore, they are as much part of the story as

 

 

If destroying the Star Fortresses, the symbols of Arcann's power over the galaxy, is important to you, then you should feel free to do them. Their existence, and the difficulty in dealing with them, is mentioned at the beginning of chapter 9 of KOTFE ... Theron says they are going to have to table the discussion for now, but all 4 alliance specialists are there and that's when you are introduced to them.

 

For all these reasons, I don't think its accurate to say they have categorically no involvement in the story. They're not essential, but they fill out the story in interesting ways, and you have to remember their original context (see below)

 

 

...

There is a lot of unrelated stuff in there to cover the fact that there is no "there" there. Star Fortresses are not part of the story in any meaningful way. Dread Masters and Scions are just red herrings in this discussion. Or Straw men. Or both.

 

I did all of the SFs and enjoy doing them, even today. In both difficulty modes.

 

There is no reason to discourage anyone from doing them. I'm not discouraging anyone from doing them.

 

They're not part of the story except for a tiny, meaningless (from a story PoV) connection with the Voss one.

There is a lot of unrelated stuff in there to cover the fact that there is no "there" there. Star Fortresses are not part of the story in any meaningful way. Dread Masters and Scions are just red herrings in this discussion. Or Straw men. Or both.

 

I did all of the SFs and enjoy doing them, even today. In both difficulty modes.

 

There is no reason to discourage anyone from doing them. I'm not discouraging anyone from doing them.

 

They're not part of the story except for a tiny, meaningless (from a story PoV) connection with the Voss one.

 

Looks like you are the one who needs clarity on straw man arguments and red herrings. Meaningful is highly subjective, and I provided some examples of content to show how they expand upon the story, and that may be considered meaningful depending on the person's point of view. They are called comparisons, but I'm not going to waste any more time debating you.

Fair enough.

 

The abilities to "agree to disagree" and to "disagree without being disagreeable" are fast disappearing in the real world and I don't want to be part of that. I hope we disagreed here without unnecessary, lingering fallout.

Well then, let me ask one final question:

 

If I skip them (as I have done with all the Operations - at the time I reached them I was still Preferred, so wasn't allowed to do them), will I be able to go back later and do them, if I choose?

Well then, let me ask one final question:

 

If I skip them (as I have done with all the Operations - at the time I reached them I was still Preferred, so wasn't allowed to do them), will I be able to go back later and do them, if I choose?

 

Yes. Whenever you want to, as many times as you want to, and in any order you choose.

Well then, let me ask one final question:

 

If I skip them (as I have done with all the Operations - at the time I reached them I was still Preferred, so wasn't allowed to do them), will I be able to go back later and do them, if I choose?

You will be, yes.

First off, sorry for using this thread to air my thoughts. I didn't think they warranted their own thread.

 

As a returning player who hasn't been around since the days of old when Oricon was the latest thing, Star Fortress in Veteran mode is the proverbial fly in the ointment.

 

I'd love to destroy the Nar Shaddaa SF and unlock Veeroa for her dual wield awesomeness, but my concentration sentinel can't seem to manage in 276 gear with a new batch of recently swapped in companions that are just now starting to hit their 20's.

 

I don't need to burn months between chapters since I don't have to wait until their release. I don't have weeks to do nothing but a dozen or so +2 Heroics every single day leveling fresh companions (because that's what my past week or so has been spent doing since hitting chapter X), I don't have millions in the bank for instant leveled companions since this is my first max level character and I still have godly armor set pieces to buy.

 

I don't want to just sail through a cheese game and not be challenged, but this time sink content is a load of poodoo stuck right in the middle of a super awesome story that I was completely into.

 

Players should be able to destroy the Star Fortresses in story mode with the difficulty set at the usual Heroic +2 levels competent players with fairly advanced gear can handle.

 

And to all the super fantastic game gods out there who can solo these things, yes....I am competent.

 

And thanks to everyone who filled in all the details. I now know the Voss SF is a factor in the future, and I *can* go back and do all this later (when it no longer matters to the development of my character.)

I can't get a handle what you think about the Story and Heroic modes of SF based on your post. "Not clear to me" is what I'm saying.

...As a returning player who hasn't been around since the days of old when Oricon was the latest thing, Star Fortress in Veteran mode is the proverbial fly in the ointment.

 

I'd love to destroy the Nar Shaddaa SF and unlock Veeroa for her dual wield awesomeness, but my concentration sentinel can't seem to manage in 276 gear with a new batch of recently swapped in companions that are just now starting to hit their 20's.

 

...I don't want to just sail through a cheese game and not be challenged, but this time sink content is a load of poodoo stuck right in the middle of a super awesome story that I was completely into.

 

Players should be able to destroy the Star Fortresses in story mode with the difficulty set at the usual Heroic +2 levels competent players with fairly advanced gear can handle.

 

And to all the super fantastic game gods out there who can solo these things, yes....I am competent.

 

...I now know the Voss SF is a factor in the future, and I *can* go back and do all this later (when it no longer matters to the development of my character.)

SF missions don't contribute to character development and even the Voss one is not consequential in the overall scheme of things.

 

Q1. But what is not clear from your post is if you think HEROIC SF should be soloable by a Sentinel in 276 gear with a companion at influence level 20.

 

Q2. Why do you think "Star Fortress in Veteran mode is the proverbial fly in the ointment?"

 

One data point. I had a Sage character that hadn't done the Nar Shaddaa SF, so I went and did it. I picked some random gear lying around to get to 278 rating (closest I could manage) and chose a level 10 companion. The Story Mode was not challenging, which is what we expect. Haven't done the HEROIC yet and I'll update the post when I do.

Edited January 27, 2021 by mike_carton

I soloed the veteran SF with a few characters back when the max character level was 70. I didn't even have the best gear that was available then. Now I cannot solo these SF anymore with the same characters, although they've reached level 75 and have much powerful gear (278). I assume that the scaling down to level 70 applied to higher level characters plays a role in that.

 

Story mode on the contrary is easy as f**** as there's no character level scaling down and the mobs are level 65. Of course this mode is designed to be played solo in the middle of KOTFE, not by level 75 characters. At level 75 you can let your companion fight alone.

Star Fortresses are like side missions or heroics on planets as you level. They aren’t even needed to progress the class story or the end game story. The same as the “alerts” aren’t needed to advance overall story.

 

They are just extra side content that you can “choose” to do or not to do. They don’t break the immersion if you choose not too play it or you can’t solo the veteran mode.

 

The veteran mode missions have been designed to done in a group. That is their purpose. So I don’t think it’s unfair that you need a group or you need to be fully geared up in 306 set bonus, tactical and a lvl 50 companion to have a chance to get through them solo.

 

Yes the veteran (heroics) are soloable if you have the right gear, companion and the skill. If you don’t have the gear or right lvl companion or the skill, you have two choices.

1. Find some one(s) to group with. They become much easier with one other person and their companion.

2. Don’t play veteran mode and just play story mode if you want the story aspect.

 

Edit: FYI, the last story mode flash point (Spirit of vengeance) added to the game has a bigger than usual increase in difficulty for main story content.

If you think veteran star fortress solo is too hard with 272 gear and a lvl 20 companion, wait till you try the flash point with full 306 set bonus gear and the lvl 1 companion they give you. I would say the SM flash point Bosses are on par with veteran star fortresses bosses.

Now would be a good time to learn your classes properly in heroic star fortresses. Learn how the defensive CDs work and learn how to be less reliant on companions over healing you to keep you alive because they won’t in that last flash point if you don’t understand how to play your class properly.

Edited January 27, 2021 by TrixxieTriss

I soloed the veteran SF with a few characters back when the max character level was 70. I didn't even have the best gear that was available then. Now I cannot solo these SF anymore with the same characters, although they've reached level 75 and have much powerful gear (278). I assume that the scaling down to level 70 applied to higher level characters plays a role in that.

 

Story mode on the contrary is easy as f**** as there's no character level scaling down and the mobs are level 65. Of course this mode is designed to be played solo in the middle of KOTFE, not by level 75 characters. At level 75 you can let your companion fight alone.

 

The only down scaling is mastery, power and endurance. Your secondary stats aren’t scaled, so you should look at how you are gearing up for end game content. You can use certain enhancements to benefit from the cap.

 

Currently, 99% of content is lvl scaled except the new flash point recently added and the flash point and operation added with the expansion. The only other non scaled content is pvp.

 

With the amount of gear that drops these days, it’s not hard to end up with multiple pieces of the same thing. I actually have two full sets and a partial third set for mixing with the uncapped set in pvp (which has different requirements again for most dps classes).

 

Depending on what content you want to run the most or are currently up to, should determine how you progress your gear. There are enhancements that are min maxed for capped content and there are ones that are min maxed for uncapped content.

 

Here is a cheat sheet on what to keep and what to use for which content. Of course you need to understand what stats you need for your classes for this to mater. If you don’t know the stats you need or the set bonuses, you will run into as much difficulty playing harder content as you would if you had lower lvl gear on and a lvl 1 companion.

 

For people needing a shortlist of what to keep and what to sell/delete for dps and healing:

 

Mods:

Lethal R-2 = R-3 = R-5

 

Enhancements:

 

Accuracy:

Uncapped content : Initiative R-18/19

To use in Capped content : Proficient R-1

 

Alacrity:

Uncapped content : Nimble R-12 though R-20 (NOT 17) and Savant R-3

To use in Capped content : Savant R-1

 

**ALACRITY NOTES:**

Baseline needs: R-14/18/19/20

Nimble R-15/16 and Savant R-3 **specific to Carnage and Arsenal**.

Nimble R-12/13 **specific to Healers**.

 

Crit:

Uncapped content : Adept 80, R-18/19

To use in Capped content : Efficient R-1

 

Barrage/Discipline/Studious you can just delete outright for dps or heals

**Savant/Proficient/Efficient are for Capped Content sets.

Edited January 27, 2021 by TrixxieTriss

When they first came out I did all but Voss, I then stated to level up other characters and left these for a long time. Tried again well proberbly a month or two back now but could not do them solo anymore. I will get round to trying a better geared character, as have the gear anyway but generally I don't really find then fun to do. However there are some of the companions I like so eventually will get back to them.

I really do know how to play my character. I know she's right on the edge of squeaking through the mission if I do dozens of combat scenarios just right with nary a slight miscalculation on which mob should die first.

 

I just don't appreciate having to stop in the middle of a story and spend a boatload of hours to level a companion I'm not interested in just to get the dual wield sidekick I want.

 

Let solo players blow the bloody fortresses up in story mode so they can get on with the main story without spending hours leveling a second string companion. Buff the mission if need be. Leave EPHMERIS in the mix....or don't.

 

I understand the need for time sinkish content back when the story was being released. It just feels like a road block years later.

I really do know how to play my character. I know she's right on the edge of squeaking through the mission if I do dozens of combat scenarios just right with nary a slight miscalculation on which mob should die first.

 

I just don't appreciate having to stop in the middle of a story and spend a boatload of hours to level a companion I'm not interested in just to get the dual wield sidekick I want.

 

Let solo players blow the bloody fortresses up in story mode so they can get on with the main story without spending hours leveling a second string companion. Buff the mission if need be. Leave EPHMERIS in the mix....or don't.

 

I understand the need for time sinkish content back when the story was being released. It just feels like a road block years later.

 

Well said, I agree entirely.

Let solo players blow the bloody fortresses up in story mode so they can get on with the main story without spending hours leveling a second string companion. Buff the mission if need be. Leave EPHMERIS in the mix....or don't.

Alternatively, leave the missions themselves alone, but make them more rewarding. They are currently a substantial slog for essentially no reward. (A few hundred credits if you're just running them to run them, and not much more if you're running the Star Fortress stories. That means that people won't bother running them to help other players.)

I'm a Sith Jugg with Rage discipline, and I manage to do them, it just takes a long time, I am lvl 75, Lana level 37, 276 gear. The hardest part for me was the Empyrihs room or whatever it's called where 2 knights and 2 skytroopers come for you, I always die and get in jail on that part but other than that it's fairly easy with heroic moment, unity and good usage of your defenses and CC. Imo companion is not the most important as most of the time I am the one that gets focused by everyone everytime.

I managed to solo heroic NS as a 75 corruption sorc with a tank comp at level 50. For the exarch that heals himself I swapped my comp to heals so I could catch the interrupt. It took quite a while but I finally managed to get One for All and Both Feet on the Ground. It can be very frustrating but it is doable.

It's probably useless replying to this old post, but I'm sufficiently annoyed and frustrated to do so anyway...

 

Back when I was 70, it was time consuming but not particularly difficult to solo veteran mode star fortresses with shabby tanking gear and lvl 20 Lana healing me. Not so any more. I can get to the exarch (final boss) readily enough, but that's where I hit the wall. Back in KOTFE I used the "brilliant" tactic of standing with my back to the wall and interrupting only the exarch's self heals. Now he rips me to pieces if I try that. Ok, fair enough, except that I can't prevent him from healing, since after I interrupt his heal, he re-casts it 5 seconds later. I tried Nar-Shaddaa and Voss both several times, and finally gave up disgusted, since barring some glitch and/or extremely good luck, it just doesn't seem possible to solo these now...

It's probably useless replying to this old post, but I'm sufficiently annoyed and frustrated to do so anyway...

 

Back when I was 70, it was time consuming but not particularly difficult to solo veteran mode star fortresses with shabby tanking gear and lvl 20 Lana healing me. Not so any more. I can get to the exarch (final boss) readily enough, but that's where I hit the wall. Back in KOTFE I used the "brilliant" tactic of standing with my back to the wall and interrupting only the exarch's self heals. Now he rips me to pieces if I try that. Ok, fair enough, except that I can't prevent him from healing, since after I interrupt his heal, he re-casts it 5 seconds later. I tried Nar-Shaddaa and Voss both several times, and finally gave up disgusted, since barring some glitch and/or extremely good luck, it just doesn't seem possible to solo these now...

 

Most of the content we used to be able to do solo is now screwed up. Some Dev though it would be a good Idea to make all the Solo content no longer solo-able... you know because somebody is BIS Raid gear thought it was too easy.

It's probably useless replying to this old post, but I'm sufficiently annoyed and frustrated to do so anyway...

 

Back when I was 70, it was time consuming but not particularly difficult to solo veteran mode star fortresses with shabby tanking gear and lvl 20 Lana healing me. Not so any more. I can get to the exarch (final boss) readily enough, but that's where I hit the wall. Back in KOTFE I used the "brilliant" tactic of standing with my back to the wall and interrupting only the exarch's self heals. Now he rips me to pieces if I try that. Ok, fair enough, except that I can't prevent him from healing, since after I interrupt his heal, he re-casts it 5 seconds later. I tried Nar-Shaddaa and Voss both several times, and finally gave up disgusted, since barring some glitch and/or extremely good luck, it just doesn't seem possible to solo these now...

 

What is your adv class? What is your irating? Do you have a set bonus? Do you have a tactical? These are the pertinent questions. I would say that raising gear rating if it is under irating 300 would be useful, and raising comp level.

 

iirc Trixxie had a theory that end-game content starting in kotfe becomes more difficult the higher leveled you are from where you are supposed to be playing it at. So SFs for instance are intended for lvl 65-70, but at 75 it might be more difficult, not less.

 

Most of the content we used to be able to do solo is now screwed up. Some Dev though it would be a good Idea to make all the Solo content no longer solo-able... you know because somebody is BIS Raid gear thought it was too easy.

 

You have a real chip on your shoulder, eh? You and this dude must be far more OP than me because I ALWAYS had difficulty with star fortresses. They were never easy, I could only do them with certain classes, and while I don't notice any major difference doing them now, but I am also in 306 armor with armor set and tacticals.. I could do them but they were extremely challenging content, and they still are.

 

Maybe instead of resenting entirely hypothetical BiS raiders who somehow mind tricked the devs to changing the difficulty, you could see if there's anything YOU can do to make it easier on yourself.