BioWare released another set of updates and changes to several aspects of SWTOR that are currently under live test on the Public Test Server. Agents/Smugglers, Marauders/Sentinels and Bounty Hunters/Troopers. The Nature of Progress Master Mode (Nightmare Mode or NiM if you are old school) continues to receive updates, fixes and tweaks as well. Read below for the full details on what is new on SWTOR 6.1.1 PTS following this recent update!
Late last week BioWare pushed an update to the SWTOR 6.1.1 PTS. It delivered a portion of the planned Conquest changes and Nature of Progress Master Mode Operation on Dxun.
The week before that was marked by the initial opening of the test server. The first iteration delivered a large number of class changes and new set bonuses for but the Vanguards and Powertechs, who got their new armor sets with Update 6.0.1 earlier.
Now, we come to Round 3!
SWTOR 6.1.1 PTS Class Changes Preview
Nounty Hunter / Commando
Powertech / Vanguard
- The Veteran Ranger set bonus has changed:
4 piece: Dealing damage with Shoulder Cannon grants Salvo, increasing Shoulder Cannon damage by 3% for 5 seconds. This effect can stack up to 5 times. In addition, while Shoulder Cannon loads missiles, you vent 2 heat per second.
Arsenal / Gunnery
- Power Launcher / Charged Launcher now increases the damage of Rail Shot / High Impact Bolt, Tracer Missile / Grav Round, Heatseeker Missiles / Demolition Round and Electro Net by 10% (up from 5%)
Agents / Smugglers
Operative / Scoundrel
- The Tactician set bonus has been rebalanced:
4 piece – Tactical Overdrive / Hot Streak no longer resets the cooldown of Backstab / Back Blast, the critical chance increasing effect cannot occur more than once every 18 seconds (up from 10 seconds), and the critical chance it provides is 10% (down from 15%)
Medicine / Sawbones
- Fixed an issue where Kolto Waves did not appropriately generate Tactical Medicine / Bedside Manner when used with the Regenerative Waves tactical item
- Tactical Item: The effect provided by Diagnostics Probe now lasts up to 15 seconds (up from 6 seconds)
Concealment / Scrapper
- Prey on the Weak / Pierce and Batter now increases damage done by Laceration / Sucker Punch by 10% on targets affected by your Acid Blade / Flechette Round (up from 5%)
- Calculated Frenzy / Rolling Punches now increases ranged and tech critical chance by 10% after Backstab / Back Blast is used (up from 5%)
Lethality / Ruffian
- Cut Down now increases the damage of Lethal Strike / Point Blank Shot , Overload Shot / Quick Shot and Noxious Knives / Lacerating Blast by 15% (up from 5%) and increases the damage of Shiv / Blaster Whip by 10% on targets affected by your poison / bleed effects
- Acidic Compounds now increases Toxic Blast / Sanguinary Shot damage by 10% (up from 5%)
Warrior / Knight
Carnage / Combat
- Sever / Saber Storm now increases the critical strike damage of Devastating Blast / Clashing Blast and Massacre / Blade Rush by 15% (up from 10%)
- Ataru Mastery now increases the damage deal by Ataru Form attacks by 5% (up from 3%)
More changes are likely to come before the testing cycle is complete. Most of the SWTOR 6.1.1 class changes focus around the previously delayed from 6.1 Healing Changes that BioWare was planning to introduce for balancing purposes.
Of course, as you can see here, not all changes are involving healing classes and abilities. The devs are doing the first round of class balancing following the 6.0 Onslaught release back in October of 2019.
The class changes were announced on the SWTOR PTS forums.
Nature of Progress NiM Changes Preview
With Update 6.1.1 BioWare brings a new Master Mode to the Dxun Operation – The Nature of Progress:
The Pack Leader (Red)
- The protection window for Synthium Derpridic spores is now 15s with a 15s lockout between applications with appropriately matching VFX.
- Reduced the effective area of Red’s AOE by half a meter to account for character radius vs centerpoint detection
- Slightly reduced the range of Trample (down from 2.2m from 2.7m)
- Reduced variability in spawn points for venomous stalkers, rampaging bulls
- Hydrochloric Acid’s interaction with Iron Hide has been updated.
Holding Pens
- Reapers and Felshades now refuse to use their murderous flurry attack when either they or their target is under the effect of a flare.
- Reapers and Felshades no longer center their attack cone on their target’s forward facing.
- Photoreactive Hypergollicity now has an AOE radius that matches the warning indicator. Previously it has been defined as 8m radius and the warning indicator had been defined as 8m circumference.
Containment Protocol (Mutant Trandoshans)
- The health values for the Trandoshans have been updated.
- Created new interaction behaviors for Torpor.
- Created new interaction behaviors for Endothermic Blast.
- Created new interaction behaviors for Pyroclasm.
- Created new interaction behaviors for The Path to Transcendence.
- Chaotic Evolution now impacts the duration and healing rate of Torpor.
- Envenomed Strike can now be cleansed by:
- Endure Pain
- Resillience
- Force Shroud
- Enure
- First Aid
- The channel time of Inspirational Scream has been increased to 00:00:03, up from 00:00:02.5.
- Caustic Plume will now react more readily to extreme heat sources
In a previous PTS update announcement the SWTOR community coordinator Daniel Steed spoke of more Conquest changes being planned for the live release of 6.1.1. I expect we should see them in the next patch to the PTS.
Source for these patch notes is a post by Daniel on the SWTOR PTS Forums.
How to access SWTOR PTS and Participage
PTS is only accessible to players with an active SWTOR Subscription. In other words if you want to play the upcoming content and test the new features, you need to be a “premium player”.
PTS is a separate installation of the whole game. You can opt in to have it downloaded and installed with a small check in the settings of your game client.
I have a complete step-by-step guide on how to access SWTOR PTS. It will show you all steps of how to download and install it and even how to copy your characters from the live servers onto PTS.
- Log into your account with your username and password at www.swtor.com.
- Click on your account name in the top right-hand corner of the site.
- Click “My Account.”
- In the left column, scroll down and click the link entitled “PTS Character Copy.”
- Select the server and then the character that you wish to copy from.
- Click the “Copy Character” button.
- The site will display the current status of your character copy at the top of the page. Additionally, you can click the “View your character transfer history” link to see if the copy has completed.
- Please note that if PTS is offline, you won’t see the PTS Character Copy link.
That is all for now. Don’t forget to check back the SWTOR category here on VULKK.com for the latest news and updates. If you are looking for Guides – new and updated SWTOR 6.0 Guides continue to be released almost daily!
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Find out everything you need to know about SWTOR 6.1.1 from my collective preview article.
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