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Slicing and...


Econometrix

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I am looking to level crew skills for an alt (an operative) and want him to have slicing to support augment generation by another alt with synthweaving. However, I am not sure what to combine with slicing. I would like to take a crafting skill and for this skill to be useful for the character. Three options spring to mind:

 

1. Armstech:

PROs: Can create barrels and accuracy and overkill augments.

CONs: I read that weapons created are generally worse than gear obtainable from heroics.

 

2. Cybertech:

PROs: Can create mods, enhancements, grenades, and ship parts. Slicing produces a handful of cybertech schematics.

CONs: I have read that earpieces created are generally worse than gear obtainable from heroics.

 

3. Armormech:

PROs: Can create armorings and absorb, shield, and versatile augments.

CONs: I have read that armor created is generally worse than gear obtainable from heroics. While my main is a tank spec (juggernaut), he uses dps item modifications, so armormech augments would be of limited use to him.

 

All three options would ostensibly be paired with scavenging. The value of investigation for armstech or underworld trading for cybertech or armormech over scavenging is unclear to me.

 

Overall, I am leaning toward armstech or cybertech. However, any thoughts on the relative usefulness of the above choices for my operative would be greatly appreciated.

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1. Armstech:

PROs: Can create barrels and accuracy and overkill augments.

CONs: I read that weapons created are generally worse than gear obtainable from heroics.

Not exactly. There are two kinds of weapons that you can create:

* Levelling (for sub-75 characters) weapons, which are (if "blue") usually approximately the same as levelling-heroics reward weapons, but have guaranteed drop possibilities. (Heroic X that you run *might* give you a weapon. Crafting a weapon *definitely* gives you a weapon.) But... The relative quality of dropped and crafted levelling gear is more or less completely irrelevant. (Er, so I'm not going to discuss it further in this post. Take it as a given.)

* Level 75 weapons, which are approximately equivalent to weapons that drop through the main gearing system, except that getting 306-rated main-system weapons happens much, much sooner and easier than getting your schematics to 306. You can also fit alternative barrels and other modifications to them to fine-tune them, which you can't for crafted weapons (they are fixed-stats, not moddable).

 

Barrels are generally kinda OK, except that for level 75 characters, getting schematics to 306 is just as horribly slow and expensive as it is for guns.

 

That leaves augments, which are obtained only by someone crafting them. Again, you have the slow-acquisition problem for the schematics, but there's an on-going use for what you make and sell on the GTN.

2. Cybertech:

PROs: Can create mods, enhancements, grenades, and ship parts. Slicing produces a handful of cybertech schematics.

CONs: I have read that earpieces created are generally worse than gear obtainable from heroics.

Cybertech also produces a set of Vectron Gatherskill speeders (Vectron Scavenger, etc.). The schematics for these drop from other crew skills (mostly Slicing, I think), and they are not saleable on the GTN because there are too many of them produced. (Er, that's true of the speeders *and* the schematics.)

 

To the best of my knowledge, level 75 earpieces are, in terms of stats totals, freely interchangeable between crafted and main-system stuff, but have the usual problem of it being slow to level up your schematics.

3. Armormech:

PROs: Can create armorings and absorb, shield, and versatile augments.

CONs: I have read that armor created is generally worse than gear obtainable from heroics. While my main is a tank spec (juggernaut), he uses dps item modifications, so armormech augments would be of limited use to him.

The comments above about guns apply equally to crafted armour, especially that it's all fixed-stats and can't be fine-tuned for BiS purposes.

 

Armorings, naturally, have the same problems as barrels for Armstech.

All three options would ostensibly be paired with scavenging. The value of investigation for armstech or underworld trading for cybertech or armormech over scavenging is unclear to me.

 

Overall, I am leaning toward armstech or cybertech. However, any thoughts on the relative usefulness of the above choices for my operative would be greatly appreciated.

My advice would be to give up on all of them and go for Biochemistry supported by Bioanalysis and Diplomacy. That lets you craft stims, adrenals, medpacks and med-units, and (with the same slow-levelling issues as before) implants.

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Thanks for the detailed reply. I have biochem/bioanalysis/diplomacy on my main and was hoping to have slicing for the ability to support augment crafting. Your response suggests the value of this may be limited, due to the limited value of the three referenced crafting skills, though everyone wants/needs augments.

 

Any points of view on the relative value of the various dps augments (accuracy, alacrity, and versatile... I have crit covered with synthweaving alt)? I understand accuracy is the highest priority stat at end game but have also read that some elect to get it through means other than augments.

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Thanks for the detailed reply. I have biochem/bioanalysis/diplomacy on my main and was hoping to have slicing for the ability to support augment crafting. Your response suggests the value of this may be limited, due to the limited value of the three referenced crafting skills, though everyone wants/needs augments.

 

Any points of view on the relative value of the various dps augments (accuracy, alacrity, and versatile... I have crit covered with synthweaving alt)? I understand accuracy is the highest priority stat at end game but have also read that some elect to get it through means other than augments.

Versatile is useful *only* for max-level content because the stats it gives are capped / fixed in level-synced content.

 

Adding Accuracy is important until your accuracy percentage reaches 110%, and of no importance afterwards because the points you spend above 110% would give more benefit in other stats. It is very easy to reach that magic number using just enhancements, so Accuracy Augments are essentially purpose-free.

 

The balance between Alacrity and Crit is up complicated, and I'm not really deep enough into the minutiae of theorycrafting to offer any advice.

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Thanks again. I think I am set on going with armstech and slicing. Would I be better taking investigation or scavenging as my third crew skill? I think investigation given that the blue/purple mats for armstech appear to be more costly on the GTN than the white/green mats yielded by scavenging. However, more of the latter are probably used in armstech recipes than are the blue/purple mats.
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Thanks again. I think I am set on going with armstech and slicing. Would I be better taking investigation or scavenging as my third crew skill? I think investigation given that the blue/purple mats for armstech appear to be more costly on the GTN than the white/green mats yielded by scavenging. However, more of the latter are probably used in armstech recipes than are the blue/purple mats.

You should at least *consider* having a dedicated gatherer, with three gather skills. Naturally, the three should include Slicing. And don't forget that all those Jawa tokens you get (droid parts, scrap, and the other one that I can't remember what it's called) can be used at the vendors in the Cartel Bazaar(1) part of the Fleet to acquire materials for (except Grade 11) relatively cheap (and no credits in any case).

 

(1) To the left as you come out of the lift, three Jawas in a row in front of a container.

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