SWTOR Huttball Strategy Guide

SWTOR Huttball Strategy Guide by Mandolor

I know the people that need to read this the most probably aren’t going to read this , But hopefully this guide will help some clueless people.

NUMBER .1 What is Huttball?

The Objective of Huttball is to get the ball over the goal line located on the opposite side of your spawn with a character from your team .

Hutball is NOT Team death match.

NUMBER .2 How can I be useful to my team in Huttball?

This is the section is very class specific , so I am going to attempt to do the impossible and cover ALL of the classes. I am mainly an Imperial so the Jedi terminology may be lacking.

1. Guardian/Juggernaut.

You are pretty much one of the best carriers in your team.

You have 2 leap inherent abilities.(Intercede/Inference)+(Force Charge/Leap)

Depending on your spec , You have many different roles .

Most people Understand how force charge works so I don’t want to insult your intelligence. Its situational usefulness however cannot be underestimated, If you notice someone standing near the endzone or setting up a pass . Leap to them and hopefully you can steal the ball.

Most games that I’ve played since I came back, Juggernauts/Guardians do not understand Intercede. Its not only good for leaping into the endzone if you happen to have the ball and don’t want to risk a pass , but if your healer is taking some damage , it might be a good idea to intercede to him/her.

In Shien Form , You have Unstoppable which makes you invaluable for leaping at enemies near the goal line and scoring the goal without being CC’ed.

In Soresu Form , You are the Tank , However be warned , this form should only really be used in tank gear most of the time for extra survivability. Even if you aren’t specced as tank this form can still be useful since its no cost is required to attain this form.

You should use this form to guard the ball carrier if there is no one guarding the ball carrier but please remember Guard has a 15m range (This Effect applies exclusively to damage transferred from the Person guarded to the Tank in PVP) , Don’t think you can put guard on that healer who happens to be carrying to ball and run off because the person carrying the ball will just get killed.

Shin-cho Form, This form has a few benefits despite the currently nerfed smash AOE, It has a third charge (Obliterate) . This charge while only 10m can be very useful in the right time. Force Crush can also be used to slow the carrier down considerably.

When it comes to defending / stopping the enemy ball carrier , you have several options. First thing you should do is try to CC their healer/carrier. You can force push the healer off the ledge, use intimidating roar or force choke him/her. If you happen to have enough spare rage or specced into it , try to use chilling scream as much as possible. If you are in Shien-Form , your ravage is a root and does not count towards the enemies resolve bar.

LASTLY AS A TANK USE TAUNTS SITUATIONALLY BUT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. This cannot be stressed enough . If you healer is getting hit . Taunt the guy hitting him/her. If the Carrier is getting hit . TAUNT. If you don’t get Protection as a Juggernaut/Guardian you FAIL.

I’m not going to teach Juggenauts how their cooldowns work because they probably take it as an insult.

General Role : CC Carrier/Healer. Protect Healer/Carrier. Carry Ball.

2. Sentinel/Marauders

I suggest reading the Guardian/Juggernaut section because there is a bit of overlap in terms of abilities.

Here is the No.1 thing that pisses me off about Marauders/Sentinels in Huttball.
NO PREDATION/TRANSCENDANCE 

I know this might be a horrible introduction but bear with me .

In the beginning of the match , scan if there are other marauders in your team .

Coordinate with them on Predation/Blood Thirst if there are multiple Marauders/Sentinels on your team.

IF YOU ARE THE ONLY MARAUDER ON THE TEAM IT IS YOUR DUTY TO USE PREDATION AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE.

For Juyo Form (Annihilation) , Its best that you spec into Rupture slow, Either that or be prepared to use crippling slash a lot on the enemy ball carrier. Your 6 second interrupt is pretty beastly for interrupting the hell out of healers.

For Ataru Form (Carnage) , Deadly Throw becomes a root so remember to always use it on the Ball carrier/ Healers. This advice is applied to all Marauders , Its just that for Carnage Marauders this is extremely important. Remember that Ravage and Deadly Throw is a root and you can effectively root the enemy in the fire pit/ slime if you have great timing. Please Remember to Channel Hatred before the match for Double Predations/Transcendance.

For Shin-Cho Form (Rage) , Essentially a repeat of the section above about Juggernauts.

Unlike Juggernauts you can’t Force Push, neither can you chilling scream or guard . Your utility comes in how you manage and use your stacks of Fury/Centering to adapt to the situation, If the Enemy has the ball and your team is attacking their carrier , Blood Thirst or Berserk is a great idea. But generally You need to cast Predation/Transendance to help your team.

A bit of an Ironic note but if you happen to put points into defensive forms and have about 20+ fury and no enemies around . Taking some damage from slime pools can help you get the fury you need to cast Predation and help your team.

Dual/Twin saber throw is a slow. ALWAYS USE IT. UNLESS YOU SEE YOUR TEAM FLASHBANGING/ FEARING THE ENEMY TEAM .

Manage your cool downs wisely. Rage Spec has an super short cooldown for Undying rage with the setbonus. This can come in handy at times. Learn to use force camouflage to run away when necessary.

General Role : Cast Speed Buffs and Ocassional Damage Buffs. Take out enemy healers/carriers and slow the enemy team down. Carry Ball If you can.

3. Assassin/Shadow

This is probably one of the toughest classes to cover. If you play this class in huttball. You are either a really big threat that needs to be taken out ASAP or a noob that can be ignored.

As with all stealth classes. You can stealth at the endzone of your enemy , just remember to decloak when the ball is about to reach you. Otherwise your team will get very mad. This strategy is often situational and dependant on whether your team has the ability to control the Center / Bottom of the field depending on which map you are playing in order to get the ball.

I’ll try to make things as simple as possible because its almost impossible to teach someone how to be a great Assassin/Shadow. But I’ll go over the basics.

If you are in Tank Stance , same as the juggernaut you can guard the carrier or healer mitigating some damage . Remember Guard has a 15m range.

In Tank Spec. Always use wither. Remember to place Phasewalk strategically for healers to benefit and always spike their healer(When they are casting)/ Carriers. If you have a great sense of anticipation you can use your pull to pull the Ball Carrier/ Their Healer/Tank into the Fire/Slime. Pulls can also be used to pull DPS off your healer/ Carrier or pull their Healer away from their carrier.

In Deception/Infiltration, You are basically the CC ninja . Try to burst their healers or carriers down and coordinate with another DPS. For example if a Marauder is ravaging a healer and you can CC the healer . Thats what you should do.

For Madness and Balance you are basically a DPS machine with some CCs. Use them if you can .

Remember that Overload can be used to knock people off ledges or into the Slime/Fire.

Phase Walk is pretty damn awesome. Learn where to place it so you can cover someone can teleport close to the endzone for easy score.

LASTLY AS A TANK USE TAUNTS SITUATIONALLY BUT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. This cannot be stressed enough . If you healer is getting hit . Taunt the guy hitting him/her. If the Carrier is getting hit . TAUNT. If you don’t get Protection as a Assassin/Shadow you FAIL. (I’m sorry I’m going to repeat this a lot but its necessary for most people)

General Role : Pull/Push People into fire , CC the Carrier/Healer. Carry Ball (Tank Spec ). Guard Healer /Carrier. Stealth at Endzone when situation allows it.

4. Sage / Sorcerer

Same as Assassins . Remember that Overload can be used to knock people off ledges or into the Slime/Fire.

If you are in Heal Spec, your job is mainly to setup a pull if you can. And heal the carrier. This means Getting slightly ahead of the carrier if possible. This is especially important if the carrier has no leaping ability.

If you are in DPS Specs , Target the Healer / Carrier. Use your interrupts as much as possible on the healer and force slow the Carrier.

Use Force slow if you can even in Heal spec.

One Important thing, I know you guys like to conserve force but even if you aren’t in heal spec , if you see the carrier in less than Ideal health. Toss a bubble or a heal . It helps and they will thank you for it.

“Always Pull the the Ball Carrier, regardless if you are healer or DPS. Also Sorcs/Sages should carry the ball only when they are within Force Speed distance of the end line.

Usually a tank will get the ball within that distance and then toss it to a Sorc/Sage who will then Force Speed into the end zone and score.

All Sorc/Sages should have Fadeout/Egress in their skill tree for Huttball so that when you can run away and avoid roots to get placed where you can either pull the ball carrier or be open for a pass to then Fadeout/Egress+Force Speed for a goal. (This is hard though because of no respecing in matches)”

-Contributed by KingDeathII

General Role :Target Heals/ Carrier. Support Carrier. Heal Carrier. Carry the ball if Desperate. Off heals if possible.

5. Mercenaries / Commandos.

This class isn’t really the most amazing huttball class. Feel free to disagree with me anytime.

But since Patch 2.0 , this class can be quite useful at certain times. Save your Electronet for the Enemy Healer/ Ball Carrier.

If you are in heal spec . Try to plant the Kolto Shells/Trauma Probes on as many people as your Resource pool allows . This can come in handy if the person you aren’t expecting from your team gets the ball.

If you are in Heal Spec you can try to get slightly ahead of the ball carrier. The only real time you should be carrying the ball is when you are near the endzone and have Hold the Line/Hydraulic Overrides,

Use your knockbacks at higher elevation to throw melee off.

Same with the Sorcerer , your main target needs to be their healer and ball carrier. Interrupt / Slow / CC them as much as possible.

General Role :Target Heals/ Carrier. Support Carrier. Heal Carrier. Carry the ball if Desperate. Off heals if possible.

6. Powertech / Vanguard.

Same as the Assassin just that you have an inherent pull . If you have a great sense of anticipation you can use your pull to pull the Ball Carrier/ Their Healer/Tank into the Fire/Slime. Pulls can also be used to pull DPS off your healer/ Carrier or pull their Healer away from their carrier.

If you Spec into tank. You get a Leap. Watch out for Vanguards/ Powertechs in Ion Cylinder. Don’t assume they can’t leap. Leaping has the same benefits as a Gurdian/Juggernaut/Marauder/Sentinel . You can intercept the ball and leap to an enemy to close distance . You also get a Pull with a root which is very beneficial for stopping the other team.

DPS Specs have the usual job of focusing down enemy healers/carriers and interrupting heals.

Like the all the rest of the potential tank classes. Switch the Your tank stance when appropriate if you are DPS and no one is guarding the carrier. If you are in tank spec ,guard the ball carrier/ healer.

LASTLY AS A TANK USE TAUNTS SITUATIONALLY BUT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE. This cannot be stressed enough . If you healer is getting hit . Taunt the guy hitting him/her. If the Carrier is getting hit . TAUNT. If you don’t get Protection as a Assassin/Shadow you FAIL. (I’m sorry I’m going to repeat this a lot but its necessary for most people) (Last time I’m repeating this sorry)

7. Scoundrel/ Operative

You have some ball carrying ability but not as great since they nerfed the roll.

Try to use your rolls wisely . Remember you can’t roll through slime. If you can time 2 of your rolls to get into their endzone . Its perfect.

In Heal Spec you have quite a great potential as a ball carrier. Provided you have a team supporting you . With Evasion + Shield Probes , You can take a bit of damage and roll to the endzone. The counters are a lot of rooting abilities and CCs..

If an enemy Operative / Scoundrel has the ball. Bring him/ Her down ASAP. Root and apply CCs when possible.

You can also follow the ball carrier around as a support role and get ahead quickly for a quick forward pass.

The Two DPS Specs are personal preference . If you prefer to stay in steatlh and CC the enemy or use DoTs. But same basic principle, kill their healer/ carrier and CC/Interrupt their healer.

Use Sever tendon if you can even if you are in heal spec.

You can stealth in the endzone situationally but I would almost never recommend it for heal spec and you can be a mobile ball carrier for your team.

General Role :Target Heals/ Carrier. Support Carrier. Heal Carrier. Carry the ball if you can as Heals. Off heals if possible.

8. Snipers/ Gunslingers

I honestly don’t even know how to give advice for this class . Find a good place to set up and do some major damage to the enemy carriers/ Healers. You should only be carrying the ball If you are close to the endzone and you have your roll up.

Otherwise pretty much DPS. Slow the enemy team down with Legshot , Interrupt their healer. Always use Shattershot. Aim for the Carrier.

If you can set up a good position to knock the carrier off. Thats what you should do.

If you can control mid its a good idea to grab the ball early and pass it foward to your team.

For Marksman Sniper. Entrench + Speed Buff when you leave Entrench. Pop Entrench, catch the pass. Move to the enemy line while getting back in entrench if attacked… then roll through fire. And score.

General Role : Do Damage to Enemy team , Carry the ball when situation arises if that even happens.

NUMBER .3 Important things to look out for.

Cloaking or entering stealth/Force Camouflage and Force Barrier makes you lose the huttball. The ball will be automatically spawned in the center/bottom of the arena after about 2 seconds AKA Neutral ball.

Standing on top of where the ball would spawn will kill you the moment the ball spawns.

Getting killed by Traps without enemy intervention would result in Neutral ball .

Tossing it on the Ground will also result in Neutral Ball.

Getting killed by Traps with enemy intervention would pass the balls to the enemy.

Generally the ball would be passed to the person who dealt the killing blow to the enemy. This sometimes glitches and might not be true.

Bind The Toss Huttball Button to an appropriate key.

Magnetic Grapplers in the Quesh Map cannot be used by the Ball Carrier. However If a Sorcerer /Sage is escorting you , He/she can use the Grapplers and pull you from the 2nd Floor.

NUMBER .4 Feedback

I’m always open to feedback. I don’t claim to be the best at huttball or even moderately competent. In fact I just came back to this game after a year of absence. Marauders who never use predation are the ones who have driven me to use 1hour+ of my life to write this guide.

If you have any opinions I deem valid or feel like criticizing this guide because of inaccuracies I will amend this guide .

I just want to give a general overview of Huttball since I somewhat enjoy it.

Feel free to add your own advice so I may compile it.