Hi everyone!

Thanks for reading our first installment of Class Change blogs that we will be releasing leading up to the release of Knights of the Fallen Empire. This week, we are going to talk about the quintessential Star Wars™ champions: Jedi Knights and Sith Warriors.

In Game Update 4.0, we wanted to increase the mobility of these formidable combatants in order to allow them to realize their full potential on the battle field, and to make them more difficult to kite. The new Knight/Warrior ability – Blade Blitz/Mad Dash – emphasizes this design intention, and Knight/Warrior players will find that they have an easier time staying on target while in combat.

Below you can find the work-in-progress changes that are currently slated for Game Update 4.0. As always, these changes are not final and subject to change. We look forward to sharing these changes with you, and we will see you on the battlefield!

General Class + Combat Changes

Utility Grant Levels

Now you get utility choice points at the following levels to prevent excessive power inflation with each expansion, and to ensure a choice was present at level 65.

Tier 1: 17, 25, 33 (up from 11, 19, 27)

Tier 2: 41, 49 (up from 35, 43)

Tier 3: 57, 65 (up from 51, 60)

Discipline Active Ability Grant Levels

Starting at level 10, you get a new Discipline-specific Active Ability every 16 levels. The only changes from 3.x are that you get your 3rd ability at level 42 (up from 41) and your 4th ability at level 58 (up from 57).

Discipline Passive Ability Grant Levels

These now happen every 4 levels, beginning at level 12. The only change from 3.x is that instead of getting a level 59 Passive skill, you get one at level 60, and a new passive at level 64.

Sith Warrior/Jedi Knight

New Active Ability: Mad Dash/Blade Blitz! Dash forward 20 meters, dealing weapon damage to enemies in your path and increasing your defense chance by 100% while dashing. Cannot be used while immobilized or hindered. Has a 45 second cooldown, and can be attained at level 61.

Master Strike has been renamed Blade Dance. The Jedi Knight's Master Strike ability has been renamed "Blade Dance" because Soresu Form reduces the Focus gained by "Strike" abilities (Strike, Sundering Strike, and Warding Strike), but Master Strike does not generate or cost Focus - so its name is out of place with the conventions of the rest of the class. No change needs to be made for Sith Warriors who gain Rage with "Assault" abilities (as Ravage does not contain the word “Assault” in it).

Marauder/Sentinel

Annihilation/Watchman

New Passive Skill: Devious Wounds/Smoldering Burns! Annihilate/Merciless Slash makes your bleeds/burns deal 10% more damage for 3 seconds after you activate it (percentage and duration subject to change).

Annihilate/Merciless Slash are now trained at level 42 (up from 41).

Force Rend/Force Melt are now trained at level 58 (up from 57).

Swift Demise/Accelerating Victory are now trained at level 60 (up from 59).

Carnage/Combat

New Passive Skill: Bloody Slashes/Burning Slices! Ravage/Blade Dance stacks a bleed/burn on the target (stacks up to 3 times). Each time Ravage/Blade Dance deals damage it will add a new stack to the bleed/burn. Deals damage when applied, each time a stack is added, and every 3 seconds for 9 seconds after Ravage/Blade Dance finishes adding stacks.

Gore/Precision is now trained at level 42 (up from 41).

Devastating Blast/Clashing Blast is now trained at level 58 (up from 57).

Sever/Saber Storm is now trained at level 60 (up from 59).

Fury/Concentration

New Passive Skill: Furious Rage/Centered Focus! Furious Strike/Concentrated Slice make your next Raging Burst/Focused Burst or Smash/Force Sweep deal 15% more critical damage.

Force Crush/Force Exhaustion is now trained at level 42 (up from 41).

Furious Strike/Concentrated Slice is now trained at level 58 (up from 57).

Furious Defense/Concentrated Defense is now trained at level 60 (up from 59).

Utility

Tier 1 - Skillful

New Utility: Unflinching Determination/Unwavering Resolve! Saber Ward grants immunity to stuns and incapacitating effects (fear, sleep, blind, etc.) for 6 seconds after you activate it.

Tier 2 - Masterful

New Utility: Thirst for Rage/Inspired Focus! Bloodthirst/Inspiration instantly grants 12 Rage/Focus when used.

Tier 3 – Heroic

New Utility: Through Victory/Cut Loose! Mad Dash/Blade Blitz can be used while immobilized and purges immobilization and slow effects when activated

Juggernaut/Guardian

Immortal/Defense

New Passive Skill: Defensive Slashes/Defensive Swings! Ravage/Blade Dance grants a stacking increase to defense chance with each hit (stacks up to 3 times). Each stack increases defense chance by 2% (up to 6% with 3 stacks). This effect lasts for 6 seconds (and each hit refreshes the duration - so it lasts 8.7 seconds total while scaling up to full strength, with no alacrity – and the full strength portion lasts a full 6 seconds)

Backhand/Hilt Bash is now trained at level 42 (up from 41).

Invincible/Warding Call is now trained at level 58 (up from 57).

Pillar of Strength/Beacon of Might is now trained at level 60 (up from 59).

Vengeance/Vigilance

New Passive Skill: Bloodmaster/Burnmaster! Each bleed/burn you have active on an enemy target increases the damage you deal with bleeds/burns by 5%. This effect only stacks once per bleed/burn type (up to 3 times). For example, you can only get one from Shatter/Plasma Brand, one from Eviscerate/Burning Purpose, and one from Draining Scream/Burning Blade, so you would not benefit 8 times if you had Shatter/Plasma Brand on 8 different targets

Bloodmaster Ability tooltip for clarity: For each of your bleeding effects active on an enemy target, you deal 5% more bleed damage, up to a maximum of 15% more bleed damage while Shatter, Draining Scream, and Eviscerate are each bleeding a target.

Shien Form is now trained at level 42 (up from 41).

Vengeful Slam/Vigilant Thrust is now trained at level 58 (up from 57).

Gushing Veins/Smoldering Saber is now trained at level 60 (up from 59).

Rampage/Zen Strike is now trained at level 16 (down from 36).

Draining Scream/Burning Blade is now trained at level 20 (up from 16).

Eviscerate/Burning Purpose is now trained at level 36 (up from 28).

Ravager/Master Focus is now trained at level 28 (up from 20).

Rage/Focus

New Passive Skill: Enveloping Rage/Protective Focus! Raging Burst/Focused Burst and Smash/Force Sweep grant 5% damage reduction for 6 seconds.

Force Crush/Force Exhaustion is now trained at level 42 (up from 41).

Furious Strike/Concentrated Slice is now trained at level 58 (up from 57).

Furious Power/Concentrated Power is now trained at level 60 (up from 59).

Utility

Tier 1 - Skillful

New Utility: Unshackling Rage/Focused Freedom! When activated, Enrage/Combat Focus removes movement-impairing effects (immobilizes and slows) and increases the Juggernaut's/Guardian’s movement speed by 50% for the next 6 seconds.

Tier 2 - Masterful

New Utility: War Bringer/Ardent Advocate! Force Charge/Leap enables your next Vicious Throw/Dispatch to be used on a target with any health level for 15 seconds after activation.

Tier 3 - Heroic

New Utility: Through Victory/Cut Loose! Mad Dash/Blade Blitz can be used while immobilized and purges immobilization and slow effects when activated.

In the coming weeks we will cover the remaining Classes and Advanced Classes, so keep an eye on SWTOR.com for more!

- The Star Wars™: The Old Republic™ Team