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Review two follow-up: Level 29 Juggernaut
melmoth1
Member Posts: 762
A wrote a wee review last week and here is an update on what I have found level 19-29.
1. Companions, PVE and PVP
I think this is a major cool thing in the game.
Got my second companion who is a healer, with the first being a range dps. I've noted a big difference in playstyle depending on what companion you choose. I also noted the importance of equiping your companions with good gear; it is as important as your own gear. Practical observationss.
1. PVE. Helped another sith warrior who couldn't solo a "class story mission" elite and I was waiting for him outside so we could continue questing together. That story part is instanced for the sith warrior and only one sith warrior can be in that instance so I couldn't help him directly. Now I had just soloed the elite at the end of that story phase, but it was a tough fight.
The problem with the other warrior was that he was using Vette (ranged dps) and was just trying to burn down the boss's health as fast as possible. I told him to change to Quinn (the healer) and after about 2 more tries he did it. Like myself several levels earlier, he had just treated the companions as fluff when they are actually very significant. More significant than say hunter's or warlock's pets in wow as they have gear considerations and much more wide ranging hot-bar abilties that resemble "full characters" rather than a "pet".
Another difference noted was that I had actually been taking care to update Quinn's gear and actively manage his abilties so my heals where better while the other dude had neglected gearing up his companions in any active sense.
So your choice of companion, actually "playing" your companion rather than just auto-ing it, and making sure your companion is properly geared with the stats that boost the role you want them to play is really important. Given how many companions you have as part of your ensemble at endgame then gearing up ALL your companions is going to be crucial, especially for world pvp which I shall come to next.
2. PVP. Half way into Tatooine world pvp FINALLY opened up. A little too late imo but awesome when it did happen. I was in a voice-over when a sneaky Jedi Shadow attacked. Same level as me so she had the up on the me. It was a great fight and lasted about 3-5 minutes and I was winning, I believe, because my companion was healing me nicely and the sith assassin chose to ignore him and focus on me. Meanwhile I kept my stuns and knockdowns for her companion. It was the best open world pvp fun I have had in a LONG time. I did say "was" winning because a bounty hunter arrived at the latter stage and helped me kill her.
I think end game is gonna be ace for open world pvp as when you are in a prolonged battle and you are losing some then you will be able to mix and match the best companion for the enemies you face. So having all your companions appropriately geared as well as knowing how to use them actively (not leaving them on auto) is going to imo become a major part of the game pvp wise. This makes me somewhat excited tbh.
I just feel that the companions are becoming a major part of the game and this adds a level of complexity that I haven't seen in the other themeparks I have played.
2. Space Combat
I have given it a chance but it is still meh. However it really is a side-note and my thinking now is to treat it like a minor chord like fishing in wow. After seeing it that way it is not that bad because both can be done one-handed which means this is good for a coffee or beer or snack break as it frees up yer drinking/eating hand heheh.
You can do space combat one-handed with a mouse.
However, I am not gonna sprinkle too much sugar on it; this is NOT a space combat game and if they want to make this a bigger part of the game then it would take a full-blown mega-expansion and overhaul to do that. It is tolerable as a distraction but not as fun as fishing in wow (which I liked btw).
Overall, I am still loving this game. Can't wait to get my other companions and test them out in PVE and world PVP.
Regards
Melmoth
Comments
Just a quick point while stil reading: you can allow more members of the same class into your story area's through an option in your settings. It only won't influence their story but they can help you and you can help others.
edit: Nice write up
You are right about companion gear. I've been slacking in that department and I suffer the implications. First thing I'm gonna do when I get back in is get her some oranges with proper mods 
p.s. In the world pvp fight, you were fighting a Sith Assassin, but a Bountyhunter came to help you out?
My brand new bloggity blog.
Oops fixed. It was the Republic equivalent of a sith assassin as double light-saber and more melee than range.
Ah, checked they are called Jedi Shadows. Will edit in my OP hehe.
Regards
Melmoth
Ah ok, that would be a Jedi Shadow then
Bastards. The lot of them!
My brand new bloggity blog.
I agree on the companion points; I treated mine as a generic "pet" during beta and he wasn't that useful to me. In the official release, I have been upgrading my companion's gear and paying attention to abilities, and he seems to be 15-25% more effective (just estimating) than he was before. I ran a "Heroic 4" quest with two other players and my companion yesterday, and he was integral to our success in being able to take down so many elites at once (as well as the Champion at the end).
*sniff*
Bioware already spoken about Space Combat, i do find it really fun but needs improving on the long run, and that is what their are going to give us. Regarding world pvp , y it is awsome, there are no rewards but the pleasure of being there
wich is unmatched, Tatooine no my lvl 32 vanguard with my guild was just insane, cya ingame.
I ran The Foundry FP last night. i was level 43, as was my friend. We also brought along another guild member who was level 36. None of us was a healer so we brought out Mako who had been equiped with level 40 pvp gear. She handled the healer role even though she was left to her own devices on who to heal. She did make some n00b AI mistakes but overall got us through it nicely.
Not only that but equiping them in pvp gear makes them look totally bad ass :P
I am a Jedi sage. First companion is a tank/melee dps. 2nd companion is a .. well babbler.. lol. Third was a healer. He is a better healer then me
Back to my tank companion. He is smart and tough. I really think his AI is above a reptile brain. Although life seems better with the healer i kept the tank and tried to itemize him. And we rock. We hunt softskin elites to collect points and we love it