This post is meant to a guide to how to gear up for Knights of the Eternal Throne. I’ve tried to front-load the most important information, but if you’d like a detailed description about getting the most out of your gear, check out the Introduction to Stats section below.
There is a lot info in this post, so I'll start with a summary:
- DPS: shoot for 736 Accuracy rating - 110% Tech/Force accuracy
- Healers and DPS: After hitting the Accuracy cap (if dps), shoot for around 1400-1500 Critical and 800-900 Alacrity rating from augments, ear, implants and enhancements.
- Tanks: 25% Defense, 45% Shield and Absorb ratings.
- Augment your gear.
Command XP and You
Knights of the Eternal Throne made a big change in how we acquire loot. The various crystal or commendation vendors are gone, and gear now comes from Command crates awarded from leveling up each character’s command xp level.
When it comes to Command Levels, the most important piece of advice I give is this: Don’t worry about it. I know getting upgrades is great, and item level is how we’re supposed to keep score in MMOs, but I mean it. Don’t worry about Command XP.
These gearing changes really started with Knights of the Fallen Empire. SWTOR has gone to great lengths to be a game where gear does not matter. Between Bolster and Level Sync, you can participate in the vast majority of content that the game has to offer wearing literally the worst possible equipment. And that’s okay. We hope you’ll participate in Flashpoints and Operations or run around killing Battlemasters and World Bosses with the rest of your fellow NORbies no matter what your gear is.
The traditional MMO trappings of min-maxing and optimizing gear still exist, but they matter far less now than in any other point in the game’s history.
The Command XP system may not be the greatest gear delivery system ever, but if you play the game and do the stuff you like, the gear will come. You might not get the lucky with the drops or the pace might be slow, but don’t let it keep you from having fun on Ops or Conquest nights. When it comes to Storymode Operations, anyone level 50 and up is welcome to participate, regardless of gear or experience.
Here is a list of content for which you do not need to worry about need gear:
- Leveling and Chapters
Planetary Heroics
Solo and Veteran/Tactical Mode Flashpoints
Most (but not all) Master/Hard Mode Flashpoints
Story Mode Uprisings
Story Mode Operations
World Boss and Battlemaster/Commander Hunts
Galactic Startfighter
Unranked PVP
- Veteran and Master Mode Chapters
*The Forged Alliance, Shadow of Revan and KotET Master/Hard Mode Flashpoints
*Solo Mode Eternal Championship
Veteran Mode Uprisings
Veteran/Hard Mode Operations
Ranked PVP
Gree and Rakghoul Event bosses (It may be a bug or oversight, but bolster does not apply in the Xenoanalyst and Eyeless instances.)
*Bolster does apply in these areas, but the mechanics are more difficult than in earlier flashpoints, and gearing above the Bolster will make a big difference.
The bar to start participating in non-bolstered content is pretty low and if you’ve got crafters or credits you can jump in without any help from the Galactic Command system.
CXP Gear
As you level up through the Command XP tiers you'll receive lots of loot from the boxes. Each box will contain at least one piece of wearable equipment that will come in a range of quality depending on your CXP Level.
- Tier 1 (Level 1-89): 228, 230, 230
Tier 2 (Level 90-179): 232, 234, 234, 236
Tier 3 (Level 180-299): 238, 240, 240, 242
Tier 4 (Level 300+): 244, 246, 248
BLUE - No set bonuses, poorly itemized
PURPLE - Set bonuses, well itemized
GOLD - Set bonuses, well itemized
As you advance through each tier, the quality of loot will improve so that you are less likely to see greens and blues, and more likely to get purples and golds.
Here is my advice for how to judge loot you get from the CXP boxes. In Tier 1, unless you're crafting gear, it will all be upgrades. Take those greens and don't be shy about using them. The first few CXP levels will fly by and the gear will come. As you move through the tier, you can afford to be more picky and disintegrate doubles and anything that is not purple. The crates will also contain Command Tokens which can be used to buy gear and CXP boosts on fleet. It's not at all unusual to get through the first tier and have not found all 6 pieces needed to complete your set bonuses. Purchase whatever pieces you still need from the Tier 1 Vendor in the Supplies section of fleet.
Once into Tier 2, I suggest disintegrating anything that isn't purple or gold. At this point, maintaining your set bonuses and good itemization is important. I would make an exception for main and off-hand items, since upgrading those slots always gives the most bang for you buck. However, keep in mind that 246 hilts and barrels are FREELY available in the guild bank, so grab those first!
KotET has added a new level of gold/Legendary quality gear. To some, all this means is that Gold is the new Purple, and anything less is garbage. To me, an upgrade is an upgrade and the difference between gold and purple is a mere 2 item levels and thus nothing worth obsessing about. Purples are still good.
Bolster and You
Bolster applies to all flashpoints and storymode operations making gear much less important. This is great thing for NOR. Characters of any gear level from level 50 and up can run flashpoints and storymode Operations and fully participate in the action.
As a minimum requirement, we do ask people to gear as appropriately as they can. Tanks should have Defense gear and a shield. Healers and DPS should have Power gear.
Improving your gear above the bolster level will also make a big difference to the group. Bolstered content is forgiving, but things will go much smoother the better folks are equipped. Min-maxing gear has a long tradition in MMOs, and SWTOR is no exception. Anyone can improve their character through casual play and basic crafting.
Gearing Beyond Bolster
For folks looking to improve their gear beyond the bolster level, the first and foremost piece of advice I can give is to augment your gear. A full set of augments is basically an extra piece of equipment and will make a bigger difference than any upgrade you’ll get from a Galactic Command box. Augments are meant to be an end game money and resource sink, so if you need help with them, check out the guild bank or ask an officer if you don’t see any augments or kits available.
After that, the biggest boost to your output will come from your main hand and off-hand hilts, barrels, foci or generators. Again we try to keep the guild bank stocked with barrels and hilts for anyone to use.
An Introduction to Stats
This section is an introduction to the stats available on gear. For more information, especially detailed stat priorities for each particular class and spec, feel free to ask an officer or DMG member. On the web, I suggest checking out the class guides on dulfy.net or in this comprehensive guide from the official swtor.com forums.
The difference between a poorly and well-itemized piece of gear is a matter of degrees. However, across an entire set, it can have a significant effect. If you want to get the most out of your character, tweaking each piece is the way to go. It does take some work, but there are plenty of resources in the guild and online to help you on your way. Don't be afraid to ask for help; the DMG group in the guild was created just that reason!
If you want to skip the theorycrafting, here are the stat targets for 230 rating gear that apply to most DPS classes:
1400-1500 Critical, 800-900 Alacrity, 736 Accuracy
To put it another way, after the hitting the accuracy cap, dps want their remaining stats to be a mix of Crit and Alacrity, somewhat favoring Crit. Healers should substitute additional Crit and Alacrity for Accuracy rating.
The Stats
- Primary: Mastery and Endurance
- Secondary: Power, and Defense
- Tertiary: Absorb, Accuracy, Alacrity, Critical and Shield
Accuracy - For all DPS classes and specs, reaching 110% Tech or Force Accuracy is very important; I cannot overstate this enough. If you wish to maximize your potential in Operations, reaching the Accuracy cap should be your first goal. A small chance to miss may not seem like a big deal, but one miss can throw off your entire rotation and be a significant DPS loss. To hit 110% Accuracy you'll need 736 Accuracy rating. You can substitute "Initiative" implants and earpieces for enhancements in order to hit the accuracy target
Critical - Critical rating increases both your chance to critically hit and the size of your critical strikes. Abilities that automatically critically strike now applies excess Crit rating to the size of the critical hit. Despite diminishing returns, Crit is arguable the most powerful tertiary stat for DPS and healers.
Alacrity - Once the redheaded stepchild of stats, Alacrity is now a good stat for all healers and DPS. Because of diminishing returns on Critical rating, it benefits all DPS and healers since it reduces ability cool downs and can smooth out rotations.
Defense, Absorb, Shield - Each tank has their own set of priorities, but in general, shoot for 20% defense rating, and 40% absorb and shield rating.
The Mods
Armor Mods - these contain Mastery and Endurance. Armoring from tokens that drop in operations or purple items from GC boxes also include set bonuses. Set bonuses are important since they often affect key rotational abilities or increase to the output of major abilities. That means a 230 Eternal Commander armor mod that allows you to keep a set bonus is superior to a 240 Iokath armoring despite the difference in item level. I always suggest holding on to armor mods with set bonuses, so you have the most flexibility in gearing. Finally remember that armor mods with set bonuses are specific to the slot they came from; for example, chest armorings can only fit in chest pieces and cannot be fitted in gloves. Blue Armoring that you find in Command Crates or crafted purple armorings that don’t have set bonuses, however, can moved to different types of amor pieces. For example, an armor mod pulled from a belt, can be placed in a chest, glove or even an off-hand generator or shield.
Mods - these contain Mastery, Endurance and either Power or Defense; they come in 3 difference varieties: unlettered, A and B. Unlettered mods are the choice for DPS and Healers since they contain the best balance of all three stats. Tanks prefer B mods since they are highest in Endurance.
Enhancements - these contain Endurance, a Secondary stat (Power or Defense), and a Tertiary stat. As with mods, different enhancements contain different ratios of the three stats. For DPS and healers the best enhancements are:
- Adept - Power and Critical
- Initiative - Power and Accuracy
- Quick Savant - Power and Alacrity
- Immunity - Defense and Shield
- Sturdiness - Defense and Absorb
Augments - For most DPS and healers, a balance of Critical and Alacrity augments is recommended. This guide from the official swtor.com forums covers the ideal distribution of Crit and Alacrity for each class and spec.
Fresh: I just hit 70
246 Barrels and Hilts will give you the biggest boost to your damage, threat or healing output and should be your first priority. These items are craftable, so check the guild bank to see what’s available.
Other Sources of Gear
Crafting - High quality crafted armor, weapons, implants and earpieces are available. You can craft balanced 228 gear from upgraded recipes learned from the crew skill trainers which is at least on par with the blue 230 gear you’ll find in your initial Galactic Command crates.
230, 240 and 246 Modifications such as hilts, barrels, armorings, mods and enhancements can also be crafted from schematics that drop in Operations and can be found in PVP loot boxes. As I write this, this certain to be someone in the guild who can craft any 246 modification.
Relics
The best easily crafted relics are level 70, 228 rating relics. These are perfectly fine starter relics for flashpoints, Uprisings and operations.
As for which relics are best:
- DPS and Healers should grab the Serendipitous Assault and Focused Retribution relics. Despite the change to Crit, the Mastery and Power proc relics still provide the most bang for your buck.
- Tanks should use Relics of the Shield Amplification and Reactive Warding.
Prior to the addition to the outfit designer, augmenting your gear meant committing to your look unless you were willing to spend hundreds of thousands of credits swapping mods from one set of gear to another. Now, however, it's much cheaper to try out a tier set or cartel market outfit without the expensive of removing even a single mod. Moreover, if you'd like to share your gear with another character in your legacy , you can add mods to a set of Legacy gear and swap it between characters via the mail or your Legacy bank.
The flexibility offered by the Outfit Designer means you can (and should!) commit to augmenting your major pieces without having worry about getting tired of your armor's appearance. With all 14 slots augmented, you will see a huge bump in your performance; this is a necessary step to take if you want to start doing Hard Mode Ops.
The augment kits, however, take some effort to create:
- Each kit take 10 "Augmentation Slot Components MK-9" which result from reverse engineering a high level CRAFTED item.
- The best items to craft to reverse engineer for components are the highest level Assembly Components (Armstech, Armormech, Cybertech), Bonded Attachments (Artifice and Synthweaving) and Cell Grafts (Biochem). Not only do these items stack allowing bulk reverse engineering, it is also possible to create two for the price of one on a critical crafting result
- To gather enough components, you'll need to create and reverse engineer 140 level 60+ items. Yes, that is a lot. Synthweavers, Armormechs and Armstechs can craft the kits.
Conclusion
And that's the gist of it. I hope this doesn't seem overwhelming, it's not meant to be. Let me re-iterate that if anyone at all need help gearing up, please don't be afraid to ask. I'm sure there is no shortage of NORbies in guild chat or on these forums who would be more than happy to help!
In addition, we try to keep the guild bank stocked with useful items such as main hand hilt and barrels, relics, augments and kits. The gear and crafting materials are there specifically to help people gear up, so please help yourself to ANYTHING that will improve your character. If you don't see what you need, don't be shy about asking. Everyone in the guild benefits when individuals gear up.