The upcoming SWTOR Expansion – ‘Onslaught’ – will introduce a many changes for each Class in the game. Players will among other things experience new abilities, Set Bonuses, and Tactical items.To help explain it all, The developers over at BioWare are releasing a series of articles featuring each Advanced Class’s new ability, as well as new Set Bonuses and Tactical items.
They will also present various combat scenarios to show how these changes will mesh together just like in our previous article covering Sniper and Gunslinger In today’s article they are showcasing the Marauder and Sentinel Advanced Classes!
Marauder
Let’s take a look at the new ability for Marauders!
Furious Power – Converts all Furious Power ability charges into stacks that buff your next attack by 25%. Each attack consumes one stack. Furious Power has 4 ability charges and regains 1 charge every 30 seconds.
Alongside a new ability, Marauders will receive a bevy of Set Bonuses and Tactical items. Set Bonuses are extra effects players can get for equipping a certain armor set. For instance, wearing two, four, or six pieces of a set will grant players progressively more powerful boosts. These can be in the form of increased ability potency or an added effect.
Tacticals are slightly different from Set Bonuses. While Tacticals also change how some abilities function, they come in the form of a new gear type. They don’t have actual stats on them like Power, Mastery, or Critical Rating; instead, they augment how an ability will function. Let’s look at some examples of how a Set Bonus and Tactical combination can alter the gameplay of the three Marauder Disciplines: Annihilation, Carnage, and Fury.
Annihilation
“Annihilation doesn’t have to be instantaneous-and that’s how the Annihilation Marauder likes it. With lightsaber and Force attacks designed to bleed their foe and increasing their potency with an aggressive combat form, the Annihilation Marauder causes deep, rupturing wounds that add up until it’s too late.”
Our Annihilation Marauder lives and breathes PvP. For them, no other content can match the thrill of a good match against other players. Between slows, stuns, immobilizes, and more, there are a lot of ways players can put distance between themselves and any unwanted attackers. With the goal of becoming an incarnation of an unrelenting barrage, our Annihilation Marauder chooses a Set Bonus and Tactical item to help them maintain pressure on the opposing team, no matter the situation. While these upgrades don’t necessarily synergize with each other directly, they’ll work perfectly for our Marauder’s objective.
Set Bonus: “The Culling Blade”
(2 Piece Bonus) +2% Critical Rating
(4 Piece Bonus) Activating Dual Saber Throw grants Dispatcher’s Challenge, making your next Vicious Throw critically hit. This effect can’t occur more than
once every minute.
(6 Piece Bonus) Using Dual Saber Throw with Furious Power grants Dispatcher, finishing the cooldown of Force Charge and making your next Vicious Throw usable on any target.
Tactical: “Thirsty Blade”
Ravage deals 5% more damage for each bleed stacked on the target, up to 25%.
Ready to crush their opponents, our Annihilation Marauder Force Charges into an enemy Commando. Not wasting a single second, our Marauder quickly uses Frenzy to make Berserk available, guaranteeing a critical hit chance for every bleed effect for the next twenty seconds. Following up with a barrage of every bleed effect ability in their possession sets the stage for our Marauder’s next move. While the enemy Commando is hemorrhaging damage from a multitude of bleed effects, our Marauder takes advantage of their Thirsty Blade Tactical with Ravage. Ravage will now do an additional 5% damage per bleed effect, capping at a 25% bonus!
Unable to keep up with this onslaught of damage, the enemy Commando uses their Propulsion Round ability to escape. Not being one to give up, our Marauder gives chase with their Force Charge ability, closing the distance immediately. Desperate to withdraw, the Commando uses their second charge of Propulsion Round—unfortunately for the Commando, our Marauder brought The Culling Blade Set Bonus to this PvP match. Utilizing their new ability, Furious Power, our Marauder follows up with Dual Saber Throw, triggering the Set Bonus effect and refreshing the cooldown of Force Charge. Using Force Charge again to catch their prey, our Marauder quickly vanquishes their Commando opponent.
Carnage
“Agile and swift, the Carnage Marauder wins the day by way of sheer volume. As a devastating flurry of dual lightsaber strikes and Force attacks overwhelm their foe, each successful blow can serve to embolden the Carnage Marauder in their assault, making them all the more deadly.”
Our steadfast Carnage Marauder wants to queue in Group Finder for some Flashpoints, but they don’t have all day. Get in, kill bosses, repeat as fast as they can–that’s the goal. With this in mind, our Carnage Marauder picks out a Set Bonus and Tactical combination that adds a lot of snowballing potential to their damage.
Set Bonus: “Perfect Form”
(2 Piece Bonus) +2% Power
(4 Piece Bonus) Vicious Slash and Massacre deal 5% more damage.
(6 Piece Bonus) Vicious Slash, Massacre, and Sweeping Slash add Vicious Thirst stacks to their targets, stacking up to 3 times. Killing an enemy with Vicious Thirst stacks increases your damage by 3% per stack for 10 seconds.
Tactical: “Tome of Unyielding Blades”
Smash causes your next Massacre to do damage to up to 8 additional enemies near the primary target.
Lightsabers in hand, our Carnage Marauder is ready to tear through any pack of enemies that stands in their way. As soon as the tank attracts the attention of all the enemies, our Marauder utilizes their Smash ability, hitting everyone within range. Taking advantage of their “Tome of Unyielding Blades” Tactical, they can now use Massacre to damage up to eight enemies around their primary target, instead of only a single target.
In tandem with the Tactical, the “Perfect Form” Set Bonus takes effect the moment Massacre is used. Every enemy hit by the improved Massacre now has a debuff called Vicious Thirst. For every enemy our Marauder kills that has this debuff, they’ll get a 10% damage increase. The larger a pack of enemies is, the more destructive our Marauder becomes! This process is repeated time and time again as our Marauder cuts through anything that crosses their path.
Fury
“The dark side can be a powerful ally when one channels their inner fury, and no one knows this better than the Fury Marauder. Faced with one opponent or many, the Fury Marauder strikes with raging bursts of power while maintaining a balanced stance that offers protection against the enemy’s attempts at obliteration.”
Similar to our Annihilation Marauder from our previous example, our Fury Marauder also has a fondness for PvP matches. Instead of charging in, lightsabers flaring, our Fury Marauder prefers to take their opponents by surprise. Marauders aren’t known for their ambush capabilities, but with the right Set Bonus and Tactical combination, this concept becomes a reality.
Set Bonus: “Dashing Blademaster”
(2 Piece Bonus) +2% Alacrity
(4 Piece Bonus) Mad Dash’s cooldown is reduced by 10 seconds.
(6 Piece Bonus) Activating Mad Dash while under Force Camouflage makes it critically hit and slows any targets it damages.
Tactical: “Perseverance”
Using Obliterate with Furious Power causes it to critically hit.
The calm before the inevitable clash of this PvP match has settled over the arena. Our Fury Marauder has their target picked and is ready to pounce. In order to maintain the element of surprise, our Marauder approaches under the cover of Force Camouflage. Taking advantage of the “Dashing Blademaster” Set Bonus, our Marauder uses Mad Dash to quickly close the distance, guaranteeing a critical hit as well as slowing any enemy it hits.
Not wanting to let this opportunity slip by, our Marauder follows up with a fully charged Furious Power, increasing the damage of their next four direct, single-target melee abilities. This is where the “Perseverance” Tactical item comes into play: by using Obliterate under the effect of Furious Power, Obliterate is guaranteed to critically hit, stacking with the damage increase from Furious Power. This allows our Fury Marauder to quickly finish off their target and prepare to ambush their next opponent.Sentinel
Let’s take a look at the new ability for Sentinels!
Force Clarity – Converts all Force Clarity ability charges into stacks that buff your next attack by 25%. Each attack consumes one stack. Force Clarity has 4 ability charges and regains 1 charge every 30 seconds.
Alongside a new ability, Sentinels will receive a bevy of Set Bonuses and Tactical items. Set Bonuses are extra effects players can get for equipping a certain armor set. For instance, wearing two, four, or six pieces of a set will grant players progressively more powerful boosts. These can be in the form of increased ability potency or an added effect.
Tacticals are slightly different from Set Bonuses. While Tacticals also change how some abilities function, they come in the form of a new gear type. They don’t have actual stats on them like Power, Mastery, or Critical Rating; instead, they augment how an ability will function. Let’s look at some examples of how a Set Bonus and Tactical combination can alter the gameplay of the three Sentinel Disciplines: Watchman, Combat, and Concentration.
Watchman
“Some try to take down their opponent with a single blow, but the Watchman Sentinel chooses to utilize calculated strikes that continue to dismantle their foe over time. An aggressive stance and merciless offense help to keep the Watchman’s foe from comprehending the toll they’ve taken until it’s too late.”
Our Watchman Sentinel lives and breathes PvP. For them, no other content can match the thrill of a good match against other players. Between slows, stuns, immobilizes, and more, there are a lot of ways players can put distance between themselves and any unwanted attackers. With the goal of becoming an incarnation of an unrelenting barrage, our Watchman Sentinel chooses a Set Bonus and Tactical item to help them maintain pressure on the opposing team, no matter the situation. While these upgrades don’t necessarily synergize with each other directly, they’ll work perfectly for our Sentinel’s objective.
Set Bonus: “The Culling Blade”
(2 Piece Bonus) +2% Critical Rating
(4 Piece Bonus) Activating Twin Saber Throw grants Dispatcher’s Challenge, making your next Dispatch critically hit. This effect can’t occur more than once every minute.
(6 Piece Bonus) Using Twin Saber Throw with Force Clarity grants Dispatcher, finishing the cooldown of Force Leap and making your next Dispatch usable on any target.
Tactical: “Thirsty Blade”
Blade Barrage deals 5% more damage for each burn stacked on the target, up to 25%.
Ready to crush their opponents, our Watchman Sentinel Force Leaps into an enemy Mercenary. Not wasting a single second, our Sentinel quickly uses Valorous Call to make Zen available, guaranteeing a critical hit chance for every burn effect for the next twenty seconds. Following up with a barrage of every burn effect ability in their possession sets the stage for our Sentinel’s next move. While the enemy Mercenary is erupting damage from a multitude of burn effects, our Sentinel takes advantage of their Thirsty Blade Tactical with Blade Barrage. Blade Barrage will now do an additional 5% damage per burn effect, capping at a 25% bonus!
Unable to keep up with this onslaught of damage, the enemy Mercenary uses their Rocket Out ability to escape. Not being one to give up, our Sentinel gives chase with their Force Leap ability, closing the distance immediately. Desperate to withdraw, the Mercenary uses their second charge of Rocket Out—unfortunately for the Mercenary, our Sentinel brought The Culling Blade Set Bonus to this PvP match. Utilizing their new ability, Force Clarity, our Sentinel follows up with Twin Saber Throw, triggering the Set Bonus effect and refreshing the cooldown of Force Leap. Using Force Leap again to catch their prey, our Sentinel quickly vanquishes their Mercenary opponent.
Combat
“A lively flurry of dual lightsabers and Force abilities, the Combat Sentinel is a Jedi Knight who specializes in unrelenting volume. Rushing into battle with skilled precision, the barrage of overwhelming strikes increases the Combat Sentinel’s vigor until their enemy is little more than a memory.”
Our steadfast Combat Sentinel wants to queue in Group Finder for some Flashpoints, but they don’t have all day. Get in, kill bosses, repeat as fast as they can–that’s the goal. With this in mind, our Combat Sentinel picks out a Set Bonus and Tactical combination that adds a lot of snowballing potential to their damage.
Set Bonus: “Perfect Form”
(2 Piece Bonus) +2% Power
(4 Piece Bonus) Slash and Blade Rush deal 5% more damage.
(6 Piece Bonus) Slash, Blade Rush, and Cyclone Slash add Vicious Thirst stacks to their targets, stacking up to 5 times. Killing an enemy with Vicious Thirst stacks increases your damage by 3% per stack for 10 seconds.
Tactical: “Tome of Unyielding Blades”
Force Sweep causes your next Blade Rush to do damage to up to 8 additional enemies near the primary target.
Lightsabers in hand, our Combat Sentinel is ready to tear through any pack of enemies that stands in their way. As soon as the tank attracts the attention of all the enemies, our Sentinel utilizes their Force Sweep ability, hitting everyone within range. Taking advantage of their “Tome of Unyielding Blades” Tactical, they can now use Blade Rush to damage up to eight enemies around their primary target, instead of only a single target.
In tandem with the Tactical, the “Perfect Form” Set Bonus takes effect the moment Blade Rush is used. Every enemy hit by the improved Blade Rush now has a debuff called Vicious Thirst. For every enemy our Sentinel kills that has this debuff, they’ll get a 3% damage increase. The larger a pack of enemies is, the more destructive our Sentinel becomes! This process is repeated time and time again as our Sentinel cuts through anything that crosses their path.
Concentration
“Absolute awareness in the moment brings the Force to bear-a fact the Concentration Sentinel knows well. However many opponents they may face, the Concentration Sentinel leaps into battle with focused bursts of power while maintaining a balanced stance that offers protection against the enemy’s attempts at exhausting them.”
Similar to our Watchman Sentinel from our previous example, our Concentration Sentinel also has a fondness for PvP matches. Instead of charging in, lightsabers flaring, our Concentration Sentinel prefers to take their opponents by surprise. Sentinels aren’t known for their ambush capabilities, but with the right Set Bonus and Tactical combination, this concept becomes a reality.
Set Bonus: “Dashing Blademaster”
(2 Piece Bonus) +2% Alacrity
(4 Piece Bonus) Blade Blitz’s cooldown is reduced by 10 seconds.
(6 Piece Bonus) Activating Blade Blitz while under Force Camouflage makes it critically hit and slows any targets it damages.
Tactical: “Perseverance”
Using Zealous Leap with Force Clarity causes it to critically hit.
The calm before the inevitable clash of this PvP match has settled over the arena. Our Concentration Sentinel has their target picked and is ready to pounce. In order to maintain the element of surprise, our Sentinel approaches under the cover of Force Camouflage. Taking advantage of the “Dashing Blademaster” Set Bonus, our Sentinel uses Blade Blitz to quickly close the distance, guaranteeing a critical hit as well as slowing any enemy it hits.
Not wanting to let this opportunity slip by, our Sentinel follows up with a fully charged Force Clarity, increasing the damage of their next four direct, single-target melee abilities. This is where the “Perseverance” Tactical item comes into play: by using Zealous Leap under the effect of Force Clarity, Zealous Leap is guaranteed to critically hit, stacking with the damage increase from Force Clarity. This allows our Concentration Sentinel to quickly finish off their target and prepare to ambush their next opponent.
We’ve revealed the ability charge, discussed Set Bonuses and Tactical items, and painted a picture of how these two systems merge together to augment different styles of gameplay for Marauders and Sentinels. These Set Bonuses and Tacticals are a small sample of what players can expect in ‘Onslaught.’ With that, fourteen Advanced Classes are down, and only two to go! In the next article of this “Day In The Life Of” series, we will cover Juggernauts and Guardians. Stay tuned!
