SWTOR Patch 5.5 Class Changes: MEDICINE Operative and SAWBONES Scoundrel

Stay informed about Everything about SWTOR Patch 5.5

Below are the expected changes to Medicine Operative and Sawbones Scoundrel that Bioware is planing to introduce for SWTOR Patch 5.5 in October. These are not final.

Medicine Operative

(General change to Operative) Kolto Infusion no longer applies a heal over time; instead, the initial heal now heals for 44.51% more
(General change to Operative) Curative Agent now changes Kolto Infusion back to its heal over time version, and the rest of Curative Agent’s effects are unchanged
Each tick of Recuperative Nanotech now heals for 12% less
The critical chance bonus given to Diagnostic Scan by Prognosis: Critical is now 10%
Accomplished Doctor no longer affects Surgical Probe, and the critical healing bonus it grants to Kolto Injection and Kolto Infusion is now 10%, while its other effect remains unchanged
Medical Therapy no longer increases the healing done by periodic effects, but its other effects remain unchanged
Durable Meds no longer increases the healing done by each tick of Recuperative Nanotech, but still increases its duration
Surgical Precision no longer increases the healing done by Surgical Probe, but its other effects remain unchanged
The chance of getting a Tactical Advantage from a Kolto Waves, Kolto Probe, or Recuperative Nanotech tick granted by Medical Engineering is now 10%

Sawbones Scoundrel

(General change to Scoundrel) Kolto Pack no longer applies a heal over time; instead, the initial heal now heals for 44.51% more
(General change to Scoundrel) Sly Surrender now changes Kolto Pack back to its heal over time version, and the rest of Sly Surrender’s effects are unchanged
Each tick of Kolto Cloud now heals for 12% less
The critical chance bonus given to Diagnostic Scan by Prognosis: Critical is now 10%
Accomplished Sawbones no longer affects Emergency Medpac, and the critical healing bonus it grants to Underworld Medicine and Kolto Pack is now 10%, while its other effect remains unchanged
Homegrown Pharmacology no longer increases the healing done by periodic effects, but its other effects remain unchanged
Puissant Poultices no longer increases the healing done by each tick of Kolto Cloud, but still increases its duration
Emergent Emergencies no longer increases the healing done by Emergency Medpac, but its other effects remain unchanged
The chance of getting an Upper Hand from a Kolto Waves, Slow-release Medpac, or Kolto Cloud tick granted by Medpac Mastery is now 10%

DevNotes

The text below is a direct quote from the Bioware Combat Dev team with their reasons why are the above mentioned changes needed and what the goal for this discipline is. To better understand their means, check this post: SWTOR Class Balancing Explained: How it works and why is it NEEDED

The changes made to Medicine / Sawbones bring the discipline to the target HPS while relatively improving its burst-healing capabilities. Overall, the majority of the healing reduction was aimed at the Operative’s / Scoundrel’s heal-over-time abilities, which are usually more prone to over-heal.
The changes to Kolto Infusion / Kolto Pack and Curative Agent / Sly Surrender give the Operative / Scoundrel a quick, bursty heal in their baseline toolkit, while still allowing players who prefer a more proactive HoT-based playstyle to preserve that gameplay by taking the Curative Agent / Sly Surrender utility. On the whole, Medicine Operative / Sawbones Scoundrel HPS has been brought in line with that of Corruption Sorcerers / Seer Sages, but its baseline ability to burst heal is comparatively better than it was before these changes.