The Trooper is a very tactical class, with an exceptional amount of tools available to take down opponents, mitigate damage and heal allies. The Commando advanced class makes use of the Assault Cannon, an over-sized blaster that requires two hands to wield, for both damage and healing. We have created a guide detailing this advanced class, its roles and how to play them most effectively after the jump.
Note: Audio quality on the following videos is not ideal. Companions list could possibly be deemed spoiler territory, if that's a problem, don't scroll down to the bottom of the post.
UPDATE: We recently added images showcasing the Republic faction's Operations gear. You will find these images on their respective class pages.
Three tiers of Level 50 PVE gear appeared in the 11/26 patch: Tionese, Columi, and Rakata. Darth Hater spent some time poking around in-game and analyzing client data to attempt to determine how one could acquire some of the highest item level gear sets. All items included two- and four-piece set bonuses that curiously displayed only when the item is equipped; these set bonuses were mainly buffs to existing abilities and not unique to a particular tier.
So far, set names remain consistent to combat role through item progression, and carry a unified look throughout so you don’t look mismatched or out of place. Armor set names were the same for both factions, and we do provide some low-res preview images of both the Imperial and Republic versions of the sets on each class pairing page. It is confirmed that the Republic versions of the armor sets look different, and keep in mind Imperial Agents use knives while Smugglers use shotguns.
We would like share what we found, and encourage comments if you believe anything is inaccurate or have any additions, as we’re happy to credit you for any legitimate finds.
In an interview with Republic Trooper, BioWare Principal Lead Combat Designer Georg Zoeller discusses the Trooper class in great detail. Among the items discussed are differences between the Trooper's different skill trees, how ranged tanking works, and unique aspects of the Trooper as a healer.
For more be sure to check out the full interview at Republic Trooper.
Republic Trooper: What were some of the challenges of developing ranged tanking for the Vanguard Advanced Class?
Georg Zoeller: Since this is a Star Wars game, and most enemies in Star Wars utilize ranged weapons such as blaster rifles, cannons or grenade launchers, the Vanguards ability to draw attention from range also emerged as a distinct advantage over melee bound classes like the Jedi Guardian, who have to close from range to create initial threat.
For more be sure to check out the full interview at Republic Trooper.
RepublicTrooper recently spoke with Charles Boyd, BioWare's lead writer for the Trooper class. The interview reveals the identity of the previously nameless soldier depicted in both the Hope and Return trailers, and discusses the ongoing work already being done to continue the Trooper's storyline into the post-launch environment. Finally, Charles reveals the voice actor who brings the male Trooper to life.
Make sure to check out the full interview on RepublicTrooper.
I feel truly honored to have two exceptional actors voicing the Trooper: Jennifer Hale and Brian Bloom. The opportunity to have such talented people performing my work has been the high point of my career, and I'm very confident that Trooper players will really enjoy both performances.
Make sure to check out the full interview on RepublicTrooper.
Continuing our lore updates for Star Wars: The Old Republic, we'll be taking a look at the Trooper, one of the four classes available to the Republic. At first glance, this class may seem like cannon fodder, similar to the Stormtroopers and Clones seen in the films, but Troopers actually play a pivotal role in the Old Republic era. They happen to have better accuracy as well.
This week's Star Wars: The Old Republic Friday Update is E3 Details, new Advanced Classes Page, and on The Lost Suns with an interview Alexander Freed. As BioWare Austin's Community Manager Stephen Reid hinted at this morning, there are three updates today about SWTOR. This is all in preparation for the Electronic Entertainment Expo that starts June 6 and expectations are massive on the news coming out of the event. Stated in the E3 details post is a tidbit about what fans can expect from E3:
- More to share regarding the stories from the CG trailers
- Belsavis raid content
- Alderaan political intrigue
- Tatooine -- sandpeople and something unknown
As part of this week's Friday Update, MMORPG.com interviewed Principal Lead Combat Designer Georg Zoeller about the Advanced Classes we will see in Star Wars: The Old Republic. He covers abilities from almost every class including the Jedi Knight's Force Leap, the different stances of the Sith Warrior, the Bounty Hunter's helpful Kolto Missile, and the Smuggler's explosive Shrapnel Bomb.
The Old Republic: The Lost Suns previewed earlier this week on StarWars.com, and today an interview with Senior Writer and Managing Editor Alexander Freed. He covers a brief overview of the comic that follows Theron Shan, a Republic spy set out to discover what the Sith Empire's plans are for the planets newly acquired in the Treaty of Coruscant. The comic canonically at the start of the game, about 10 years after Threat of Peace and 40 years after Blood of the Empire.
Included a bit after the rest of the updates went up was a new Advanced Classes page. The page is a newly redesigned page to fit the place of the older updates. It contains new information about the trees and abilities of the Advanced Classes.
Official Dev Tracker posts follow the jump. Images from today's Friday Update are contained in the Media Gallery below. If higher resolution versions of the images become available, we will update them. Aurebesh Working translation follows the jump as well as in the Media Gallery.
This Friday brings us an in-depth look at Trooper progression, with a video in the flavor of the previous two progression videos that goes through both Commando and Vanguard Advanced Classes, showing a progression of gear and abilities. Check out the video embed below for more info about one of Star Wars: The Old Republic's emblematic ranged tanks, including abilities like stealth-detection droids and vibroblade attacks.
Official DevTracker post is contained after the jump. Our Working Dissection from the update is in the gallery below. As with all Dissections we will not mention stuff in past Dissections. If you find something you think we should point out, add it to the comments section of this post and if we use it we will credit you for the find.
Update: It appears the list PC Gamer UK saw in the latest build is inaccurate.
As with any game in development, everything in any current or past build is subject to change. It is important to note that no species/class combination is final until BioWare announces it. Thanks to Gerbo and Meglivorn for pointing out Daniel Erickson's comment in the Dev Tracker.
Daniel Erickson
Hey Folks,
The species/class combo list you're referencing is not accurate. If it does appear in the magazine, that's unfortunate.
My guess is that an enthusiastic member of the press wrote down everything he saw in the character creation screen which, as we've stated often, is nowhere near final. Occasionally we'll have species in odd classes or in all classes because of a bug or testing.
Hope that helps!
Daniel
As with any game in development, everything in any current or past build is subject to change. It is important to note that no species/class combination is final until BioWare announces it. Thanks to Gerbo and Meglivorn for pointing out Daniel Erickson's comment in the Dev Tracker.
This week's Star Wars: The Old Republic Friday Update is the Advanced Classes Update Developer Blog by Principal Lead Combat Designer Georg Zoeller. The update includes a deep dive from Georg Zoeller on the Advanced Classes in general, talent trees, abilities, and a few interesting tidbits from the testing program. Developer Blogs normally are not huge updates but this one is definitely not a normal Developer Blog.
Two choice quotes from the update:
Georg Zoeller
Jedi Shadow (Roles: Close - Mid Range Damage Dealing, Tanking)
Sith Assassin (Roles: Close - Mid Range Damage Dealing, Tanking)
Plenty more is covered in the Advanced Classes Update. Be sure to check it out and let us know your feedback on it in the comment section of this post. The Official DevTracker post follows after the jump.
Darth Hater's playthrough of the Star Wars: The Old Republic Taral V Flashpoint is online and embedded below. In the video Misenus (Pete Trerice) representing Darth Hater plays the Jedi Knight (Guardian), Eric Musco from TOROCast plays the Smuggler (Scoundrel), Lethality from Ask A Jedi plays the Trooper (Vanguard), and Zach from Mos Eisley Radio plays Jedi Consular (Sage). We hope you guys and gals enjoy Taral V as much as the team did at PAX East.
More incoming stuff incoming soon from PAX East. Make sure to keep an eye on the roundup post.
Update: Lethality from Ask a Jedi posted the video of his perspective during this same session as the Trooper. Mos Eisley Radio posted their perspective of the playthrough video as the Jedi Sage.
More incoming stuff incoming soon from PAX East. Make sure to keep an eye on the roundup post.
Update: Lethality from Ask a Jedi posted the video of his perspective during this same session as the Trooper. Mos Eisley Radio posted their perspective of the playthrough video as the Jedi Sage.
As promised by Stephen Reid, BioWare released a new video today showcasing the Taral V Flashpoint. The 16 minute video features Director of Production Dallas Dickinson as he walks us through the flashpoint from the point of view of the Trooper, Jedi Consular, Jedi Knight, and Smuggler.
Working Dissection of the walkthrough is in the Media Gallery below. As with all dissections, we will not comment on stuff seen in prior videos. Make sure to keep checking out throughout the weekend for more content for the Dissection as we will add new content as we go. Check after the jump for the official developer post regarding it.
Last Updated: 6:45 PM EST
Working Dissection of the walkthrough is in the Media Gallery below. As with all dissections, we will not comment on stuff seen in prior videos. Make sure to keep checking out throughout the weekend for more content for the Dissection as we will add new content as we go. Check after the jump for the official developer post regarding it.
Last Updated: 6:45 PM EST
Daniel Erickson, Lead Writer for Star Wars: The Old Republic, took some time at PAX East to speak with us about what players can experience playing through Taral V and other Flashpoints. He also graciously shed some light on a few debated topics like healing classes.
Hit the jump for the full interview, and enjoy the read as we prepare for our second day of full PAX East coverage.
Live from PAX East 2011, BioWare announces this week's Friday Update - New In-game Trailer. The Trailer recaps the high level story -- Peace in the Republic, Empire Returned, War, all set to clips of in-game footage. We're bringing this content live so watch this post for the Friday Update news.
UPDATE 11a PT: We had a chance to chat with Stephen Reid and we will have the full interview up relatively soon, but we wanted to let you know about something you will see tomorrow:
Working Dissection of the trailer is in the Media Gallery below. As with all dissections, we will not comment on stuff seen in prior videos. Make sure to keep checking out throughout the weekend for more content for the Dissection as we will add new content as we go. Official DevTracker post follows after the jump.
UPDATE 11a PT: We had a chance to chat with Stephen Reid and we will have the full interview up relatively soon, but we wanted to let you know about something you will see tomorrow:
We're having a Saturday update; we got something going up tomorrow. I'm not going to spoil it but it is related to Taral V. I think people are going to like it; you're not going to have to work too hard to figure it out but it is something people have been asking for consistently for quite a long time.
No, it isn't a release date. But yeah, we're having an update tomorrow.
Working Dissection of the trailer is in the Media Gallery below. As with all dissections, we will not comment on stuff seen in prior videos. Make sure to keep checking out throughout the weekend for more content for the Dissection as we will add new content as we go. Official DevTracker post follows after the jump.
For the Christmas Eve update, BioWare announced more updates for the Trooper class. Players can choose a member of the Zabrak species for their Trooper. The Troopers will fly a Rendili Hyperworks BT-7 Thunderclap which confirms our speculation about it in the Space Combat Video Dissection. The Weequay demolitions expert Tanno Vik joins the game as the Trooper Class Companion. Also included in the update was a revamp to the Trooper Class page which includes more information about the Advanced Classes of the Trooper. Most important for the Troopers out there is the class video (embed after the jump) along with the Dissection of it that we covered yesterday. Official Forum Post, Aurebesh Translations, Ship Video Dissection, video embed, and new screenshots after the jump.
As an early Christmas present, BioWare released a new class reveal trailer today for Star Wars: The Old Republic. This time the new trailer comes from Gamespot before the unveiling of it in the Friday Update. The trailer most notably features Jennifer Hale as the voice actor of the Trooper. Beyond the voice that every BioWare fan should recognize, several new abilities were unveiled along with possible companions seen. The video is also another good reason to see people shot repeatedly in the face by the Trooper. For those who are planning on playing the Trooper, this is the video to watch.
Working dissection after the jump. Make sure to keep checking back as we will be adding new images throughout the day. We also invite you to help the dissection along by submitting your own tips via the comment section of this post. If you find something that we currently don't have or have commented on in a prior dissection, we will credit you for the find. As always, things that are commented on in prior dissections will not be mentioned here again.
Working dissection after the jump. Make sure to keep checking back as we will be adding new images throughout the day. We also invite you to help the dissection along by submitting your own tips via the comment section of this post. If you find something that we currently don't have or have commented on in a prior dissection, we will credit you for the find. As always, things that are commented on in prior dissections will not be mentioned here again.
Last Friday, Star Wars: The Old Republic's Principal Lead Systems Designer Georg Zoeller provided some insight regarding how BioWare and LucasArts designed the combat aspects of the Advanced Class system. We decided it was time to take a look back at the roles we speculated about prior to the Developer Blog and update our charts with the information gathered.
While at the Penny Arcade Expo, we had time to write down all of the abilities in the demo for our community here at DH. After the jump you will find the playable classes with abilities listed in order of level trained. Many of these will be familiar to people who have seen the abilities list from Gamescom, but a few of them have changed even since then. A full abilities list comparison will come later in the week but for now here are the abilities. Note: It is implied that these are only general class abilities and do not include advanced class abilities. The starting abilities that are missing from here were the same from Gamescom and were not changed so our staff in attendance did not write those down.
This week's Friday update is now online:
You will notice these Starships have been dissected from the Space Combat Video that came out earlier this week. As well as Starships there are new polls available for your perusal. The poll questions are:
As always, we look forward to seeing the results of the new polls.
There is also a Fan Friday featuring artwork from community members Wraloa and Kiuas, a fan-created video from Tukor, a showcase of a community RP thread, and more new avatars.
But most importantly, the Developer Corner outlined everything announced during our Gamescom presention about Advanced Classs (where we failed the "let's see how many data points we can write down in 20 seconds and if we can read our own handwriting" test -- self-depreciating humor there folks, but you can now see why we had some stuff missing), and new concept art that seems to show HK-47, or at the least a model of his same type.
Aurebesh translations after the jump.
Whether you're looking to dominate the galaxy in the name of the Empire or rescue it from darkness as part of the Republic, you wont get very far without a starship. In Star Wars: The Old Republic, your starship will be your base of operations, and it might even be your best friend. Ship models are specially designed to match the needs and tastes of each of the class types, so even though all the starships are outfitted for traveling the galaxy, each has its own character.
Study the style and specifications of the various Starships by accessing the HoloNet now!
You will notice these Starships have been dissected from the Space Combat Video that came out earlier this week. As well as Starships there are new polls available for your perusal. The poll questions are:
- Which feature are you most looking forward to in STAR WARS
: The Old Republic ? - Have you played Knights of the Old Republic (KOTOR)?
As always, we look forward to seeing the results of the new polls.
There is also a Fan Friday featuring artwork from community members Wraloa and Kiuas, a fan-created video from Tukor, a showcase of a community RP thread, and more new avatars.
But most importantly, the Developer Corner outlined everything announced during our Gamescom presention about Advanced Classs (where we failed the "let's see how many data points we can write down in 20 seconds and if we can read our own handwriting" test -- self-depreciating humor there folks, but you can now see why we had some stuff missing), and new concept art that seems to show HK-47, or at the least a model of his same type.
Aurebesh translations after the jump.
We were able to have multiple members of the Darth Hater staff on hand to help compile the following ability stats at Gamescom. With the rushed nature of our hands on time, the consistency from one class to the next is understandably variable. Additionally, it should be noted that we were repeatedly reminded that all in-game text from character sheets to tooltips are considered "placeholder" and may be subject to change.
Note: We played Level 2 characters. Although we previously mentioned many abilities in prior dissections and other content, we included them to contrast and track changes between the various builds. Changes from one build to the next are highlighted in bold.
Note: We played Level 2 characters. Although we previously mentioned many abilities in prior dissections and other content, we included them to contrast and track changes between the various builds. Changes from one build to the next are highlighted in bold.
Although we haven't quite recovered yet from our time at Star Wars Celebration V, Darth Hater is turning its attention to Cologne, Germany for our coverage of Gamescom. The Darth Hater team will bring you interviews, hands-on impressions, and all the breaking Star Wars: The Old Republic news coming out of the convention throughout the week.
Vee have ways of making them talk... stay tuned.
DH Gamescom Content:
UPDATE 8/18: Advanced Class Names Revealed in Press Presentations
UPDATE 8/19: Advanced Class Names Revealed on offiicial site here.
Please note our original post included some inaccuracies specifically with the Trooper descriptions, missing information for the Bounty Hunter, as well as some missing description points. We apologize for any confusion: the slides were shown to us for about 20s each and our priority was to get the accurate names for each Advanced Class.
More information about the Jedi Knight advanced classes:
Blaine Christine gave the presentation, and these were some of the descriptions for each class. As he introduced these slides, he gave the example of how you would turn into Darth Maul: you pick your species as Zabrak, and as you level up, you are presented with the option to become a Sith Assassin. "The Assassin is going to be able to use a double bladed lightsaber just like Darth Maul. He is going to do a lot of damage, so that is his main function." He continued with a description of the Sith Sorcerer: "He is going to be a lot more like the Emperor; more ranged based. He will still use his lightsaber, but he is going to use Force Lightning and focus on that to fry his enemies from afar."
Then as a comparison, the Jedi Knight was touched on. The Sentinel uses dual lightsabers, was compared to Anakin Skywalker, and has a focus on dealing lots of damage with fast moves and action. The Guardian was described as a "traditional MMO tank" by wearing heavier armor, and the ability to soak up lots of damage.
Please note all the Advanced Class names were communicated in English along with the entire presentation, and we will update this post with more details as we receive them. We are committed to bringing you the most accurate official information coming out of Gamescom.
Shortly after the announcement of all the classes, we received another version of the multiplayer group demo that we originally saw at E3 -- but this time, all the Republic characters were playing Advanced Classes. The Jedi Sentinel was the dps off-tank, while the Trooper Commando was ranged tanking the large mob. The Smuggler had the Gunslinger specialization, and used portable cover while dual wielding blasters. The Jedi Consular chose the Wizard advanced class, and provided both healing and light crowd control.
More Updates and Media after the jump
Vee have ways of making them talk... stay tuned.
DH Gamescom Content:
UPDATE 8/18: Advanced Class Names Revealed in Press Presentations
UPDATE 8/19: Advanced Class Names Revealed on offiicial site here.
Please note our original post included some inaccuracies specifically with the Trooper descriptions, missing information for the Bounty Hunter, as well as some missing description points. We apologize for any confusion: the slides were shown to us for about 20s each and our priority was to get the accurate names for each Advanced Class.
- Imperial Agent - Operative & Sniper
- Sith Inquisitor - Sorcerer & Assassin
- Bounty Hunter - Powertech & Mercenary
- Jedi Consular - Shadow & Wizard
- Trooper - Commando & Vanguard
More information about the Jedi Knight advanced classes:
- Sentinel: Dual Light Sabers; Saber Fighting Specialist; Melee
- Guardian: Single Light Saber/ Heavy Armor; Leadership/ Party Buffs; Tank
Blaine Christine gave the presentation, and these were some of the descriptions for each class. As he introduced these slides, he gave the example of how you would turn into Darth Maul: you pick your species as Zabrak, and as you level up, you are presented with the option to become a Sith Assassin. "The Assassin is going to be able to use a double bladed lightsaber just like Darth Maul. He is going to do a lot of damage, so that is his main function." He continued with a description of the Sith Sorcerer: "He is going to be a lot more like the Emperor; more ranged based. He will still use his lightsaber, but he is going to use Force Lightning and focus on that to fry his enemies from afar."
Then as a comparison, the Jedi Knight was touched on. The Sentinel uses dual lightsabers, was compared to Anakin Skywalker, and has a focus on dealing lots of damage with fast moves and action. The Guardian was described as a "traditional MMO tank" by wearing heavier armor, and the ability to soak up lots of damage.
Please note all the Advanced Class names were communicated in English along with the entire presentation, and we will update this post with more details as we receive them. We are committed to bringing you the most accurate official information coming out of Gamescom.
Shortly after the announcement of all the classes, we received another version of the multiplayer group demo that we originally saw at E3 -- but this time, all the Republic characters were playing Advanced Classes. The Jedi Sentinel was the dps off-tank, while the Trooper Commando was ranged tanking the large mob. The Smuggler had the Gunslinger specialization, and used portable cover while dual wielding blasters. The Jedi Consular chose the Wizard advanced class, and provided both healing and light crowd control.
More Updates and Media after the jump
