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Zabuza's PvP tanking encyclopedia


NamikazeNaruto

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NOTE: This is a long guide. This is why I have color coded links below in the table of contents that if you click on them they will take you to the section you are interested in.

 

This guide is purely for tanking, if you want a newly updated Shadow Guide for Deception/Madness specs go here.

http://www.swtor.com/community/showthread.php?t=427933

 

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Table of Contents

 

[jumpto=general tanking]General Tanking Tips[/jumpto]

[jumpto=general node guarding/delaying tips]General Node Guard/Delaying Tips[/jumpto]

[jumpto=node guarding]Node Guarding[/jumpto]

[jumpto=node delaying]Node Delaying/Interference Tactics[/jumpto]

[jumpto=the many uses of phase walk]The Many Uses of Phase Walk[/jumpto]

[jumpto=Specs]Specs[/jumpto]

[jumpto=36/5/5]36/5/5[/jumpto]

[jumpto=17/29/0]17/29/0[/jumpto]

[jumpto=27/4/15]27/4/15[/jumpto]

[jumpto=27/17/2]27/17/2[/jumpto]

[jumpto=tank gear]Tank Gear[/jumpto]

[jumpto=the mitigation build]The Mitigation Build[/jumpto]

[jumpto=the endurance build]The Endurance Build[/jumpto]

[jumpto=the hybrid build]The Hybrid Build[/jumpto]

[jumpto=min/maxing the mitigation build]Min/Maxing The Mitigation Build[/jumpto]

[jumpto=min/maxing the endurance build]Min/Maxing The Endurance Build[/jumpto]

[jumpto=min/maxing the hybrid build]Min/Maxing The Hybrid Build[/jumpto]

[jumpto=comparing the mitigation build and the endurance build]Comparing the Mitigation Build and the Endurance Build[/jumpto]

 

_______________________________________________________________________

 

[aname=general tanking]General tanking tips[/aname]

 

-Always spam your single target taunt when it is off cooldown. This is a bit of a pain but you need to do it. I recommend binding it to a hotkey that is very easy for you to use frequently. Mine is bound to my mouse wheel up key. Try to find out who the highest dps on their team is and put him on focus target. This way you can easily focus target single taunt him when it is off cooldown.

 

-Save your AoE taunt for either enemy AoEs, or when there are a lot of enemies in the vicinity attacking.

 

-Swap guards accordingly. If your enemy is only focusing the person you are guarding, there is no need to do this. If the enemy is constantly switching the target they are focusing on, you need to constantly be switching the person you are guarding.

 

-When both your taunts are down and your guarded target's health is low, use your CCs A lot of times I'll spinning kick one person and use force stun on another. If I see a guardian leap to someone, if I'm in position, I will pull him back before he can use smash on that person.

 

-When both your taunts are down and YOUR health is low, use your defensive cooldowns. Unless your health is below 50%, don't spam all your defensive cooldowns at once, space them out. Note that there may be occasions where you have to use your defensive cooldowns with taunts up.

 

-If you're 36/5/5 spec spam slow time/wither every time it is off cooldown.

 

-Use your AoE knockback when you really need to get a crowd of people off you and/or your guarded target. This is more of a panic/get off me button.

 

-Buy stun grenades. This will serve the same function as your AoE knockback. It is a panic/get off me button.

 

-If your health is about 20% or below and dropping, and your guarded target's is above 50%, unguard your target and use phase walk if you placed one in a secluded area, then force cloak out, then and meditate, or unstealth and use a warzone medpac. Note that if you are in 27/17/2 or 17/29/0 you can use the medpacs in force cloak, and can also be healed by healers in force cloak.

 

-Normally when someone uses a warzone medpac, they can not use one again until they die. This does not apply to shadows. After you've used a warzone medpac, simply Force Cloak, and the warzone medpac will be available again when the cooldown ends.

 

-Make sure you have warzone medpacs with you at all times. They are vastly superior to Rakata medpacs. Also carry warzone adrenals.

 

-If you are 36/5/5 spec put a phase walk circle where your healers are standing. This will give them 5% more healing done.

 

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[aname=general node guarding/delaying tips]General Node Guarding/Delaying Tips[/aname]

 

 

[aname=node guarding]Node Guarding[/aname]

 

 

-Your function as a node guarder is NOT to 1v1 the opponents that come, but rather to stall long enough for reinforcements to arrive. The best way to do this is to remain in stealth, out of sight, and use mind maze on any enemy/enemies that try to cap.

 

-If you see an enemy coming, do not be so quick to pop out of stealth and start attacking them, there is a high chance there may be a stealther with them, make sure you call it out to your team in chat or on vent/mumble/teamspeak as soon as you see them.

 

-If an enemy stealther is lurking around your node and they haven't detected you, go in enhanced stealth and scout the area around them to see if you can find any other stealthers accompanying them. If you spot noone else but them, then and only then can you 1v1 them, but make sure you called this out to your team the moment you saw the stealther.

 

-If an enemy stealther went to your node and spotted you and started attacking you, fight him for a bit and see where the duel is going. If it looks like you're winning keep attacking him until he dies. If it looks like you're losing, pop resilence if necessary, and use force cloak/force speed and/or phase walk to get to safety. Use blackout once the enhanced stealth from your force cloak wears off. Call out as soon as you're attacked.

 

-If a single enemy comes to your node and uses an 8 second mezz on you and starts capping, don't break it unless it's a flash bang(I've had nodes capped from me with flash bangs when I'm standing in range that I'd be able to spam an attack on them.) Wait for the CC to end, while spamming an attack like project or force in balance on them. If you break the first CC, chances are you'll be hit with another 8 second CC and get capped on. Of course in Hypergates if it's an 8 second mezz you'll want to break the first CC.

 

Thanks to phase walk now you can place a circle near the node/door and even if two stealthers come at you and try to sap cap the door, you can use phase walk WHILE mezzed/stunned to teleport to the node/door from far away. Then you can CC break and activate Resilience ASAP and stop the cap, and then force cloak out to buy some time.

 

-In a situation where you know if you don't break the first CC you will be capped, make sure that when you break the CC you immediately follow up with resilience so you can't be CCed again. Once you broke CC and used resilience, do a project or force in balance to stop the enemy cap. Once you've done that, use force cloak and force sprint to get out. Stop any attempted caps with mind maze. Use blackout when force cloak's effect wears off.

 

 

[aname=node delaying]Node Delaying/Interference Tactics[/aname]

 

 

-In Civil War, if you have a sentinel, ask them to give you transcendence. If you have transcendence your chance of stopping the enemy from getting their natural node in Civil War is very high.

 

-Take the right speeder off the bat in Civil War, it is slightly quicker than the left one.

 

-Make sure to use your force sprint on the way to the enemy node.

 

-Turn your mouse while running by holding the left click key to see if any enemies are coming directly at you from the side to try to stop you getting to the enemy cap in time.

 

-In the moment that an enemy gets near you on your way to the enemy node, pop your resilience in stealth as soon as he gets close, this way, if it's a Guardian or Sentinel using their AoE mezz to try to CC you in stealth, it won't have any effect on you and you can keep going to stop the enemy cap.

 

-If you see a Commando/Mercenary/Powertech/Vanguard coming at you to try to stop you from stopping the enemy cap, try to run around where you think they will stealth scan, rather than using resilience in stealth.

 

-Force in Balance is amazing for stopping that first enemy cap. Use it.

 

-If the enemy has already captured their natural node, make sure when you are approaching the enemy node that you use blackout so you can get the jump on any enemy stealthers that might be guarding that node.

 

-If it's only one enemy on their node, you might try 1v1ing them if you're confident in your skills, or you can try to CC

cap them. To do this, most times you would want to use mind maze first from stealth. Then right click your stealth off really fast, since doing that allows you to unstealth off the global cooldown. Right click the node really fast after that. A lot of times enemies will break your mind maze. When they do, you can either use instant force lift if you have it, or force cloak and mind maze them again, and right click the stealth buff to unstealth fast. This is simple to do in hypergates.

 

-If there is more than one enemy on their node and they are still trying to cap, use force in balance to stop the cap, then use resilience, force cloak, and force sprint to get out of there. Keep using mind maze on any enemy that tries to cap. When their resolve fills, you'll have no choice but to attack them to stop the caps. Once you are revealed, instead of straight out fighting the enemies, kite them around and use CCs to draw out the time for them to cap even longer.

 

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[aname=the many uses of phase walk]The Many Uses of Phase Walk[/aname]

 

Phase Walk is the perfect ability for us Assassins. It is extremely versatile, which is what this class is all about. I'll explain all the different uses I know of.

 

-If you are 36/5/5 spec and have the Shadow's Shelter talent, you can place a phase walk circle where your healers are. Doing this will give them 5% more healing done to everyone on your team as long as they stand in the circle. It has a 2 minute duration with a 45 second cooldown.

 

-In Civil War, if you have to roam, you can place a circle in the middle and if u were coming back to middle from a side you can teleport there through the wall instead of having to go around. It works for going to the sides from mid too of course if you placed one outside of the middle wall.

 

-In Voidstar, you can place it on one side of the fence in the first set of rooms and if there is trouble on the other side, you can instantly teleport to the other side instead of having to walk around the fence.

 

-In Voidstar, if you play kinetic/darkness spec and feel like trolling someone, you can place a phase walk circle near the bridge area. Then you force speed jump off the bridge, and pull someone with you, activating phase walk before you fall. This will teleport you back up but your opponent will fall into the abyss :).

 

-In Novare Coast, if you are guarding a bunker, you can put a phase walk circle next to the medpac area. Now if someone 1v1s you, or your health gets low, you can just phase walk and get the medpac.

 

-In Novare Coast if you're afraid an enemy is going to try to pull you to the cliff and knock you off when you're guarding the bunker, you can place the phase walk circle near the bunker so even if they knock you off you can just teleport back.

 

-In Huttball, if you got to their endzone you can just place a phase walk circle there for if you need to go there again to score another goal, or in case you get knocked into the pit. If you phase walk with ball in hand though, the ball neutrals.

 

-In every warzone, you can place a phase walk circle near the node/bunker you are guarding, meanwhile you are standing about 60 meters away. Enemies will have to do quite a bit of searching to find you.

 

-In every warzone, you can even stand closer to the node, but still stand a considerable distance from the node/door/bunker. If they try to sap cap you, you can phase walk while sapped or stunned. Once you teleport near the capper, break CC, use Resilience, stop the cap, and force cloak out to stall for time.

 

-In 1v1 situations, you can fight the enemy and lead them away from your phase walk circle. This way, if they stun you, you can just phase walk away from them and they probably can't attack you, so they just wasted their stun.

 

 

 

[aname=Specs]Specs[/aname]

 

 

[aname=36/5/5]36/5/5[/aname] http://swtor.askmrrobot.com/skills/shadow#1201322123212110223302-203-221

 

 

-You gain Slow Time/Wither which decreases the damage of up to 5 enemies by 5% and slows them by 30%

-You gain Kinetic Bulwark, which will increase your shield absorption by 1% for every stack consumed, lasts 20 seconds or until you reapply Kinetic Ward.

-You gain Shadow's Shelter, which increases your healing received by 2%. Also, when you activate phase walk, it increases heals done by your healers by 5% for the 2 minutes that your phase walk is on ground. Once the phase walk goes down it has a 45 second cooldown. You want to have this up as much as possible. This talent combined with Slow Time/Wither makes this spec the top spec for main tanking right now.

-You gain Celerity which lowers your force speed cooldown by 5 seconds and gives you a 1 minute 30 second CC breaker.

-Note you can also go 36/3/7 if you desire a little bit more dps, but I feel Celerity is so useful now that it is on the first tier.

 

 

Summary

 

The rotation is pretty much the same. Working to get 3 stacks of harnessed shadows to use TK throw for a self-heal. Using Slow Time every time it is up. Only difference will be the addition of Phase walk, you will want to try to phase walk next to a healer if possible so they can benefit form Shadow's Shelter.

 

 

[aname=17/29/0]17/29/0[/aname]http://swtor.askmrrobot.com/skills/shadow#2000110222322-221220321112012223-0

 

-You gain 62% Increased Shadow Strike damage because of 1 level in Shadow's Mark and full Circling Shadows/Infiltration Tactics.

-You gain Shadow's Respite, which gives you 25% decreased damage for 6 seconds when you activate Blackout.

-You gain Particle Acceleration, which combined with Upheaval and Potent Shadows, may give you frequent projects that do 100% increased critical damage and also hit twice.

-You gain Kinetic Field, which has can increase damage reduction by 6% for 15 seconds with 3 stacks.

-Fade reduces damage from area of effects by 30% and also Reduces the cooldown of Blackout by 15 seconds and Force Cloak by 30 seconds.

 

Summary

 

So when we combine all this what do we get? Offensively, our shadow strikes will do 62% increased damage, and our projects do 100% increased critical hit damage, with a possibility to hit a 2nd time for 50% of the damage the first hit caused. That's a pretty powerful offensive arsenal. Defensively, we get 6% damage reduction up to 3 stacks, 30% passive reduced AoE damage reduction, and an active cooldown that reduces damage by 25% for 6 seconds. This spec will be run in combat technique.

 

The rotation would be to double strike for particle acceleration procs, and then use force recklessness with the project after you get the proc. Your projects hit for a massive amount of damage in this spec, so use dps gear. Shadow strikes can be used when you don't have the PA proc and have the infil tactics proc, in order to recover some force while still doing a good amount of damage.

 

 

[aname=27/4/15]27/4/15[/aname] http://swtor.askmrrobot.com/skills/shadow#20123212110221322-103-2210012223

 

-Force Stun cooldown will be reduced by 10 seconds with Pinning Resolve. I mainly did this to have enough in talents to move up to the next tier. In combat technique we don't really have any periodic damaging abilities, so the other 3 talents on this tier are even more useless.

 

Summary

 

Rotation is the same. Work up to 3 stacks of Harnessed Shadows and use TK throw at 3 stacks. Not much has changed with this spec from 27/0/14, honestly. This spec is probably the best currently for node guarding purposes because of having FiB/Death Field to stop caps. However, because of phase walk, the difference here is negligible.

 

 

 

[aname=27/17/2]27/17/2[/aname] http://swtor.askmrrobot.com/skills/shadow#22123212110221302-21112012223-20

 

 

-You have Harnessed shadows for a self-heal.

-You gain Kinetic Bulwark, which will increase your shield absorption by 1% for every stack consumed, lasts 20 seconds or until you reapply Kinetic Ward.

-Your projects will deal more damage thanks to Bombardment and Upheaval.

-You lose Infiltration Tactics

-You lose Martial Prowess

 

 

Summary

 

Your dps rotation in this spec will now rely more on projects rather than shadow strikes. However, this spec was always pure tank and not dps, so losing infil tactics is not a big deal. The biggest loss probably comes from not having Martial Prowess, which would normally allow you to use Spinning Kick out of stealth. However, to make up for this, you get Harnessed Shadows, so you have the self-heal along with all the former survivability tools of 22/17/2. You get Kinetic Bulwark as well. This spec has some pretty high individual survivability, but does not do as much for the group as 36/5/5.

 

[aname=tank gear]Tank Gear[/aname]

 

Well a few things have changed in terms of Shadow PvP tanking. The most important change here was that shields now block force/tech damage along with the melee/ranged damage that it always blocked. Because of this, I believe it is now more wise to stack mitigation instead of endurance in PvP. As always, make sure your expertise is as high as possible. There are certain mitigation values you want to reach to get the most out of your defense/shield/absorb. A balance is required. I will elaborate on this in the chart below.

 

Credit for these values goes to KeyboardNinja.

 

 

 

{Total Mitigation -> 0,{defense->0,shield->0,absorb->0}}

{Total Mitigation ->100,{defense->64,shield->36,absorb->0}}

{Total Mitigation ->200,{defense->127,shield->73,absorb->0}}

{Total Mitigation ->300,{defense->190,shield->109,absorb->0}}

{Total Mitigation ->400,{defense->252,shield->146,absorb->2}}

{Total Mitigation ->500,{defense->274,shield->182,absorb->44}}

{Total Mitigation ->600,{defense->282,shield->219,absorb->99}}

{Total Mitigation ->700,{defense->291,shield->255,absorb->153}}

{Total Mitigation ->800,{defense->301,shield->292,absorb->207}}

{Total Mitigation ->900,{defense->312,shield->328,absorb->260}}

{Total Mitigation ->1000,{defense->323,shield->365,absorb->313}}

{Total Mitigation ->1100,{defense->334,shield->401,absorb->365}}

{Total Mitigation ->1200,{defense->346,shield->438,absorb->416}}

{Total Mitigation ->1300,{defense->358,shield->474,absorb->468}}

{Total Mitigation ->1400,{defense->371,shield->511,absorb->518}}

{Total Mitigation ->1500,{defense->385,shield->547,absorb->568}}

{Total Mitigation ->1600,{defense->398,shield->583,absorb->618}}

{Total Mitigation ->1700,{defense->413,shield->620,absorb->668}}

{Total Mitigation ->1800,{defense->427,shield->656,absorb->716}}

{Total Mitigation ->1900,{defense->442,shield->693,absorb->765}}

{Total Mitigation ->2000,{defense->458,shield->729,absorb->813}}

{Total Mitigation ->2100,{defense->473,shield->766,absorb->861}}

{Total Mitigation ->2200,{defense->489,shield->802,absorb->908}}

{Total Mitigation ->2300,{defense->506,shield->839,absorb->955}}

{Total Mitigation ->2400,{defense->522,shield->875,absorb->1002}}

{Total Mitigation ->2500,{defense->539,shield->912,absorb->1049}}

{Total Mitigation ->2600,{defense->557,shield->948,absorb->1095}}

{Total Mitigation ->2700,{defense->575,shield->985,absorb->1141}}

{Total Mitigation ->2800,{defense->593,shield->1021,absorb->1186}}

{Total Mitigation ->2900,{defense->611,shield->1058,absorb->1231}}

{Total Mitigation ->3000,{defense->629,shield->1094,absorb->1276}}

{Total Mitigation ->3100,{defense->648,shield->1131,absorb->1321}}

{Total Mitigation ->3200,{defense->667,shield->1167,absorb->1366}}

{Total Mitigation ->3300,{defense->687,shield->1203,absorb->1410}}

{Total Mitigation ->3400,{defense->706,shield->1240,absorb->1454}}

{Total Mitigation ->3500,{defense->726,shield->1276,absorb->1497}}

{Total Mitigation ->3600,{defense->746,shield->1313,absorb->1541}}

{Total Mitigation ->3700,{defense->766,shield->1350,absorb->1584}}

{Total Mitigation ->3800,{defense->785,shield->1388,absorb->1627}}

{Total Mitigation ->3900,{defense->807,shield->1423,absorb->1670}}

{Total Mitigation ->4000,{defense->825,shield->1463,absorb->1712}}

{Total Mitigation ->4100,{defense->842,shield->1505,absorb->1753}}

{Total Mitigation ->4200,{defense->856,shield->1550,absorb->1794}}

{Total Mitigation ->4300,{defense->868,shield->1597,absorb->1834}}

{Total Mitigation ->4400,{defense->883,shield->1642,absorb->1875}}

{Total Mitigation ->4500,{defense->898,shield->1687,absorb->1915}}

{Total Mitigation ->4600,{defense->913,shield->1733,absorb->1954}}

{Total Mitigation ->4700,{defense->929,shield->1778,absorb->1994}}

{Total Mitigation ->4800,{defense->945,shield->1823,absorb->2033}}

{Total Mitigation ->4900,{defense->961,shield->1867,absorb->2072}}

{Total Mitigation ->5000,{defense->978,shield->1912,absorb->2110}}

 

 

 

So what does all this mean? Well, let's take the total mitigation value of 1700, for example.

 

{Total Mitigation ->1700,{defense->413,shield->620,absorb->668}}

 

As you can see here, at a total of around 1700 mitigation, 413 of that goes into defense, 620 of that goes into shield, and 668 of that goes into absorb. As you can see, around 500 total mitigation, the defense starts to DR sharply while shield and absorb does not DR. This means shield/absorb will generally be more important for you as a shadow tank after you get about 300 defense rating.

 

Another big change that happened is mods and enhancements are for sale individually from PvP vendors instead of having to rip mods/enhancements out of gear. In my opinion, there are two ways you can gear up as a tank depending on what you want to go for. Personally I am going to do the mitigation build, because now that shield/absorb is more valuable I personally believe stacking mitigation is better than stacking endurance. I will also put the endurance build up for those who want to build their gear that way, however.

 

On top of that, I will be putting all relevant mods and enhancements and separating them with purple and blue. The mods/enhancements/augments I put in purple will be the ranked mods/enhancements/augments, where as the blue will be the mods/enhancements/augments that cost 400 warzone comms. So let's start off with the mitigation build...

 

 

[aname=the mitigation build]The Mitigation Build[/aname]

 

 

Mods

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 28X(+41 Endurance +55 Wilpower +41 Expertise +46 Defense)

Advanced Reinforced Mod 27X(+39 Endurance +52 Willpower +41 Expertise +43 Defense)

 

Advanced Robust Mod 28X(+41 Endurance +55 Willpower +41 Expertise +46 Absorb)

Advanced Robust Mod 27X(+39 Endurance +52 Willpower +41 Expertise +43 Absorb)

 

 

Enhancements

 

Advanced Immunity Enhancement 28X(+36 Endurance +41 Expertise +64 Shield +41 Defense)

Advanced Immunity Enhancement 27X(+34 Endurance +41 Expertise +60 Shield +39 Defense)

 

Advanced Sturdiness Enhancement 28X(+36 Endurance +41 Expertise +64 Shield +41 Absorb)

Advanced Sturdiness Enhancement 27X(+34 Endurance +41 Expertise +60 Shield +39 Absorb)

 

 

Augments

 

Advanced Redoubt Augment 28(+32 Defense +20 Power)

Redoubt Augment 28(+28 Defense +18 Power)

 

Advanced Shield Augment 28(+32 Shield +20 Power)

Shield Augment 28(+28 Shield +18 Power)

 

Advanced Absorb Augment 28(+32 Absorb +20 Power)

Absorb Augment 28(+28 Absorb +18 Power)

 

 

[aname=min/maxing the mitigation build]Min/Maxing the Mitigation Build[/aname]

So basically...I'm in mostly partisan right now with Conqueror Implants and Earrings. After some calculating, I am going to do almost the same allocation of mods/enhancements/augments for both Partisan level and Conqueror level mods/enhancements/augments. Here is my mitigation allocation.

 

Partisan Min/Maxing

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 27X(39 Endurance/43 Defense) * 9 slots = 351 Endurance/387 Defense

Partisan Relic of the Fortunate Redoubt(78 Endurance/18 Defense) * 1 slot = 78 Endurance/18 Defense

Partisan Relic of Shield Amplification(78 Endurance) * 1 slot = 78 Endurance

Redoubt Augment 28(28 Defense) * 1 slot = 28 defense

 

Total = 507 Endurance/433 Defense

 

Partisan Survivor's MK-1 Implant and MK-1 Module(175 Endurance/56 Shield/47 Absorb) * 3 slots = 525 Endurance/168 Shield/141 Absorb.

Advanced Sturdiness Enhancement 27X(34 Endurance/60 Shield/39 Absorb) * 7 slots = 238 Endurance/420 Shield and 273 Absorb.

Shield Augment 28(28 Shield) * 3 slots = 84 Shield

Absorb Augment 28(28 Absorb) * 10 slots = 280 Absorb

 

Total = 763 Endurance/672 Shield/694 Absorb

 

Grand Total = 1270 Endurance/433 Defense/672 Shield/694 Absorb.

 

 

Conqueror Min/Maxing

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 28X(41 Endurance/46 Defense) * 9 slots = 369 Endurance/414 Defense

Conqueror Relic of the Fortunate Redoubt(83 Endurance/20 Defense) * 1 slot = 83 Endurance/20 Defense

Conqueror Relic of Shield Amplification(83 Endurance) * 1 slot = 83 Endurance

 

Total = 535 Endurance/434 Defense

 

Conqueror Survivor's MK-1 Implant and MK-1 Module(187 Endurance/59 Shield/51 Absorb) * 3 slots =561 Endurance/177 Shield/153 Absorb

Advanced Sturdiness Enhancement 28X(36 Endurance64 Shield/41 Absorb) * 7 slots = 448 Shield and 287 Absorb

Advanced Shield Augment 28(32 Shield) * 3 slots = 96 Shield

Advanced Absorb Augment 28(32 Absorb) *11 slots = 352 Absorb

 

Total = 813 Endurance/721 Shield/792 Absorb

 

 

Grand Total = 1348 Endurance/434 Defense/721 Shield/792 Absorb

 

 

[aname=the endurance build]The Endurance Build[/aname]

 

Mods

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 28BX(+59 Endurance +46 Willpower +41 Expertise +36 Defense)

Advanced Reinforced Mod 27BX(+56 Endurance +43 Willpower +41 Expertise +34 Defense)

 

Advanced Robust Mod 28BX(+59 Endurance +46 Willpower +41 Expertise +36 Absorb)

Advanced Robust Mod 27BX(+56 Endurance +43 Willpower +41 Expertise +34 Absorb)

 

Enhancements

 

Advanced Steadfast Enhancement 28X(+64 Endurance +41 Expertise +59 Shield +14 Defense)

Advanced Steadfast Enhancement 27X(+60 Endurance +41 Expertise +56 Shield +13 Defense)

 

Advanced Vigiliant Enhancement 28X(+64 Endurance +41 Expertise +59 Shield +14 Absorb)

Advanced Vigiliant Enhancement 27X(+60 Endurance +41 Expertise +56 Shield +13 Absorb)

 

 

Augments

 

Advanced Fortitude Augment 28(+32 Endurance +20 Power)

Fortitude Augment 28(+28 Endurance +18 Power)

 

 

[aname=min/maxing the endurance build]Min/Maxing the Endurance Build[/aname]

 

Again I will do calculations for partisan and conqueror setup.

 

 

Partisan Min/Max

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 27BX(56 Endurance/36 Defense) * 9 slots = 504 Endurance 324 Defense

Partisan Relic of the Fortunate Redoubt(78 Endurance/18 Defense)

Partisan Relic of Shield Amplification(78 Endurance)

 

Total = 660 Endurance 342 Defense

 

Partisan Survivor's MK-1 Implant and MK-1 Module[175 Endurance/59 Shield/51 Absorb) * 3 slots = 525 Endurance/177 Shield/153 Absorb

Advanced Vigilant Enhancement 27X(60 Endurance/56 Shield/13 Absorb) * 7 slots = 420 Endurance/392 shield/91 absorb

Fortitude Augment 28(28 Endurance) * 14 slots = 392 Endurance

 

Total = 1337 Endurance/569 Shield/244 Absorb

 

Grand Total = 1997 Endurance/342 Defense/569 Shield/244 Absorb

 

Conqueror Min/Max

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 28BX(59 Endurance/36 Defense) * 9 slots = 531 endurance/324 defense.

Conqueror Relic of the Fortunate Redoubt(83 Endurance/20 Defense)

Conqueror Relic of Shield Amplification(83 Endurance)

 

Total = 697 Endurance/344 Defense

 

Conqueror Survivor's MK-1 Implant and MK-1 Module187 Endurance/59 Shield/51 Absorb * 3 slots = 561 Endurance/177 Shield/153 Absorb

Advanced Vigiliant Enhancement 28X(64 Endurance/59 Shield/14 Absorb) * 7 slots = 448 Endurance/413 Shield/98 Absorb

Advanced Fortitude Augment 28(32 Endurance) * 14 slots = 448 Endurance

 

Total = 1457 Endurance/590 Shield/251 Absorb

 

Grand Total = 2154 Endurance/344 Defense/590 Shield/251 Absorb

 

 

[aname=the hybrid build]The Hybrid Build[/aname]

 

Mods

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 28X(+41 Endurance +55 Wilpower +41 Expertise +46 Defense)

Advanced Reinforced Mod 27X(+39 Endurance +52 Willpower +41 Expertise +43 Defense)

 

Enhancements

 

Advanced Bastion Enhancement 28X(+51 Endurance +41 Expertise +64 Shield +25 Defense)

Advanced Bastion Enhancement 27X(+47 Endurance +41 Expertise +60 Shield +24 Defense)

 

Advanced Bulwark Enhancement 28X(+51 Endurance +41 Expertise +64 Shield +25 Absorb)

Advanced Bulwark Enhancement 27X(+47 Endurance +41 Expertise +60 Shield +24 Absorb)

 

 

Augments

 

Advanced Fortitude Augment 28(+32 Endurance +20 Power)

Fortitude Augment 28(+28 Endurance +18 Power)

 

 

[aname=min/maxing the hybrid build]Min/Maxing the Hybrid Build[/aname]

 

Partisan Min/Max

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 27X(39 Endurance/43 Defense) * 7 slots = 273 Endurance/301 Defense

Advanced Robust Mod 27X(+39 Endurance/43 Absorb) * 2 slots = 78 Endurance/86 Absorb

Partisan Relic of the Fortunate Redoubt(78 Endurance/18 Defense) * 1 slot = 78 Endurance/18 Defense

Partisan Relic of Ephemeral Mending(78 Endurance) * 1 slot = 78 Endurance

 

Total = 507 Endurance/319 Defense/86 Absorb

 

 

Partisan Survivor's MK-1 Implant and MK-1 Module[175 Endurance/59 Shield/51 Absorb) * 3 slots = 525 Endurance/177 Shield/153 Absorb

Advanced Bulwark Enhancement 27X(47 Endurance/60 Shield/24 Absorb) * 7 slots = 329 Endurance/420 shield/168 absorb

Fortitude Augment 28(28 Endurance) * 14 slots = 392 Endurance

 

Total = 1246 Endurance/597 Shield/321 Absorb

 

Grand Total = 1753 Endurance/319 Defense/597 Shield/407 Absorb

 

 

Conqueror Min/Maxing

 

Advanced Reinforced Mod 28X(41 Endurance/46 Defense) * 7 slots = 287 Endurance/322 Defense

Advanced Robust Mod 28X(41 Endurance/46 Absorb) * 2 slots = 82 Endurance/92 Absorb

Conqueror Relic of the Fortunate Redoubt(83 Endurance/20 Defense) * 1 slot = 83 Endurance/20 Defense

Conqueror Relic of Ephemeral Mending(83 Endurance) * 1 slot = 83 Endurance

 

Total = 535 Endurance/342 Defense/92 Absorb

 

 

Conqueror Survivor's MK-1 Implant and MK-1 Module187 Endurance/59 Shield/51 Absorb * 3 slots = 561 Endurance/177 Shield/153 Absorb

Advanced Bulwark Enhancement 28X(51 Endurance/64 Shield/25 Absorb) * 7 slots = 357 Endurance/448 Shield/175 Absorb

Advanced Fortitude Augment 28(32 Endurance) * 14 slots = 448 Endurance

 

Total = 1366 Endurance/625 Shield/328 Absorb

 

Grand Total = 1901 Endurance/342 Defense/625 Shield/420 Absorb

 

 

[aname=comparing the mitigation build and the endurance build]Comparing the Mitigation Build and the Endurance Build[/aname]

 

My stats in Mitigation build were 2475.9 Endurance/21.99% Defense Chance/34.4% Shield Chance/42.04% Absorb with buffs and without stim on.

My stats in Endurance build were 3288.6 Endurance/20.86% Defense Chance/32.13% Shield Chance/30.61% Absorb with buffs and without stim on.

 

The main difference here between these two builds is the Mitigation Build sacrifices Endurance for Absorb Rating. The mitigation build has 792 Absorb Rating, whereas the Endurance build only has 251.

 

In Mitigation build you're going to have around a 30-31k health pool but your shield will absorb about 40-45%(42.04%) more damage every time you shield.(which in Mitigation Build, that will be about 50%(49.4%) of the time with dark ward up.)

 

In Endurance build you're going to have around a 38-39k health pool but your shield will only absorb about 30%(30.61%) more damage every time you shield.(In Endurance Build, this will be about 46-48%(47.13%) of the time with Dark Ward up.)

 

Basically the reason I picked the Mitigation Build over the Endurance Build is because the Endurance build will be harder for healers to heal through. It will cost them more force/energy to keep you alive, and they will spend more time keeping you alive than keeping themselves and others alive, which is not what you want.

 

This is the ultimate reason I choose Mitigation build over Endurance build.

 

My armory is here.

http://swtor.askmrrobot.com/character/4484a39b-0b9e-4f57-918e-c8e06a9b584f

Edited by NamikazeNaruto
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Very nice, well put together and the last part about what items are needed for best benefit will help me alot.

Just hit 50 on my assassin on Friday, decided I'd reroll a Shadow so, climbing my way up the levels at the moment. :)

 

EDIT: Remember to add the thread to your signature aswell :>

Edited by Jayshames
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Very nice, well put together and the last part about what items are needed for best benefit will help me alot.

Just hit 50 on my assassin on Friday, decided I'd reroll a Shadow so, climbing my way up the levels at the moment. :)

 

EDIT: Remember to add the thread to your signature aswell :>

 

That's what I made the thread for :) to hopefully help out Shadows who were confused about tanking.

 

P.S. I wish I could put it in my sig... but for me to do that I'd have to take something off of my signature, maybe I will anyways. :\.

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Very nice write up Zabuza. I would suggest using the Elite War Hero Stalker Bracers to rip out +40 power mods in lieu of the other suggestion as the bracers are easier to afford. Also, in same line of thinking use the Elite War Hero Force Master bracers or whatever for the +40 crit. In general best to look at the bracers (maybe belts) first to see if you can get the mods you want before the pieces with set bonus armors. Edited by XakTsaroth
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Very nice write up Zabuza. I would suggest using the Elite War Hero Stalker Bracers to rip out +40 power mods in lieu of the other suggestion as the bracers are easier to afford. Also, in same line of thinking use the Elite War Hero Force Master bracers or whatever for the +40 crit. In general best to look at the bracers (maybe belts) first to see if you can get the mods you want before the pieces with set bonus armors.

 

Indeed, what you say is true. I have updated my guide to reflect that.

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for 22/17/2(Kinetic/Infil Hybrid) http://swtor.askmrrobot.com/skills/S...762l2-c78cif-c....

 

 

 

i have some questions about that spec if u dont mind! i am new to shadow and a casual player! from start wanted a kin/inf build and your post was first where i see one! i am at work and have bad english so i be short! please forgive me!

for that spec u use shadow tecnique? with shield ( heard shield are not so good in pvp but u put many points in shield procs) or focus? this spec is used with tank gear i understand but my dps wont be low? u have ponts in talents for shadow technique(circling shadows) and ponts in talents for combat tec (particle acceleration and impact control for example..) so i am confused!

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for 22/17/2(Kinetic/Infil Hybrid) http://swtor.askmrrobot.com/skills/S...762l2-c78cif-c....

 

 

 

i have some questions about that spec if u dont mind! i am new to shadow and a casual player! from start wanted a kin/inf build and your post was first where i see one! i am at work and have bad english so i be short! please forgive me!

for that spec u use shadow tecnique? with shield ( heard shield are not so good in pvp but u put many points in shield procs) or focus? this spec is used with tank gear i understand but my dps wont be low? u have ponts in talents for shadow technique(circling shadows) and ponts in talents for combat tec (particle acceleration and impact control for example..) so i am confused!

 

This spec requires combat technique. You wear a shield and full tank gear. Your dps in this spec will be lower than any other spec most likely. The point of this spec is to be very hard to kill, not to do good dps. The points in circling shadows and particle acceleration are so that you can move up to the next tier of talents.

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Freezing Force and Awe can be real difference makers in a wz such as Voidstar. Get in tunnel and spam it to keep the enemy dragging behind your capper. So many uses. Enure is icing on the cake but it is pretty cool that they have that, can't be mad even if a little jealous. :cool:
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Nice guide Zab, well put together. I liked the section comparing shadow tanks to guardian tanks. The only thing I would comment on is

 

Slow Time. This skill is so amazing, that this alone is what makes this spec a close second to 22/17/2. Slowing up to 5 enemies by 30% and reducing their damage done by 5% per person that it hits. So if it hits the maximum of 5 dps they will be doing 25% less damage altogether to the people they are attacking. Also each time you use Slow Time you get a Harnessed Shadows proc.

 

They are still only doing 5% less damage. If 5 players each deal 100 damage (total 500) before slow time. After slow time they are each doing 95 damage (475 total). The total loss is still only 5%.

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Nice guide Zab, well put together. I liked the section comparing shadow tanks to guardian tanks. The only thing I would comment on is

 

 

 

They are still only doing 5% less damage. If 5 players each deal 100 damage (total 500) before slow time. After slow time they are each doing 95 damage (475 total). The total loss is still only 5%.

 

Hmm, I suppose you are correct. :p

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Now that I have been getting closer to min/maxed EWH survivor gear on my sin tank I have been contemplating what expertise to shoot for and have been having a hard time deciding. I think I really need to parse some logs for a decent comparison to be made between removing a few expertise armorings for force wielder 27 armorings.

 

I am not at my gaming machine right now but I believe the difference between 1200 and 1380 expertise is about 2%. 2.5% over a warzone, lets take a high amount of dmg you are taking since you are guarding focus targets lets say 500k dmg taken. That would basically be a dmg mitigation of 10k - 12.5k over an entire warzone.

 

The question would be, is having an extra 2k - 2.5k health (color crystals - end and 2 armorings) helpful to give healers time to heal through burst of smash / focus fire etc. Not to mention everytime you hit overcharge saber you would get an extra 200-250 health since it is a 10% heal, over a warzone that probably won't make up for the 10k lost but I think it might help with the burst ability of smash etc.

 

Just a thought on what stat would be more useful past 1200 expertise, still need to test out both to see the difference.

Edited by Yodawizard
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Now that I have been getting closer to min/maxed EWH survivor gear on my sin tank I have been contemplating what expertise to shoot for and have been having a hard time deciding. I think I really need to parse some logs for a decent comparison to be made between removing a few expertise armorings for force wielder 27 armorings.

 

I am not at my gaming machine right now but I believe the difference between 1200 and 1380 expertise is about 2%. 2.5% over a warzone, lets take a high amount of dmg you are taking since you are guarding focus targets lets say 500k dmg taken. That would basically be a dmg mitigation of 10k - 12.5k over an entire warzone.

 

The question would be, is having an extra 2k - 2.5k health (color crystals - end and 2 armorings) helpful to give healers time to heal through burst of smash / focus fire etc. Not to mention everytime you hit overcharge saber you would get an extra 200-250 health since it is a 10% heal, over a warzone that probably won't make up for the 10k lost but I think it might help with the burst ability of smash etc.

 

Just a thought on what stat would be more useful past 1200 expertise, still need to test out both to see the difference.

 

Here's the thing though. The damage mitigation is not the only factor that comes into play. By giving yourself less expertise but a higher health pool, you are actually stressing the healers more to keep you alive. You've made your health pool larger, and reduced your damage mitigation. On top of that, the more expertise you have the more your allies heals will hit you for.

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strongly advise running 31/1/9 over 31/0/10 in pretty much every scenario.

 

I also would run no crit at all in a Kinetic dps build. Just go for pure power/surge. I'd also ditch all accuracy in 31/1/9. Crit chance is inconsequential on the multiple ticks of Force Lightning and Shock is only used on proc in 23/1/17 anyways.

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Here's the thing though. The damage mitigation is not the only factor that comes into play. By giving yourself less expertise but a higher health pool, you are actually stressing the healers more to keep you alive. You've made your health pool larger, and reduced your damage mitigation. On top of that, the more expertise you have the more your allies heals will hit you for.

 

Obviously there is a sacrifice but I don't think it is as easy as saying "because its less mitigation, its worse". How much mitigation is lost? 10k over an entire warzone isn't much less. How much less healing are you receiving etc? Math needs to be done to determine, not as easy as you answered the question.

Edited by Yodawizard
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strongly advise running 31/1/9 over 31/0/10 in pretty much every scenario.

 

I also would run no crit at all in a Kinetic dps build. Just go for pure power/surge. I'd also ditch all accuracy in 31/1/9. Crit chance is inconsequential on the multiple ticks of Force Lightning and Shock is only used on proc in 23/1/17 anyways.

 

Sure you could do 31/1/9 as well, and 27/1/13 if you were so inclined. However, if you ditch all accuracy in that spec, wouldn't your chance of hitting shadow strikes be pretty low?

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I don't think I would recommend ditching accuracy in that spec either, still need it for assassinate. Assassinate does great dmg regardless of spec and while lowering your accuracy might increase your dmg overall in warzones it also may result in a healer escaping you due to a missed assassinate and that cannot be quantified.
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I don't think I would recommend ditching accuracy in that spec either, still need it for assassinate. Assassinate does great dmg regardless of spec and while lowering your accuracy might increase your dmg overall in warzones it also may result in a healer escaping you due to a missed assassinate and that cannot be quantified.

 

I'm not even sure that it would do more overall damage in the warzone. If you have less accuracy, you're more likely to miss white damage attacks. If you miss white damage attacks, that means you're sometimes missing double strike, which is needed to get your particle acceleration/energize proc. It also means you may be missing one or more shadow strikes when the proc for that comes up, and of course, missing some spinning strikes.

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Sure you could do 31/1/9 as well, and 27/1/13 if you were so inclined. However, if you ditch all accuracy in that spec, wouldn't your chance of hitting shadow strikes be pretty low?

 

27/1/13 shouldn't ever be used in any serious game because it takes too long to get stacks of HS and the loss of insta Lift isn't worth it.

 

Base 90% accuracy is fine for kinetic based specs. SS more of a supplementary move to give you some much needed pressure and it's cheap on force which is good since tank based specs get force starved quickly. It isn't an essential part of your damage like it is in Infiltration based specs. You might miss a lot against tanks but Kinetic isn't going to do anything to a good tank unless you're casting 3x HS potency Pebble Throw.

 

I don't think I would recommend ditching accuracy in that spec either, still need it for assassinate. Assassinate does great dmg regardless of spec and while lowering your accuracy might increase your dmg overall in warzones it also may result in a healer escaping you due to a missed assassinate and that cannot be quantified.

Tank-based sins are terrible at pressuring healers nor should that be their niche in a serious game so the point is moot.

Edited by EatenByDistance
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