Following our introductory article on the Imperial sniper agent, we will discuss in more detail a specialization focused on ranged shooting statistics: techniques, cycles and other technical details that you will appreciate knowing before you tackle the pvehl of Star Wars.
Guide updated on 14/02
Features
Regarding the statistics required, here is the importance of the different characteristics.
Achieve 100% precision absolutely quickly then, mount your influx and criticism in parallel as well as your tip (which will be present on all the parts anyway).
Power comes after Crit / Rush and Alacrity is the least useful stat. Indeed alacrity reduces your casting and channeling times which will increase your damage to the detriment of your energy, interesting in burst but useless in a fight over time.
This gives in detail and in figures:
- Accuracy up to ~ 8%
- Influx ~ 100
- Trick
- Engime
- Critical
- Afllux
- Alacrity
- Accuracy after heading to 8%
Techniques and damage cycle priority
As I was able to talk about in the previous article, our gameplay will improve a lot over the levels, especially when the knockdown will be added (instant fire when the target drops below 30% of life) , continuity (instantaneous fire following an ambush or two sniping shots), series of shots (channeling causing damage distributed over its entire duration).
The specialization will also give us tools to overcome the entry and exit of cover via dedicated talents and a technique making the cover unbreakable for 20 seconds and insensitive to control (Entrenchment at level 20).
In single target, Series of shots and Snapshot snapshot after laying cover allows you to do damage as soon as the fight enters to fight against the syndrome "the fight ends before the end of my first cast".
In multi-target, the combination of Orbital Strike (48), Fragment Grenade (3) and Suppressive Fire (22) allows effective area damage and quick to set up without laying cover.
Energy management level one of the talents will make it quite minimal, you can always grant yourself a burst by draining your energy and using behind the adrenaline probe which restores it in 3 seconds but the rest of the time, you will have to avoid to go under 60% energy (40% minimum) by inserting blaster shots, weak but free (energy regeneration can very well be combined with movement phases which are the best times for this).
Cycle by Priority based on damage / energy / time ratio
- Continuity (via talent tree, 21 talent points minimum, i.e. level 31 and 33 to be effective) Coverage not necessary
- Ambush (10) Undercover - Use first after sniping or series of shots to take advantage of reactive fire
- Series of Shots (36) Undercover
- Grounding (18) Blanket not necessary
- Orbital Strike (48) No cover required
- Explosive probe (1) Under cover
- Sniping (1) Undercover
- Blaster Shot (Energy recharge) Blanket not required
We can add to this the interrogation probe in the hybrid remote shooting / engineering templates but we will come back to this in a separate article.
Orbital strike becomes priority as soon as there are at least two targets and fragment grenade before sniping from 3 targets.
Do not forget to use in the event of an acquired target burst which increases alacrity by 20% (reduces channeling time) preferably then using a series of shots via "rapid fire".
Laze Target which automatically criticizes your sniping can be activated during a cast and combines well with snapshot snapshot while laying cover.
Of course, the use of spells depends on circumstances, movement, need for a consequent burst, etc.
Ancillary and survival techniques
Buff for the group
- Coordination: 5% Crit like all Imperial Agents
Miscellaneous control (stun, bump, kick)
- Droid hacking: control a droid for 60 seconds, be careful, this starts the fight
- Distraction: to break an opponent's technique (kick), available every 12 seconds
- Cover Pulse: bump usable under cover, quite difficult to place especially in PvP
- Pulse Grenade: An area control that blinds opponents for 5 seconds
- Legshot: An instant fire that immobilizes the target for 5 seconds and deals moderate damage
Damage reduction
- Entrenchment: makes you insensitive to controls (including bump, pvpistes will understand me) when you are under cover
- Countermeasure: decrease in threat (aggro)
- Shield Probe: Absorb a moderate amount of personal damage
- Evasion: Increases melee and ranged damage avoidance by 100%
- Ballistic Shield: A group shield to use during damage spikes and which is a great buff for your group in addition to being unique
Do not forget all these techniques of reduction, as important in your gameplay as those of damage. Your raid leaders and healers will thank you and that's what will make the difference between a good and a bad player.
Template point par point
Ranged shooting
- Cover Screen: Defensive Technique - potentially poorer than Ballistics but a good choice for reaching the next Tiers.
- Safe Shots: Increases damage by 6% of two key abilities, a must
- Ranged shooting: the mark of the essential ranged shooting specialization
- Heavy shot: useless in pvp, useful in pvp. This can be a way to get to the top row
- Ballistic shock absorbers: our best defensive technique, probably the best way to go to the next level
- Precision Ambush: + 20% penetration on ambush, a key technique in our cycle
- Imperial demarcation: reduced the cooldown of the shot in the legs by 3 seconds (15 base), blah in pve and a little better in pvp
- Snapshot: a talent that allows you to have free sniping when going under cover, situational.
- Diversion: in pvp possibly
- Reactive Fire: Reduced the cooldown of ambush during a series of shots or sniping
- Between the eyes: increased reviews of our main techniques
- Row of sector: blah and blah, increased bump in pvp already not easily usable…. Maybe for the reduction of activation of orbital strike in the context of multi-target pve but hey ....
- Sniper Volley: Alacrity being an unhelpful stat for snipers who tend to over-consume energy, it's a choice between this and Orbital Strike recharge reduction. .
- Sniper nest: reduced energy consumption, very efficient and makes us very little prone to energy problems
- Recoil control: increased continuity damage
- Continuity - an additional technique with one of the best performance level dps not requiring hedging and instantaneous !!!
- Sniper Casemate: Reduces Orbital Strike and Entrench Duration by 15 seconds (60 base), useful in situational pve and pvp via entrenchment
- Imperial Assassin: Increased the critical damage of our three main spells
- Rapid fire: a not-so-ultimate ultimate, allows the launch of three consecutive rounds of fire via a cd. Not necessarily easy to place these three more series to the detriment of other techniques almost as effective. One choice among many.
Fatality
- Deadly Directive: 4% alacrity - a not useless talent with low but existing dps gain, can find its place in a template with rapid fire to reduce the channeling time of fire streak x 3 and oriented single target
- Fatality: + 6% critical, mandatory in a lot of templates
- Razor Blade: Useless, Skill geared for Imperial Agent Secret Agent and can be used in melee
Engineering
- Engineer Belt: Reduced the cooldown of the Flash Bang and Frag Grenade. In pvp possibly but there is better on this level
- Energy tank: 10 energy point increase. Correct but above all to go to the next level
- Mechanic: 9% on top of our main stat, Hint. Huge
- Explosive Engineering: Increased aoe by 15% and damage of the Explosive Probe. A good talent as part of a versatile pve - pvp - single target - aoe template but obviously situational. Or to get the interrogation probe.
- Vital regulators: a cd of regen of 3% of its life every two minutes, I spend
- Premeditated Pursuit: Useful talent if you integrate it into your gameplay. One free sniping out of cover. Useful for pvp or pve when moving
- Vitality Serum: increased endurance, not viable in a ranged shooting template
- Probe interrogation: a new technique to your arsenal which is more instantaneous and without cover necessary with a high dps but it requires sacrifices to reach this level three.
Possible variations
I don't really like the notion of an ideal template. However, one now seems to stand out in the context of a full range shooting template (with series of shots).
The base template 31/7/3 with rapid fire and maximization of single target dps
see the talent tree
Advantage:
- Very good single target dps
- Rapid fire for burst via 3 series of shots associated with acquired target
Inconvévient:
- Not very mobile
Template 30/11/0 remote shooting / engineering with interrogation probe (For info, but it is no longer relevant)
Advantage:
- Correct single target Dps if the fight requires significant movements, interrogation probe with good dps and not requiring cover
- Improved Aoe by increasing its damage by 15%
- Interrogation probe and instant fire out of cover for more dps on the move
Disadvantages:
- 6% critical reduction, the big black spot
- Rapid fire loss for three rounds of shots but compensated for by the additional probe
Do not hesitate to make your own mixes, lots of choices are possible and viable. A 30/7/3 without alacrity but with explosive engineering for a gain aoe or premeditated pursuit for a gain of mobility for example, the reduction of the orbital strike cd to maximize the aoe .... There is no limit that your imagination and the main trends are still to imagine although the two templates above are often cited.
And leveling
I advise you to place during your leveling all your points in the remote shooting talent tree in order to reach these templates:
Level 10
Your cycle will consist of sniping and ambush, also think about the explosive probe. Aoe fragmentation grenade.
Level 18 (talents)
Gain grounding, to be integrated into your cycle as a priority from the target at 30% of life
Level 21 (talents)
You will be able to place an instant sniper fire when laying the cover, also effective with an explosive probe.
Level 25 (talents)
Talent reducing power consumption making your gameplay more flexible
Level 30 (talents)
Gain of continuity to be placed as soon as available (following sniping and ambush) and suppressive fire for the multi-target.
level 36 (talents)
Gain of series of shots to place in your cycle, two 'lost' points to reach the penultimate level and according to your choice (here cover screen and sniper volley). Cycle close to the final cycle.
level 40 (talents)
Full talent tree with rapid fire that allows you three sets of shots in a row
Level 50 (talents)
You will recover at level 48 the orbital strike, phenomenal in aoe and profitable in single target and target acquired at level 49 (+ 20% alacrity, reduction of pipes and very synergy with rapid fire).
Sources of information
Sithwarrior: http://sithwarrior.com/forums/Thread-Marksman-Sniper-Compendium
Spreadsheet: MM Spreadsheet 2012-01-07.xls (registration required)
