Choosing a Class in SWTOR!
Choosing a class in Star Wars: The Old Republic can be intimidating – there’s a lot of factors that go into making your choice, and this guide will go over them all in a simple and easy to read way for players who have never played the game before! Your choices when you create your character will affect your story, what planet you start on, how you fight in combat, and which weapons you can wield.
Contents
Choosing an Origin Story
There are eight unique character stories you can choose to play in SWTOR – these are officially called Origin Stories, and are often known as Class stories. Most new players take a look at these eight options, and choose a story that appeals to their interests. For example, a player who likes Darth Vader might want to join the Empire as a Sith Warrior. A player who likes underworld elements and wise-cracking jokes might try the Smuggler. Many players also make it a goal to eventually play all eight, as they are often considered the best stories in the game. Your Origin Story is a permanent choice when you create your character.
Starter Planet
There are four starter planets, and which planet you start on is determined by which Origin Story you choose.
- Sith Warrior
- Sith Inquisitor
- Jedi Knight
- Jedi Consular
- Bounty Hunter
- Imperial Agent
- Trooper
- Smuggler
Republic players can go to Coruscant, and Imperial players can go to Dromund Kass, their factions’ capital planets. All other planets are accessible to all characters.
Companions
Your Origin Story also affects who your early companions are, and your gender and origin story affect what romances you can have in the early parts of the game. In the expansions, your companion options and romance options open up a lot more. Each Origin Story has five companions that they gain as they progress in the story, each with their own goals and personality. View all Companions
Choosing a Combat Style
Your Combat Style is what abilities you have while fighting in SWTOR.
If you already have a specific way you’d like to fight in mind, you’ll need to make sure to choose an Origin Story that allows you to pick a matching Combat Style.
Combat Styles are restricted to certain Origin Stories – for example, you will never see a Bounty hunter wielding a lightsaber or shooting Force Lightning. Tech users can choose any of the eight tech Combat Styles when they create their character, and Force users can choose any of the four combat styles that match up with their Origin Story – for example, you can not immediately create a dark-side wielding Jedi.
Combat Style Options
Class | Jedi Knight | Jedi Consular | Sith Warrior | Sith Inquisitor | Trooper | Smuggler | Bounty Hunter | Imperial Agent |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sentinel | Yes | Yes | Yes* | Yes* | No | No | No | No |
Guardian | Yes | Yes | Yes* | Yes* | No | No | No | No |
Sage | Yes | Yes | Yes* | Yes* | No | No | No | No |
Shadow | Yes | Yes | Yes* | Yes* | No | No | No | No |
Marauder | Yes* | Yes* | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Juggernaut | Yes* | Yes* | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Sorcerer | Yes* | Yes* | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Assassin | Yes* | Yes* | Yes | Yes | No | No | No | No |
Commando | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Vanguard | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Scoundrel | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Gunslinger | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Mercenary | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Powertech | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Operative | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
Sniper | No | No | No | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
- Jedi Knight Options: Guardian, Sentinel, Sage, Shadow, Juggernaut*, Marauder*, Assassin*, Sorcerer*
- Jedi Consular Options: Guardian, Sentinel, Sage, Shadow, Juggernaut*, Marauder*, Assassin*, Sorcerer*
- Sith Warrior Options: Guardian*, Sentinel*, Sage*, Shadow*, Juggernaut, Marauder, Assassin, Sorcerer
- Sith Inquisitor Options: Guardian*, Sentinel*, Sage*, Shadow*, Juggernaut, Marauder, Assassin, Sorcerer
- Trooper Options: Commando, Vanguard, Gunslinger, Scoundrel, Mercenary, Powertech, Operative, Sniper
- Smuggler Options: Commando, Vanguard, Gunslinger, Scoundrel, Mercenary, Powertech, Operative, Sniper
- Bounty Hunter Options: Commando, Vanguard, Gunslinger, Scoundrel, Mercenary, Powertech, Operative, Sniper
- Imperial Agent Options: Commando, Vanguard, Gunslinger, Scoundrel, Mercenary, Powertech, Operative, Sniper
- * Must unlock the Dark V / Light V achievement first
Second Combat Style
Players who are subscribed to the game and have also completed their Origin Story unlock the ability to have two Combat Styles at once, and are able to switch between the two. For example, I am a Trooper, when I created my character I chose Vanguard as my starting Combat Style, and later on, I chose the Operative as my second Combat Style, and now I can swap back and forth between them on the same character. Once you have chosen a Combat Style, it is a permanent choice, but if you have two Combat Styles chosen, you can easily swap between those two.
Light and Dark Combat Styles
Once you have reached Dark V and have grown your dark-side influence through the story, you will eventually be able to switch over to using the dark-side counterpart of your chosen Combat Style. So if you want to a be a lightning-wielding Dark Jedi, you’ll want to first choose to be a Sage, and then later you will be able to flip over to its dark counterpart, the Sorcerer. To unlock the option to flip your character’s combat style, you must first reach Dark V or Light V on any character by making dark or light decisions in the story – it does not need to be on the character you want to flip, but you need to have unlocked the matching achievement for the alignment you want to flip your character to. The ability to flip your character happens after character creation, as part of a quest you can start when you feel you are ready to decide, as choosing to keep your original combat style or flipping your character to the opposite combat style is a permanent choice. Only Jedi and Sith get to make this choice.
Sentinel ⬌ Marauder
Guardian ⬌ Juggernaut
Sage ⬌ Sorcerer
Shadow ⬌ Assassin
Mirror Combat Styles
There are sixteen different Combat Styles in the game, with half being “mirrors” of their counterparts, which means they look different but play the same in combat. They have different graphics, sounds, and sometimes even weapons, but the way you attack things or heal your allies will feel very similar if you try a Combat Style that’s a mirror of one you have already played.
Sentinel = Marauder
Guardian = Juggernaut
Sage = Sorcerer
Shadow = Assassin
Vanguard = Powertech
Commando = Mercenary
Scoundrel = Operative
Gunslinger = Sniper
Tank, Healer, DPS
If you are already familiar with online gaming, you may have decided you want to play defensively as a Tank, heal other players as a Healer, or hit things as a Damage / DPS. Your Combat Style also decides which of these roles are available to you.
Style | / | Style | Damage | Tank | Healer |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Guardian | / | Juggernaut | Yes | Yes | No |
Sentinel | / | Marauder | Yes | No | No |
Vanguard | / | Powertech | Yes | Yes | No |
Commando | / | Mercenary | Yes | No | Yes |
Scoundrel | / | Operative | Yes | No | Yes |
Gunslinger | / | Sniper | Yes | No | No |
Shadow | / | Assassin | Yes | Yes | No |
Sage | / | Sorcerer | Yes | No | Yes |
Damage: All combat styles can play as a damage character, and you even have multiple ways to fight as a damage character for each Combat Style. There are also three types of healers, and three types of tanks to choose from.
Healers: You can healer with the Force as a light-side Sage or dark-side Sorcerer. If you like heals-over-time, try the very mobile and stealthy Scoundrel or Operative. Lastly you can try the Commando with a giant Assault cannon or the Mercenary.
Tanks: You can be a tank that doesn’t use the Force as a Vanguard or Powertech. If you want to have stealth as a tank, you would choose the light-side Shadow or the dark-side Assassin. If you want to be up close and personal, try the light-side Guardian or the dark-side Juggernaut.
Stealth
The ability to “stealth” and sneak past unsuspecting enemies is only available to certain Combat Styles. The Operative and the Scoundrel can stealth using technology, and the Assassin and Shadow can stealth using The Force.
Weapons
Your Combat Styles also decides your weapon. You can not mix and match weapons between Combat Styles.
This means if you want to fight with a specific type of weapon, you’ll need to choose a Combat Style that can wield it.
Gunslingers wield two blasters to give them a definite edge while displaying their undeniable rouguish charm.MercenaryDual pistols charged with high-powered rounds complement Mercenaries’ volleys of missiles and incendiary ordnances.
Choosing a Discipline
Disciplines are for when you get a little more comfortable playing the game or are already into online gaming – so if you’re already overwhelmed, ignore Disciplines until later and just choose a Combat Styles and Origin Story.
In addition to choosing a Combat Style, you will be able to choose a Discipline after you create your character, which is your specialization when it comes to combat. There are 48 different disciplines in the game, but each Combat Styles only has three available, which you can easily switch between while playing. For example, a Jedi Sage can switch between healing and two different ways of attacking. You can flip between your three Disciplines any time you are not actively in combat.
When players say they love playing a specific class, they are usually referring to loving their discipline, unless they are very skilled and play all three!
Discipline Options
Combat Style | Discipline | Role | Discipline | Combat Style |
---|---|---|---|---|
Sentinel | Watchman | DOT Damage | Annihilation | Marauder |
Combat | Burst Damage | Carnage | ||
Concentration | Burst Damage | Fury | ||
Guardian | Defense | Tank | Immortal | Juggernaut |
Vigilance | DOT (AOE) Damage | Vengeance | ||
Focus | Burst Damage | Rage | ||
Shadow | Kinetic Combat | Tank | Darkness | Assassin |
Infiltration | Burst Damage | Deception | ||
Serenity | DOT Damage | Hatred | ||
Sage | Seer | Healer | Corruption | Sorcerer |
Telekinetics | Burst Damage | Lightning | ||
Balance | DOT Damage | Madness | ||
Vanguard | Shield Specialist | Tank | Shield Tech | Powertech |
Plasmatech | DOT Damage | Pyrotech | ||
Tactics | Burst Damage | Advanced Prototype | ||
Commando | Combat Medic | Healer | Bodyguard | Mercenary |
Gunnery | Burst Damage | Arsenal | ||
Assault Specialist | DOT Damage | Innovative Ordnance | ||
Scoundrel | Sawbones | Healer | Medicine | Operative |
Scrapper | Burst Damage | Concealment | ||
Ruffian | DOT Damage | Lethality | ||
Gunslinger | Sharpshooter | Burst Damage | Marksmanship | Sniper |
Saboteur | DOT Damage | Engineering | ||
Dirty Fighting | DOT Damage | Virulence |
- Guardian: Defense, Vigilance, Focus
- Sentinel: Watchman, Combat, Concentration
- Sage: Telekinetics, Balance, Seer
- Shadow: Kinetic Combat, Infiltration, Serenity
- Juggernaut: Immortal, Vengeance, Rage
- Marauder: Fury, Carnage, Annihilation
- Assassin: Deception, Darkness, Hatred
- Sorcerer: Corruption, Lightning, Madness
- Commando: Combat Medic, Gunnery, Assault Specialist
- Vanguard: Shield Specialist, Plasmatech, Tactics
- Gunslinger: Sharpshooter, Saboteur, Dirty Fighting
- Scoundrel: Sawbones, Scrapper, Ruffian
- Mercenary: Innovative Ordnance, Bodyguard, Arsenal
- Powertech: Shield Tech, Pyrotech, Advanced Prototype
- Operative: Concealment, Lethality, Medicine
- Sniper: Marksmanship, Engineering, Virulence
Choosing a Species
Your Species and the way you look does not limit what Origin Story you can choose or how you can fight with your combat Style. Your species is a purely cosmetic choices, though if you choose to play an alien you may get acknowledged as one in the story.
If you are a brand new free-to-play player, you will notice you can only choose to play a Human, Cyborg, or Zabrak by default. If you are subscribed player, you get a few more options unlocked depending on what Origin Story you have chosen, for example, the blue Chiss species becomes automatically available to subscribed players who are making an Imperial Agent. There are various ways to unlock all the species for all classes available, so if playing a specific species is important to you, you can make it happen.
If you are subscribed player, you get a few more options unlocked depending on what Origin Story you have chosen, for example, the blue Chiss species becomes automatically available to subscribed players who are making an Imperial Agent.
There are various ways to unlock all the species for all classes available, so if playing a specific species is important to you, you can make it happen. With some work, all species can be playable with any Origin Story or faction.
Lastly, there are three premium species that can only be played if they are purchased from another player in-game or with Cartel Coins from the Cartel Market.