There’s so much information floating around in mmo-world that one Sith’s common sense is another Jedi’s nonsense. There are many important things you can do before ever entering combat. Although the decisions you make in combat will play the biggest role in determining your success, everyone should know these basics so as to level the initial playing field.

As I continue to research this game I bring you my discoveries of interesting need-to-know interactions, closing out the article with one such revelation. If you have any similar suggestions or basic questions you need answered, please put them in the comments.

Tattoine is the first planet where the majority of the planet is free-for-all PVP.  Most of the datacrons are also in these areas, so beware of gankings.

New players and veterans, PvPers and PvEers alike, have room to improve their game by taking a step back and rethinking their controls. I continue to meet experienced players with the oddest of key binding habits. A poorly thought out control set-up is a huge hinderance to success. After the break we go over concepts that can help gamers of all levels improve their bindings.

This guide will cover what to take into consideration when deciding where to bind your abilities, as well as talk about a few optional modifications to your control set-up. Finally I try to convince you to revolt against the norm and make the biggest keybinding decision of your life. As a disclaimer, I commonly sacrifice convenience to maximize in-combat performance. Never waste a mouse button on your mount when you can put a combat ability there.

Regardless of your opinion on the medal system, you need to know how it works. There have been a lot of changes lately and there are many more old guides than new ones floating around the web. We’re going to cover just the facts so you can get up to speed. I will be coming out with a separate article about the game design intentions and consequences of the medal system where we can discuss our opinions.

Medals are awarded for completing specific feats while in a war zone. All players must earn at least 1 medal during the match to receive rewards for completing the war zone. For each of the first 8 medals that a player does earn, they are awarded an extra 250 Valor and 5 Commendations. Any additional medals are purely for vanity. You can see how many medals you currently have earned by checking your debuffs.

The following loot list is for normal mode Maelstrom Prison, which is a Republic-side flashpoint for levels 35-39. All bosses are listed in the order of occurrence. Trash drops are at the end. Some of the drops in Maelstrom Prison seem to drop off multiple bosses, as well as off trash. I’ve listed some of the possible occurrences. There may be more.

Loot lists are currently a work in progress. If you notice anything that needs a correction or addition, please feel free to leave a comment.

“There’s Merc’s in them there hills.”

The Outlaw’s Den was intended to be an active world PvP zone but became just another part of the desert when the designers removed all of the loot. Now the Mercenary Commendations are back and I’ve got the guide on how to get them.

For those not familiar with The Outlaw’s Den, it is a free-for-all PvP zone. You can attack, and be attacked by, anyone not in your party. There is an entrance for each faction. In the middle of the area is a building with an auction house and mailbox almost begging people to let their guard down. There are also 3 PvP vendors scattered around who sell unique speeders.

There has been a lot of confusion about the resolve system and we’re here to clear it up. First off, for people who are new to pvp, what is resolve and why do we have it?

With the amount of stuns and incapacitates flying around, a player could be unable to act for quite some time. To prevent this, Bioware gives us the Resolve system.

Each crowd control effect adds a predetermined amount of resolve to the player it targets. When a player’s bar reaches 1000, that player cannot be stunned, pushed, pulled, knocked down, or controlled for 12 seconds. Basically, after being targeted by around 2 control abilities, a player’s resolve bar is full and they are immune to control effects. Bioware set it up so that the maximum amount of time that you can be controlled is between 8-15 sec, depending on which effects are used.

The following loot list is for normal mode The Red Reaper, which is a flashpoint for levels 43-47. All bosses are listed in the order of occurrence. Trash drops are at the end. Some of the drops in Red Reaper seem to drop off multiple bosses. I’ve listed some of the possible occurrences. There may be more.

Loot lists are currently a work in progress. If you notice anything that needs a correction or addition, please feel free to leave a comment.

The following loot list is for normal mode Taral V, which is a Republic-side flashpoint for levels 31-35. All bosses are listed in the order of occurrence. Trash drops are at the end. Many of the drops in Taral V seem to drop off multiple bosses. I’ve listed some of the possible occurrences. There may be more.

Loot lists are currently a work in progress. If you notice anything that needs a correction or addition, please feel free to leave a comment.

Jedi Guardians will be familiar to anyone who has played a sword-and-shield warrior-type tank class in any MMORPG. They are the traditional melee tank relying on a combination of absorption, avoidance, and mitigation to successfuly tank content.

As the Jedi Knight you will start your journey as a Jedi Padawan on the planet Tython, the starting world of the Jedi Knight and Consular. As a Jedi Padawan you are expected to pass the Jedi Trials before being promoted to the rank of the Knight.

Upon reaching level 10, you will be able to choose an Advanced Class (AC) from the Jedi Advance Class trainer near the Combat Training section of Carrick Station. To play the “Tank” role in a group, you must pick the Guardian Specialization as your AC choice. After choosing your AC you will be able to equip heavy armor and use a shield generator to maximize your mitigation. When you pick the Guardian AC, you will receive your first shield generator for free. The Guardian Specialization opens up three skill trees where you can spend your skill points. Skill points are earned at the rate of one point per level for a maximum of 41 points. The three skill trees are Defense, Focus, and Vigilance. Defense is the Tank tree; Vigilance is the DPS tree optimal for Player Versus Environment (PVE); and Focus is the DPS tree optimal for Player Versus Player.

The following loot list is for normal mode The Foundry, which is a flashpoint for levels 35-39. All bosses are listed in the order of occurrence. Trash drops are at the end.

Loot lists are currently a work in progress. If you notice anything that needs a correction or addition, please feel free to leave a comment.

Note: I’m pretty sure I’m missing a few drops for this one. If you know of any other Foundry drops, please drop me a line!

Now that you’ve hit level 50, starting furiously farming your dailies, hit up the GTN for some cheap gear, and finally gotten around to steamrolling that Alderaan Bonus Series, you might be wondering: what’s next? Sure, gear is great…but where do you put all those shiny Artifacts to good use?

Hard Modes. Classic flashpoints reimagined with the level 50 health pool and damage capacity in mind. Hard Mode Flashpoints are where you stop hiding behind your healing companion and put yourself to the test. As a reward you can earn various commendations, Tionese (or Energized) gear, and a chance at a Columi token. That’s right folks, Hard Modes drop comparable loot to Normal Operations, so let’s get cracking.

A good place to start for both Republic and Empire is also the last place you’ll be as a fresh 50: Darth Malgus’ Space Station and The False Emperor flashpoint. In order to start the flashpoint in Hard Mode, simply speak to the quest giver right outside the instance portal and select the Hard Mode option. Unlike some Hard Modes, having completed the flashpoint on normal isn’t a requirement.

The following loot list is for normal mode Boarding Party, which is a flashpoint for levels 31-35. All bosses are listed in the order of occurrence. Trash drops are at the end.

Loot lists are currently a work in progress. If you notice anything that needs a correction or addition, please feel free to leave a comment.