The Star Wars: The Old Republic 6.0 update "Onslaught" brought a gearing overhaul and new way to inch up to top tier gear. Here is a beginner's guide on early steps of how to get better gear.
Before you are Level 75
The new gear system doesn't really start until you are level 75. At that point you can use the higher-rated gear and start the path of supposedly automatic improvement as you continue to play content.
If you do not have any characters at Level 75 yet get one there to get started. The level 75 gear is pretty much all Legacy bound, so whatever you get will be usable by your alts once they reach level 75.
If you won't reach Level 75 for a long time you may want to start accumulating Treasure Hunting Grade 11 Lockboxes by running the appropriate mission (and Grade 10 Lockboxes if your Treasure Hunting skill is over 600). Getting these lockboxes lets you accumulate a good amount of gear to put on right away when your character is Level 75, and the excess can be deconstructed to get Tech Fragments and other materials.
These Lockboxes contain some materials (if Grade 11) and almost always a piece of gear typically rated 270 to 276. This is the same as the best Level 75 gear drop you can get from overland content (although if you do get that very rare purple gear drop it could be higher, possibly 286). Unlike drops from reward crates, what you can get from these Lockboxes is not necessarily related to your character -- Jedi could get guns, for example.
You can also start getting high-gear-rating drops from harder content, such as Master Mode Flashpoints and Operations. It's possible to jump right away and get a piece of gear you can't use yet, possibly a set item that you can fill out with better mods later.
At Tech Fragment Cap
Before you even get any character to Level 75, it is very possible to be near the Tech Fragment cap. The best use is to buy something that you want from Kai Zykken's discount store on Fleet, and keep it for later.
If there isn't anything or his store isn't open at the moment, you can look at the non-random-but-expensive stores for the various Classes. Tacticals are a good early choice as you can use them as soon as you reach level 75 without having to fill them with mods or get multiple pieces for a set.
At Level 75
Whenever the game tries to give you better gear, it looks at your gear score. So instead of spreading out your gear on various level 75 alts, the first thing you want to do is assemble a set with the best gear score you can. For Main Hand and Offhand, have a set for all the classes you play. At the start, just pass this set of gear around whenever you switch alts.
The rest of the gear can be equipped on alts in basically any way. If you are not using them on content that would drop better gear you don't need to swap their gear; and you can always raid them for stuff to deconstruct if you are short on Tech Fragments for a good deal showing up at Zykken's -- by holding on to some pieces you are in effect "banking" Tech Fragments beyond what your Legacy Currency can hold.
Next, look at your Tech Fragment total. If you are close to cap, you may want to trim it down a bit. If there's nothing you want at Zykken's, then the next best use of Tech Fragments is at the Spoils of War vendor that sells random non-Set gear. Look at the type of gear you have with the lowest rating, and get a random piece to replace it. At worst you should get a piece with the same rating, but until you are over gear rating 300 that should be a rare case.
What you are doing is basically buying yourself a gear drop instead of randomly getting one from playing the game.
Trim down your Tech Fragments so that you are not in danger of going over cap while in the middle of group content (such as a Flashpoint or Operation, when you can't really take a break and go to Fleet to spend it).
Whenever you get a Gear Crate, such as from Renown or Conquest, consider saving it. Opening it would be like spending Tech Fragments, and if you regularly reach cap on Tech Fragments and have to spend them, opening a Gear Crate would be like spending a chance to get gear prematurely.
On the other hand, if you are not getting a lot of Tech Fragments, then opening Gear Crates to improve your gear score is better than spending Tech Fragments, because Tech Fragments have much more flexibility; whereas a Gear Crate is basically a random gear drop that you can decide when to receive (so receiving it when you are at a higher gear score is better).
Go back to playing the game. If you want to grind for gear quickly, you can:
Gear Rating 300+
At you get close to 306, content may drop pieces of gear that are often less than your gear rating. If you are averaged at 306, a story mode Flashpoint might drop gear in the 296 to 306 range whereas a Master Mode Flashpoint might be in the 302-306 range. In any case there is no guarantee of a 306 drop.
If you are in a hurry to do the most difficult group content, then grinding for sets and getting mods and the best augments starts now. If you are Preferred and/or working on Story content, I would recommend just trimming your Tech Fragments but saving most of it for Zykken's store.
If you are buying from the Spoils of War Vendor, the best use of Tech Fragments is probably Mainhand and Offhand Weapons: Even if you don't get a 306 rated item, what you do get might still have a useful 306-rated mod.
Before you are Level 75
The new gear system doesn't really start until you are level 75. At that point you can use the higher-rated gear and start the path of supposedly automatic improvement as you continue to play content.
If you do not have any characters at Level 75 yet get one there to get started. The level 75 gear is pretty much all Legacy bound, so whatever you get will be usable by your alts once they reach level 75.
If you won't reach Level 75 for a long time you may want to start accumulating Treasure Hunting Grade 11 Lockboxes by running the appropriate mission (and Grade 10 Lockboxes if your Treasure Hunting skill is over 600). Getting these lockboxes lets you accumulate a good amount of gear to put on right away when your character is Level 75, and the excess can be deconstructed to get Tech Fragments and other materials.
These Lockboxes contain some materials (if Grade 11) and almost always a piece of gear typically rated 270 to 276. This is the same as the best Level 75 gear drop you can get from overland content (although if you do get that very rare purple gear drop it could be higher, possibly 286). Unlike drops from reward crates, what you can get from these Lockboxes is not necessarily related to your character -- Jedi could get guns, for example.
You can also start getting high-gear-rating drops from harder content, such as Master Mode Flashpoints and Operations. It's possible to jump right away and get a piece of gear you can't use yet, possibly a set item that you can fill out with better mods later.
At Tech Fragment Cap
Before you even get any character to Level 75, it is very possible to be near the Tech Fragment cap. The best use is to buy something that you want from Kai Zykken's discount store on Fleet, and keep it for later.
If there isn't anything or his store isn't open at the moment, you can look at the non-random-but-expensive stores for the various Classes. Tacticals are a good early choice as you can use them as soon as you reach level 75 without having to fill them with mods or get multiple pieces for a set.
At Level 75
Whenever the game tries to give you better gear, it looks at your gear score. So instead of spreading out your gear on various level 75 alts, the first thing you want to do is assemble a set with the best gear score you can. For Main Hand and Offhand, have a set for all the classes you play. At the start, just pass this set of gear around whenever you switch alts.
The rest of the gear can be equipped on alts in basically any way. If you are not using them on content that would drop better gear you don't need to swap their gear; and you can always raid them for stuff to deconstruct if you are short on Tech Fragments for a good deal showing up at Zykken's -- by holding on to some pieces you are in effect "banking" Tech Fragments beyond what your Legacy Currency can hold.
Next, look at your Tech Fragment total. If you are close to cap, you may want to trim it down a bit. If there's nothing you want at Zykken's, then the next best use of Tech Fragments is at the Spoils of War vendor that sells random non-Set gear. Look at the type of gear you have with the lowest rating, and get a random piece to replace it. At worst you should get a piece with the same rating, but until you are over gear rating 300 that should be a rare case.
What you are doing is basically buying yourself a gear drop instead of randomly getting one from playing the game.
Trim down your Tech Fragments so that you are not in danger of going over cap while in the middle of group content (such as a Flashpoint or Operation, when you can't really take a break and go to Fleet to spend it).
Whenever you get a Gear Crate, such as from Renown or Conquest, consider saving it. Opening it would be like spending Tech Fragments, and if you regularly reach cap on Tech Fragments and have to spend them, opening a Gear Crate would be like spending a chance to get gear prematurely.
On the other hand, if you are not getting a lot of Tech Fragments, then opening Gear Crates to improve your gear score is better than spending Tech Fragments, because Tech Fragments have much more flexibility; whereas a Gear Crate is basically a random gear drop that you can decide when to receive (so receiving it when you are at a higher gear score is better).
Go back to playing the game. If you want to grind for gear quickly, you can:
- Aim to collect Tech Fragments, and use the Spoils of War store for targeted improvements (e.g., if you can't seem to get an earpiece from all the flashpoints you've been running). Even after you have your 306 gear, the vendor is good for trying to get specific pieces that you find to be rare or for assembling a set for a different discipline entirely (e.g., you have 306 gear for DPS, and now want to get a set of gear for Tanking).
- Do easy Flashpoints. For Story Mode the drops appear to be -10 to +4 of your gear rating. For Veteran and Master Modes it seems to be -4 to +4. If you are at the current gear cap of 306, you can still get lower-rated gear.
- Group up and do harder instanced content such as Master Mode Flashpoints and Operations, which typically drop more pieces of gear.
As you keep accumulating gear, your first goal is to get 306-rated gear in all slots that all your alts can use: Head, Chest, Wrist, Hands, Waist, Legs, Feet, Ear, Implants x2, Relics x2. Your Mainhand and Offhand will typically be moddable legacy-bound drops.
Do not expect to get any set pieces from drops or Crates. Instead, if you have patience, buy from Kai Zykken. Otherwise buy from the class vendor if there is something there you want (although set pieces from them come empty -- no mods). If you have no other choice (many sets are not buyable) then do the associated content to get it, but for your time this is your worst option because of the randomness and rarity of set drops.
Do not expect to get any set pieces from drops or Crates. Instead, if you have patience, buy from Kai Zykken. Otherwise buy from the class vendor if there is something there you want (although set pieces from them come empty -- no mods). If you have no other choice (many sets are not buyable) then do the associated content to get it, but for your time this is your worst option because of the randomness and rarity of set drops.
Alt Gearing
With few exceptions, gear drops are generally related to both your class and your discipline. That means while you are focusing on playing one character, your alts of a different class and/or role will generally fall behind in their Mainhand / Offhand gear. (Remember that we aimed to collect a set of rating 306 gear to share with all alts). There are two ways to address this:
To make up the shortfall quickly, use the Spoils of War vendor. A couple of purchases should jump your gear up very quickly. To save Tech Fragments and not repeat this process too often, try to do it when your set of shared gear is 306, which would should raise your average gear level quite high.
Also look at what gear you can share between classes for their Mainhand and Offhand.
Another way to gear your alts is to transfer mods to shells of the type you need. For example, if you have only Dual Sabers from gear drops but need an Offhand Saber, you can move the mods from a Mainhand-only Saber to a Mainhand-or-Offhand Legacy-Bound Saber shell.
At you get close to 306, content may drop pieces of gear that are often less than your gear rating. If you are averaged at 306, a story mode Flashpoint might drop gear in the 296 to 306 range whereas a Master Mode Flashpoint might be in the 302-306 range. In any case there is no guarantee of a 306 drop.
At this near-gear-cap range, you should start paying attention to mods that drop (keep anything 306) and any gear that contains mods you could take out.
At 306 it's also time to look through the Crates you've been accumulating. At this early stage of the Renown system, it might still be worthwhile to hold on to any crates in case they reassess the drops and improve them in a future update. But that is a long and chancy game that potentially uses a lot of inventory space.
At 306 it's also time to look through the Crates you've been accumulating. At this early stage of the Renown system, it might still be worthwhile to hold on to any crates in case they reassess the drops and improve them in a future update. But that is a long and chancy game that potentially uses a lot of inventory space.
For example, if you got a few weapons rated 302-305, instead of spending time or Tech Fragments trying to get a 306 piece, you can inspect the mods to see if any of them are 306 and could be usefully pulled out. You can put those 306 mods into another piece of moddable gear and assemble your own 306-rated gear. You'll need to do this for the empty set-item shells you get at the class gear vendor. (Zykken gives you gear with mods and with a gear rating based on your current gear rating).
With your Tech Fragments you should now be looking at how to usefully spend them as you near cap over and over again. You may very well find yourself stuck if you don't want anything from the class set vendors. At that point you could just trim a bit hoping for 306-rated mods from the Spoils of War vendor, and generally hold a large amount in reserve for weekends to see what Zykken offers, which can include set items from all sources.
If you are in a hurry to do the most difficult group content, then grinding for sets and getting mods and the best augments starts now. If you are Preferred and/or working on Story content, I would recommend just trimming your Tech Fragments but saving most of it for Zykken's store.
If you are buying from the Spoils of War Vendor, the best use of Tech Fragments is probably Mainhand and Offhand Weapons: Even if you don't get a 306 rated item, what you do get might still have a useful 306-rated mod.
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