I may have gifted that companion a little pre 4.0 while the trooper was sitting in limbo at 11 or so. It was my first companion on her and I had a habit of gifting companions just for crafting even with the alts (I think the trooper just finished alderaan and is on to balmora), but I definitely noticed a difference on how fast my companions gained inf beyond that companion.
I don't remember where Trais falls in the story vs Balmora for pub vs imp at the moment.
The big problem I saw is the older companions/players are at a bit of a disadvantage regarding getting companion affection up.
That is what's annoying with those who already had rank 9 and 10 companions coming into the xpac, followed by this nerf. I would not doubt for those struggling with the rank 9 or 10 companion on alderaan, if they had a rank 20 they would have a significantly easier time. Older players are just not able to benefit from the pay off the newer players will see with the companions ranking up faster as they have completed all of those conversation paths while leveling already..
