Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 features many of the mechanics that experienced players would expect from an RPG: exploration, XP, and leveling stats that are specific to the individual needs of a player's build. With Knights of the Old Republic 2 being widely recognized as one of the best Star Wars games, it's no surprise that fans of the franchise would pick up this title for its rich Star Wars story.
In KOTOR 2, players may find themselves confused about the many abilities and skills that they have the option of leveling up and investing in. Out of the eight skills, there are some worth ignoring, and some worth taking time to bring them to their fullest potential. All of this leads up to creating the best experience in the galaxy far, far away...
8 Stealth
For the most well-rounded and story-oriented build, stealth is the least recommended skill to invest in. Although it warrants fun abilities, like The Force Camouflage, players must be in Solo Mode without their companions to utilize stealth. This ability can be earned by advancing a specific prestige class with the light or dark side choices. Movement speed is also notably slower in stealth until the Stealth Run feat has been selected.
Unlike other RPGs that feature stealth mechanics, KOTOR 2's stealth isn't worth the effort, since players are unable to respec their skills, putting many into stealth would just be a waste. Especially since enemies have an awareness check, which will most likely cause the player to be seen, and thus engage in combat.
7 Awareness
Awareness is a passive skill that is always active for the player. However, it works best when the player stands still to access the ground ahead. Awareness is mostly used to spot enemies that are cloaked or in stealth, or mines that are otherwise undetectable due to their camouflage.
Although mines might sound explosive and deadly, they don't exactly hit for a lot, which means that investing in Awareness often isn't worth it. Instead, players can invest those skills elsewhere, like in the Treat Injury skill. This way, if they are attacked by a mine, they can simply heal it off like swatting a fly, thus making awareness not worth the time.
6 Demolitions
Demolitions can be used for explosives, such as mines. If the player decides to play on an easy difficulty, they will benefit from demolitions, as the rank level is reduced by 5 to recover mines. Demolitions is only a useful skill for those that want to use mines, or just enjoy the XP that comes from disabling them.
By investing in Demolitions, players can set mines to better efficiency, as well as recover or disarm them. The player's rank determines the lethality and range of the explosive device they have placed. Some consider mines better as an item to be sold rather than used, since players will be battling with blasters, vibroblades, and lightsabers rather than mines.
5 Computer Use
If players want to experience the faithful droid T3-M4, they will need to invest in Computer Use for a minimum of rank 15 to fully upgrade the character. Computer Use is a good skill for players that want an alternative route into battle situations. It is mostly used to exploit the environment to take care of enemies, rather than going in with blasters and lightsabers.
Players will find computer spikes on their adventures, and these items can be used to splice computer programs. By investing in Computer Use, the player can disable or utilize gun turrets and flood patrol areas at a reduced number of spikes for every four points they invest. This can be useful for a smarter way of beating opponents.
4 Repair
Repair is a rather useful skill depending on what type of character the player wants to build. Repair can be useful when it comes to mechanical devices, droids, and parts. Certain items require more mechanical kits to repair depending on their difficulty. However, the Repair skill lowers this cost for every four points invested. This skill also acts as the droid version of Treat Injury, as the droid's vitality will increase upon using a repair kit.
Repair is worth the investment if players want to seek further exploration and different means of combat. It is also worth noting that Repair is a great skill if players want droids on their team. By upgrading to a 21 rank in Repair, players can fully upgrade T3-M4.
3 Security
It is advised that players experience their first outing into KOTOR 2 on the easiest difficulty. This is not only because the combat will be less challenging, but because of skill checks. If players are on easy difficulty, then the Security skill becomes better too, as fewer points are needed to fully utilize the skill.
Security is a skill to be invested in based on the player's needs. If they want to access more lockboxes, or rooms for alternative and secret routes, then Security is worth investing some points in, but not all. Instead of attacking lockboxes and doors, players can simply open them with the skill, since violence is a method of embracing the dark side.
2 Treat Injury
For newer players, Treat Injury should be regarded as an essential skill to upgrade. By using this skill, players can heal themselves and their companions constantly. This means they will spend less time knocked out of the battle, and more time being the one to knock others out of battle. Other party members can also learn Treat Injury, which could turn the player's team into a factory of unstoppable healing machines.
As the game continues and players further develop the story, they will encounter harsher foes. These foes can range from beasts, to soldiers, to even Sith. Players will want to achieve the height of their powers, something obtainable if they have Treat Injury as a resource for healing.
1 Persuade
The most important skill in KOTOR 2 is Persuade. Many RPGs have dialogue options, in which the player will be tasked with choosing a line of dialogue to say to another character. Depending on what they say, depends on the outcome of the conversation. Players will want to maximize their persuade skills so that they always have the best resolve and reward in dialogue options.
Through building up the Persuade skill, players will find themselves getting out of situations a lot more easily than they would without it. It can unlock special and secret dialogue that will be useful for quests, or just for finding more lore. Persuade is worth the investment, and most consider it mandatory in KOTOR 2.
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 – The Sith Lords is available now on Mobile, PC, Switch, and Xbox.