I recently switched to Assault for raiding. Once I got used to it I discovered I liked it quite a bit. Got a good boost to damage as well.

 

One of our group still loves Gunnery and has decided to stick with it. I was wondering how many others still prefer it to Assault?

I'm sticking with it. Mostly because I hate change.

Silly way to look at it.

 

Gunnery has superior survivability, guaranteed regen and debuffs the target for everyone.

 

If you know that is what your raid needs then that's what you should spec as.

Silly way to look at it.

 

Gunnery has superior survivability, guaranteed regen and debuffs the target for everyone.

 

If you know that is what your raid needs then that's what you should spec as.

At present, our NM S&V progression isn't hurting for healing and we have 2 other players that are providing an armor debuff. Which is why I tried Assault to see how it ran for me.

 

I didn't help that I was having trouble damage wise. When I checked Pizza's thread on the merc forum for some tips, I was startled to see under "personal best" he had a 3400 Arsenal compared to a 4000 Pyro. I then spent an hour or so on Torparse looking at the Mandos and Mercs, and almost everything I found was Assault / Pyro.

 

It made me curious to see how many players were still using it.

Edited February 13, 2014 by Khevar

Yes, still using Gunnery and i have no plans to switch.

Mainly because I basically play it since launch and know the spec inside and out. Switching to Assault would result in a DPS loss for me, especially in a complex boss fight with many other things to watch out for. It would require weeks if not months of training to make it really worth it (yeah I know I suck) and for what? Currently there is no dps challenge in the game anyway and I’m still doing as much dps as my fellow damage dealers in my guild.And we have enough. So no real pressure there.

On top of that, like others said, armor debuff and survivability. And change sucks.

Anyways, if Assault suits you better, got for it, nothing wrong there. Or wait a bit to decide, we will know soon if Gunnery gets a buff in 2.7

If you like procs, go assault.

 

If you like damage, go assault.

 

If you like having an armor debuff, go assault hybrid.

...

 

If you like having an armor debuff, go assault hybrid.

I haven't tried that yet. I guess that's dropping Plastique for Grav Round? And would have a higher usage of Full Auto in the rotation?

Edited February 13, 2014 by Khevar

If were talking about PVP, no question, hand down gunnery. Gunnery has some awesome DCD's, superior durability, superior and more reliable burst, and better kiting ability. For PVE its a matter of preferance with gunnery being easier to play and more useful to groups that lack armor penetration.

If were talking about PVP, no question, hand down gunnery. Gunnery has some awesome DCD's, superior durability, superior and more reliable burst, and better kiting ability. For PVE its a matter of preferance with gunnery being easier to play and more useful to groups that lack armor penetration.

 

"Gunnery has...better kiting ability"

 

There's a lot wrong with this.

Personally, I've found that Assault has better survivability but slightly less sustained damage. At level 39 I can go toe-to-toe with level 45-50's no problem if I use the rotation right. It's also nice that explosive round uses less ammo in assault spec, so I can steal kills real easy

Why not both?

 

When I play a DPS I try to learn at least two specs for flexibility. While I prefer Gunnery, it's just because I'm more skilled with it than Assault (I am less practiced in Assault). Unless you're restricted by time, there is no reason not to learn both Gunnery and Assault as they both have different strengths and weaknesses. Plus, Field Respecs are free so you can always optimize for each fight (e.g. run Assault for Nefra and Gunnery for Draxus).

Personally, I've found that Assault has better survivability but slightly less sustained damage. At level 39 I can go toe-to-toe with level 45-50's no problem if I use the rotation right. It's also nice that explosive round uses less ammo in assault spec, so I can steal kills real easy

 

Lowbies mean nothing

Lowbies mean nothing

 

Just trying to be helpful. Meant no disrespect.

Why not both?

 

When I play a DPS I try to learn at least two specs for flexibility. While I prefer Gunnery, it's just because I'm more skilled with it than Assault (I am less practiced in Assault). Unless you're restricted by time, there is no reason not to learn both Gunnery and Assault as they both have different strengths and weaknesses. Plus, Field Respecs are free so you can always optimize for each fight (e.g. run Assault for Nefra and Gunnery for Draxus).

I used to be exclusively Gunnery. I liked Assault on my Vanguard, because it really seemed to fit that particular playstyle, but for Commando I just like the middle tree a lot.

 

I was so addicted to the old 4-piece free HiB that I kept my 63 armorings all the way into 78 gear. The 2.0 set bonus change was interesting. The old one was useless for Assault, and the new one doesn't do a whole lot for Gunnery (maybe adds 50-75 dps?)

 

I REALLY liked the double 2-piece set bonus exploit, though it's not like I expected that to last.

 

Although I've got one of each AC on both sides, my Commando has pretty much always been my main, and my favorite toon. I hit 50 around the time 1.2 hit, and I've pretty much weathered all of the changes. It wasn't until last week that I decided to give Assault a try.

Edited February 14, 2014 by Khevar

If you like procs, go assault.

 

If you like damage, go assault.

 

If you like having an armor debuff, go assault hybrid.

 

what is this hybrid spec and is it competitive in a war zone?

what is this hybrid spec and is it competitive in a war zone?

 

Not to advertise my guide or anything, but it's the first post on the commando section as well as in my signature.

I personally switch specs depending on fight. For fights with a lot of target switching I much prefer gunnery for its on-demand burst. Pretty nice when you can hit a mob for a 6k GR, followed by 12k DR, followed by 10k HiB, RNG gods need to be with you but its nice when it happens. But fights with less target switching and movement required I prefer assault. I really enjoy both specs, but I really wish they would fix the Curtain of Fire proc.

I'm levelling in it. My vanguard is assault...I prefer change and challenge.

 

Gunnery PvP FTW!

"Gunnery has...better kiting ability"

 

There's a lot wrong with this.

 

10s hold the line > 6s hold the line

 

4s hard root on a 10s cooldown > no root at all

 

70% FA slow ~= 30% plasma ammo slow

 

2 tech overrides > 1 tech override

 

2 cast abilities (grav/FA) = 2 cast abilities (CB/FA)

 

3 instants (HIB,Demo,Sticky) < 4 instants (Hammer shot, Sticky, Plastique, explosive round)

 

Gunnery may have a more stationary primary rotation, but assault also has to stop to cast, and they are worse at keeping distance overall. The only thing assault is better at is running around hammer shot kiting, and thats only reliable against someone without a speed boost or leap (read operatives).

10s hold the line > 6s hold the line

 

...

This is something I miss as Assault, especially in SnV.

As far as PvE goes, unless your group is completely lacking the armor debuff, there's no real reason to go Gunnery; even though ~70% of Assault's damage is increased by the debuff, without it it still parses 200 dps or so higher than Gunnery.

"Gunnery has...better kiting ability"

 

There's a lot wrong with this.

 

Nothing like a good joke.

10s hold the line > 6s hold the line

 

4s hard root on a 10s cooldown > no root at all

 

70% FA slow ~= 30% plasma ammo slow

 

2 tech overrides > 1 tech override

 

2 cast abilities (grav/FA) = 2 cast abilities (CB/FA)

 

3 instants (HIB,Demo,Sticky) < 4 instants (Hammer shot, Sticky, Plastique, explosive round)

 

Gunnery may have a more stationary primary rotation, but assault also has to stop to cast, and they are worse at keeping distance overall. The only thing assault is better at is running around hammer shot kiting, and thats only reliable against someone without a speed boost or leap (read operatives).

 

I see what you're saying, but once Gunnery has used its 2 techoverrides, what can it actually use whilst moving? HiB and Demo Round have long cooldowns and HiB needs the 3 Grav Round casts to be at its best. The Stockstrike root is okay, but again you root them and strafe away just doing hammer shot? Same applies to HtL, you can use it sprint away from melee guys but are only left with HS. The Full Auto slow is 2secs per FA tick and with any pushback thats only a 4s slow

 

If you take the Assault skill for reducing the CD on Concussive Charge it is still easy enough to keep people at a distance with knockback and strafing & the much better supply of instants than Gunnery.

 

Incendiary Round > HiB > Plastique > Sticky > Electro net if up > Full Auto (can end it instantly after HFB proc if a melee is close) > HiB > ER

 

And you still have cryo nade + concussive round for CC

Hell yes I am sticking with Gunnery. Much better survivability. Also, I'm not a FotM junkie.

PvP:

 

With the natural cell regeneration of Gunnery, tossing out heals becomes much easier on the resources. Gunnery spec also allows it to be easier to spec into an improved Kolto Fart without missing valuable skill points in a tree you are not going far into.

 

Assault requires the use of standing still to cast in order to utilize its cell regeneration. Gunnery has it always on. That right there is a huge reason to stay Gunnery. People say Assault has better mobility. I disagree for this reason, almost singularly.

Edited February 16, 2014 by ByeToWoW