Hengist

Sith Inquisitor:



My personal experience is that the Sith Inquisitor offered a fairly enjoyable story in Act One. However feedback on the forums indicates that the highlights of the story are all in Act One, as Acts Two and Three fall short. As the Inquisitor was a class on my agenda to play, I cut it semi-short, and this is a class that I will play (play twice actually) no matter the story.

As one of the more diverse classes, the Inquisitor offers plenty of options. The ranged side of the Inquisitor has been one of the most overpowered classes for the past five months. The force regeneration mechanic is very easy to get used to, the class puts out elite damage in both burst and sustained mode with the ability to heal. In fact, I know a few people with DPS builds who have main healed flashpoints all the way to 50. Things have toned down a little bit, but this class, with a ranged configuration is going to be a force at launch.

The Sith Assassin, was my preferred melee class in the game. There are plenty of skills that would remind someone of a World of Warcraft rogue. One of the things that still needs tweaking however, is the ability to re-enter stealth while engaged in PvP. As a tank, the Assassin is a very capable class, and has the best threat generation of any tank class. However, because it shares a tree with a DPS Advanced Class, it also gets skills that aren’t near as much use. I think opinion is fairly split (which is a good thing) on who is the best, or preferred tank with votes for Bounty Hunter, Sith Warrior, and Assassin, and people prefer them for different reasons.

I’m a big fan of the Inquisitor, and I will be rolling both an Assassin as DPS to restore some old rogue glory days, and a healing Sorcerer. The speed with which he can cast will likely make him the most dominant healing class in PvP. You can see that I anticipate using both classes for PvP reasons, but the PvE versatility will be an enormous consideration for people.

Republic Mirror:

The Jedi Consular was a yawn fest story wise for me. I could have watched paint dry for more entertainment. Truth is, there was never one hook that really drew me into the class. Being honest, I felt the Smuggler was “Sith worthy” story, and the Knight’s last act was among the best in the game, there just isn’t anything there for me with this one.


Bounty Hunter



I am an intergalactic rock star, so you know we are about to walk onto hallowed ground. I am the toughest, most independent and likeable guy around, and I take crap from nobody, so is it a surprise that I like the Bounty Hunter story? There are a ton of places you can say “I saw that coming” but despite that, there is definitely something that draws you into this class.

Combat is an interesting mix, you’ve got potent AoE attacks early in the game and it makes you feel like nothing is ever going to stand in your way. As you level you’ll feel that you do outstanding sustained DPS (as long as you learn to manage heat, and I think it is perhaps the toughest mechanic to adapt to) and you lose some burst. Heavy armor, good heals, and sustained DPS combined with this story figure to make the Bounty Hunter a fairly popular class.

Healing with the Bounty Hunter is more of a rotational based system that the Inquisitor since heat is more of a challenge to manage than “force”. The Bounty Hunter has a nice little AoE heal, and despite having slower heals has some big heals. If I was drawing a comparison to other MMO’s, there is some validity to the WotLK version of a Paladin.

I never got deep into a tank spec Bounty Hunter, but feedback grew more positive the longer I participated. Get used to grapple and jet charge as favorite skills, and honestly the Powertech is perhaps the most enjoyable tank to play in PvP.

Do I even need to say that this will be the first class that I roll? While I will be going Mercenary I could very easily re-consider the healing Inquisitor and roll a second Bounty Hunter with an eye towards the Powertech.


Republic Mirror:

One of the early negatives for the Trooper is that I did not care for the first companion, things started to roll when I got to the second companion, and that the early story failed to draw me in. I never cared for my squad mates on the starter world, and therefore never cared when subsequent events occurred. Down the road I felt my presence was more about past exploits of the Squadron than anything I had accomplished. That being said, hands down, the play style appeals to me, and is incredibly fun in any role.


So that’s about it, that’s a semi-brief look at how I saw and felt about classes during The Old Republic beta. Mileage will vary, and just because some stories did not appeal to me doesn’t mean they are bad, they might appeal to others for various reasons. Being honest about it, the inclusion of the stories, even the ones I dislike, really add something immeasurably good to the game. The story wasn’t just about being good or evil, but about a reason to behind it, for me at least.

All of this is of course subject to change. My impressions are based on the last four months that I’ve had to play, and there have been significant changes between builds, and I have not always gone back to play classes after changes have been made.




It has been a long time since Bioware announced that The Old Republic was in production, and release is finally just around the corner. I was interested from the first, but it was Deceived that set the hook and has never let up. Has any trailer done more to erase bad feeling from a franchise that went from Darth Vader to Jar Jar Binks?

We have arrived!